Background Following the assassination of Francis Ferdinand, all of the "Big 5" European countries were plunged into The Great War because of the intricate alliances set up by Otto Von Bismarck and other European political leaders. As the landscape of the war began to take shape, Germany set its Von Schlieffen Plan into motion. To eliminate the possibility of a two front war, the Von Schlieffen Plan stated that the Germany must swing through Belgium, and …showed first 75 words of 333 total…

…showed last 75 words of 333 total…trench-based warfare may have played a significant part in the war's casualties; ten to thirteen million people died and another thirty million were wounded in this war. Works Cited Bull, Stephen. World War I Trench Warfare (I) 1914-16. New York: Osprey Co., 2002. Duffy, Michael. First World War.com. 28 Nov. 2003 <http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/trenchlife.htm> Encyclopaedia of the First World War. 28 Nov. 2003 <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWtrench.htm>.