The Long March to Victory

The Russian Revolution

The United States Enters the War The United Kingdom's control of the seas during World War I caused serious problems for Germany. The British navy blockaded German waters. This prevented supplies from reaching German ports. By 1916, Germany suffered a shortage of food and other goods. Germany combated British sea power with its submarines, called (Untersee) U-boats. In February 1915, Germany declared a submarine blockade of the United Kingdom and Ireland. It warned that it would attack any ship that tried to get through the blockade. Thereafter, U-boats destroyed great amounts of goods headed for the United Kingdom.

On May 7, 1915, a U-boat torpedoed, without warning, the British passenger liner Lusitania off the coast of Ireland. Among the 1,201 passengers who died, 128 were Americans. The sinking of the Lusitania caused U.S. President Woodrow Wilson to urge Germany to give up unrestricted submarine warfare. Following the sinking of an unarmed French boat, the Sussex, in the English Channel in March 1916, Wilson threatened to sever diplomatic relations with Germany, unless the German government refrained from attacking all passenger ships. Also, Germany had to allow the crews of enemy merchant vessels to escape from their ships prior to any attack. On May 4, 1916, the German government accepted these terms and conditions in what came to be known as the "Sussex pledge."

By January 1917, however, the situation in Germany had changed. During a wartime conference that month, representatives from the German navy convinced the military leadership and Kaiser Wilhelm II that resuming unrestricted submarine warfare could help defeat Great Britain within five months. German policymakers argued that they could violate the "Sussex pledge," because the United States could no longer be considered a neutral party after supplying munitions and financial assistance to the Allies. Also, they believed that the United States had jeopardized its neutrality by acquiescing to the Allied blockade of Germany.

The Germans resumed unrestricted submarine warfare, and also had secret negotiations with Mexico to possibly invade the United States. Once the U.S. learned about this, they joined the war against Germany Th e United States would enter the war on April 6th, 1918.

The Hundred Days, 1918 In 1918, the tide of the war finally began to turn in the Allies favour. The anti- submarine campaign had won control of the seas. The British blockade of Germany was slowly starving that country of food and the raw materials needed for war. With the entry of the United States, the Allies now had a powerful, fresh member in their alliance. Soon American troops and supplies were pouring across the Atlantic.

After one last offensive in 1918, Germany began suffering great losses. Canadian forces participated in a sweep known as the Hundred Days that finally broke the back of the German military effort.

British Tank. Improved tanks were instrumental in bringing an end to the War.

On August 8, 1918, Canadian forces supported by tanks and aircraft smashed into German lines. The Allies drove ahead for 13 kilometers, a far cry from the earlier gains of 91 meters at a time. German officers called it "the black day of the German army".

For six weeks, Canadians served as the leaders of the 130 kilometers Allied advance. It was to be the last great offensive of the war. Canadians seized 31,527 prisoners, 623 artillery pieces, and 2842 machine guns. These gains were paid for with blood: casualties.

On November 11, 1918 the war ended at 11:00 am, but fighting continued right until the last minute before the armistice went into effect. The cost of the war was staggering in human terms. Canada had sacrificed 66,655 dead and 173,000 wounded.