Changes in the doctrines and lessons learned processes in total war era, 1904-1940

This study discusses the adaptation process of the military doctrines to the modern warfare principles between 1904-1940. The First World War proved that the tactics of the military establishments which defined themselves modern wasn't in harmony with the contemporary weapon technology. This lack of harmony which was clearly visible in the battlefields of Russo-Japanese and Balkan Wars but ignored, made the tactics impracticable of armies which fought in the Western Front. No side imposed superiority one another because of this loss of efficiency and as a result of it, four years lasting war of attrition was arisen. This failure triggered a lessons learned period which was based on trial and error and a reformation process of the existing tactics. Consequently, this process resulted with an unique alteration and there was a serious gap between the doctrines of 1914 and 1918. Nonetheless, it can't be said that the reformation of doctrines process in the First World War is smooth. The invented solutions to the tactical problems which were faced in this compelling process weren't really satisfying. Only Germans had a considerable progress in this matter. However, their failure in the war was overshadowed their success in tactical inventions. After the war, Germans shaped their military establishment with correct assumptions while their opponets mostly shaped their's with unrealistic ones. As a result of it, Germans imposed a remarkable superiority to their enemies especially in the first two years of the Second World War. The German superiority had been started to diminish beginning from 1941, because of their mistakes and Allied success at reaching the tactical level of Germans in time. In the end, the long-lasting tactical unbalance was disappeared in the Second World War.