Another crucial contributor to Germany’s loss was the extremely efficient naval blockade imposed by the British Navy in 1914. The British controlled the North Sea with their powerful naval force that consisted of Dreadnoughts, sinking many German ships which therefore cut supplies of food and raw materials like Nitrates, which were vital in making explosives for the German army and serving as fertilizers for German farmers. As a result of the blockade, German resources were severely depleted and rates of starvation and death soared. Official statistics attributed nearly 763,000 wartime deaths in Germany to starvation caused by the Allied blockade. To try and counter high death rates caused by starvation, the German government imposed strict food rationing, which proved to be inefficient. Back home, there was increased pressure on the Kaiser to end the war because there were simply too many people dying of starvation. Germany attempted to counter attack British naval supremacy and the crippling effects of the blockade in particular with the introduction of their ‘U-Boats’ or Submarines. The German Naval Command adopted a policy of ‘unrestricted submarine warfare’ in order to starve the British of their supplies. The Allied Naval blockade effectively meant that Germany could only import goods from conquered countries. Britain, on the other hand, could import goods from a worldwide market, and of course, many goods were lost due to U-boat activity. With the help of U-Boats, Britain came close to running out of stocks of vital material, including food at one point. However, the introduction of the convoy system for merchant ships with naval escort overcame the effectiveness of the U-boats. Overall, the effectiveness of the British blockade was superior to that of Germany and had a serious impact on the German home front and its forces. When the German troops broke through the British lines in 1918 they were dismayed to see the quality and quantity of British equipment and food that they captured. This had a serious demoralizing effect and caused them to seriously question German propaganda that had worked so well for Britain.
In frustration, the Germans made the timely mistake of sinking the American passenger ship Lusitania, which ultimately sealed their fate in the war. Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, in The World Crisis, directly attributes the German defeat in World War I to the sinking of the Lusitania. According to S.L.A Marshall in the American Heritage History of World War I, “the tide of world opinion began shifting against Imperial Germany, never to turn back". Initially, the U.S.A protested Britain’s decision to impose a naval blockade because it affected their international export market, but Germany’s decision to sink the Lusitania and issue the Zimmerman Telegram to Mexico made the U.S.A furious. It triggered them to change their allegiance to the Allies instead of the Central Powers. Their entry into the war can be seen as the decisive factor in helping the Allies achieve victory as it bolstered their forces with around 50,000 troops and replenished their resources to an extremely significant extent, allowing them to fight on and secure victory. It was also seen as the moment in which the Allies were saved.
At this stage, by 1917-18, Germany on the other hand had come to witness the collapse of her allies. Bulgaria, Turkey & Austria-Hungary all surrendered in the final months of the war, leaving Germany to fight alone. Throughout the war, Germany’s allies proved to be rather inefficient in contributing to the war effort and their collective surrender meant a cut off in supplies and resources for Germany, which were already scarce. Some believed that at the start of the war, Germany appeared strong enough to fight the entirety of the war on its own. Yes, they could have been aided with the help of resources and manpower, but a firm sense of leadership was required. The formation of the Allied Supreme Command towards the end of the war, led by General Foch, not only gave the Allies a sense of unity and purpose but it gave them the structural ability and coordination to overpower the Germans. On the other hand, General Ludendorff constantly looked for scapegoats and appeared indecisive when it came to making crucial decisions that could have saved Germany’s war effort. After all, Ludendorff was the one who gave in to the Kaiser and was faced with the task of convincing the Kaiser that the war was all but lost by 1918.
Therefore in conclusion, the most crucial and decisive factors that sealed Germany’s defeat in the war was the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, the extremely efficient naval blockade imposed by Britain, USA’s entry into the war triggered by the sinking of the Lusitania and the issuing of the Zimmerman Telegram, the collapse of Germany’s allies and the inability of her leaders to make crucial decisions. In the end, the Allies simply had more man power, resources and ability to force their opponent into a state of heavy defeat. Germany’s military plans had backfired and her allies had failed to support her right to the end. Poor morale and conditions had also led German troops into giving up hope in a war of attrition. These factors contribute to the fact that the various collective strengths of the Allies were crucial in overpowering the weaknesses faced by the Central Powers.
Bibliography
Text
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Tomkinson, J.L., Wars & Warfare, Anagnosis. 2005. Viewed 9th March
Sites
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Germany’s Loss in WWI, 2007. viewed 7th March, <>
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The Limitations of German Economic Mobilization in WWI, 2007. viewed 7th March, <>
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The Failure of the Schlieffen Plan, 2012. Viewed 14th March, <>
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Allied Naval Blockade of Germany, 2012. Viewed 12th March, <>