WEAPONS Tanks Tanks were used for the first time in the First World War at the Battle of the Somme. They were developed to cope with the conditions on the Western Front. The first tank was called 'Little Willie' and needed a crew of 3. Its maximum speed was 3mph and it could not cross trenches. The more modern tank was not developed until just before the end of the war. It could carry 10 men, had a revolving turret and could reach 4mph. INTELLIGENCE/ESPIONAGE Abwehr-German Intelligence The Abwehr was a German intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944. The term Abwehr (German for defense) was used as a concession to Allied demands that Germany’s postWorld War I intelligence activities be for “defensive” purposes only. Despite its name implying counterespionage, the Abwehr was an intelligence-gathering agency and dealt exclusively with human intelligence, especially raw intelligence reports from field agents and other sources. WAR MEDICINE Casualty Clearing Stations (trenches) Death was a constant companion to those serving in the line, even when no raid or attack was launched or defended against. In busy sectors the constant shellfire directed by the enemy brought random death, whether their victims were lounging in a trench or lying in a dugout (many men were buried as a consequence of such large shell-bursts). WAR AT SEA Royal Navy In 1914 the Royal Navy was by far the most powerful navy in the world. The Royal Navy's basic responsibilities included policing colonies and trade routes, defending coastlines and imposing blockades on hostile powers. The British government took the view that to do all
this, the Royal Navy had to possess a battlefleet that was larger than the world's two next largest navies put together. UNIFORMS OF WWI American Uniforms
"The American infantryman's belt has ten pockets holding two clips of 5 cartridges each, or 100 rounds of ammunition and in addition, when going into action, he carries two bandoleers containing 60 cartridges each..."
TACTICS Snipers Soldiers in front-line trenches suffered from enemy snipers. These men were usually specially trained marksmen that had rifles with telescopic sights. German snipers did not normally work from their own trenches. The main strategy was to creep out at dawn into no-man's land and remain there all day. Wearing camouflaged clothing and using the cover of a fake tree, they waited for a British soldier to pop his head above the parapet. A common trick was to send up a kite with English writing on it. Anyone who raised his head to read it was shot. PRISONERS OF WAR Central Powers POW Camps Many people think of Prisoner of War (PoW) camps as being a feature of World War II, but there were almost as many in World War I. Although the laws of war stated that prisoners could not be used in war work, this nevertheless happened, and Bandeath Munitions Depot is one such example, constructed around 1916 using labour from a camp on the site.
LIFE IN THE TRENCHES Shell-fire During the first two weeks of the Battle of Passchendaele the British, Australian and Canadian guns fired 4,283,550 shells at the German defences. It is estimated that throughout the First World War the Allies used 5,000,000 tons of artillery shells against enemy positions. The Central Powers used a similar amount of shells in their effort to win the war. HOMEFRONTS Art From the 1914-18 war to the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Armistice of 11th November 1918. An exhibition of 110 paintings brought together by the major history museums of Europe. World War I as seen by 54 painters on both sides. The artists and their work are brought into context in a detailed presentation of the works by art historian and exhibition curator Philippe Dagen. The war gave rise to the most lively and surprising emotions and artistic reactions to patriotic feeling, to the emerging new technologies, and most of all to the horror of the first experience of modern warfare. WAR HEROES George Wyatt George Wyatt, the son of a groom, was born in Worcester on 5th September 1886. After attending Holloway School at Droitwich, Wyatt enlisted in the Coldstream Guards at Birmingham in November, 1904. After serving in Egypt for two and a half years, he left the British Army in November, 1904.
MILITARY DECORATIONS Military Cross The Military Merit Cross (German: Milit채rverdienstkreuz) was a decoration of the Empire of Austria and, after the establishment of the Dual Monarchy in 1867, the Empire of AustriaHungary. It was first established on October 22, 1849 and underwent several revisions to its
design and award criteria over the years of its existence. It became obsolete in 1918 with the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.The Military Merit Cross was established on October 22, 1849 by Emperor Franz Joseph I, based on the recommendation of Field Marshal Count Radetzky. It was to be awarded to officers who had performed especially praiseworthy service before the enemy in wartime, or outstanding service in peacetime, and was originally established in only one class. COMMUNICATIONS Communication Trenches In the First World War the nations of the world used several different ways of communicating. In the trenches couriers (messengers) were used to send dispatches from one officer to another. Couriers rode bikes and motorcycles between the headquarters and the trenches. Some animals such as dogs and pigeons were used to send messages along the front. Often these animals would get shot or lost in the confusion and the messages would arrive late, greatly slowing communication. INVENTORS Hugo Junkers Inventor and Scientist, Constructor and Aircraft Pioneer The mechanical engineer Hugo Junkers started his career at the Deutsche ContinentalGasgesellschaft. In 1892 he even founded his first office as “Hugo Junkers, Civilingenieur�. His patent for a new type of high-pressure gas engine was the first of 380 patented inventions which were registered in the course of his life. He successfully researched on several techniques. He designed gas oil- and heavy oil engines, heat exchangers, metal houses, halls and highrise buildings and of course all-metal aircraft. WOMEN Maria Bochkareva Maria Bochkareva, the third daughter of a peasant family, was born in Tomsk, Siberia in 1889. Badly beaten by her alcoholic father, she left home at fifteen to marry Afansi Bochkareva. The couple moved to Tomsk, Siberia where they worked as labourers on a construction site. A good organiser, Maria eventually became foreman of a team of 25 male workers. WAR IN THE AIR Air Balloons
Hot-air balloons were widely used in World War 1. Many were placed on the Western Front as observers because they were cheaper than planes. The development of fighter planes made it more dangerous to be in an air balloon. Balloon crew members were given parachutes. They were also given a powered wrench that helped them bring the balloon down quickly. WOMEN: Doctors and Nurses
Helen Fairchild Helen Fairchild (November 21, 1885 – January 18, 1918) was an American nurse who served as part of the American Expeditionary Force during World War I, and who became known for her wartime letters to her family in the U.S., which vividly depicted the realities of combat nursing during World War I. She died of post-operative complications after surgery for a gastric ulcer while on duty with British base hospital on the western front. STATISTICS AND COSTS OF WWI Allied Countries - Losses: Military Casualties:
5.7 million
Civilian Casualties:
3.67 million
Military Wounded:
12.8 million
Central Powers - Losses: Military Casualties:
4.02 million
Civilian Casualties:
5.2 million
Military Wounded:
8.42 million
Global WWI Losses: Military Casualties:
9,720,450
Civilian Casualties:
8,865,650
Military Wounded:
19,769,102
WOMEN DURING THE WAR Women's Royal Navy Service The Women's Royal Naval Service was formed to carry out shore-based duties and allow sailors to go to sea. Recruitment posters encouraged women to "Free a man for sea service". The Admiralty aimed to recruit 3,000 women but eventually over 5,000 women joined. Katharine Furse, the former Commandant of the British Red Cross Voluntary Aid Detachments, was appointed Director in November 1917. You can see an extract from the draft formation document by clicking on the image on the right. WOMEN & THE HOMEFRONT Alice Paul Alice Paul was raised as a Quaker, attended Swarthmore College, and worked at the New York College Settlement while attending the New York School of Social Work. Alice Paul left for England in 1906 to work in the settlement house movement there for three years. She studied at university in England, and returned to get her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania (1912).
PROPAGANDA Propaganda was used in World War One as in any war - and the truth suffered. Propaganda ensured that the people only got to know what their governments wanted them to know. In World War One, the lengths to which governments would go to in an effort to blacken the enemy’s name reached a new level.