Alfred Von Schlieffen

Count Alfred Von Schlieffen was born on February 28, 1833 to a Prussian noble family. His father, Major Magnus Von Schlieffen, his mother, and the rest of his family grew up in an estate in Silesia. Schlieffen went off to school in 1842 and studied at the University of Berlin where he studied law. He became an officer after joining the military to serve his one mandatory year of service.

Halfway into his military career in 1868, he married his cousin Anna Schlieffen and later had two children. Shortly after the death of his wife, Schlieffen turned to his military duties as his first priority.

Some of Schlieffen’s notable service includes participating in the Seven Weeks War against in 1866 and in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. At the beginning of The Great War, he helped for The Schlieffen Plan which would have provided a quick end to the war by defeating France quickly and then focusing on the Eastern Front. The

plan ultimately failed when Belgium and the Dutch entered the war.

Schlieffen retired from the German army in 1906. He passed away on January 4th, 1913.