Compare And Contrast The Blitzkrieg Strategy

485 Words1 Page

Everyone has different strategies they use to try and resolve a conflict. However, these strategies sometimes don’t work out and result in needing improvements. This occurred after the trench warfare during World War 1 when Hitler used improved tactics in World War 2. During World War 1 Germany and France used the strategy of mile long trenches, which resulted in a 4 year long combat. When World War 2 began, Hitler tried to prevent the trench warfare method and thus the blitzkrieg tactic was invented.
The blitzkrieg tactic and trench warfare are very different due to the fact that the purpose of the blitzkrieg was to avoid trench warfare. Blitzkrieg means “lightning war” which, actually suits it quite well. The strategy used during the blitzkrieg attacks was to make the first attack the most powerful. It was made to be quick, and that helped the blitzkrieg succeed because it was based around the element of surprise. The blitzkrieg tactic was successful in catching the enemy off guard. The enemy never knew the attack was coming and it was too strong to slow down when it began. The blitzkrieg attempts to unbalance the enemy by making it rather difficult to respond to the quick changing front of the battle. …show more content…

These trenches were fourteen-thousand miles long and six to eight feet deep. This strategy wasn’t very successful as it went on for years. The trenches resulted in many deaths which usually lead to infections and disease spread throughout the troops. Some of these infections were deadly and killed more troops than the actual battle did. The trenches favored the defender because they just sit in the trenches since there is no need to push on the enemy trenches. The enemy has to send soldiers down through no man's land where most will get shot down by soldiers firing from the defender's trenches or by artillery fire.The trench warfare was not the best strategy at the

Show More
Related

  • TRENCH WARFARE

    1362 Words  | 3 Pages

    The First World War saw a new form of warfare known as Trench warfare which involved trenches which were deep long dugouts made by the soldiers that lived in these trenches. The trenches proved useful as they protected the soldiers from artillery and bomb fire and were most likely situated in the eastern and western fronts of Europe. However the conditions of the trenches were far from exuberant but were in fact severely terrible. There was bad hygiene throughout the trenches, for example soldiers bathed probably only once a month and as such were prone to diseases such as trenches fever (which were due to the lice attracted by the bad hygiene). The weather was no exception as well, in the summer it would be too hot and in the winter it would be too cold and due to the nature of the trenches, when it rained the trenches would be filled with water, and due to such conditions welcomed the disease known as trench foot which was due to prolonged exposure to water and claimed the foots of many soldiers. There was also the constant danger of bomb fire and snipers would always be on the lookout for any movement. Latrines, which were toilets used in the trenches also sprouted fear as the enemy could see them in this area of the trenches and therefore were in constant danger of death. Soldiers also had to follow a strict code of conduct which was known as trench etiquette which ordered them to respect higher officers and they would have to be punished if the trench etiquette was ignored.

    Read More

  • Technological Advances in World War 2

    511 Words  | 2 Pages

    New techniques had to be used in WW2 because of the updated technology. Techniques such as 'mouseholing' and 'lightning warfare' were some of the new techniques used. Mouseholing is when the soldiers would blow a hole in the wall of a building and move through the building capturing the nazi soldiers instead of going out on the open street and getting snipered. Lightning warfare was used by the Germans and it was when planes were first sent in to a designated area and bombed the area and then the tanks would be sent through then finally the soldiers. This was done to take over countries and to get the country to surrender and clear the area out.

    Read More

  • Life on the Western Front During World War One

    2401 Words  | 5 Pages

    Life on the Western Front During World War One A dispassionate look at the numbers of the horrendous casualties sustained by the armies of the Allies and the Central Powers on the Western Front in WW1, clearly indicate that these casualties figures are far inferior to what might be anticipated if, indeed, total war had reigned in every location, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and along all the 475 miles of trenches that extended from the North Sea to Switzerland. A couple of simple examples will readily make the case. Imagine two front-line trenches separated by only 20 to 30 yards of ‘No Man’s Land’ (in some extraordinary situations, distances were even less). A determined and prolonged effort by a few hand-grenade bombers on either side could make any hope of a sustained tenancy quite impossible. Again, given the accuracy and rapidity which trench mortars could be deployed against routinely manned trenches (one battalion per 1,000 yards) and their associated dug-outs, a quite short, but determined, and mutually hostile, barrage could readily reduce both trench systems to total ruin.

    Read More

  • The Battle Of The Bulge: The Ultimate Downfall Of Nazi Germany

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    The battle of the bulge was the final battle to defeat Nazi Germany in Europe. Russia did not have actual soldiers in the battle however, it was their strong efforts that drove Germany west enough for Great Britain and the United States to attack Germany on two sides.

    Read More

  • The World War II: Air War

    1189 Words  | 3 Pages

    World War II was one of the deadliest military conflicts in history. There were many different battles that took place within this war; some more important than others. World War II began once Germany’s new dictator, Adolf Hitler, decided that he wanted to gain power for Germany and for himself. One of Hitler’s first moves in power was invading Poland on September 1, 1939. Many other countries became involved in this war because of the alliance system. The two sides during this war were the Allies and Axis powers. German, Italy and Japan were on the Axis powers; France, Britain, and the United States were on the Allies. Germany first began with the Blitzkrieg tactic meaning “lightning war”. This tactic is based on speed, surprise and was the most popular tactic. It is set up with military forces based around tanks which are supported by planes and infantry. The Blitzkrieg tactic lead to air wars with airplanes between countries. All of the countries were allowed to participate in the air wars but the four main countries were United States, Japan, Britain, and Germany. During the 1920’s and 1930’s airplanes grew in size and structure giving them more power, and making planes more effective. Planes made it easier to drop bombs, or plan attacks. All of these countries fought over air superiority. Air superiority is the position in which the air force has control over all of the air warfare and air power of the opposing forces. Germany began with air superiority but they lost it when Britain defeated them at the Battle of Britain. Gaining control over the air is a very big advantage because it is easier to plan an attack on an opposing country. All of the countries relied on their aircrafts during this war. The issue about the use of...

    Read More

  • The Failure of the Schlieffen Plan and World War I

    858 Words  | 2 Pages

    The development of technology made the trench more complex and difficult to breakthrough. A lot of new weapons were used in the trench warfare. First, there was a new weapon used called barbed wire. It was placed at the interval of each trench to protect the army from attack. It was so tough that nothing could break the barbed wire.

    Read More

  • Blitzkrieg

    692 Words  | 2 Pages

    The foundation of mobile warfare has its roots in Ancient and Medieval World. The German Army late in World War I initially developed basic tactics that eventually evolved into modern mobile warfare. Germans developed those tactics in an attempt to overcome the static trench warfare on the Western Front. Elite "Sturmtruppen" infantry units were created to attack enemy positions using the momentum of speed and surpass but eventually failed because of the lack of mobility and support needed in order to continue advancing further into enemy controlled territory. During 1920s, British military philosophers Captain Sir Basil Liddell Hart, General J.F.C. Fuller and General Martell further developed tactics of mobile warfare. They all postulated that tanks could not only seize ground by brute strength, but could also be the central factor in a new strategy of warfare. If moved rapidly enough, of tanks could smash through enemy lines and into the enemy's rear, destroying supplies and artillery positions and decreasing the enemy's will to resist. All of them found tank to be an ultimate weapon able to penetrate deep into enemy territory while followed by infantry and supported by artillery and airfare. In late 1920s and early 1930s, Charles De Gaulle, Hans von Seekt, Heinz Guderian and many others became interested in the concept of mobile warfare and tried to implement it in an organizational structure of their armies. Heinz Guderian organized Panzers into self-contained Panzer Divisions working with the close support of infantry, motorized infantry, artillery and airfare. From 1933 to 1939, Germany was on a quest to fully mechanize their army for an upcoming conflict.

    Read More

  • World War I : Trench Warfare

    1461 Words  | 3 Pages

    After the periods of major industrial breakthroughs, new technologies came around, which made the way war was fought much more complex. This included “rapid-firing rifles, improved explosives, incendiary shells and tracer bullets,” as well as airplanes that dropped bombs, new machine guns, and poison gas. These new advancements augmented the killing capacity of both enemies. They needed to utilize and map out new fighting strategies to compensate for the new weaponry. Because of this, they needed more time to think about attacks and raids and also conserve the amount of soldiers ...

    Read More

  • The Battle of France

    2520 Words  | 6 Pages

    Blitzkrieg used speed and surprise along with highly concentrated tank corps, supported by mechanized infantry and airplanes. Warfare is in a state of transition. Older commanders and generals in the French and British militaries were very cavalry and infantry focused. These commanders believed that cavalry, infantry, and artillery would assure victory in any circumstance, against any foe. They clung to the static tactics of the bygone World War I era.

    Read More

  • The Role of the Royal Air Force in World War II

    1107 Words  | 3 Pages

    Following the devastation of trench warfare during World War I, early airpower theorist believed strategic bombing could be the new way to win wars and reduced the number of lives lost. Theorist like, Guilio Douhet, Hugh Trenchard, and William “Billy” Mitchel became pioneers and advocates of strategic bombing. They believed striking the enemy’s troops, war-marking industry, and vital centers would produce a decisive victory. The airpower theory would be a key element to the Allies strategy in Second World War (WW2). Leaders in Britain and the United States believed Germany was a greater threat than Japan. Thus, the airpower strategy of the European theater of operation became the primary focus. Allied airpower was decisive in the European theater of WW2. The combination of strategic and tactical airpower produced the defeat of the Luftwaffe and the Third Reich.

    Read More

  • How Did World War 1 Use Trenches

    299 Words  | 1 Pages

    World War 1 start July 28, 1914 and end in November 11, 1918. The war involved the whole nation in the world. The trenches only a few of army were inside it, it was the most dangerous places to be in during the war. Behind the trenches their were many supplies like training establishments,stores, workshops, headquarters, food, water, and guns supplies. That’s where most of the army was were employed during the war. The trenches were there because they were the domain of the infantry, with the supporting arms of the mortars and machine-guns, the engineers, the medics and the forward positions of the artillery observers and others. The main reason why they used trenches was because they could be protected from powerful enemy artillery and small

    Read More

  • The Defeat of German in World War Two

    2995 Words  | 6 Pages

    During the early stages of the war, most of Germany’s victories were because of the success of blitzkrieg, or lightening war. Blitzkrieg tactics emphasised mobility and the concentrated use of armour and air power to overwhelm an enemy. Blitzkrieg was especially successful in flat, open countryside and was supremely suited for the Polish campaign in 1939. It was with blitzkrieg, as well as Germany’s superior tactics, effective use of armour, airpower and modern equipment, plus with the support of the USSR that the Germans used to overwhelm Poland in only 5 weeks. Two days after the German troops entered Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Hitler did not want this because it was a distraction from his main aim, to attack the USSR.

    Read More

  • Battle of the Somme

    1174 Words  | 3 Pages

    Trench warfare became a common practice in World War One, leading to a war of attrition. Both the Allies as well as the Germans enacted similar basic defense strategies and dealt with many of the same debilitating trench conditions. Trenches were built in an elaborate networking system, with three major sections, the front lines, the support, and the reserves. There was a rotation schedule for soldiers in the trenches, so that each regiment served time at the front lines. Trench conditions were horrendous including rodent infestation as well as unsanitary living spaces; many were infected with diseases such as trench foot with most trenches were filled with dead corpses for weeks after they were first killed. Defense mechanisms included creating dense fields of barbed wire in No Man’s Land, between the enemy trenches, in order to prevent an attack on the trench. Trench sanitation and defense were not the only reasons for the stalemate connected with World War One. The weather played

    Read More

  • Trench Warfare In The Trenches Essay

    507 Words  | 2 Pages

    Infantries could spend months in a disease ridden, rodent infested trench. With watching your fellow soldiers die of disease, have their limbs rot off, and bombed many soldiers that survived ended up developing post traumatic stress disorder, which would not have been treated or diagnosed for many years following the war. Survivors would most likely have many health problems to try to fix after the war ended in 1918. Trench warfare was created to help protect soldiers, but with disease and the harsh conditions of the trenches it may have harmed the soldiers more than helping

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Film War Horse

    1373 Words  | 3 Pages

    The First World War introduced a new type of warfare. New weapons were combined with old strategies and tactics. Needless to say, the results were horrific. However, a new type of warfare was introduced: trench warfare. In the movie War Horse, the character that owned the horse originally while he worked on his farm, Albert Narracott, finally was old enough to join the army. His first sight of battle was the Battle of Somme which took place in France near the Somme River. During this battle, the British troops start out in trenches, which were pretty much tunnels dug strategically to avoid gunfire. The soldiers would wait until they were told to advance, and they would run from one trench to the next. Trenches and the area between trenches were muddy and the trenches themselves were poorly conditioned (http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/chapters/ch1_trench.html). Many of the soldiers who fought in trenches succumbed to a foot disease called trench foot and if not treated immediately, gangrene could infect the foot and an amputation would be necessary for survival. Commanding officers ordered one or t...

    Read More

More about Compare And Contrast The Blitzkrieg Strategy

Open Document