German and French forces clashed in a series of brutal battles in northern France and Belgium, marking the beginning of the Race to the Sea, a frenzy of military maneuvers that would shape the Western Front of World War I. The German army, under the command of Erich von Falkenhayn, had been pushing westward, hoping to outflank the Allies and capture the French ports. Meanwhile, the French, led by Joseph Joffre, and the British Expeditionary Force, under the command of John French, were racing to respond. As the two forces clashed, the war of maneuver gave way to a war of attrition, with both sides digging in for the long haul. The Race to the Sea would ultimately lead to the devastating trench warfare that would characterize the Western Front for the next four years.