HIST 1115 Lecture Notes - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Erich Ludendorff, U-Boat
Fighting the Great War
Popularity of war
Countries often persuaded their people into they were fighting a defensive war
oOften to encourage the people to aid in the fight
Typically,during the war countries were unified in fighting the enemy, even
though in Britain for example people had been planning a general strike but they
stopped because of the war
War is very popular due to extreme nationalism
In Britain nearly 2 million men volunteered, they mobbed the recruitment offices
The workers and socialists go off to fight for their countries, stopping what they
stood for so for the time being
They thought the war would be over quickly, it happened over 4 years
Death toll was around 10 million
Stalemate
The stalemate on the western front does not really move for the whole 4 years
This is due to the Schlieffen Plan
oThey would try and surround the French army then circle back to get the
Russian army
othings do not go as planned
othe Belgians mobilize somewhat slowly
othe Belgians were told that any resistance would be punished
Ex. Louvain, burned down the library and sacked the city, took
Belgian people and sent them back to Germany to work
oNot enough to beat the army, but they slowed them down
oBritish mobilize, they do not stop the Germans but they slow them down
oGermans are losing men very quickly
oGerman army change their plan that they would not go AROUND paris,
but just to the east of it
oFrench troops meet them there and they have a battle
oMoltke gets the German army to turn around and retreat
The Western Front
They race each other to the Sea, because whoever got there would have
command of the channel
Both sides begin to dig trenches, but they hit water pretty quickly
They were essentially living in the mud
Neither side was stong enough to dislodge each other
The Germans get pretty deep into French territory, but they never get deeper
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The Germans underestimate their enemies
Germans thought thought up a strategy
oThey would pour a LOT of men into one battle
o150,000 soldiers die in total
o1916
othe French are now purely defensive
othey lost so many of their reserves from this
othey had to make the decisions to use submarine warfare
The British are trying to open a new battle front
Battle of Somme
o20,000 men die within the first hour of war
othey use mustard gas
Battle of Passchendale
Kitchener determined that it was going to be a long war
oHe decided that they should therefore be thrifty
oCheap boots, not enough sand bags, etc.
The western front is where the war will be where the war will be determine
The Eastern Front
The Germans figured the Russians would be a softer Target
Russians mobilize very quickly
The Russians get some victories early in the war
The Germans pushed back very hard
The Russians prevailed in Austria-Hungary
oThey thought that Russia was double crossing them
Germany is bearing the brunt of the Central Powers war
oBut they cant win a 2 front war
Attrition
Squandering resources
Who can outlast the other
The army are a resource
The allies are saving their men
It cost 3 times more to kill a German than it took to kill someone else
Machine gun, artillery, barbed wire,
It was hard to make any land gain because of the machine gun, barbed wires,
mines, grenades, etc between the 2 trenches
Soldiers had never been prepared for this, medics didn’t know how to fix the
wounds etc.
No mans land became a term used to refer to the space between the opposite
side’s trenches
Shell shock became a common condition (PTSD)
French Mutiny
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Countries often persuaded their people into they were fighting a defensive war: often to encourage the people to aid in the fight. Typically,during the war countries were unified in fighting the enemy, even though in britain for example people had been planning a general strike but they stopped because of the war. War is very popular due to extreme nationalism. In britain nearly 2 million men volunteered, they mobbed the recruitment offices. The workers and socialists go off to fight for their countries, stopping what they stood for so for the time being. They thought the war would be over quickly, it happened over 4 years. The stalemate on the western front does not really move for the whole 4 years. This is due to the schlieffen plan: they would try and surround the french army then circle back to get the.
