Y9 MYE History

Austria Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 July 1914

Britain announced it was preparing for war on 3 August 1914

Triple Alliance : Germany, Italy, Austria Hungary

Triple Entente : France, Great Britain, Russia

Alliance - When two or more countries from a union and agree to protect each other from invaders.

Advantages of being part of a alliance : Protection from a bigger force and being able to get more aid if you are at war with another country.

MAIN was the causes of WWI

Militarism - Increased tensions in Europe because it created fear. Also started an arms race between nations.

Alliances - Alliances made sure that if war happened it would involve a lot of countries.

Imperialism - Increased tension in Europe because countries were competing for land.

Nationalism - Created tension between groups of people in empires as the tried to gain independence.

Men Volunteered because of 8 reasons -

1) Patriotism

2) Propaganda

3) Escaping prison or unemployment

4) Better Pay

5) Fear of the white feather

6) Glamour of the uniform

7) Peer Pressure

8) Short war; Should be over by Christmas

Conscription was introduced in the Military Service Act of 1916.

Military Service Act of 1916 was introduced in January 1916.

Military Service Act of 1916 was changed in March 1916 to extend to married men.

16 000 men registered as CO’s.

COs split into three groups: 1) Pacifists (Quakers) 2)Socialists 3)Absolutists

23,000 Women served as qualified nurses

80,000 women volunteered to serve as nursing assistants in the VAD

VAD- Voluntary Aid Detachments

WAAC - Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps

WRNS- Women’s Royal Naval Service

WRAF- Women’s Royal Air Force

WAAC were thought to be lower class

WLA- Women’s Land Army

WLA was created in an attempt to persuade women to work in farms

48,000 Women volunteered for WLA

100,000 Women served in the various sections of the armed services

Edith Cavell- German occupied part of Belgium

Number of farm workers fell by 260,000 during the war

Absolutists were stopped from voting until 1926

Germany had to fight the Battle of Marne on two fronts

Western front ran from the Belgian coast to the Swiss border

General Brusilov had success on the Eastern front in 1916

Turkey joined the war on the side of Austria-Hungary in November of 1914

ANZACS- British Australian and New Zealand Army Corps

Italy joined the war on the side of the triple entente in 1915

Italian front opened in 1915

GAS- German secret weapon used in 1915

Triple Alliance is made weak in 1916 because they are being attacked on multiple fronts which means they have to split up

TANK- British Secret weapon used in 1916

USA entered the war in 1917

Russia is out of the war in 1917

Bulgaria surrenders in September 1918

Turkey Surrenders in October 1918

Austria-Hungary surrenders on November 4 1918

Germany surrenders on November 11 1918

War ends on November 11 1918

Trench systems consisted of at least 3 lines of trenches

Trenches were protected by barbed wire up to 30m deep

Trenches were zig zagged so if an enemy captured one they would not be able to fire down the length. The shape also restricted the impact of explosions in the trenches.

Saps- Trenches dug into No Man’s Land to list out for mining parties or enemy patrols at night

No Man’s Land- The land in between enemy positions

Each machine gun was capable of firing 450-600 rounds per minute

No mans land stretched for 250m on average but sometimes could be as little as 100m.

During artillery bombardments the troops would take cover in underground bunkers up to 15m deep

If an enemy discovered the existence of a sap they would send out a counter mining party.

Preparation before a big attacks would usually be known to the enemy by aerial reconnaissance but the biggest clue to an attack would be artillery bombardments.

In any 32 day period, a soldier could spend 8 days in a front-line trench, 8 in a reserve trench, with 16 days away from the front in a town or village.

Trenches, in ideal circumstances could be 2.5 metres deep.

In Christmas 1914, there were agreed ceasefires along 2/3 of the front between the British and the Germans.

Fatigue duties - routine duties such as replacing barbed wire, baling out trenches, digging and emptying latrines

Trench Foot- When feet are left in water for long periods of time they can swell inside the boot, cut off circulation and rot.

Blighty One- A wound serious enough to get you sent home to get treatment

Barker- Sausages were known as barkers because of the supposedly high dog meat content.

Bung- Cheese were known as bung because it caused constipation.