Moving History Summary

Summary history

Chapter 1 - §1 and §2.

§1 Era of the two world wars

The first world war began in 1914. The period from 1914 to 1945 is referred to as the Era of the Two World Wars. But you should use round numbers for this era: 1900-1950.

Common features of wars dating from the end of the 18th century

The main features of wars and armed conflicts since the late 18th century:

-          Important role of economy

It costs a lot of money to wage a war. You’re more likely to win a war when you’ve got more money (well trained army, good weaponry). They started focussing on protecting their own economy while damaging the enemy’s.

-          Important role of technology

You should develop better weapons than the enemy. Also non-military technology always influences the ways in which wars are fought.

-          Important role of leadership

During wars, leadership is of great influence. Some leaders only distinguish themselves as strong military commanders but most are both political and military leaders.

-          Important role of strategy and tactics

It’s determined by the political leaders: what do the leaders want to achieve by going to war and broad agreements about how the war should be conducted. Broad agreements on the battle field is known as military tactics.

-          Great influence of public opinion’

After the French revolution, more people could read and write. Mass media was born and more people could vote. This made it difficult for governments to enter into war without the support of the majority of the population.

§2 The first world war (1914-1918)

The direct cause of the First World War

In 1914, the Austro-Hungarian archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were killed by a group of Serb nationalists in Sarajevo, Bosnia. The nationalists wanted to unite several Slavic groups living in the Balkans into one large national state. Austria-Hungary was their biggest enemy. The empire attacked Bosnia in 1878 and added the country as a province in 1908. In response to the assassination (sluipmoord), the Austro-Hungarian government issued Serbia with an ultimatum. The Austro-Hungarian government demanded that the Austrian police in Serbia would be allowed to investigate in the assassins (moordenaars), otherwise it would declare war to the province. Serbia refused to cooperate and on 28 July, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

Austria-Hungary received support from Germany.

Serbia was supported by Russia.

Germany attacked Belgium and France.

England declared war on Germany.

Italy and the US later also declared war on Austria-Hungary and Germany, which by this point added the Turkish Empire to its list of allies.

Underlying causes

There were other deeper underlying causes besides the assassination:

-          Nationalism in the European states

Nationalism grew in the 19th century and every country was striving to be most powerful. Other countries were soon seen as ‘competitors’. The Balkans were mainly populated by Slavs. A large part of this area belonged to Austria-Hungary. The Slavs who lived there longed for their own independent state. They were supported in their struggle by the independent Slavic country Serbia, which was supported by Russia. French nationalists wanted to avenge the French defeat against Germany in 1870 and to reclaim lost territory. Germany wanted to conquer more colonies overseas. This caused frustration in England and France in particular. They saw it as a treat to their own colonial power.

-          Establishment of different alliances

Towards the end of the 19th century, European countries formed alliances for support and safety. Nowadays, most European countries are member of one large military alliance, the NATO. The deep divisions at the turn of the 20th century made such an alliance possible at that time. In 1914, countries were dragged into war as they went to the aid of their allies.

How did warfare change during the First World War

-          It was the first war that could be classed as a world war

It was fought mainly in Europe. The Western Front in Belgium and France and the Eastern front in Russia. Fighting also took place in northern Italy, the Balkans and the Dardanelles. Outside Europe, the war was fought in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the North sea, the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean.

-          Industrial war on a much larger scale than before with new and improved weapons

The first world war had great influence on industry. Weapons were improved and new ones invented. Mas production took place. Chemical weapons were used for the first time. Chlorine gas was first used by the Germans at Ypres in April 1915. Most harmful gasses were first used in 1917. Both sides soon developed gas masks.

Tanks were used for the first time during the war by the British in 1916 at the battle of the Somme in Northern France. But they were useless after a few days. They either broke down, were eliminated or ran out of petrol. Lighter and more advanced tanks were developed at the end of the war.

Trucks proved more useful than tanks, they transported troops, food and equipment. The telephone also played a great role in that time.

This was the first war in which submarines played a role. The Germans hoped to break the British naval blockade of Germany and to cut off the flow of supplies to Britain and France, but they failed. It had an unintentional result , the US joined the war against Germany after German submarines sunk US ships, killing American citizens.

Many aeroplanes were used and many people went to work as ground staff at the airports or as factory workers in the aircraft industry. At first, planes were used for reconnaissance purposes but were soon used to attack the enemies from the skies.