WORLD WAR I Major Rascon Edited by Mr. Pineaux

LEARNING OBJECTIVES Be familiar with timeline and key events of WWI Describe the Schlieffen Plan Describe how trench warfare evolved from early part of the war through the German offensive in 1918

Background Numerous “limited wars”, but no dramatic developments between American Civil and First World Wars 1870 Prussia defeats France Both sides (especially French) learn the same lessons America learned in Civil War Rifles mandate a change in tactics Breach loaders facilitate fire and movement Railway/Telegraph is key to victory French bitter over loss of territory

OVERVIEW 65 million combatants from 30 countries representing every continent 29 million become casualties Naval battles around the world and land battles in Europe, Africa, and Asia Triple Alliance = Germany, Austria, Italy +Turkey + Bulgaria - Italy = Central Powers Entente Cordiale = Britain, France + Russia + Italy + (later) US = Allied Powers Revolutionary technology, but evolutionary tactics

ROAD TO WAR Or Causes Germany, Italy, Russia, Austro-Hungary all fairly recently “unified” with significant internal unrest i.e. “Nationalism” Germany seeks new markets/prestige of colonies Or no new colonies Massive arms race Multiple and extensive entangling military alliances

1914 June 28, 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, assassinated in Sarajevo, Serbia July 28 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia August 1 Germany declares war on Russia August 3 Germany declares war on France August 4: Germany invades neutral Belgium August 4 Great Britain declares war on Germany in response to German invasion of Belgium

1914 Late August: Germany achieves victory on Eastern front “Battle of Tannenberg” Sept: 1 st Battle of the Marne halts German invasion in France Sept: 1 st trenches on Western front are dug

1915 January 19, 1915 German Zeppelins bomb civilians England “total war” February 4 Germany declares submarine blockade of England. All ships approaching England are targeted April 22-May 5: 2 nd Battle of Ypres, 1 st use of chemical weapons

1915 May 7: German Uboat sinks passenger ship Lusitania killing 1200, 123 are Americans May 23: Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary August 30: Germany ceases unrestricted submarine warfare

1916 Feb. to Dec. longest battle of WWI, Battle of Verdun, a draw, over a million casualties July to November Battle of the Somme estimated one million casualties; no breakthrough for the Allies

1917 February 1, 1917: Germany again declares unrestricted submarine warfare April 6: The United States declares war on Germany July 6: British officer T.E. Lawrence and Arabs capture Aquaba July to November: 3 rd Battle of Ypres, or Passchendaele, still no breakthrough

1917 November 7: Russian Bolsheviks led by Lenin overthrow Russian government December 3: new Russian government signs armistice with Germany Russia drops out of WWI freeing up 1000s of German troops

1918 January 8, 1918 U.S. President Woodrow Wilson States 14 points as way to ending WWI Fighting intensifies before U.S. forces arrive in France

1918 August 8: Allied counteroffensives on Somme push back German army September 29: Allied troops break through German fortifications at Hindenberg line Germany seeing defeat negotiates for terms November 11: At eleven o'clock on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, the fighting ends.

Schlieffen Plan Germans want to finish off French before Russia is ready to fight Germans believe French will immediately try to retake Alsace-Lorraine Original plan called for economy of force on the left while heavily weighting the right flank Von Moltke revised and distributed forces more evenly across the front Plan failed when Germans were held up by Belgians, then stopped by French and British at 1 st Battle of the Marne Russians also mobilized more quickly than expected

STALEMATE Allies halt Central Powers; both sides dig in No flanks for either side to attack Barbed wire entanglements up to 150’ deep Neither side gains more than 10 miles in over 2 years Mass is supreme principle Massed assaults Massed fire

Western Front: Solid wall of wire and machinegun nests from the English Channel to the Swiss border

Trench Warfare Machine gun and artillery make it difficult to attack a trench Huge artillery preps make “No Man’s Land” virtually impassable Huge casualties for attackers

Trench Warfare Evolves Laffargue writes pamphlet; French publish, but otherwise ignore it; Germans acquire copy and implement Three group (squad) infiltration: Squad one finds and fixes enemy Squad two finds and exploits weak spots Squad three supports two and exploits breaches Strong points reduced later from rear/flanks Combined arms: grenades, machine guns, flame throwers in infantry squads Arty fires smoke, gas, HE to keep defenders’ heads down Maneuver warfare at the tactical level

Tanks Brits introduce in Sept 1916 Way to cross No Man’s Land with protection from machine guns Initially employed piecemeal and in too small numbers to be decisive Unreliable and slow

Submarines New aspect of “Total War” Targeting “neutral merchant” ships Germans announce submarine blockade Part physical, part psychological weapon Draws Allied resources away from offensive operations Civilian control of production Sinking of ships with US passengers is major factor in US entry into the war

Used initially for reconnaissance/spotting Wireless communication critical development in spotting Arial combat originally a counter- reconnaissance function By wars end, planes dropping bombs on railways, factories and supporting ground forces with machine gun fire Aviation “Red Baron” Baron Von Richthofen 81 confirmed kills

“Jenny” JN-4

Spad Spad XIII Specifications: Wingspan: 27’ 1” Length: 20’ 6” Engine:. 8 cylinder V 220 hp Max. Speed: 135 mph

Treaty of Versailles  Big 4 meet in Paris: R to L – Woodrow Wilson U.S. – Lloyd George of Britain – Orlando of Italy – Clemenceau of France  Signed June 28, 1919  Ended War  re-established boundaries for Germany