Introduction
The first World war lasted from 1914 to 1918. It can be rated one of the most deadliest wars in history. It also brought many resources and gadgets on the battlefield that are commonly used today. For the first time in history aircrafts and tanks became really popular in war. Ships were used a lot during the war, for many purposes and German u-ships sank over 11 million tons of British shipping. In this small span of time more than 15 million men and women lost their lives.
The Cause
There were several causes of the War, one was militarism. A competition started between the countries, to see who had the biggest army, and to have a gigantic military force. People began to make alliances with other countries and expand, what this really did was cause total war all around the world. The alliances didn't just provide protection on a country/countries if a war started up they could cause a war if an argument was started. Not only was militarism a cause, but imperialism. Places like France and Britain owned smaller countries(called colonies) and Germany decided they needed to own a few of their own. Nationalism was also a cause of WW1, giving countries the vision they could become independent nations of their own. Moreover how the war started was when Austria-Hungry gave demands to Serbia, for instance they wanted the Serbian government to get rid of all propaganda against them, ban books and get rid of teachers who opposed Austria-Hungary, and destroy everything that went against Austria-Hungary. They also replied with a threat saying if they didn't obey, in 48 hours the would claim war upon them. When Serbia wouldn't accept some of the demands, war was declared. Countries began to join in and fight, choosing a side or creating alliances. In 1871 France was defeated by Germany, to prove itself unworthy of defeat and humiliation France joined the war. Great Britain had a goal to expand and attain power, and Germany with its growing strength turned out to be a threat to that plan. Russia came into the war to prove what it could do. Most of the countries decided to fight in the war because Germany was becoming the leading power, either they had a grudge on the country or they wanted to show them what they were made of.
War on Land
Tanks played a big role in the first World war, in the war trenches were build in which soldiers cold take cover and fight, the tank was invented to make it possible to get through the trenches and carry artillery around and move faster. Eventually during the war, it became a big necessity and is still used today. In the war there were more than 400 miles of trenches. The soldiers occupying the trenches often lived in constant fear for their lives. Death could come in numerous ways for them. Disease could easily go around in them, considering you caught cholera or trench foot. When being occupied the smell could be deadly and when occupants were crowded together endless supplies of mud surrounded them. Not only were the soldiers afraid to die from disease, with every burning moment an enemy could appear out of nowhere and attack. People often hear of "No Man's Land" it is called that because nobody ever wanted to found in the area. It was the open space in the middle of two trenches, where no man could feel safe with the caution of attack. Probably the most deadly of the weapons used in WW1 was chemical gas, killing troops at a rapid pace.
Battles in the Air
World War one was really the first war where planes were used widely in battle. All in all there were over 70 types of planes used in the war, this made it easier for soldiers to bomb and attack places that were uneasy to get to on land. The first fighter plane in history that included a machine gun which could be used without interrupting the rotating blades, was the Fokker Scourge. The planes didn't just aim for land they targeted other aircrafts, pilots who could bring down about 5 planes while in combat were called flying Aces. The first flying ace was Adolphe Pegoud "the ace." Throughout history planes have became more reliable and stable. In the military they have become better suited for battle and over time advancements have been made so they can cause more damage. Even during WW1 planes were being modified. At the beginning of the war aircrafts had no line of defense and had just a general purpose. In about 1915, planes were starting to get greater horsepower and their abilities to fly higher were becoming better all the time. We still use this resource today on the battlefield.
War at Sea
During the time span of to 1914 to 1918, German U-boats were bringing on the war, it was possible for them to take down three British cruisers in less than an hour. They helped destroy most of the British Merchant Navy and helped prevent them from getting over half the amounts of food and supplies. At the beginning of the war there were only about 29 U-boats in service, they began to bring victory to the Germans, sinking other ships and helping win many battles at sea. From 1916 to 1917 the U-boats had set a record of sinking about 1.4 million tons of allied shipping. The constant struggle between the German U-boats and the British Merchant ships pressing on till the end of the war, but finally after a really long time the Merchant ships defeated the U-boats. Near the end of the war, the ships began to get in groups and use each other's strength and combine it to fight the German U-boats off, and they began to track them by air and using advanced sonar technology.
The End
On the 11th of November in 1918 at 11 am World War came to an end. Many thought a treaty would be made on Wilson's 14 points, but the big four, Lloyd George of England, Orlando of Italy, Clemenceau of France and Woodrow Wilson, had quite a few disagreements. Their arguments were stretched to Wilson being to lenient, the opinion that Germany should be severely punished, and the points containing a threat about communism. Eventually they came up with an agreement that didn't have anything to do with the 14 points. On the 28th of June in 1919 Germany came to sign the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty included 414 clauses appointed to announce Germany's punishment.