Eastern Front – Central Power Weak point strategy.
1914- AUG- Russian’s sudden unexpected invasion of eastern Prussia.
General Hindenburg moves against Russ and crushes them at Masurian Lakes.
Russia forces Austrians out of Eastern Galacia.
Russia army attacks on France at cost of 1 mil+ men took pressure off Br and Fr in West.
SEPT- Russian loses all Poland , Lithuania and Latvia Land.
1915
1916
Italian attacks on Austia costly failures.
June- Russian advance success but unsustainable.
Aug Romania joins Entente but defeated.
1917
March- PG of Russia continues war, Brusilov attacks Galicia. Attack driven back when Bolshevik rev in Nov leads to peace negotiations.
Russia surrenders in 1918.
Balkans front
1915
Jan/Feb -Britain looks to Balkans. Entente operation on Dardenelles to take Constantinople. First Brit landing in April- first operation abandoned as was 2nd- troops return Dec
Sept- Central Powers, Blugaria joined defeat Serbia.
DEC- Brit and Indians land at Basra, Persian gulf to protect oil supplies. Turkish forces besiege them and ultimately surrender in April 16.
1918
OCT- Brit forces defeat turks in Palestine and go nort to Damascus and Bierut. Sultan signs armistace 30th Oct, Bulgaria wants armistice 26th Sept.
Southern
1918-OCT Italians attack Austrians from Trentino front to Adriatic.
30th Oct win battle of Vittorio Veneto.
Others ITALIAN FRONT
1916 MAY – Austrians attack in Trentino.
1917 OCT Austro German attack on Italy in Caporetto. Saved by Br and Fr help.
KEY TURNING POINTS.
4th AUG-1914 Germany’s Schleiffen plan is adapted and halted due to Russia’s sudden attack in East. German advance in the Marne set back, making the plan impossible.
Oct 1914 German attack at Ypres ans Messines significant in G and Entent deveopling better defensive strategies in trenches: barbed wire, machine guns etc.
1915 considered year of WEAK POINT STRATEGY. Ie, battles on Western Front too costly, so commanders attacked enemy at weakest less damageable points.-> battls focus on Balkans and Italt.
1915 April Gas used for first time in G attack in Ypres.
1915 Britain seeks interest in Balkans, leaving French on West in stalemate. Britain attacks Dardenelles but fails to defeat Turks on both attacks.
1916-THE GREAT ATTACKS.
G attack in West in Verdun, Feb. Initial French losses huge but in end, G faced with double Entente attack. Br and Dr on Somme and Russ in Galicia. By end more Gs died than Fr, great losses.
Trench warfare in Somme, entente superiority- 10 day artillery bombardment. Severe losses- over 1mil men by end of summer without significant territorial gains.
Most significant events in this year took place on the Eastern Front. Initial Russian success.
1917- US ENTERS WAR, RUSSIA DEFEATED
April- Primarily, US siding Entente was insignificant.
March- Russian revolution, Prov. Gov undecided on continuing war, but launch offensive in July under Borisov, in Galicia. After failing to succeed, the Bolshevik revolution came to peace agreements and armistice in Dec.
1918
At start Germans positive as main enemy Russia gone. Entente on Western Front repulsed and Balkans had successful conquerments. Main fear was US providing Entente with materials. Germany must launch major attack on W.Front.
March- G attack against Entente under Gen. Foch, Fr. Initial G success in entering Entente’s line.
July- Entente hit back to what was called the “black day of G army in Aug.” Ludendorff wants to resign but Kaiser disallows.
Entente success on West Front allows Br to hit Central Powers in Balkans and East. Defeats Turks, move to Damascus and Bierut by Oct. Sultan signs armistice on 30th. Bulgaria same.
4th Oct- G and Aus want armistice on Wilson’s 14 Points. G failure to achieve war aims.
MILITARY TACTICs OF WW1
Naval warfare.
Britain and G invest mils in navy. I.e Dreadnoughts. 1914- G had 13, Br had 20.
Too risky to use naval fleet as defeat meant losing sea control and war itself. Only used one in Battle of Jutland 1916. After G losses of 11 boats, admirals decided on no more naval engagement. = Br gains!
SUBMARINE and unrestricted submarine warfare
G U boats threatened Br and damaged them economically by a submarine blockade to sink supplies, and also sink ships. Feb 1917 G’s unrestricted submarine warfare to starve Br into surrender. Fails, as Us aid Br and British escorted convoys reduced losses.
Blockade
1915 German submarine blockade and sink approaching ships to Britain with contraband supplies. Great controversy over G sinking Cunard Liner Lusitania as 1200 lives lost.
Br fight back over blockade by search and stopping ships before they entered N.Sea to blockade Germany. G could not easily do the same with
Trench warfare
- Use of grenades, rifles barbed wire, amchine guns in enourmous bombardments.
- Machine gun with barbed wire was a lethal defence method.
- By 1918, takes over took the machine gun and wire as the most effecting attack wespon.
- Generals concentrated more on the attack in battles, not so much the power of defences.
- Complex arrangement off trenches ig machine gun posts, dug outs and artillery.
- The scale of war was unprepared for.
Disadvantages of trench warfare-
Generals considered conscripts to be idle and underestimated their intelligence.
Allies unco-operative unitl summer 1918 at end of war. Br and Fr preferred to worjk with distant ally Russia instead of eachother.
Artillery bombardment.
- The most destructive method of mass killings and damage.
- Large artillery barges on land was the military method extensively used to break the trench system. In Battle of the Somme, Br battled with 8 days of artillery bombardment to cut through barbed wire and reach G trenches.
- Used for long range bombardment e.g. Germans fired shells at Paris from 120km distance.
- Development of modern mortars and the use of massed artillery barrages. Guns were used to fire shells containing toxic chemicals.
- Used more as a deterrent to the enemy instead of planning targeted areas.
Gas attack
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Chemical warfare ranged from disabling chemicals, such as and the severe , to lethal agents like and .
- Germans first used a mass gas attack method in Jan 1915 on Russia, but the desired effect was dismal as Russia was too cold.
- German army’s first killing agent was chlorine, produced by major manufacturing companies like I G Farben.
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Poison gas was used by the French in 2nd Ypres battle 1915.
- Killing capacity of gas was minor- accounted for 4% of deaths. Used more often as the war proceeded, became less effective immediately. But gas on the long term came to be a psychological weapon and acid slowly lead to lung damage and eventually death.
