Total War! Warfare of World War I

II. Warfare How did new technology affect the warfare? What was trench warfare and No Man’s land? Why was WWI called the war of attrition?

Fighting a World War Many thought it would be a short war, no preparation was taken for winter. The Central Powers tried to move quickly, but were pushed back by the Allies outside of Paris. The Schliefflen Plan (fails) Great Britain joins the war to stop Germany Russians pushed on Germany and Austria- Hungary from the east. The Central Powers found themselves fighting a “two-front” war, a Western Front and an Eastern Front

New Techniques of Warfare New weapons such as the machine gun, poison gas, and the tank made this war look like no other. Trenches were dug to protect soldiers from these terrible new weapons. A No man’s land was created between trenches of enemy countries. Little land was won or lost during this trench warfare.

Poison Gas

Machine Guns

Barbed Wire

Krupp’s “Big Bertha” Gun Heavy Artillery Krupp’s “Big Bertha” Gun

U-Boats

Submarine Warfare

War planes

Clockwise from upper left: German zeppelin, French soldier fitting gas mask, German tank, water cooled machine gun, English field gun shell

Tanks!

Multi-Front War

Western Front Trench Warfare

Trench Warfare Stalemate -- Deadlock in which neither side is able to defeat the other.

No Man’s Land -- area of land between two enemy trench systems

Causalities Verdun – February, 1916 German offensive. Each side had 500,000 casualties. Somme – July, 2016 60,000 British soldiers killed in one day. Over 1,000,000 killed in 5 months.

Total War – Using all of a country’s human, economic, and political resources to win. Human Example: Conscription – “The Draft” Economic Example: Rationing – using less food and materials at home Economic Warfare – Blockades – military strategy to cut off supplies or communication. British navy prevents goods from reaching Germany – thousands of civilians die of starvation German blockade uses U-boats – prevent supplies from reaching Britain

The Sinking of the Lusitania 7 May 1915 German U Boat torpedoed the ship1,198 and leaving 761 survivors British liner

German propaganda showing the sinking of the Lusitania

What new weapons and technologies were used in WWI? How did these new technology affect the warfare? What was trench warfare and No man’s land?