Before I start, I would like to introduce myself as Tres, and this is my first TL.
I would also like to thank Anaxagoras for his Rule Britannia TL, which was the inspiration for my own Eastern Front TL, which I present below.
August 1914
World War 1 has begun. The German Army sweeps into Belgium and France, occupying most of Belgium within days. Austro-Hungarian soldiers invade Serbia, prompting Russia to intervene. Germany waits for Russian attacks against East Prussia. Attacks that will never come.
POD Russian Army division allocations:
10 infantry and 4 cavalry for defense of Baltic Sea and Poland
60 infantry and 20 cavalry for attacks against Austria-Hungary and against Balkan enemies
20 infantry and 5 cavalry to be transported from Siberia to create reserves for offensive armies.
(source: Wikipedia for OTL allocations)
(With this POD, the Tsar gambles that Germany will follow the Schlieffen Plan to the letter and that France and Britain hold, allowing for Russia to concentrate against Austria-Hungary and Silesia)
Eastern Front - 1914
Russia opens up the Eastern Front by a massive invasion against Austria-Hungary in Galicia and against Germany in Silesia, while Austria-Hungary attacks Serbia. Russia quickly occupies most of Galicia north of the Carpathian Mountains. The southern portion of Silesia is also taken, allowing for encirclement of Krakow. Krakow falls to Russian forces in September as the German army counterattacks in Silesia, retaking most of its land. Events on the Western Front however, demand that units of the 8th Army be redirected against the French and British to continue the invasion and hopefully take Paris. The Carpathian Mountains are crossed (with a heavy loss of life, as the Austro-Hungarian army has them well fortified) in October, but the Russians cannot sustain an attack into Hungary, so they are content with holding Galicia and parts of Czechoslovakia for now. The Russians dig in for the winter, the front stretching from the Romanian border to southern Silesia. Trench warfare dominates the Eastern Front for the winter.
Western Front - 1914
On August 4, the German Army, in accordance with the Schleiffen Plan, send most of their army into Belgium and France. By September, Belgium has almost completely fallen and half of France northeast of Paris is occupied by Germany. The German advance toward Paris is stopped at the Battle of the Marne. Both Germany and France begin the Race to the Sea, reaching the sea at Nieuport. In September, the German Army, strengthened by divisions from East Prussia, are assembled in Flanders to make a breakthrough against the British at Ypres. The assault begins on October 1. The Battle of Ypres is a success for the Germans, who push the front back about 15 miles on the coast. All remaining land in Belgium is taken. Dunkirk is briefly taken, but recaptured by the Royal Navy and fresh British troops. The Western front stabilizes. The front would remain almost unchanged through the winter of 1914-1915.
1914-1915 - Europe Prepares for the Long Haul
The war in Europe has ground to a halt by November, and all the fighting nations in Europe beef up their supply lines, communication networks, and, most importantly, their army and navy sizes. Germany holds a line in France from just east of Dunkirk to the Swiss border, and Russia holds a line just south of the Carpathian Mountains from Bohemia to the Romanian border in Bukhovina. Over 10 million young men are drafted into European armies during the winter, with Russia and Germany conscripting the most men. Russia and Britain begin to bring troops from the farthest reaches of their empires, with hundreds of thousands of Siberian soldiers manning trenches in Galicia and British, Canadian and ANZAC soldiers readying for an attack against the Ottoman Empire for the spring of 1915. Germany begins its naval policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, and Britain begins a blockade of Germany and sends ships into the Mediterranean. The Balkan nations of Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, and Albania profess neutrality, but they know that neutrality can only last if Russia and AH remain locked in a stalemate. Russia also prepares an army in the Caucasus (of mostly conscripted men and Siberians) to march against the Ottoman Empire in a double attack against the Ottomans with the British who will attack Gallipoli to take Constantinople. The slaughter of 1915 is ready to begin
Will continue to edit soon.... Thanks Wiking!