EN
The growing antagonism between Germany, Austro-Hungary, and tsarist Russia was the reason why already since the 1870s the general staffs of the three powers prepared war plans which were to be realised in the territory of partitioned Poland. The article presents the military and mobilisation potential, the organisation structure of the armed forces, and the evolution of the war plans of Germany, Austro-Hungary and Russia, with special attention to the period directly preceding the outbreak of the war. The author criticises the German plan, which envisaged an attack against France across neutral Belgium, as well as the Austro-Hungarian plan of a simultaneous offensive on the Russian and Serbian fronts. The initial plans drawn up by Germany and Austro-Hungary are perceived as one of the main reasons for subsequent wartime defeat.