1. How did war start and why was Schlieffen Plan significant?
World War 1 started for a series of different reasons, each country was fighitng in a jumbled confusion, so it seems. Most people believe the war started from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferinand alone; which I found to be false. Some of the other major reasons are: imperal rivalries, the alliance system, the arms race (mostly naval race between Britain and Germany), growth of nationalism, balance of power, old territorial disputs, the Balkon wars, and more. One of the most significant reasons is huge economic and military disputs betweem Britain and Germany. The Schlieffen Plan was significant to World War 1 because it was a plan of attack used by the German armies. It was named after its developer, Count Alfred von Schlieffen, fromer German military resident. To meet the possibility of Germany's facing a war against France in the west and Russia in the east, Schlieffen proposed that, instead of aiming the first strike against Russia, Germany should aim a rapid, decisive blow with a large force at France's flank through Belgium, then sweep around and crush the French armies against a smaller German force in the south. The plan used at the beginning of World War I had been modified by Helmuth von Moltke, who reduced the size of the attacking army and was blamed for Germany's failure to win a quick victory.
2. Within weeks of the start of the war a stalemate set in- what was life like in the trenches?
During World War 1 a stalemate- a trench warfare set in. trenches were disgusting. Warfare was going on, so their were dead bodies and rats neighboring in these trenches. The rats gorgged on human remains, and they sometimes grew to be the size of cats. The trenches were considered to be the "first line" during the war, and men would run trench cycles so they werent stuck their all the time. the battle of the trenches was mainly between the French and the British. Men who were on duty in the tranches did everything in theri. Some would say the trenches were like a more disgusting version of jail. they had to eat, sleep, and possibly die in the trenches if that was their destiny. no matter the weather, trenches were always being guarded and used during World War 1.
3. Lions led by Donkeys?
Lions led by donkeys was a popular phrase used to describe the British infrantry of World War 1 and to condemn the generals who command them. the brave soliders were the lions who were sent to their deaths by the leaders, who were considered to be the donkeys. I guess it is all about opinion if you feel like the "Lions led by Donkeys" phrase is accuarte or not. Most people would argue that it is. The origins of the phrase pre-date the First World War. During the Crimean War a letter was reportedly sent home by a British soldier quoting a Russian officer who had said that British soldiers were ‘lions commanded by asses'.
4. Why and when did the United States get started in the war and why?
The Zimmerman telegram was a message from Germany to Meixco saying that if it attacked America, Mexico could be restarted of alll it's territories that the United States had taken from them. The Bristisg got ahold of the telegram and gave it to the United States, which made it clear that we could not escape war. Another reason was because the Germans sunk the cruise linear Lustiana. Over a hundred Americans were on board and died that day. This started a huge uproar in the United States, and knowing us people to be aggressive and fiesty, I can see why they started to have beef with the Germans. Another reason why America got involved was because our allies were under attack adn not winning. The ally system was alot of the reason why many countries got involved in World War 1. America wasn't the cause for the start of the war, yet we did get involved later on for these reasons.
5. The importance and significance of technology and changing warfare:
During World War 1, new technology was a big part of how warfare has changed today. Some of the major new inventions were infantry rifles, rifled artillery and hydraulic recoil mechanisms, zigzag trenches, and machine guns. The hand grenade had already exsisted, but it was modified to create more havvoc in World War 1. Things like nucluer warfare starting appearing, like poison mustard gases and what not.Chemical weapons in World War I were primarily used to demoralize, injure and kill entrenched defenders, against whom the indiscriminate and generally slow-moving or static nature of gas clouds would be most effective. The types of weapons employed ranged from disabling chemicals, such as tear gas and the severe mustard gas, to lethal agents like phosgene and chlorine. This chemical warfare was a major component of the first World War.
6. How did it affect people in germany?
During the beginning of the war the death rates were huge. Germany's usage of gas increased the number of deaths in the country. Along with Germans other citizens were affected, the most affected was Russia. even though Germany had high death rates the country faced about 300,000 to 900,000 not much compared to Russia. But, this was not the only problem with the usage of the gas. After the war Germany was linked responsible for the damages on the other countries and faced economic problems. At the end of the war Germany had to compensate those countries that faced damages. Germany was responsible for the damages of citizens such as mental illnes or psychological problems. In addition to that Germany lost some land to foreign countries. Also, The outcome of the war deeply hurt Germany and it people because during the World War 1 Germany went through inflation which affected its economy greatly. After the Treaty of Versailles and the Paris Peace Treaty all of the blame was formally put on Germany and Germany was blamed for the cause of the war. People in Germany began to resent the fact that they alone were blamed for the war which caused the rise of Hitler and the second World War.
