AHC: delayed Schlieffen Plan

Can Schlieffen (or more specifically a quick breakout and forced retreat of Entente forces to provide advantageous positioning for Central Power victory) be "delayed" until late 1916/early 1917, during/no later than the Turnip Winter?

Rules:

Wilhelm II cannot be "conveniently" killed by "very aggressive" throat cancer.

No earlier than 1 Jan 1908 can senior military staff be replaced from OTL. Moltke can be retired early through the use of "the human body and its many mysteries surrounding strokes."

Naval situation remains the same. Battle of Jutland occurs, but can be strategized to be more victorious for Scheer and perhaps avoid unrestricted sub warfare to avoid US entry.

Hard Mode:

No extra divisions at all from the east beyond OTL times and dates of division reassignment.

Rewards:

I might try and work on setting up an amateur study into combat ability for each army in the west for both French/BEF and Germany. Maybe. Probably not. Maybe.
 
Do you mean a big, successful offensive in the west during the war? Like the 1918 Spring Offensive?
Sorry for late reply. Yes, similar to the Spring Offensive of 1918, but in larger effect. Maybe a Somme offensive followed by a push to the ocean would be enough to push the French to the bargaining table, especially if the Oise was approached, and Pontoise could be a jumping off point for Paris.
 
The Verdun offensive was the big western offensive of the war, and despite it capturing some ground the situation in the overall war effort wasn't conducive to a breakthrough on the western front until 1918. Firstly the Eastern Front was sucking up too many troops, the Spring Offensive was the only time the Germans outnumbered the Allies on the Western Front since 1914. Secondly it wasn't until quite late in the war that the combatants learnt how to successfully break through the massive trench systems of the western front, the Germans by Stormtooper and Bruchmuller's artillery tactics and trying to make a wide but not as deep advance so that the centre of the advance was out of range of enemy artillery on the flanks. Te Allies did all this and added tanks.

In naval terms Jutland was part of a new strategy implemented by Scheer after a vert lacklustre 1915 under the command of the virtually defeatist von Pohl. There was the 'sharpened' uboat campaign, the raid on Yarmouth in April, Jutland in May/June, transfer of II destroyer flotilla to Flanders for a short time in July, fleet sortie in August and the transfer of 2 destroyer flotilla to Flanders in September followed the battle of Dover Strait in October. This was Scheer's Guiding Principles for Sea Warfare in the North Sea, approved by the Kaiser on 23 Feb, where the Grand Fleet should be pressured by higher U-boat activity and zeppelin raids as well as increased fleet sorties. The Grand Fleet would be forced to abandon the distant blockade and would have to attack the German fleet on German terms.
 
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