The first world war modernized the world due to mechanization in all areas of warfare with the advancements in land, naval, and aerial warfare. During this period of World War I there was huge advancements in technology that helped soldiers that were out in battle. The Tank helped soldiers safely cross no man’s land, the creation of cars and roads helped bring supplies to soldiers on the battlefront, and the radiophone allowed military officials to safely contact one another. Even with the problems that the tank faced with slow speed and technical problems, tanks were able to crush barbed wire and cross trenches. They were also able to move forward through machine gun fire which allowed them to cross into no man's land in a way that …show more content…
New types of ships like the battleship and the aircraft carrier came to the surface along with the innovation of submarine warfare. Submarine warfare was used mainly by the Germans throughout the war and was one of the main reasons why America joined the war. They realised that with the submarines they could possibly win the war by shooting down trade boats with torpedoes. Because of this submarines were eventually banned from uses. Even though they were banned from using them Germany eventually ended up resorting back to it as a main battle tactic. According to History Learning “Unrestricted submarine warfare was a result of desperation and the belief that the ferocity of such a tactic might just keep America out of the war if the results were spectacular and shocking enough (history).” At this point Germany was already starting to see signs that they were losing the war and they knew that they would lose if the United States joined the war on the ally side so they started using the submarines to try and make sure that the United States didn’t join the war so they would have a chance of winning. Battleships were the backbone of the British royal navy. The massive amount of battleships in the British navy played a key role in World War I. During this time Britain had the largest navy in the world including thirty-five first-class battleships. Because of their advantages in numbers,
Strangely Germany began building up their army and navy prior to the start of war, leaving the other countries left with limited time to build up and prepare their army and navy for the unexpected. All in all Germany was involved in all of the underlying causes of World War
There were two major events that took place that sent the United States into WWI. Before these events took place, America wanted to stay neutral with thoughts and action. On May 7, 1915, a German submarine, called U-boats, torpedoed and sank a British passenger liner Lusitania. About 1,198 lives were lost including 128 Americans. Many Americans were shocked and anger about this act and called it “mass murder and piracy”(671).
World War One and World War Two were both conflicts which involved Germany, due to the clashes among opposing alliances of empires. Repeating rifles and machine guns were used extensively in World War One and its modern version were used in World War Two creating a more deadly impact. Also, the use of planes played a minor role in World War, but became the prevailing force within World War Two. Although there were similarities, there were major differences in warfare; in World War One soldiers fought from lines of trenches and were supported by artillery, machine guns, infantry assault, early aeroplanes, tanks and poisonous gas. All of these methods were mostly stationary in nature with minimal mobility, World War Two on the other hand was
German naval building programs scared and threatened Great Britain, so Great Britain also tried to increase its navy.(Doc. 7) Those arms races made more countries suspicious of each other and made war between them. Another cause of World War I was
As he had wanted to start the war through democracy the sinking of the Lusitania and the 1198 people killed of which 128 were Americans also impacted the decision of going to war. However, on April 2, 1917, Wilson finally asked Congress to declare war on Germany, citing the country's policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, as well as its attempts to incite Mexico to attack the U.S. Congress, declared war on Germany on April 6. In sum, the United States entered World War I primarily due to German actions that threatened American lives and interests, such as the sinking of the Lusitania, the use of submarines to attack American ships, and the Zimmermann Telegram. Additionally, economic ties, President Woodrow Wilson's belief in a moral duty to fight for democracy and self-determination, as well as to end the war quickly and end the suffering caused by the conflict played an important
In order to analyze and answer the question, we must first understand the context of trench warfare. World War 1 was a time when advanced weapons and technology were invented. Weapons such as machine guns, artillery, tanks, and other long range military weapons were used at the opposing side. To defend against a wide use of artillery and other long range weapons, trench warfare was used by both the allied and central powers. Trench warfare was a very important factor in World War 1, not only because it would defend one’s own trench, but also attempt to attack the enemies at the same time.
The Imperial German Government’s purpose was to put aside all restraints of law or of humanity and use it’s submarines to sink every vessel. “The present German submarine warfare against commerce is a warfare against mankind,” Woodrow Wilson mentioned in his speech. This speech was monumental because it convinced American citizens entry into the war was necessary, brought America into a devastating war, probed America was a power of the world, brought women into workplaces, and it pushed for women’s suffrage. Not every
Since the beginning of the war, sea power was influential
Germany’s resumption of submarine attacks on passenger and merchant ships in 1917 became the primary motivation behind Wilson’s decision
In 1900 Germany passed a Navy Law which doubled the German battle fleet.” (World War 1 - Militarism) This indicates that Germany was increasing its military capabilities by spending heavily on shipbuilding. This matters because the arms race that took place prior to World War I was significantly influenced by Germany's spending on its military technologies. It demonstrates how Germany was using its technology to strengthen its military and show its
As Germany returns, in 1917, to the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, it came back to renew its suspension in response from force of the United States and other neutral countries. Unrestricted submarine warfare was first initiated in World War I on February 4th, 1915. Germany declared the area around the British Isles a war zone, in which all merchant ships, would be attacked by the German navy. On April 22nd, 1915, the German Embassy published a warning in newspapers to tell passengers that travel on Allied ships are “at their own risk.” One ship, called The Lusitania, was the first to submerge and depart, killing nearly 1300 passengers.
WW1 is known as the first modern war because it saw the incorporation of mechanical weapons. The Central Powers and Allies both used a variety of weapons such as machine guns, chemical weapons , clothing, biplanes, artillery, tanks, grenades, and rifles. These weapons were state of the art for the early 20th century. These weapons caused casualties to skyrocket as the Allies and the Central Powers were in a stalemate.
Britain had a large and powerful navy. Germany wanted to have the same thing too, or even bigger and better. All the countries felt like they had to build up their militaries to keep up with everyone else. Not just one of the four causes takes the blame for starting WWI. All of these things: imperialism, nationalism, alliances, and militarism combined to make a large war, involving many countries, which took several years to
Germany was the first country to employ submarines in war as substitutes for surface commerce raiders. At the outset of World War I, German U-boats, though numbering only 38, achieved notable successes against British warships; but because of the reactions of neutral powers (especially the United States) Germany hesitated before adopting unrestricted U-boat warfare against merchant ships. The decision to do so in February 1917 was largely responsible for the entry of the United States into the war. The U-boat campaign then became a race between German sinkings of merchant ships and the building of ships, mainly in the United States, to replace them.
While on the other hand the Allied Forces had powerful allies such as the USA which could contribute greater resources of men and materials. Furthermore, the British had put in place a Naval Blockade prevent the passing of cargo of any ships that attempted to pass through, this was very effective and starved much of Germany’s population. Lastly, Germany’s two front with Russia greatly weakened German forces and had larger repercussions later on. Although these are all important causes, the most factor that