The Germans were forced back on the defensive that summer, under pressure elsewhere from the British-led attack on the Somme and Russia's Brusilov Offensive.The Germans and Austrians were much more concerned about the eastern front, because of the terrain. In the west the German forces and their allies would maintain their front with surprisingly few personnel, and when those large British/French offensives would begin, the Germans would give up the easy ground, typically with minimal losses, retreating to easily defended terrain and existing fortifications, dig in, and wait for the British/French assault. When the attack came, it was up slopes, against fortifications, across kill zones.
The Germans et al would prepare their counteroffensives over weeks or months, then shift resources piecemeal from other places, by rail, launch their operations just before dawn and after some period of time of massive artillery bombardment, finally engaging with superior infantry firepower, and sometimes superior numbers, as the Sun rose right in the eyes of the British and French. At that point, the Allies would attempt to resist, fighting on easy terrain, and losing men by the truckload. To this day, the fiction that the German losses were similar to British and French losses continues to be taught -- but if Germany had that level of loss in WWI, there wouldn't have been a WWII.
