WWI Weapons, Timeline, and Postwar USA (Summary Notes)

New Weapons in WWI

  • Artillery dominated warfare: heavy artillery with a typical range of 13\,\text{km}.

  • The British fired 170{,}000{,}000 shells during the war; artillery barrages caused massive casualties and terrain destruction; shelling could induce shell shock even without direct hits.

  • Big Bertha: a 48\text{-ton} howitzer; fired a 2{,}050\,\text{lb} (≈930\,\text{kg}) shell up to 9.3\,\text{miles} (≈15\,\text{km}); required a crew of about 200\,\text{men}; 13 of these guns existed for Germany.

  • The Pool of Peace near Messines (a 40-ft / 12-m crater) was formed by a mine explosion containing 45\,\text{tons} of explosives.

  • Shell shock (PTSD) affected many soldiers; symptoms included diarrhea, sleep loss, muteness, tremors, and long-term disability for some.

Machine Guns

  • WWI saw the introduction of sustained machine gun use; up to 600\,\text{rounds/min}.

  • Mass casualties from rapid, sustained fire; on Day 1 of the Battle of the Somme, about 60{,}000 British soldiers were killed.

  • The Maxim gun (patented in the U.S. in 1884) weighed about 100\,\text{lb} and was water-cooled; it fired approx. 450-600\,\text{rounds/min}; most WWI machine guns were based on the Maxim design.

Tanks

  • Tanks were a British invention, initially seen as impractical.

  • First used in the Battle of the Somme; designed to break through barbed wire and cross trenches and to roll across the land.

  • Psychological advantage: looked terrifying to the enemy.

  • Early tanks had mechanical problems and sometimes moved too slowly; later models became more effective and boosted Allied morale.

  • During WWI, tanks were categorized as "males" (cannons) and "females" (heavy machine guns).

  • Little Willie (prototype, built in 1915) carried a crew of 3 and could travel up to 3\,\text{mph} (≈4.8\,\text{km/h}).

  • Initially called "landships"; renamed to "tanks" to disguise them as water storage tanks.

Poison Gas

  • Poison gas was used by both sides; first major use by Germans at the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915.

  • Chlorine gas was the first widely used poison gas; mustard gas later blinded or killed victims after several weeks.

  • France first used tear gas grenades in Aug 1914; Germany first used poisonous chlorine gas in Apr 1915.

  • Approximately 30 different poisonous gases were used during WWI; gas masks with filters became common by 1918.

  • Total gas usage: Germans (~68{,}000{,}000\,\text{tons}), British & French (~51{,}000{,}000\,\text{tons}); about 1{,}200{,}000 soldiers were gassed; about 91{,}198 died from gas.

Airplanes

  • Early planes were unarmed spotters; later aircraft fired machine guns through the propeller.

  • Development of 2-engine and 5-engine bombers; aviation contributed to the war effort, but planes did not play the decisive role seen in later conflicts.

  • The term “dogfight” originated in WWI due to pilots temporarily cutting engines to avoid stalling during tight turns; restarting engines sounded like dogs barking.

Submarines (U-boats)

  • WWI featured the emergence of submarine warfare, notably German U-boats.

  • U-boat operations focused on disrupting Allied shipping in the Atlantic.

  • Over the course of the war, 274 German U-boats sank 6{,}596 ships.

The Role of Animals in WWI

  • Over 16{,}000{,}000 animals served in WWI for transport, communication, and companionship.

  • Cavalry horses and camels were used in various theaters; on the Western Front, machine guns reduced the effectiveness of Cavalry charges.

  • Animals aided logistics: horses, mules, and donkeys carried food, water, ammunition, and medical supplies; dogs and pigeons carried messages; canaries detected poison gas; cats and dogs hunted rats.

  • Animals also served as morale-boosting mascots (e.g., Stubby the dog and Cher Ami the pigeon).

  • U.S. Army note: horses and mules were highly valued for their service; a plaque by the U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum honors their contribution and suffering.

The Great War Begins: Timeline and Alliances

  • 28 June 1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary assassinated in Sarajevo by a nationalist group (the Black Hand).

  • Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia; Germany backs Austria-Hungary; Russia mobilizes in defense of Serbia; Germany invades Belgium to reach France.

  • Britain enters the war in defense of Belgium; France and the UK join the Allies (Triple Entente) against Germany and its allies (Triple Alliance).

  • Belgium’s invasion brings Britain into the conflict; a chain reaction escalates into a full continental war.

  • Western Front stalemate from December 1914 to 1918 due to trenches, barbed wire, mud, and machine guns; large-scale offensives such as Champagne, Neuve-Chapelle, Verdun, Somme, and Ypres occur during this period.

The War Goes Global: The 1917-1918 Turning Points

  • The British blockade and the German U-boat campaign intensified shortages in Germany and Britain.

  • The United States enters the war in April 1917 after German unrestricted submarine warfare and the Zimmermann Telegram; initially neutral, the USA provides loans, equipment, and food to the Allies.

  • The Russian Revolution of 1917 removes Russia from the war, freeing German troops to move to the Western Front.

  • By 1918, Allied troops and resources overwhelm German forces; the German army retreats in the events leading to the Hundred Days Offensive.

  • Armistice signed on 11 November 1918; hostilities effectively cease, though fighting continued in some territories until late 1918.

  • The Treaty of Versailles imposes harsh terms on Germany, assigning sole responsibility for starting the war, demanding reparations, and redrawing borders; Germany loses territory and military capacity and is barred from joining the League of Nations.

The USA after WWI: Isolation and the Boom

  • 1919–1939: The United States adopts an Isolationist stance; the country hesitates to join the League of Nations despite Wilson’s efforts.

  • The 1920s boom: rapid economic growth driven by new industries and consumer goods; car production becomes dominant, led by Ford’s assembly line, with Model T (often called the Tin Lizzy) produced in black and widely affordable.

  • Car ownership expands dramatically (car per person metrics from the era illustrate the accessibility of automobiles).

  • Related industries (steel, glass, rubber, roads) grow in a ripple effect; promotion of suburban housing and new consumer goods (radios, refrigerators, cleaners, telephones) stimulates demand.

  • The “Second Industrial Revolution” era in the U.S. sees a shift toward mass production and new materials such as plastics.

  • Policies of the Republican administrations: laissez-faire economics, tariffs to shield domestic industry, low taxes, and tolerance of trusts (cartels) believing industrial leaders know best for the economy.

  • The 1920s also see a cultural and social shift: rising consumerism, urban growth, and an optimistic national mood about prosperity.

Underlying Economic Problems in the USA in the 1920s

  • Farmers suffer from overproduction and price declines; farm incomes fall from 22{,}000{,}000{,}000 to 13{,}000{,}000 (illustrative figures in sources).

  • Europe’s postwar conditions reduce imports of American farm products; tariffs and policy reduce foreign competition.

  • Older industries (e.g., coal, textiles, leather) decline due to competition from electricity, oil, and synthetic materials.

  • Rural population remained large (roughly 60\,\text{million}), with many affected families facing poverty and unemployment; about half the American population lived in rural areas.

  • Despite the boom, unemployment persists; the same level of employment is seen at the peak of the boom as earlier in 1920, even as production doubles.

  • Mechanization reduces job opportunities for many workers; a large share of the population does not benefit from the boom.

Social Problems in the 1920s

  • Xenophobia and the Red Scare heightened fear of communist influence after the Russian Revolution; government restrictions on immigrants (Emergency Quota Act of 1921).

  • The revival of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s targets Black people, Jews, Catholics, foreigners, and other groups; acts of intimidation and violence increase.

  • Prohibition (18th Amendment; Volstead Act) bans the manufacture and sale of alcohol; driven by religious and moral concerns and concerns about productivity and social effects.

  • Prohibition leads to illegal activity: bootlegging, speakeasies, and organized crime (Al Capone, Bugsy Moran) flourish; corruption weakens enforcement.

  • Prohibition ends in 1933; many associated social problems persist as the economy experiences further upheaval.

Assessment Focus (Key Takeaways)

  • WWI weapons radically changed battlefield dynamics: artillery, machine guns, tanks, poison gas, airplanes, and submarines each altered tactics and outcomes.

  • Logistics and technology, not only manpower, shaped the war’s outcome; naval blockades and unrestricted submarine warfare influenced participation of noncombatant nations (e.g., the USA).

  • The war’s end redefined geopolitics through the Versailles Treaty and the creation (and limits) of the League of Nations.

  • The postwar period in the USA featured a dramatic economic boom, followed by social and economic problems, including farming distress, racial tensions, immigration restrictions, and Prohibition.

Quick Dates to Remember

  • 28\,June\,1914: Archduke Ferdinand assassinated; chain of events leading to WWI.

  • 1915: Germany uses chlorine gas at Ypres; widespread gas warfare begins.

  • 1917: USA enters WWI; Zimmerman Telegram alleged; Russian Revolution begins.

  • 11\,November\,1918: Armistice signed; WWI ends.

  • 1933: Prohibition ends in the USA.