WORLD WAR I 1914 -1918
FIRST BATTLE OF THE MARNE September 1914 French transport soldiers by 2000 taxicabs to the front line TRENCH WARFARE : 2 Lines of trenches reach from the English Channel to Switzerland STALEMATE: Neither French or Germans gain ground SCHLIEFFEN PLAN is a failure – Germany must fight a two front war
French Taxis to the Front
Trench Life
Trench Warfare
Going Over the Top
Charging into No-Man’s Land
The Western Front
Arial View
Battle of Verdun February – November 1916 War of Attrition – wear the other side down by constant attacks and heavy losses: 540,000 French casualties 430,000 Germans 700,000 French and German soldiers die
Remains of Trenches Today
The Eastern Front
The Battle of Tannenberg August 1914 Germans surround Russians Germans surround Russians Of the 150,000 Russian troops: 95,000 captured 30,000 killed 10,000 escape Russian General Samsonov kills self rather than report back to Tsar Nicolas
Tannenberg
Russian Prisoners
War Time “Planned Economies” Price, wage, & rent controls Rationing of food supplies and materials Regulate imports and exports Take over of transportation and industries Women move into “male” jobs
New Roles for Women
Allied Victory 1917 – U.S. Enters war Fresh troops and Materials Psychological boost
Second Battle of the Marne July 1918 140,000 fresh American troops supported by 350 tanks push Germans back over the Marne
Central Powers Collapse With the arrival of 2 million more U.S. troops, Allied forces advance toward Germany 1st – Bulgarians & Ottoman Turks surrender German soldiers mutiny Kaiser Wilhelm steps down November 11, 1918 Germany and France sign an armistice: an agreement to stop fighting
Legacy of WWI Technology brings war’s death and destruction on a global scale 8.5 Mil. Soldiers die 21 Mil. Wounded Countless civilians die of starvation, disease , & slaughter Drains treasuries of Europe $338 Billion Destruction of farms, industries, homes, villages, and cities