Britain=6000 Germany=2500
A new stream in technology was the next leap for the navies, this was of course the invention of the U-Boat. The U-boat was soon going to turn this war into a war of great tactics. This is of course the blockades.
2) I think that the war in the air was of minimal importance to the war but it grew gradually towards the end with new inventions. The first planes which where used in the war where constructed of canvas, wood and wire. These where only built for one purpose, this purpose was to spy on the enemy. They flew at minimal altitudes and were easy targets to the troops on the ground. These planes had no weaponry to protect them; they may have carried a handgun to fire at other pilots. Later on a French pilot invented a mechanism to enable pilots to have weaponry attached to their planes. This device shot bullets through the propeller. This enabled pilots to shoot their enemies. The airship was to be a new turn in technology but that to finally was replaced.
The war in the air started with very basic planes, which where constructed of canvas, wood and wire. This was not very thick or very strong. The aircraft flew at low altitude which meant that a troop on the ground could easily shoot the planes. These planes where mainly used for spying over enemy lines. The pilots found this very difficult because of the lack of instruments provided. There where no radio, radar or even cameras. The pilots themselves had a handgun to shoot at enemy planes, goggles, jacket and a scarf. All this was necessary to prevent the pilots from obtaining frost bite and many other illnesses. Some pilots would even use whale blubber to stop the cold. The pilots had no parachute which was a great problem. This shows how poor the technology was for these pilots. The idea of attaching weapons was a failure because the propeller would get in the way. The next idea which came afoot was the idea of dropping hand grenades and bombs from the aircraft. This was not as successful as the methods of today.
But a change was approaching, this change was the invention by a French pilot named Garros. He had invented a machine that enabled the pilot to shoot in front of them, using a machine gun mounted just behind the propeller. But the allied forces never took this idea seriously, until Garros and his invention where shot down over enemy lines and his invention was then used by the enemy. The allies took this idea once they had shot down an enemy plane and decided to produce all there aircraft with this same devise. There was one main problem with a device such as this one and this was the act of stray bullets hitting the blades, this problem was overcome by placing metal plates on the face of the blades. This gave way for the more skilled German pilot The Red Barron. In 1914 the German forces had an idea that was going to put an end to the war in one air raid on London. This was known as the airship. Named the Zeppelin by German forces. The devastating piece of machinery was 180 meters long with atop speed of just over 50-mph. This machine killed 188 people in 8 raids on London. This rigid airship was given its name because of the fact that it was pioneered by Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. This was the main weapon used against Britain up until 1917. These ships were never used against France but only used on the areas in Britain such as London and Dover. These airships were intended to be used as reconnaissance vehicles but then the war had broken out and the Zeppelin was used as Germanys secret weapon.
57% = London, Dover and Harwich.
20% = Greater Yarmouth Naval Base.
15% = West Coast.
8% = Aberdeen.
German airships travelled from bases such as Hage, Tondern, Fuhlsbuttel and Nordholz. These airships could travel many miles and if they ran out of fuel the Hydrogen would be able to keep them afloat long enough for help to arrive.
A new weapon was soon to place the airship with no hope of ever accomplishing mass destruction again. This invention was the AA gun, this was to prove capable of shooting down a Zeppelin at long range. Now the Zeppelin was useless. The British defences had flashlights, AA guns and aircraft. The German forces tried to fly above the 20,000 feet mark where aircraft and AA guns where useless. But the accuracy of the bombs was terrible. Gotha and Staaken bombers later replaced the Zeppelins, but the Zeppelin airship carried on its rain of terror until 1918.
I think that the war in the air had no real effect on the outcome of the war. I believe this because every wave of new technology such as the Zeppelin Airship was overcome by other more powerful weapons on the ground. Both Aircrafts and Airplanes became useless to both sides sooner or later in the war.
3) The home front was civilians that were living in Britain at the time of the war. The home front was mainly to help improve the morale of the soldiers on the front line and the people at home. To do this the British government made the civilians get involved in helping to defend their country. In order to ensure that everyone could perform these tasks an act was passed. This act would be known as DORA. (The Defence of the Realm Act.) Contained in this act were many rules for the people of Britain to live by. This act was passed in 1914, and in many ways this gave the government power to control the economic resources which were used for the war effort, imprisonment without trial was also used as an act and control the lifestyle of the citizens of Britain.
In some ways the Defence of the Realm Act (DORA), passed in August 1914, symbolises what the Home Front idea means. This gave government powers to commandeer economic resources for the war effort, imprison without trial, censor the printed or spoken word and greatly control a citizen’s life. As well as rationing, public house opening times were restricted. This was as much to keep the nation fit for long hours at work, as to satisfy Lloyd George's anxieties over alcohol. Pubs could originally open between 0530 and 0030 hours; this was amended to 1200-1430 and 1830-2130 hours daily
