Commanders
Strengths of the parties
First World War (July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918) - one of the most large-scale armed conflicts in human history. The first global armed conflict of the 20th century. As a result of the war, four empires ceased to exist: Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and German. The participating countries lost more than 10 million people in soldiers killed, about 12 million civilians killed, and about 55 million were wounded.
Naval warfare in the First World War
Participants
Main participants of the First World War:
Central Powers: German Empire, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria.
Entente: Russian empire, France, UK.
For a full list of participants see: First World War (Wikipedia)
Background to the conflict
The naval arms race between the British Empire and the German Empire was one of the most important causes of the First World War. Germany wanted to increase its navy to a size that would allow German overseas trade to be independent of British goodwill. However, increasing the German fleet to a size comparable to the British fleet inevitably threatened the very existence of the British Empire.
1914 Campaign
Breakthrough of the German Mediterranean Division into Turkey
On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Mediterranean squadron of the Kaiser's Navy under the command of Rear Admiral Wilhelm Souchon (battlecruiser Goeben and light cruiser Breslau), not wanting to be captured in the Adriatic, went to Turkey. German ships avoided collisions with superior enemy forces and, passing through the Dardanelles, came to Constantinople. The arrival of the German squadron in Constantinople was one of the factors that pushed the Ottoman Empire to enter the First World War on the side of the Triple Alliance.
Actions in the North Sea and English Channel
Long-range blockade of the German fleet
The British fleet intended to solve its strategic problems through a long-range blockade of German ports. The German fleet, inferior in strength to the British, chose a defensive strategy and began laying minefields. In August 1914, the British fleet carried out the transfer of troops to the continent. During the cover of the transfer, a battle took place in the Heligoland Bight.
Both sides actively used submarines. German submarines acted more successfully, so on September 22, 1914, U-9 sank 3 British cruisers at once. In response, the British fleet began to strengthen anti-submarine defense, and the Northern Patrol was created.
Actions in the Barents and White Seas
Actions in the Barents Sea
In the summer of 1916, the Germans, knowing that an increasing amount of military cargo was arriving in Russia by the northern sea route, sent their submarines to the waters of the Barents and White Seas. They sank 31 Allied ships. To counter them, the Russian Arctic Ocean Flotilla was created.
Actions in the Baltic Sea
Both sides' plans for 1916 did not include any major operations. Germany maintained insignificant forces in the Baltic, and the Baltic Fleet constantly strengthened its defensive positions by constructing new minefields and coastal batteries. Actions were reduced to raiding operations by light forces. In one of these operations, on November 10, 1916, the German 10th flotilla of “destroyers” lost 7 ships at once in a minefield.
Despite the generally defensive nature of the actions of both sides, losses in naval personnel in 1916 were significant, especially in the German fleet. The Germans lost 1 auxiliary cruiser, 8 destroyers, 1 submarine, 8 minesweepers and small ships, 3 military transports. The Russian fleet lost 2 destroyers, 2 submarines, 5 minesweepers and small ships, 1 military transport.
1917 campaign
Dynamics of losses and reproduction of tonnage of allied countries
Operations in Western European waters and the Atlantic
April 1 - a decision was made to introduce a convoy system on all routes. With the introduction of the convoy system and the increase in anti-submarine defense forces and means, losses in merchant tonnage began to decline. Other measures were also introduced to strengthen the fight against boats - the mass installation of guns on merchant ships began. During 1917, guns were installed on 3,000 British ships, and by the beginning of 1918, up to 90% of all large-capacity British merchant ships were armed. In the second half of the campaign, the British began to massively lay anti-submarine minefields - in total, in 1917 they laid 33,660 mines in the North Sea and Atlantic. For 11 months unlimited submarine warfare it lost 1037 ships with a total tonnage of 2 million 600 thousand tons in the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean alone. In addition, the allies and neutral countries lost 1085 ships with a capacity of 1 million 647 thousand tons. During 1917, Germany built 103 new boats, and lost 72 boats, of which 61 were lost in the North Sea and Atlantic Ocean.
Cruiser's voyage Wolf
German cruiser raids
On October 16-18 and December 11-12, German light cruisers and destroyers attacked the “Scandinavian” convoys and achieved major successes - they sank 3 British convoy destroyers, 3 trawlers, 15 steamers and damaged 1 destroyer. In 1917, Germany stopped operating on Entente communications with surface raiders. The last raid was carried out by a raider Wolf- in total, he sank 37 ships with a total tonnage of about 214,000 tons. The fight against Entente shipping shifted exclusively to submarines.
Actions in the Mediterranean and Adriatic
Otran barrage
Combat operations in the Mediterranean Sea were reduced mainly to the unrestricted operations of German boats on enemy sea communications and Allied anti-submarine defense. During 11 months of unrestricted submarine warfare in the Mediterranean, German and Austrian boats sank 651 ships of the Allies and neutral countries with a total tonnage of 1 million 647 thousand tons. In addition, over a hundred ships with a total displacement of 61 thousand tons were blown up and lost by mines laid by minelayer boats. The Allied naval forces in the Mediterranean suffered major losses from boats in 1917: 2 battleships (English - Cornwallis, French - Danton), 1 cruiser (French - Chateaurenault), 1 minelayer, 1 monitor, 2 destroyers, 1 submarine. The Germans lost 3 boats, the Austrians - 1.
Actions in the Baltic
Defense of the Moonsund Archipelago in 1917
The February and October revolutions in Petrograd completely undermined the combat effectiveness of the Baltic Fleet. On April 30, the sailors' Central Committee of the Baltic Fleet (Tsentrobalt) was created, which controlled the activities of officers.
From September 29 to October 20, 1917, using quantitative and qualitative advantages, the German Navy and ground forces carried out Operation Albion to capture the Moonsund Islands in the Baltic Sea. In the operation, the German fleet lost 10 destroyers and 6 minesweepers, the defenders lost 1 battleship, 1 destroyer, 1 submarine, and up to 20,000 soldiers and sailors were captured. The Moonsund archipelago and the Gulf of Riga were abandoned by Russian forces, and the Germans managed to create an immediate threat of military attack for Petrograd.
Actions in the Black Sea
Year to date Black Sea Fleet continued to blockade the Bosphorus, as a result of which the Turkish fleet ran out of coal and its ships were stationed in bases. The February events in Petrograd and the abdication of the emperor (March 2) sharply undermined morale and discipline. The fleet's actions in the summer and autumn of 1917 were limited to destroyer raids, which continued to harass the Turkish coast.
Throughout the 1917 campaign, the Black Sea Fleet was preparing for a major landing operation on the Bosphorus. It was supposed to land 3-4 rifle corps and other units. However, the timing of the landing operation was repeatedly postponed; in October, the Headquarters decided to postpone the operation on the Bosporus to the next campaign.
1918 Campaign
Events in the Baltic, Black Sea and North
On March 3, 1918, a peace treaty was signed in Brest-Litovsk by representatives of Soviet Russia and the Central Powers. Russia emerged from the First World War.
All subsequent military operations that took place in these theaters of combat historically refer to
WORLD WAR I
(July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918), the first military conflict on a global scale, in which 38 of the 59 independent states that existed at that time were involved. About 73.5 million people were mobilized; of these, 9.5 million were killed or died from wounds, more than 20 million were wounded, 3.5 million were left crippled.
Main reasons. The search for the causes of the war leads to 1871, when the process of German unification was completed and Prussian hegemony was consolidated in the German Empire. Under Chancellor O. von Bismarck, who sought to revive the union system, foreign policy The German government was determined by the desire to achieve a dominant position for Germany in Europe. To deprive France of the opportunity to avenge defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, Bismarck tried to bind Russia and Austria-Hungary to Germany with secret agreements (1873). However, Russia came out in support of France, and the Alliance of the Three Emperors disintegrated. In 1882, Bismarck strengthened Germany's position by creating the Triple Alliance, which united Austria-Hungary, Italy and Germany. By 1890, Germany took the leading role in European diplomacy. France emerged from diplomatic isolation in 1891-1893. Taking advantage of the cooling of relations between Russia and Germany, as well as Russia's need for new capital, it concluded a military convention and an alliance treaty with Russia. The Russian-French alliance was supposed to serve as a counterweight to the Triple Alliance. Great Britain has so far stood aloof from competition on the continent, but the pressure of political and economic circumstances eventually forced it to make its choice. The British could not help but be concerned about the nationalist sentiments that reigned in Germany, its aggressive colonial policy, rapid industrial expansion and, mainly, the increase in power navy. A series of relatively quick diplomatic maneuvers led to the elimination of differences in the positions of France and Great Britain and the conclusion in 1904 of the so-called. "cordial agreement" (Entente Cordiale). Obstacles to Anglo-Russian cooperation were overcome, and in 1907 an Anglo-Russian agreement was concluded. Russia became a member of the Entente. Great Britain, France and Russia formed the Triple Entente as a counterbalance to the Triple Alliance. Thus, the division of Europe into two armed camps took shape. One of the reasons for the war was the widespread strengthening of nationalist sentiments. In formulating their interests, the ruling circles of each European country sought to present them as popular aspirations. France hatched plans to return the lost territories of Alsace and Lorraine. Italy, even being in an alliance with Austria-Hungary, dreamed of returning its lands to Trentino, Trieste and Fiume. The Poles saw in the war an opportunity to recreate the state destroyed by the partitions of the 18th century. Many peoples inhabiting Austria-Hungary sought national independence. Russia was convinced that it could not develop without limiting German competition, protecting the Slavs from Austria-Hungary and expanding influence in the Balkans. In Berlin, the future was associated with the defeat of France and Great Britain and the unification of the countries of Central Europe under the leadership of Germany. In London they believed that the people of Great Britain would live in peace only by crushing their main enemy - Germany. Tensions in international relations were heightened by a series of diplomatic crises - the Franco-German clash in Morocco in 1905-1906; annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Austrians in 1908-1909; finally, the Balkan wars of 1912-1913. Great Britain and France supported Italian interests in North Africa and thus so weakened her commitment to the Triple Alliance that Germany could practically no longer count on Italy as an ally in a future war.
The July crisis and the beginning of the war. After the Balkan Wars, active nationalist propaganda was launched against the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. A group of Serbs, members of the Young Bosnia secret organization, decided to kill the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The opportunity for this presented itself when he and his wife went to Bosnia for training exercises with the Austro-Hungarian troops. Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in the city of Sarajevo by high school student Gavrilo Princip on June 28, 1914. Intending to start a war against Serbia, Austria-Hungary enlisted the support of Germany. The latter believed that the war would become local if Russia did not defend Serbia. But if it provides assistance to Serbia, then Germany will be ready to fulfill its treaty obligations and support Austria-Hungary. In an ultimatum presented to Serbia on July 23, Austria-Hungary demanded that its military units be allowed into Serbia in order to, together with Serbian forces, suppress hostile actions. The answer to the ultimatum was given within the agreed 48-hour period, but it did not satisfy Austria-Hungary, and on July 28 it declared war on Serbia. S.D. Sazonov, Russian Foreign Minister, openly opposed Austria-Hungary, receiving assurances of support from French President R. Poincaré. On July 30, Russia announced general mobilization; Germany used this occasion to declare war on Russia on August 1, and on France on August 3. Britain's position remained uncertain due to its treaty obligations to protect Belgium's neutrality. In 1839, and then during the Franco-Prussian War, Great Britain, Prussia and France provided this country with collective guarantees of neutrality. Following the German invasion of Belgium on 4 August, Great Britain declared war on Germany. Now all the great powers of Europe were drawn into the war. Together with them, their dominions and colonies were involved in the war. The war can be divided into three periods. During the first period (1914-1916), the Central Powers achieved superiority on land, while the Allies dominated the sea. The situation seemed stalemate. This period ended with negotiations for a mutually acceptable peace, but each side still hoped for victory. In the next period (1917), two events occurred that led to an imbalance of power: the first was the entry of the United States into the war on the side of the Entente, the second was the revolution in Russia and its exit from the war. The third period (1918) began with the last major offensive of the Central Powers in the west. The failure of this offensive was followed by revolutions in Austria-Hungary and Germany and the capitulation of the Central Powers.
First period. The Allied forces initially included Russia, France, Great Britain, Serbia, Montenegro and Belgium and enjoyed overwhelming naval superiority. The Entente had 316 cruisers, while the Germans and Austrians had 62. But the latter found a powerful countermeasure - submarines. By the beginning of the war, the armies of the Central Powers numbered 6.1 million people; Entente army - 10.1 million people. The Central Powers had an advantage in internal communications, which allowed them to quickly transfer troops and equipment from one front to another. In the long term, the Entente countries had superior resources of raw materials and food, especially since the British fleet paralyzed Germany’s ties with overseas countries, from where copper, tin and nickel were supplied to German enterprises before the war. Thus, in the event of a protracted war, the Entente could count on victory. Germany, knowing this, relied on a lightning war - "blitzkrieg". The Germans put into effect the Schlieffen plan, which proposed to ensure rapid success in the West by attacking France with large forces through Belgium. After the defeat of France, Germany hoped, together with Austria-Hungary, by transferring the liberated troops, to deliver a decisive blow in the East. But this plan was not implemented. One of the main reasons for his failure was the sending of part German divisions to Lorraine in order to block the enemy's invasion of southern Germany. On the night of August 4, the Germans invaded Belgium. It took them several days to break the resistance of the defenders of the fortified areas of Namur and Liege, which blocked the route to Brussels, but thanks to this delay, the British transported an almost 90,000-strong expeditionary force across the English Channel to France (August 9-17). The French gained time to form 5 armies that held back the German advance. Nevertheless, on August 20, the German army occupied Brussels, then forced the British to leave Mons (August 23), and on September 3, the army of General A. von Kluck found itself 40 km from Paris. Continuing the offensive, the Germans crossed the Marne River and stopped along the Paris-Verdun line on September 5. The commander of the French forces, General J. Joffre, having formed two new armies from the reserves, decided to launch a counteroffensive. The First Battle of the Marne began on September 5 and ended on September 12. 6 Anglo-French and 5 German armies took part in it. The Germans were defeated. One of the reasons for their defeat was the absence of several divisions on the right flank, which had to be transferred to the eastern front. The French offensive on the weakened right flank made the withdrawal of the German armies to the north, to the line of the Aisne River, inevitable. The battles in Flanders on the Yser and Ypres rivers from October 15 to November 20 were also unsuccessful for the Germans. As a result, the main ports on the English Channel remained in Allied hands, ensuring communication between France and England. Paris was saved, and the Entente countries had time to mobilize resources. The war in the West took on a positional character; Germany’s hope of defeating and withdrawing France from the war turned out to be untenable. The confrontation followed a line running south from Newport and Ypres in Belgium, to Compiegne and Soissons, then east around Verdun and south to the salient near Saint-Mihiel, and then southeast to the Swiss border. Along this line of trenches and wire fences, the length is approx. Trench warfare was fought for 970 km for four years. Until March 1918, any, even minor changes in the front line were achieved at the cost of huge losses on both sides. There remained hopes that on the Eastern Front the Russians would be able to crush the armies of the Central Powers bloc. On August 17, Russian troops entered East Prussia and began to push the Germans towards Konigsberg. The German generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff were entrusted with leading the counteroffensive. Taking advantage of the mistakes of the Russian command, the Germans managed to drive a “wedge” between the two Russian armies, defeat them on August 26-30 near Tannenberg and oust them from East Prussia. Austria-Hungary did not act so successfully, abandoning the intention to quickly defeat Serbia and concentrating large forces between the Vistula and the Dniester. But the Russians launched an offensive in a southern direction, broke through the defenses of the Austro-Hungarian troops and, taking several thousand people prisoner, occupied the Austrian province of Galicia and part of Poland. The advance of Russian troops created a threat to Silesia and Poznan, important industrial areas for Germany. Germany was forced to transfer additional forces from France. But an acute shortage of ammunition and food stopped the advance of Russian troops. The offensive cost Russia enormous casualties, but undermined the power of Austria-Hungary and forced Germany to maintain significant forces on the Eastern Front. Back in August 1914, Japan declared war on Germany. In October 1914, Türkiye entered the war on the side of the Central Powers bloc. At the outbreak of war, Italy, a member of the Triple Alliance, declared its neutrality on the grounds that neither Germany nor Austria-Hungary had been attacked. But at secret London negotiations in March-May 1915, the Entente countries promised to satisfy Italy's territorial claims during the post-war peace settlement if Italy came on their side. On May 23, 1915, Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, and on August 28, 1916 on Germany. On the western front, the British were defeated at the Second Battle of Ypres. Here, during battles that lasted for a month (April 22 - May 25, 1915), chemical weapons were used for the first time. After this, poisonous gases (chlorine, phosgene, and later mustard gas) began to be used by both warring sides. The large-scale Dardanelles landing operation, a naval expedition that the Entente countries equipped at the beginning of 1915 with the goal of taking Constantinople, opening the Dardanelles and Bosphorus straits for communication with Russia through the Black Sea, bringing Turkey out of the war and winning the Balkan states to the side of the allies, also ended in defeat. On the Eastern Front, by the end of 1915, German and Austro-Hungarian troops ousted the Russians from almost all of Galicia and from most of the territory of Russian Poland. But it was never possible to force Russia to a separate peace. In October 1915, Bulgaria declared war on Serbia, after which the Central Powers, together with their new Balkan ally, crossed the borders of Serbia, Montenegro and Albania. Having captured Romania and covered the Balkan flank, they turned against Italy.
War at sea. Control of the sea allowed the British to freely move troops and equipment from all parts of their empire to France. They kept sea lines of communication open for US merchant ships. German colonies were captured, and German trade through sea routes was suppressed. In general, the German fleet - except for the submarine one - was blocked in its ports. Only occasionally did small flotillas emerge to strike British seaside towns and attack Allied merchant ships. During the entire war, only one major naval battle took place - when the German fleet entered the North Sea and unexpectedly met with the British one off the Danish coast of Jutland. The Battle of Jutland May 31 - June 1, 1916 led to heavy losses on both sides: the British lost 14 ships, approx. 6800 people killed, captured and wounded; the Germans, who considered themselves victors, - 11 ships and approx. 3100 people killed and wounded. Nevertheless, the British forced the German fleet to retreat to Kiel, where it was effectively blocked. The German fleet no longer appeared on the high seas, and Great Britain remained the mistress of the seas. Having taken a dominant position at sea, the Allies gradually cut off the Central Powers from overseas sources of raw materials and food. Under international law, neutral countries, such as the United States, could sell goods that were not considered “war contraband” to other neutral countries, such as the Netherlands or Denmark, from where these goods could also be delivered to Germany. However, warring countries usually did not commit themselves to complying with the norms international law, and Great Britain had so expanded the list of cargo considered smuggled that virtually nothing was allowed through its barriers in the North Sea. The naval blockade forced Germany to resort to drastic measures. Her only effective means a submarine fleet remained at sea, capable of easily bypassing surface barriers and sinking merchant ships of neutral countries that supplied the allies. It was the turn of the Entente countries to accuse the Germans of violating international law, which obliged them to rescue the crews and passengers of torpedoed ships. On February 18, 1915, the German government declared the waters around the British Isles a military zone and warned of the danger of ships from neutral countries entering them. On May 7, 1915, a German submarine torpedoed and sank the ocean-going steamer Lusitania with hundreds of passengers on board, including 115 US citizens. President William Wilson protested, and the United States and Germany exchanged harsh diplomatic notes.
Verdun and Somme. Germany was ready to make some concessions at sea and look for a way out of the impasse in actions on land. In April 1916, British troops had already suffered a serious defeat at Kut el-Amar in Mesopotamia, where 13,000 people surrendered to the Turks. On the continent, Germany was preparing to launch a large-scale offensive operation on Western Front, which was supposed to turn the tide of the war and force France to ask for peace. The ancient fortress of Verdun served as a key point of French defense. After an unprecedented artillery bombardment, 12 German divisions went on the offensive on February 21, 1916. The Germans advanced slowly until the beginning of July, but did not achieve their intended goals. The Verdun “meat grinder” clearly did not live up to the expectations of the German command. Great importance during the spring and summer of 1916 they had operations on the Eastern and Southwestern fronts. In March, Russian troops, at the request of the allies, carried out an operation near Lake Naroch, which significantly influenced the course of hostilities in France. The German command was forced to stop attacks on Verdun for some time and, keeping 0.5 million people on the Eastern Front, transfer an additional part of the reserves here. At the end of May 1916, the Russian High Command launched an offensive on the Southwestern Front. During the fighting, under the command of A.A. Brusilov, it was possible to achieve a breakthrough of the Austro-German troops to a depth of 80-120 km. Brusilov's troops occupied part of Galicia and Bukovina and entered the Carpathians. For the first time in the entire previous period of trench warfare, the front was broken through. If this offensive had been supported by other fronts, it would have ended in disaster for the Central Powers. To ease the pressure on Verdun, on July 1, 1916, the Allies launched a counterattack on the Somme River, near Bapaume. For four months - until November - there were continuous attacks. Anglo-French troops, having lost approx. 800 thousand people were never able to break through the German front. Finally, in December, the German command decided to stop the offensive, which cost the lives of 300,000 German soldiers. The 1916 campaign claimed more than 1 million lives, but did not bring tangible results to either side.
Foundations for peace negotiations. At the beginning of the 20th century. The methods of warfare have completely changed. The length of fronts increased significantly, armies fought on fortified lines and launched attacks from trenches, and machine guns and artillery began to play a huge role in offensive battles. New types of weapons were used: tanks, fighters and bombers, submarines, asphyxiating gases, hand grenades. Every tenth resident of the warring country was mobilized, and 10% of the population was engaged in supplying the army. In the warring countries there was almost no place left for ordinary civilian life: everything was subordinated to titanic efforts aimed at maintaining the military machine. The total cost of the war, including property losses, was variously estimated to range from $208 billion to $359 billion. By the end of 1916, both sides were tired of the war, and it seemed that the time had come to begin peace negotiations.
Second period.
On December 12, 1916, the Central Powers turned to the United States with a request to transmit a note to the allies with a proposal to begin peace negotiations. The Entente rejected this proposal, suspecting that it was made with the aim of breaking up the coalition. Moreover, she did not want to talk about a peace that did not include the payment of reparations and recognition of the right of nations to self-determination. President Wilson decided to initiate peace negotiations and on December 18, 1916, asked the warring countries to determine mutually acceptable peace terms. On December 12, 1916, Germany proposed convening a peace conference. The German civil authorities clearly sought peace, but they were opposed by the generals, especially General Ludendorff, who was confident of victory. The Allies specified their conditions: the restoration of Belgium, Serbia and Montenegro; withdrawal of troops from France, Russia and Romania; reparations; the return of Alsace and Lorraine to France; liberation of subject peoples, including Italians, Poles, Czechs, elimination of the Turkish presence in Europe. The Allies did not trust Germany and therefore did not take the idea of peace negotiations seriously. Germany intended to take part in the peace conference in December 1916, relying on the benefits of its military position. It ended with the Allies signing secret agreements designed to defeat the Central Powers. Under these agreements, Great Britain claimed the German colonies and part of Persia; France was to gain Alsace and Lorraine, as well as establish control on the left bank of the Rhine; Russia acquired Constantinople; Italy - Trieste, Austrian Tyrol, most of Albania; Turkey's possessions were to be divided among all allies.
US entry into the war. At the beginning of the war, public opinion in the United States was divided: some openly sided with the Allies; others - such as Irish Americans who were hostile to England and German Americans - supported Germany. Over time, government officials and ordinary citizens became increasingly inclined to side with the Entente. This was facilitated by several factors, most notably the propaganda of the Entente countries and the submarine war of Germany. On January 22, 1917, President Wilson outlined peace terms acceptable to the United States in the Senate. The main one boiled down to the demand for “peace without victory,” i.e. without annexations and indemnities; others included the principles of equality of peoples, the right of nations to self-determination and representation, freedom of the seas and trade, the reduction of armaments, and the rejection of the system of rival alliances. If peace were made on the basis of these principles, Wilson argued, a world organization of states could be created that would guarantee security for all peoples. On January 31, 1917, the German government announced the resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare with the aim of disrupting enemy communications. The submarines blocked the Entente's supply lines and put the Allies in an extremely difficult position. There was growing hostility toward Germany among Americans, since the blockade of Europe from the West foreshadowed troubles for the United States as well. In case of victory, Germany could establish control over everything Atlantic Ocean. Along with the above-mentioned circumstances, other motives also pushed the United States to war on the side of its allies. US economic interests were directly linked to the Entente countries, as military orders led to the rapid growth of American industry. In 1916, the warlike spirit was spurred by plans to develop combat training programs. Anti-German sentiment among North Americans increased even more after the publication on March 1, 1917 of Zimmermann's secret dispatch of January 16, 1917, intercepted by British intelligence and transferred to Wilson. German Foreign Minister A. Zimmermann offered Mexico the states of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona if it supported Germany's actions in response to the US entry into the war on the side of the Entente. By early April, anti-German sentiment in the United States had reached such intensity that Congress voted on April 6, 1917 to declare war on Germany.
Russia's exit from the war. In February 1917, a revolution occurred in Russia. Tsar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate the throne. The Provisional Government (March - November 1917) could no longer conduct active military operations on the fronts, since the population was extremely tired of the war. On December 15, 1917, the Bolsheviks, who took power in November 1917, signed an armistice agreement with the Central Powers at the cost of huge concessions. Three months later, on March 3, 1918, the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was concluded. Russia renounced its rights to Poland, Estonia, Ukraine, part of Belarus, Latvia, Transcaucasia and Finland. Ardahan, Kars and Batum went to Turkey; huge concessions were made to Germany and Austria. In total, Russia lost approx. 1 million sq. km. She was also obliged to pay Germany an indemnity in the amount of 6 billion marks.
Third period.
The Germans had ample reason to be optimistic. The German leadership used the weakening of Russia, and then its withdrawal from the war, to replenish resources. Now it could transfer the eastern army to the west and concentrate troops on the main directions of attack. The Allies, not knowing where the attack would come from, were forced to strengthen positions along the entire front. American aid was late. In France and Great Britain, defeatist sentiments grew with alarming force. On October 24, 1917, Austro-Hungarian troops broke through the Italian front near Caporetto and defeated the Italian army.
German offensive 1918. On the foggy morning of March 21, 1918, the Germans launched a massive attack on British positions near Saint-Quentin. The British were forced to retreat almost to Amiens, and its loss threatened to break the Anglo-French united front. The fate of Calais and Boulogne hung in the balance. On May 27, the Germans launched a powerful offensive against the French in the south, pushing them back to Chateau-Thierry. The situation of 1914 repeated itself: the Germans reached the Marne River just 60 km from Paris. However, the offensive cost Germany major losses - both human and material. The German troops were exhausted, their supply system was shaken. The Allies managed to neutralize German submarines by creating convoy and anti-submarine defense systems. At the same time, the blockade of the Central Powers was carried out so effectively that food shortages began to be felt in Austria and Germany. Soon the long-awaited American aid began to arrive in France. The ports from Bordeaux to Brest were filled with American troops. By the beginning of the summer of 1918, about 1 million people had landed in France. American soldiers. On July 15, 1918, the Germans made their last attempt to break through at Chateau-Thierry. The second decisive battle of the Marne unfolded. In the event of a breakthrough, the French would have to abandon Reims, which, in turn, could lead to an Allied retreat along the entire front. In the first hours of the offensive German troops progressed, but not as quickly as expected.
The last Allied offensive. On July 18, 1918, a counterattack by American and French troops began in order to relieve pressure on Chateau-Thierry. At first they advanced with difficulty, but on August 2 they took Soissons. At the Battle of Amiens on August 8, German troops suffered a heavy defeat, and this undermined their morale. Previously, German Chancellor Prince von Hertling believed that by September the Allies would sue for peace. “We hoped to take Paris by the end of July,” he recalled. “That’s what we thought on the fifteenth of July. And on the eighteenth, even the greatest optimists among us realized that everything was lost.” Some military personnel convinced Kaiser Wilhelm II that the war was lost, but Ludendorff refused to admit defeat. The Allied offensive began on other fronts as well. On June 20-26, the Austro-Hungarian troops were thrown back across the Piave River, their losses amounted to 150 thousand people. Ethnic unrest flared up in Austria-Hungary - not without the influence of the allies, who encouraged the desertion of Poles, Czechs and southern Slavs. The Central Powers mustered their remaining forces to hold off the expected invasion of Hungary. The path to Germany was open. Tanks and massive artillery shelling were important factors in the offensive. At the beginning of August 1918, attacks on key German positions intensified. In his Memoirs, Ludendorff called August 8 - the beginning of the Battle of Amiens - "a black day for the German army." The German front was torn apart: entire divisions surrendered into captivity almost without a fight. By the end of September even Ludendorff was ready to capitulate. After the September offensive of the Entente on the Soloniki front, Bulgaria signed an armistice on September 29. A month later, Türkiye capitulated, and on November 3, Austria-Hungary. To negotiate peace in Germany, a moderate government was formed headed by Prince Max of Baden, who already on October 5, 1918 invited President Wilson to begin the negotiation process. In the last week of October, the Italian army launched a general offensive against Austria-Hungary. By October 30, the resistance of the Austrian troops was broken. Italian cavalry and armored vehicles made a swift raid behind enemy lines and captured the Austrian headquarters in Vittorio Veneto, the city that gave the entire battle its name. On October 27, Emperor Charles I made an appeal for a truce, and on October 29, 1918 he agreed to conclude peace on any terms.
Revolution in Germany. On October 29, the Kaiser secretly left Berlin and went to the general headquarters, feeling safe only under the protection of the army. On the same day, in the port of Kiel, the crew of two warships disobeyed and refused to go to sea on a combat mission. By November 4, Kiel came under the control of the rebel sailors. 40,000 armed men intended to establish councils of soldiers' and sailors' deputies in northern Germany on the Russian model. By November 6, the rebels took power in Lübeck, Hamburg and Bremen. Meanwhile, the Supreme Allied Commander, General Foch, said that he was ready to receive representatives of the German government and discuss the terms of the armistice with them. The Kaiser was informed that the army was no longer under his command. On November 9, he abdicated the throne and a republic was proclaimed. The next day, the German Emperor fled to the Netherlands, where he lived in exile until his death (d. 1941). On November 11, at the Retonde station in the Compiegne Forest (France), the German delegation signed the Compiegne Armistice. The Germans were ordered to liberate the occupied territories within two weeks, including Alsace and Lorraine, the left bank of the Rhine and the bridgeheads in Mainz, Koblenz and Cologne; establish a neutral zone on the right bank of the Rhine; transfer to the Allies 5,000 heavy and field guns, 25,000 machine guns, 1,700 aircraft, 5,000 steam locomotives, 150,000 railway cars, 5,000 automobiles; release all prisoners immediately. The Navy was required to surrender all submarines and almost all surface fleet and return all Allied merchant ships captured by Germany. The political provisions of the treaty provided for the denunciation of the Brest-Litovsk and Bucharest peace treaties; financial - payment of reparations for destruction and return of valuables. The Germans tried to negotiate an armistice based on Wilson's Fourteen Points, which they believed could serve as a preliminary basis for a "peace without victory." The terms of the truce required practically unconditional surrender. The Allies dictated their terms to a bloodless Germany.
Conclusion of peace. The peace conference took place in 1919 in Paris; During the sessions, agreements regarding five peace treaties were determined. After its completion, the following were signed: 1) the Treaty of Versailles with Germany on June 28, 1919; 2) Saint-Germain Peace Treaty with Austria on September 10, 1919; 3) Neuilly Peace Treaty with Bulgaria November 27, 1919; 4) Trianon Peace Treaty with Hungary on June 4, 1920; 5) Peace Treaty of Sevres with Turkey on August 20, 1920. Subsequently, according to the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24, 1923, changes were made to the Treaty of Sevres. Thirty-two states were represented at the peace conference in Paris. Each delegation had its own staff of specialists who provided information regarding geographical, historical and economic situation those countries for which decisions were made. After Orlando left the internal council, not satisfied with the solution to the problem of territories in the Adriatic, the main architect of the post-war world became the “Big Three” - Wilson, Clemenceau and Lloyd George. Wilson compromised on several important points in order to achieve the main goal of creating the League of Nations. He agreed to the disarmament of only the Central Powers, although he initially insisted on general disarmament. The size of the German army was limited and was supposed to be no more than 115,000 people; universal conscription was abolished; The German armed forces were to be staffed by volunteers with a service life of 12 years for soldiers and up to 45 years for officers. Germany was prohibited from having combat aircraft and submarines. Similar conditions were contained in peace treaties signed with Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria. A fierce debate ensued between Clemenceau and Wilson over the status of the left bank of the Rhine. The French, for security reasons, intended to annex the area with its powerful coal mines and industry and create an autonomous Rhineland state. France's plan contradicted the proposals of Wilson, who opposed annexations and favored self-determination of nations. A compromise was reached after Wilson agreed to sign loose war treaties with France and Great Britain, under which the United States and Great Britain pledged to support France in the event of a German attack. The following decision was made: the left bank of the Rhine and a 50-kilometer strip on the right bank are demilitarized, but remain part of Germany and under its sovereignty. The Allies occupied a number of points in this zone for a period of 15 years. The coal deposits known as the Saar Basin also became the property of France for 15 years; the Saar region itself came under the control of the League of Nations commission. After the expiration of the 15-year period, a plebiscite was envisaged on the issue of statehood of this territory. Italy got Trentino, Trieste and most of Istria, but not the island of Fiume. Nevertheless, Italian extremists captured Fiume. Italy and the newly created state of Yugoslavia were given the right to resolve the issue of the disputed territories themselves. According to the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was deprived of its colonial possessions. Great Britain acquired German East Africa and the western part of German Cameroon and Togo; South-West Africa, the north-eastern regions of New Guinea with the adjacent archipelago and the Samoan islands were transferred to the British dominions - the Union of South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. France received most of German Togo and eastern Cameroon. Japan received the Marshall, Mariana and Caroline Islands from Germany. Pacific Ocean and the port of Qingdao in China. Secret treaties among the victorious powers also envisaged the division of the Ottoman Empire, but after the uprising of the Turks led by Mustafa Kemal, the allies agreed to revise their demands. The new Treaty of Lausanne repealed the Treaty of Sèvres and allowed Turkey to retain Eastern Thrace. Türkiye regained Armenia. Syria went to France; Great Britain received Mesopotamia, Transjordan and Palestine; the Dodecanese islands in the Aegean Sea were given to Italy; the Arab territory of Hejaz on the Red Sea coast was to gain independence. Violations of the principle of self-determination of nations caused Wilson's disagreement; in particular, he sharply protested against the transfer of the Chinese port of Qingdao to Japan. Japan agreed to return this territory to China in the future and fulfilled its promise. Wilson's advisers proposed that instead of actually transferring the colonies to new owners, they should be allowed to govern as trustees of the League of Nations. Such territories were called “mandatory”. Although Lloyd George and Wilson opposed punitive measures for damages caused, the fight on this issue ended in victory for the French side. Reparations were imposed on Germany; The question of what should be included in the list of destruction presented for payment was also subject to lengthy discussion. At first, the exact amount was not mentioned, only in 1921 its size was determined - 152 billion marks (33 billion dollars); this amount was subsequently reduced. The principle of self-determination of nations became key for many peoples represented at the peace conference. Poland was restored. The task of determining its boundaries was not easy; Of particular importance was the transfer to her of the so-called. the "Polish corridor", which gave the country access to the Baltic Sea, separating East Prussia from the rest of Germany. New independent states emerged in the Baltic region: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland. By the time the conference was convened, the Austro-Hungarian monarchy had already ceased to exist, and Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Romania arose in its place; the borders between these states were controversial. The problem turned out to be complex due to the mixed settlement of different peoples. When establishing the borders of the Czech state, the interests of the Slovaks were affected. Romania doubled its territory at the expense of Transylvania, Bulgarian and Hungarian lands. Yugoslavia was created from the old kingdoms of Serbia and Montenegro, parts of Bulgaria and Croatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina and Banat as part of Timisoara. Austria remained a small state with a population of 6.5 million Austrian Germans, a third of whom lived in impoverished Vienna. The population of Hungary had decreased greatly and was now approx. 8 million people. At the Paris Conference, an exceptionally stubborn struggle was waged around the idea of creating a League of Nations. According to the plans of Wilson, General J. Smuts, Lord R. Cecil and their other like-minded people, the League of Nations was supposed to become a guarantee of security for all peoples. Finally, the League's charter was adopted and, after much debate, four working groups were formed: the Assembly, the Council of the League of Nations, the Secretariat and the Permanent Court of International Justice. The League of Nations established mechanisms that could be used by its member states to prevent war. Within its framework, various commissions were also formed to solve other problems.
See also LEAGUE OF NATIONS. The Agreement on the League of Nations represented that part Treaty of Versailles, which Germany was also offered to sign. But the German delegation refused to sign it on the grounds that the agreement did not comply with Wilson's Fourteen Points. Ultimately, the German National Assembly recognized the treaty on June 23, 1919. The dramatic signing took place five days later at the Palace of Versailles, where in 1871 Bismarck, ecstatic with victory in the Franco-Prussian War, proclaimed the creation of the German Empire.
LITERATURE
History of the First World War, in 2 vols. M., 1975 Ignatiev A.V. Russia in the imperialist wars of the early 20th century. Russia, the USSR and international conflicts of the first half of the 20th century. M., 1989 To the 75th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War. M., 1990 Pisarev Yu.A. Secrets of the First World War. Russia and Serbia in 1914-1915. M., 1990 Kudrina Yu.V. Turning to the origins of the First World War. Paths to safety. M., 1994 World War I: debatable problems of history. M., 1994 World War I: pages of history. Chernivtsi, 1994 Bobyshev S.V., Seregin S.V. The First World War and prospects for social development in Russia. Komsomolsk-on-Amur, 1995 World War I: Prologue of the 20th century. M., 1998
Wikipedia
Russo-Swedish War 1808-1809 |
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Europe, Africa and the Middle East (briefly in China and the Pacific Islands) |
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Economic imperialism, territorial and economic claims, trade barriers, arms race, militarism and autocracy, balance of power, local conflicts, allied obligations of European powers. |
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Victory of the Entente. The February and October revolutions in Russia and the November revolution in Germany. Collapse of the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary. The beginning of the penetration of American capital into Europe. |
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Opponents |
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Bulgaria (since 1915) |
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Italy (since 1915) |
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Romania (since 1916) |
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USA (since 1917) |
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Greece (since 1917) |
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Commanders |
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Nicholas II † |
Franz Joseph I † |
Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich |
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M. V. Alekseev † |
F. von Goetzendorf |
A. A. Brusilov |
A. von Straussenburg |
L. G. Kornilov † |
Wilhelm II |
A. F. Kerensky |
E. von Falkenhayn |
N. N. Dukhonin † |
Paul von Hindenburg |
N. V. Krylenko |
H. von Moltke (the Younger) |
R. Poincaré |
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J. Clemenceau |
E. Ludendorff |
Crown Prince Ruprecht |
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Mehmed V † |
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R. Nivelle |
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Enver Pasha |
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M. Ataturk |
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G. Asquith |
Ferdinand I |
D. Lloyd George |
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J. Jellicoe |
G. Stoyanov-Todorov |
G. Kitchener † |
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L. Dunsterville |
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Prince Regent Alexander |
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R. Putnik † |
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Albert I |
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J. Vukotich |
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Victor Emmanuel III |
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L. Cadorna |
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Prince Luigi |
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Ferdinand I |
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K. Prezan |
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A. Averescu |
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T. Wilson |
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J. Pershing |
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P. Danglis |
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Okuma Shigenobu |
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Terauchi Masatake |
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Hussein bin Ali |
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Military losses |
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Military deaths: 5,953,372 |
Military deaths: 4,043,397 |
(July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918) - one of the most large-scale armed conflicts in human history.
This name was established in historiography only after the outbreak of World War II in 1939. During the interwar period the name " Great War"(English) TheGreatWar, fr. La Grandeguerre), in the Russian Empire it was sometimes called " Second Patriotic War", as well as informally (both before the revolution and after) - " German"; then to the USSR - “ imperialist war».
The immediate cause of the war was the Sarajevo assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914 by nineteen-year-old Serbian student Gavrilo Princip, who was one of the members of the terrorist organization Mlada Bosna, which fought for the unification of all South Slavic peoples into one state.
As a result of the war, four empires ceased to exist: Russian, Austro-Hungarian, German and Ottoman. The participating countries lost about 12 million people killed (including civilians), and about 55 million were wounded.
Participants
Allies of the Entente(supported the Entente in the war): USA, Japan, Serbia, Italy (participated in the war on the side of the Entente since 1915, despite being a member of the Triple Alliance), Montenegro, Belgium, Egypt, Portugal, Romania, Greece, Brazil, China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Siam, Haiti, Liberia, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Peru, Uruguay, Ecuador.
Timeline of declaration of war |
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Who declared war |
To whom was war declared? |
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Germany |
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Germany |
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Germany |
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British Empire and France |
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Germany |
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British Empire and France |
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Panama and Cuba |
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Brazil |
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End of the war |
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Background to the conflict
Long before the war, contradictions were growing in Europe between the great powers - Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Great Britain, and Russia.
The German Empire, formed after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, sought political and economic dominance on the European continent. Having joined the struggle for colonies only after 1871, Germany wanted the redistribution of the colonial possessions of England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal in its favor.
Russia, France and Great Britain sought to counteract the hegemonic aspirations of Germany. Why was the Entente formed?
Austria-Hungary, being a multinational empire, was a constant source of instability in Europe due to internal ethnic contradictions. She sought to retain Bosnia and Herzegovina, which she captured in 1908 (see: Bosnian crisis). It opposed Russia, which took on the role of protector of all Slavs in the Balkans, and Serbia, which claimed the role of a unifying center of the South Slavs.
In the Middle East, the interests of almost all powers collided, striving to achieve the division of the collapsing Ottoman Empire (Turkey). According to the agreements reached between the members of the Entente, at the end of the war, all the straits between the Black and Aegean seas would go to Russia, thus Russia would gain full control of the Black Sea and Constantinople.
The confrontation between the Entente countries on the one hand and Germany and Austria-Hungary on the other led to the First World War, where the opponents of the Entente: Russia, Great Britain and France - and its allies were the bloc of Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria - in which Germany played a leading role. By 1914, two blocks had finally taken shape:
Entente bloc (formed by 1907 after the conclusion of the Russian-French, Anglo-French and Anglo-Russian alliance treaties):
- Great Britain;
Block Triple Alliance:
- Germany;
Italy, however, entered the war in 1915 on the side of the Entente - but Turkey and Bulgaria joined Germany and Austria-Hungary during the war, forming the Quadruple Alliance (or bloc of the Central Powers).
The reasons for the war mentioned in various sources include economic imperialism, trade barriers, the arms race, militarism and autocracy, the balance of power, local conflicts that took place the day before (the Balkan Wars, the Italian-Turkish War), orders for general mobilization in Russia and Germany, territorial claims and the alliance obligations of the European powers.
The state of the armed forces at the beginning of the war
With a strong blow in the German army there was a reduction in its numbers: the reason for this is considered to be the short-sighted policy of the Social Democrats. For the period 1912-1916 in Germany, a reduction in the army was planned, which did not contribute in any way to increasing its combat effectiveness. The Social Democratic government constantly cut funding for the army (which, however, does not apply to the navy).
This policy, destructive of the army, led to the fact that by the beginning of 1914, unemployment in Germany increased by 8% (compared to 1910 levels). The army experienced a chronic lack of necessary military equipment. There was a lack of modern weapons. There were not enough funds to sufficiently equip the army with machine guns - Germany lagged behind in this area. The same applied to aviation - the German aircraft fleet was numerous, but outdated. The main aircraft of the German Luftstreitkrafte was the most popular, but at the same time hopelessly outdated aircraft in Europe - a Taube-type monoplane.
The mobilization also saw the requisitioning of a significant number of civilian and mail aircraft. Moreover, aviation was designated as a separate branch of the military only in 1916; before that it was listed in the “transport troops” ( Kraftfahrers). But aviation was given little importance in all armies except the French, where aviation had to carry out regular air raids on the territory of Alsace-Lorraine, Rhineland, and the Bavarian Palatinate. Total financial costs for military aviation in France in 1913 amounted to 6 million francs, in Germany - 322 thousand marks, in Russia - about 1 million rubles. The latter achieved significant success, having built, shortly before the start of the war, the world's first four-engine aircraft, which was destined to become the first strategic bomber. Since 1865, the State Agrarian University and the Obukhov plant have successfully collaborated with the Krupp company. This Krupp company collaborated with Russia and France until the very beginning of the war.
German shipyards (including Blohm & Voss) built, but did not have time to complete before the start of the war, 6 destroyers for Russia, based on the design of the later famous Novik, built at the Putilov plant and armed with weapons produced at the Obukhov plant. Despite the Russian-French alliance, Krupp and other German firms regularly sent their latest weapons for testing to Russia. But under Nicholas II, preference began to be given to French guns. Thus, Russia, taking into account the experience of two leading artillery manufacturers, entered the war with good artillery of small and medium calibers, having 1 barrel per 786 soldiers against 1 barrel per 476 soldiers in the German army, but in heavy artillery the Russian army lagged significantly behind the German army, having 1 gun per 22,241 soldiers and officers versus 1 gun per 2,798 soldiers in the German army. And this is not counting the mortars, which were already in service with the German army and which were not available at all in the Russian army in 1914.
Also, it should be noted that the saturation of infantry units with machine guns in the Russian army was not inferior to the German and French armies. So the Russian infantry regiment of 4 battalions (16 companies) had in its staff on May 6, 1910 a machine gun team of 8 Maxim heavy machine guns, that is, 0.5 machine guns per company, “in the German and French armies there were six of them per regiment of 12 companies.
Events before the start of the First World War
On June 28, 1914, Gavriil Princip, a nineteen-year-old Bosnian Serb student and member of the nationalist Serbian terrorist organization Mlada Bosna, assassinates the heir to the Austrian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife Sofia Chotek in Sarajevo. The Austrian and German ruling circles decided to use this Sarajevo murder as a pretext for starting a European war. July 5 Germany promises support for Austria-Hungary in the event of a conflict with Serbia.
On July 23, Austria-Hungary, declaring that Serbia was behind the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, announces an ultimatum, in which it demands that Serbia fulfill obviously impossible conditions, including: purge the state apparatus and army of officers and officials found in anti-Austrian propaganda; arrest suspects of promoting terrorism; allow the Austrian-Hungarian police to conduct investigations and punishments for those responsible for anti-Austrian actions on Serbian territory. Only 48 hours were given for a response.
On the same day, Serbia begins mobilization, however, it agrees to all the demands of Austria-Hungary, except for the admission of the Austrian police to its territory. Germany is persistently pushing Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia.
On July 25, Germany begins hidden mobilization: without officially announcing it, they began sending out summonses to reservists at recruiting stations.
July 26 Austria-Hungary announces mobilization and begins to concentrate troops on the border with Serbia and Russia.
On July 28, Austria-Hungary, declaring that the demands of the ultimatum had not been fulfilled, declared war on Serbia. Russia says it will not allow the occupation of Serbia.
On the same day, Germany presents Russia with an ultimatum: stop conscription or Germany will declare war on Russia. France, Austria-Hungary and Germany are mobilizing. Germany is massing troops to the Belgian and French borders.
At the same time, on the morning of August 1, the British Foreign Minister E. Gray promised the German ambassador in London Lichnowsky that in the event of a war between Germany and Russia, England would remain neutral, provided that France was not attacked.
1914 Campaign
The war unfolded in two main theaters of military operations - Western and Eastern Europe, as well as in the Balkans, Northern Italy (since May 1915), the Caucasus and the Middle East (since November 1914) in the colonies of European states - in Africa, China, and Oceania. In 1914, all participants in the war were going to end the war in a few months through a decisive offensive; no one expected the war to become protracted.
Beginning of the First World War
Germany, in accordance with a pre-developed plan for waging a lightning war, the “blitzkrieg” (Schlieffen plan), sent the main forces to the western front, hoping to defeat France with a quick blow before the completion of the mobilization and deployment of the Russian army, and then deal with Russia.
The German command intended to deliver the main blow through Belgium to the unprotected north of France, bypass Paris from the west and take the French army, whose main forces were concentrated on the fortified eastern, Franco-German border, into a huge “cauldron”.
On August 1, Germany declared war on Russia, and on the same day the Germans invaded Luxembourg without any declaration of war.
France appealed to England for help, but the British government, by a vote of 12 to 6, refused France's support, declaring that "France should not count on help that we are currently unable to provide," adding that "if the Germans invade to Belgium and will occupy only the “corner” of this country closest to Luxembourg, and not the coast, England will remain neutral.”
To which the French Ambassador to Great Britain, Kambo, said that if England now betrays its allies: France and Russia, then after the war it will have a bad time, regardless of who the winner is. The British government, in fact, pushed the Germans to aggression. The German leadership decided that England would not enter the war and moved on to decisive action.
On August 2, German troops finally occupied Luxembourg, and Belgium was given an ultimatum to allow German armies to enter the border with France. Only 12 hours were given for reflection.
On August 3, Germany declared war on France, accusing it of “organized attacks and aerial bombardments of Germany” and “violating Belgian neutrality.”
On August 4, German troops poured across the Belgian border. King Albert of Belgium turned for help to the guarantor countries of Belgian neutrality. London, contrary to its previous statements, sent an ultimatum to Berlin: stop the invasion of Belgium or England will declare war on Germany, to which Berlin declared “betrayal”. After the ultimatum expired, Great Britain declared war on Germany and sent 5.5 divisions to help France.
The First World War has begun.
Progress of hostilities
French Theater of Operations - Western Front
Strategic plans of the parties at the beginning of the war. At the beginning of the war, Germany was guided by a fairly old military doctrine - the Schlieffen plan - which provided for the instant defeat of France before the “clumsy” Russia could mobilize and advance its army to the borders. The attack was planned through the territory of Belgium (with the aim of bypassing the main French forces); Paris was initially supposed to be taken in 39 days. In a nutshell, the essence of the plan was outlined by William II: “We will have lunch in Paris and dinner in St. Petersburg”. In 1906, the plan was modified (under the leadership of General Moltke) and acquired a less categorical character - a significant part of the troops was still supposed to be left on the Eastern Front; the attack should have been through Belgium, but without touching neutral Holland.
France, in turn, was guided by a military doctrine (the so-called Plan 17), which prescribed starting the war with the liberation of Alsace-Lorraine. The French expected that the main forces of the German army would initially be concentrated against Alsace.
Invasion of the German army into Belgium. Having crossed the Belgian border on the morning of August 4, the German army, following the Schlieffen Plan, easily swept away the weak barriers of the Belgian army and moved deeper into Belgium. The Belgian army, which the Germans outnumbered by more than 10 times, unexpectedly put up active resistance, which, however, was unable to significantly delay the enemy. Bypassing and blocking the well-fortified Belgian fortresses: Liege (fell on August 16, see: Assault of Liege), Namur (fell on August 25) and Antwerp (fell on October 9), the Germans drove the Belgian army in front of them and took Brussels on August 20, at which the same day came into contact with the Anglo-French forces. The movement of the German troops was rapid; the Germans, without stopping, bypassed the cities and fortresses that continued to defend themselves. The Belgian government fled to Le Havre. King Albert I, with the last remaining combat-ready units, continued to defend Antwerp. The invasion of Belgium came as a surprise to the French command, but the French were able to organize the transfer of their units in the direction of the breakthrough much faster than expected by German plans.
Actions in Alsace and Lorraine. On August 7, the French, with the forces of the 1st and 2nd armies, began an offensive in Alsace, and on August 14 - in Lorraine. The offensive had symbolic significance for the French - the territory of Alsace-Lorraine was torn away from France in 1871, after defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. Although they initially managed to penetrate deeper into German territory, capturing Saarbrücken and Mulhouse, the simultaneously unfolding German offensive in Belgium forced them to transfer part of their troops there. The subsequent counterattacks did not meet sufficient resistance from the French, and by the end of August the French army retreated to its previous positions, leaving Germany with a small part of French territory.
Border battle. On August 20, the Anglo-French and German troops came into contact - the Border Battle began. At the start of the war, the French command did not expect that the main offensive of German troops would take place through Belgium; the main forces of the French troops were concentrated against Alsace. From the beginning of the invasion of Belgium, the French began actively moving units in the direction of the breakthrough; by the time they came into contact with the Germans, the front was in sufficient disarray, and the French and British were forced to fight with three groups of troops that were not in contact. On the territory of Belgium, near Mons, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was located, and to the southeast, near Charleroi, there was the 5th French Army. In the Ardennes, approximately along the French border with Belgium and Luxembourg, the 3rd and 4th French armies were stationed. In all three regions, the Anglo-French troops suffered a heavy defeat (the Battle of Mons, the Battle of Charleroi, the Ardennes operation (1914)), losing about 250 thousand people, and the Germans from the north invaded France on a wide front, delivering the main blow to the west, bypassing Paris, thus taking the French army in a giant pincer.
The German armies were rapidly moving forward. The British units retreated to the coast in disarray; the French command was not confident in the ability to hold Paris; on September 2, the French government moved to Bordeaux. The defense of the city was led by the energetic General Gallieni. The French forces were regrouping to a new line of defense along the Marne River. The French prepared energetically to defend the capital, taking extraordinary measures. The episode is widely known when Gallieni ordered an urgent transfer of an infantry brigade to the front, using Parisian taxis for this purpose.
The unsuccessful August actions of the French army forced its commander, General Joffre, to immediately replace a large number (up to 30% of total number) poorly performing generals; the renewal and rejuvenation of the French generals was subsequently assessed extremely positively.
Battle of the Marne. The German army did not have enough strength to complete the operation to bypass Paris and encircle the French army. The troops, having marched hundreds of kilometers in battle, were exhausted, communications were stretched out, there was nothing to cover the flanks and emerging gaps, there were no reserves, they had to maneuver with the same units, driving them back and forth, so the Headquarters agreed with the commander’s proposal: making a roundabout maneuver 1 Von Kluck's th army reduced the front of the offensive and did not make a deep envelopment of the French army bypassing Paris, but turned east north of the French capital and hit the rear of the main forces of the French army.
Turning east north of Paris, the Germans exposed their right flank and rear to the attack of the French group concentrated to defend Paris. There was nothing to cover the right flank and rear: 2 corps and a cavalry division, originally intended to strengthen the advancing group, were sent to East Prussia to help the defeated 8th German Army. However, the German command took a fatal maneuver: it turned its troops east before reaching Paris, hoping for the passivity of the enemy. The French command did not fail to take advantage of the opportunity and struck the exposed flank and rear of the German army. The First Battle of the Marne began, in which the Allies managed to turn the tide of hostilities in their favor and push German troops on the front from Verdun to Amiens 50-100 kilometers back. The Battle of the Marne was intense, but short-lived - the main battle began on September 5, on September 9 the defeat of the German army became obvious, and by September 12-13 the German army's retreat to the line along the Aisne and Vel rivers was completed.
The Battle of the Marne had great moral significance for all sides. For the French, it was the first victory over the Germans, overcoming the shame of defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. After the Battle of the Marne, capitulatory sentiment in France began to decline. The British realized the insufficient combat power of their troops, and subsequently set a course to increase their armed forces in Europe and strengthen their combat training. German plans for the rapid defeat of France failed; Moltke, who headed the Field General Staff, was replaced by Falkenhayn. Joffre, on the contrary, acquired enormous authority in France. The Battle of the Marne was the turning point of the war in the French theater of operations, after which the continuous retreat of the Anglo-French troops ceased, the front stabilized, and the enemy forces were approximately equal.
"Run to the Sea". Battles in Flanders. The Battle of the Marne turned into the so-called “Run to the Sea” - moving, both armies tried to encircle each other from the flank, which only led to the fact that the front line closed, resting against the shore of the North Sea. The actions of the armies in this flat, populated area, saturated with roads and railways, were characterized by extreme mobility; as soon as one clash ended in the stabilization of the front, both sides quickly moved their troops north, towards the sea, and the battle resumed at the next stage. At the first stage (second half of September), the battles took place along the borders of the Oise and Somme rivers, then, at the second stage (September 29 - October 9), the battles took place along the Scarpa River (Battle of Arras); at the third stage, battles took place near Lille (October 10-15), on the Isère River (October 18-20), and at Ypres (October 30-November 15). On October 9, the last center of resistance of the Belgian army, Antwerp, fell, and the battered Belgian units joined the Anglo-French, occupying the extreme northern position at the front.
By November 15, the entire space between Paris and the North Sea was densely filled with troops of both sides, the front had stabilized, the offensive potential of the Germans had been exhausted, and both sides switched to positional warfare. An important success of the Entente can be considered that it managed to retain the ports that were most convenient for sea communications with England (primarily Calais).
By the end of 1914, Belgium was almost completely conquered by Germany. The Entente retained only a small western part of Flanders with the city of Ypres. Further, south to Nancy, the front passed through the territory of France (the territory lost by the French had the shape of a spindle, 380-400 km long along the front, 100-130 km deep at its widest point from the pre-war border of France towards Paris). Lille was given to the Germans, Arras and Laon remained with the French; The front came closest to Paris (about 70 km) in the area of Noyon (behind the Germans) and Soissons (behind the French). The front then turned east (Reims remained with the French) and moved to the Verdun fortified area. After this, in the Nancy region (behind the French), the zone of active hostilities of 1914 ended, the front continued generally along the border of France and Germany. Neutral Switzerland and Italy did not participate in the war.
Results of the 1914 campaign in the French theater of operations. The 1914 campaign was extremely dynamic. Large armies of both sides maneuvered actively and quickly, which was facilitated by the dense road network of the combat area. The deployment of troops did not always form a continuous front; the troops did not erect long-term defensive lines. By November 1914, a stable front line began to take shape. Both sides, having exhausted their offensive potential, began building trenches and barbed wire barriers designed for permanent use. The war entered a positional phase. Since the length of the entire Western Front (from the North Sea to Switzerland) was a little over 700 kilometers, the density of troops on it was significantly higher than on the Eastern Front. A special feature of the company was that intensive military operations were carried out only on the northern half of the front (north of the Verdun fortified area), where both sides concentrated their main forces. The front from Verdun and to the south was considered by both sides as secondary. The zone lost to the French (of which Picardy was the center) was densely populated and important both agriculturally and industrially.
By the beginning of 1915, the warring powers were faced with the fact that the war had taken on a character that was not foreseen by the pre-war plans of either side - it had become protracted. Although the Germans managed to capture almost all of Belgium and a significant part of France, their main goal - a swift victory over the French - turned out to be completely inaccessible. Both the Entente and the Central Powers had, in essence, to start a new type of war that had not yet been seen by mankind - exhausting, long, requiring the total mobilization of the population and economies.
Germany's relative failure had another important result - Italy, the third member of the Triple Alliance, refrained from entering the war on the side of Germany and Austria-Hungary.
East Prussian operation. On the Eastern Front, the war began with the East Prussian operation. On August 4 (17), the Russian army crossed the border, launching an attack on East Prussia. The 1st Army moved towards Königsberg from the north of the Masurian Lakes, the 2nd Army - from the west of them. The first week of operations of the Russian armies was successful; the numerically inferior Germans gradually retreated; The Gumbinen-Goldap battle on August 7 (20) ended in favor of the Russian army. However, the Russian command was unable to reap the benefits of victory. The movement of the two Russian armies slowed down and became inconsistent, which the Germans were quick to take advantage of, striking from the west on the open flank of the 2nd Army. On August 13-17 (26-30), the 2nd Army of General Samsonov was completely defeated, a significant part was surrounded and captured. IN German tradition these events are called the Battle of Tanneberg. After this, the Russian 1st Army, under threat of encirclement by superior German forces, was forced to fight back to its original position; the withdrawal was completed on September 3 (16). The actions of the commander of the 1st Army, General Rennenkampf, were considered unsuccessful, which became the first episode of the later characteristic distrust of military leaders with German surnames, and, in general, disbelief in the abilities of the military command. In the German tradition, events were mythologized and considered greatest victory German weapons, a huge memorial was built at the site of the fighting, in which Field Marshal Hindenburg was subsequently buried.
Galician battle. On August 16 (23), the Battle of Galicia began - a huge battle in terms of the scale of forces involved between the Russian troops of the Southwestern Front (5 armies) under the command of General N. Ivanov and four Austro-Hungarian armies under the command of Archduke Frederick. Russian troops went on the offensive along a wide (450-500 km) front, with Lviv as the center of the offensive. The fighting of large armies, taking place on a long front, was divided into numerous independent operations, accompanied by both offensives and retreats of both sides.
Actions on the southern part of the border with Austria initially developed unfavorably for the Russian army (Lublin-Kholm operation). By August 19-20 (September 1-2), Russian troops retreated to the territory of the Kingdom of Poland, to Lublin and Kholm. Actions in the center of the front (Galich-Lvov operation) were unsuccessful for the Austro-Hungarians. The Russian offensive began on August 6 (19) and developed very quickly. After the first retreat, the Austro-Hungarian army put up fierce resistance on the borders of the Zolotaya Lipa and Rotten Lipa rivers, but was forced to retreat. The Russians took Lvov on August 21 (September 3), and Galich on August 22 (September 4). Until August 31 (September 12), the Austro-Hungarians did not stop trying to recapture Lviv, the battles took place 30-50 km west and north-west of the city (Gorodok - Rava-Russkaya), but ended in complete victory for the Russian army. On August 29 (September 11), a general retreat of the Austrian army began (more like a flight, since resistance to the advancing Russians was insignificant). The Russian army maintained a high tempo of offensive and in the shortest possible time captured a huge, strategically important territory - Eastern Galicia and part of Bukovina. By September 13 (26), the front had stabilized at a distance of 120-150 km west of Lvov. The strong Austrian fortress of Przemysl was under siege in the rear of the Russian army.
The significant victory caused jubilation in Russia. The seizure of Galicia, with its predominant Orthodox (and Uniate) Slavic population, was perceived in Russia not as an occupation, but as the return of a seized part of historical Rus' (see Galician General Government). Austria-Hungary lost faith in the strength of its army, and in the future did not risk starting large operations without the help of German troops.
Military operations in the Kingdom of Poland. The pre-war border of Russia with Germany and Austria-Hungary had a configuration that was far from smooth - in the center of the border, the territory of the Kingdom of Poland jutted sharply to the west. Obviously, both sides began the war by trying to smooth out the front - the Russians tried to level out the "dents" by advancing in the north into East Prussia and in the south into Galicia, while Germany sought to remove the "bulge" by advancing centrally into Poland. After the Russian offensive in East Prussia failed, Germany could only advance further south, in Poland, to prevent the front from falling apart into two disjointed parts. In addition, the success of the offensive in southern Poland could also help the defeated Austro-Hungarians.
On September 15 (28), the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation began with the German offensive. The offensive went in a north-eastern direction, targeting Warsaw and the Ivangorod fortress. On September 30 (October 12), the Germans reached Warsaw and reached the Vistula River. Fierce battles began, in which the advantage of the Russian army gradually became clear. On October 7 (20), the Russians began to cross the Vistula, and on October 14 (27), the German army began a general retreat. By October 26 (November 8), the German troops, having achieved no results, retreated to their original positions.
On October 29 (November 11), the Germans launched a second offensive from the same positions along the pre-war border in the same northeastern direction (Lodz operation). The center of the battle was the city of Lodz, captured and abandoned by the Germans a few weeks earlier. In a dynamically unfolding battle, the Germans first surrounded Lodz, then they themselves were surrounded by superior Russian forces and retreated. The results of the battles turned out to be uncertain - the Russians managed to defend both Lodz and Warsaw; but at the same time, Germany managed to capture the northwestern part of the Kingdom of Poland - the front, stabilized by October 26 (November 8), went from Lodz to Warsaw.
Positions of the parties by the end of 1914. By the new year of 1915, the front looked like this - on the border of East Prussia and Russia, the front followed the pre-war border, followed by a gap poorly filled by troops of both sides, after which a stable front began again from Warsaw to Lodz (northeast and east of the Kingdom of Poland with Petrokov , Czestochowa and Kalisz were occupied by Germany), in the Krakow region (remained by Austria-Hungary) the front crossed the pre-war border of Austria-Hungary with Russia and crossed into Austrian territory captured by the Russians. Most of Galicia went to Russia, Lvov (Lemberg) fell into the deep (180 km from the front) rear. In the south, the front abutted the Carpathians, which were practically unoccupied by troops of both sides. Bukovina and Chernivtsi, located east of the Carpathians, passed to Russia. The total length of the front was about 1200 km.
Results of the 1914 campaign on the Russian front. The campaign as a whole turned out in favor of Russia. Clashes with the German army ended in favor of the Germans, and on the German part of the front Russia lost part of the territory of the Kingdom of Poland. The defeat of Russia in East Prussia was morally painful and was accompanied by heavy losses. But Germany was not able to achieve the results it had planned at any point; all its successes from a military point of view were modest. Meanwhile, Russia managed to inflict a major defeat on Austria-Hungary and seize significant territories. A certain pattern of actions of the Russian army formed - the Germans were treated with caution, the Austro-Hungarians were considered a weaker enemy. Austria-Hungary turned from a full ally for Germany into a weak partner requiring continuous support. By the new year 1915, the fronts had stabilized, and the war entered the positional phase; but at the same time, the front line (unlike the French theater of operations) continued to remain unsmoothed, and the armies of the sides filled it unevenly, with large gaps. This unevenness next year will make events on the Eastern Front much more dynamic than on the Western Front. By the new year, the Russian army began to feel the first signs of a coming crisis in the supply of ammunition. It also turned out that Austro-Hungarian soldiers were prone to surrender, but German soldiers were not.
The Entente countries were able to coordinate actions on two fronts - Russia's offensive in East Prussia coincided with the most difficult moment of the fighting for France; Germany was forced to fight on two fronts simultaneously, as well as to transfer troops from front to front.
Balkan theater of operations
On the Serbian front, things were not going well for the Austrians. Despite their great numerical superiority, they managed to occupy Belgrade, which was located on the border, only on December 2, but on December 15, the Serbs recaptured Belgrade and drove the Austrians out of their territory. Although Austria-Hungary's demands on Serbia were the immediate cause of the outbreak of the war, it was in Serbia that military operations in 1914 proceeded rather sluggishly.
Japan's entry into the war
In August 1914, the Entente countries (primarily England) managed to convince Japan to oppose Germany, despite the fact that the two countries had no significant conflicts of interest. On August 15, Japan presented an ultimatum to Germany, demanding the withdrawal of troops from China, and on August 23, it declared war (see Japan in the First World War). In late August Japanese army began the siege of Qingdao, the only German naval base in China, which ended on November 7 with the surrender of the German garrison (see Siege of Qingdao).
In September-October, Japan actively began to seize the island colonies and bases of Germany (German Micronesia and German New Guinea. On September 12, the Caroline Islands were captured, and on September 29, the Marshall Islands. In October, the Japanese landed on the Caroline Islands and captured the key port of Rabaul. In the end August, New Zealand troops captured German Samoa. Australia and New Zealand entered into an agreement with Japan on the division of German colonies, the equator was adopted as the dividing line of interests. German forces in the region were insignificant and sharply inferior to the Japanese, so the fighting was not accompanied by major losses.
Japan's participation in the war on the side of the Entente turned out to be extremely beneficial for Russia, completely securing its Asian part. Russia no longer needed to spend resources on maintaining the army, navy and fortifications directed against Japan and China. In addition, Japan gradually became an important source of supplying Russia with raw materials and weapons.
Entry of the Ottoman Empire into the war and opening of the Asian theater of operations
Since the beginning of the war in Turkey, there was no agreement on whether to enter the war and on whose side. In the unofficial Young Turk triumvirate, War Minister Enver Pasha and Interior Minister Talaat Pasha were supporters of the Triple Alliance, but Cemal Pasha was a supporter of the Entente. On August 2, 1914, a German-Turkish alliance treaty was signed, according to which the Turkish army was actually placed under the leadership of the German military mission. Mobilization was announced in the country. However, at the same time, the Turkish government published a declaration of neutrality. On August 10, the German cruisers Goeben and Breslau entered the Dardanelles, having escaped pursuit of the British fleet in the Mediterranean. With the advent of these ships, not only the Turkish army, but also the fleet found themselves under the command of the Germans. On September 9, the Turkish government announced to all powers that it had decided to abolish the capitulation regime (preferential legal status for foreign citizens). This caused protest from all powers.
However, most members of the Turkish government, including the Grand Vizier, still opposed the war. Then Enver Pasha, together with the German command, started the war without the consent of the rest of the government, presenting the country with a fait accompli. Türkiye declared "jihad" ( holy war) Entente countries. October 29-30 (November 11-12) Turkish fleet under the command of the German admiral Souchon, fired at Sevastopol, Odessa, Feodosia and Novorossiysk. On November 2 (15), Russia declared war on Turkey. England and France followed on November 5 and 6.
The Caucasian Front arose between Russia and Turkey. In December 1914 - January 1915, during the Sarykamysh operation, the Russian Caucasian Army stopped the advance of Turkish troops on Kars, and then defeated them and launched a counteroffensive (see Caucasian Front).
Turkey's usefulness as an ally was diminished by the fact that the Central Powers had no communication with it either by land (between Turkey and Austria-Hungary there was still uncaptured Serbia and still neutral Romania) or by sea (the Mediterranean was controlled by the Entente).
At the same time, Russia has also lost the most convenient route of communication with its allies - through the Black Sea and the Straits. Russia has two ports left suitable for transporting large quantities of cargo - Arkhangelsk and Vladivostok; carrying capacity railways approaching these ports was low.
Combat at sea
With the outbreak of the war, the German fleet launched cruising operations throughout the World Ocean, which, however, did not lead to a significant disruption of the merchant shipping of its opponents. However, part of the Entente fleet was diverted to fight the German raiders. The German squadron of Admiral von Spee managed to defeat the British squadron in the battle at Cape Coronel (Chile) on November 1, but later it itself was defeated by the British in the Battle of Falklands on December 8.
In the North Sea, the fleets of the opposing sides carried out raiding operations. The first major clash occurred on August 28 near the island of Heligoland (Battle of Heligoland). The English fleet won.
The Russian fleets behaved passively. The Russian Baltic Fleet occupied a defensive position, which the German fleet, busy with operations in other theaters, did not even approach. The Black Sea Fleet, which did not have large ships of the modern type, did not dare to engage in a collision with the two newest German-Turkish ships.
1915 Campaign
Progress of hostilities
French Theater of Operations - Western Front
Actions beginning in 1915. The intensity of action on the Western Front decreased significantly from the beginning of 1915. Germany concentrated its forces on preparing operations against Russia. The French and British also preferred to take advantage of the resulting pause to accumulate forces. For the first four months of the year, there was almost complete calm on the front, fighting took place only in Artois, in the area of the city of Arras (an attempted French offensive in February) and southeast of Verdun, where German positions formed the so-called Ser-Miel salient towards France (an attempt French advance in April). The British made an unsuccessful attempt to attack near the village of Neuve Chapelle in March.
The Germans, in turn, launched a counterattack in the north of the front, in Flanders near Ypres, against English troops (April 22 - May 25, see Second Battle of Ypres). At the same time, Germany, for the first time in the history of mankind and with complete surprise to the Anglo-French, used chemical weapons (chlorine was released from the cylinders). The gas affected 15 thousand people, of whom 5 thousand died. The Germans did not have sufficient reserves to take advantage of the gas attack and break through the front. After the Ypres gas attack, both sides very quickly managed to develop gas masks of various designs, and further attempts to use chemical weapons no longer took large numbers of troops by surprise.
During these military operations, which produced the most insignificant results with noticeable casualties, both sides became convinced that an assault on well-equipped positions (several lines of trenches, dugouts, barbed wire fences) was futile without active artillery preparation.
Spring operation in Artois. On May 3, the Entente launched a new offensive in Artois. The offensive was carried out by joint Anglo-French forces. The French advanced north of Arras, the British - in an adjacent area in the Neuve Chapelle area. The offensive was organized in a new way: huge forces (30 infantry divisions, 9 cavalry corps, more than 1,700 guns) were concentrated on a 30-kilometer offensive area. The offensive was preceded by a six-day artillery preparation (2.1 million shells were spent), which was supposed to completely suppress the resistance of German troops. The calculations did not come true. The huge losses of the Entente (130 thousand people) suffered over six weeks of fighting did not completely correspond to the results achieved - by mid-June the French had advanced 3-4 km along a 7 km front, and the British had advanced less than 1 km along a 3 km front.
Autumn operation in Champagne and Artois. By the beginning of September, the Entente had prepared a new major offensive, the task of which was to liberate the north of France. The offensive began on September 25 and took place simultaneously in two sectors separated by 120 km - on the 35 km front in Champagne (east of Reims) and on the 20 km front in Artois (near Arras). If successful, the troops advancing from both sides were supposed to close in 80-100 km on the French border (at Mons), which would lead to the liberation of Picardy. Compared to the spring offensive in Artois, the scale was increased: 67 infantry and cavalry divisions, up to 2,600 guns, were involved in the offensive; During the operation, over 5 million shells were fired. The Anglo-French troops used new attack tactics in several “waves”. At the time of the offensive, the German troops managed to improve their defensive positions - a second defensive line was built 5-6 kilometers behind the first defensive line, poorly visible from enemy positions (each of the defensive lines consisted, in turn, of three rows of trenches). The offensive, which lasted until October 7, led to extremely limited results - in both sectors it was possible to break through only the first line of German defense and recapture no more than 2-3 km of territory. At the same time, the losses of both sides were enormous - the Anglo-French lost 200 thousand people killed and wounded, the Germans - 140 thousand people.
Positions of the parties by the end of 1915 and the results of the campaign. Throughout 1915, the front practically did not move - the result of all the fierce offensives was a movement of the front line by no more than 10 km. Both sides, increasingly strengthening their defensive positions, were unable to develop tactics that would allow them to break through the front, even under the conditions of an extremely high concentration of forces and many days of artillery preparation. The enormous sacrifices of both sides did not yield any significant result. The situation, however, allowed Germany to increase its pressure on the Eastern Front - the entire strengthening of the German army was aimed at fighting Russia, while the improvement of defensive lines and defense tactics allowed the Germans to be confident in the strength of the Western Front while gradually reducing the troops involved on it.
The actions of early 1915 showed that the current type of military action creates a huge burden on the economies of the warring countries. New battles required not only the mobilization of millions of citizens, but also a gigantic amount of weapons and ammunition. Pre-war reserves of weapons and ammunition were exhausted, and the warring countries began to actively rebuild their economies for military needs. The war gradually began to turn from a battle of armies into a battle of economies. Development of new military equipment, as a means of breaking out of a stalemate at the front; armies became more and more mechanized. The armies noticed the significant benefits brought by aviation (reconnaissance and artillery fire adjustment) and automobiles. Methods of trench warfare improved - trench guns, light mortars, and hand grenades appeared.
France and Russia again made attempts to coordinate the actions of their armies - the spring offensive in Artois was intended to distract the Germans from an active offensive against the Russians. On July 7, the first Inter-Allied Conference opened in Chantilly, aimed at planning joint actions of the allies on different fronts and organizing various types of economic and military assistance. The second conference took place there on November 23-26. It was considered necessary to begin preparations for a coordinated offensive by all allied armies in the three main theaters - French, Russian and Italian.
Russian Theater of Operations - Eastern Front
Winter operation in East Prussia. In February, the Russian army made another attempt to attack East Prussia, this time from the southeast, from Masuria, from the city of Suwalki. Poorly prepared and unsupported by artillery, the offensive instantly floundered and turned into a counterattack by German troops, the so-called Augustow operation (named after the city of Augustow). By February 26, the Germans managed to advance to oust Russian troops from the territory of East Prussia and advance deeper into the Kingdom of Poland 100-120 km, capturing Suwalki, after which in the first half of March the front stabilized, Grodno remained with Russia. The XX Russian Corps was surrounded and surrendered. Despite the victory of the Germans, their hopes for the complete collapse of the Russian front were not justified. During the next battle - the Prasnysh operation (February 25 - end of March), the Germans encountered fierce resistance from Russian troops, which turned into a counterattack in the Prasnysh area, which led to the withdrawal of the Germans to the pre-war border of East Prussia (the Suwalki province remained with Germany).
Winter operation in the Carpathians. On February 9-11, Austro-German troops launched an offensive in the Carpathians, putting especially strong pressure on the weakest part of the Russian front in the south, in Bukovina. At the same time, the Russian army launched a counter-offensive, hoping to cross the Carpathians and invade Hungary from north to south. In the northern part of the Carpathians, closer to Krakow, the enemy forces turned out to be equal, and the front practically did not move during the battles in February and March, remaining in the foothills of the Carpathians on the Russian side. But in the south of the Carpathians, the Russian army did not have time to regroup, and at the end of March the Russians lost most of Bukovina with Chernivtsi. On March 22, the besieged Austrian fortress of Przemysl fell, more than 120 thousand people surrendered. The capture of Przemysl was the last major success of the Russian army in 1915.
Gorlitsky breakthrough. The beginning of the Great Retreat of the Russian armies - the loss of Galicia. By mid-spring the situation at the front in Galicia had changed. The Germans expanded their area of operations by transferring their troops to the northern and central part of the front in Austria-Hungary; the weaker Austro-Hungarians were now responsible only for the southern part of the front. In an area of 35 km, the Germans concentrated 32 divisions and 1,500 guns; Russian troops were outnumbered by 2 times and were completely deprived of heavy artillery; the shortage of main (three-inch) caliber shells also began to affect them. On April 19 (May 2), German troops launched an attack on the center of the Russian position in Austria-Hungary - Gorlice - aiming the main blow at Lvov. Further events were unfavorable for the Russian army: the numerical dominance of the Germans, unsuccessful maneuvering and the use of reserves, an increasing shortage of shells and the complete predominance of German heavy artillery led to the fact that by April 22 (May 5) the front in the Gorlitsy area was broken through. The beginning of the retreat of the Russian armies continued until June 9 (22) (see the Great Retreat of 1915). The entire front south of Warsaw moved towards Russia. The Radom and Kielce provinces were left in the Kingdom of Poland, the front passed through Lublin (behind Russia); from the territories of Austria-Hungary, most of Galicia was abandoned (the newly taken Przemysl was abandoned on June 3 (16), and Lviv on June 9 (22), only a small (up to 40 km deep) strip with Brody remained for the Russians, the entire region Tarnopol and a small part of Bukovina. The retreat, which began with the German breakthrough, by the time Lvov was abandoned, had acquired a planned character, the Russian troops were withdrawing in relative order. But nevertheless, such a major military failure was accompanied by a loss of fighting spirit in the Russian army and mass surrenders.
Continuation of the Great Retreat of the Russian armies - the loss of Poland. Having achieved success in the southern part of the theater of operations, the German command decided to immediately continue an active offensive in its northern part - in Poland and in East Prussia - the Baltic region. Since the Gorlitsky breakthrough did not ultimately lead to the complete collapse of the Russian front (the Russians were able to stabilize the situation and close the front at the cost of a significant retreat), this time the tactics were changed - it was not supposed to break through the front at one point, but three independent offensives. Two directions of attack were aimed at the Kingdom of Poland (where the Russian front continued to form a salient towards Germany) - the Germans planned front breakthroughs from the north, from East Prussia (a breakthrough to the south between Warsaw and Lomza, in the area of the Narew River), and from the south, from sides of Galicia (to the north along the Vistula and Bug rivers); at the same time, the directions of both breakthroughs converged on the border of the Kingdom of Poland, in the area of Brest-Litovsk; If the German plan was carried out, Russian troops had to leave all of Poland to avoid encirclement in the Warsaw area. The third offensive, from East Prussia towards Riga, was planned as an offensive on a broad front, without concentration on a narrow area and without a breakthrough.
The offensive between the Vistula and Bug was launched on June 13 (26), and the Narew operation began on June 30 (July 13). After fierce fighting, the front was broken in both places, and the Russian army, as envisaged by the German plan, began a general withdrawal from the Kingdom of Poland. On July 22 (August 4) Warsaw and the Ivangorod fortress were abandoned, on August 7 (20) the Novogeorgievsk fortress fell, on August 9 (22) the Osovets fortress fell, on August 13 (26) the Russians abandoned Brest-Litovsk, and on August 19 (September 2) Grodno.
The offensive from East Prussia (Rigo-Schavel operation) began on July 1 (14). During a month of fighting, Russian troops were pushed back beyond the Neman, the Germans captured Courland with Mitau and the most important naval base of Libau, Kovno, and came close to Riga.
The success of the German offensive was facilitated by the fact that by the summer the crisis in the military supply of the Russian army had reached its maximum. Of particular importance was the so-called “shell famine” - an acute shortage of shells for the 75-mm guns that predominated in the Russian army. The capture of the Novogeorgievsk fortress, accompanied by the surrender of large parts of troops and intact weapons and property without a fight, caused a new outbreak of spy mania and rumors of treason in Russian society. The Kingdom of Poland gave Russia about a quarter of coal production, the loss of Polish deposits was never compensated, and from the end of 1915 a fuel crisis began in Russia.
Completion of the great retreat and stabilization of the front. On August 9 (22), the Germans moved the direction of the main attack; Now the main offensive took place along the front north of Vilno, in the Sventsyan region, and was directed towards Minsk. On August 27-28 (September 8-9), the Germans, taking advantage of the loose location of Russian units, were able to break through the front (Sventsyansky breakthrough). The result was that the Russians were able to fill the front only after they withdrew directly to Minsk. The Vilna province was lost to the Russians.
On December 14 (27), the Russians launched an offensive against the Austro-Hungarian troops on the Strypa River, in the Ternopil region, caused by the need to distract the Austrians from the Serbian front, where the position of the Serbs had become very difficult. Attempts at the offensive did not bring any success, and on January 15 (29) the operation was stopped.
Meanwhile, the retreat of the Russian armies continued south of the Sventsyansky breakthrough zone. In August, Vladimir-Volynsky, Kovel, Lutsk, and Pinsk were abandoned by the Russians. On the more southern part of the front, the situation was stable, since by that time the Austro-Hungarian forces were distracted by fighting in Serbia and on the Italian front. By the end of September - beginning of October, the front stabilized, and there was a lull along its entire length. The offensive potential of the Germans was exhausted, the Russians began to restore their troops, which were badly damaged during the retreat, and strengthen new defensive lines.
Positions of the parties by the end of 1915. By the end of 1915, the front had become almost a straight line connecting the Baltic and Black Seas; The frontline in the Kingdom of Poland completely disappeared - Poland was completely occupied by Germany. Courland was occupied by Germany, the front came close to Riga and then went along the Western Dvina to the fortified area of Dvinsk. Further, the front passed through the North-Western region: Kovno, Vilna, Grodno provinces, the western part of the Minsk province was occupied by Germany (Minsk remained with Russia). Then the front passed through the South-Western region: the western third of the Volyn province with Lutsk was occupied by Germany, Rivne remained with Russia. After this, the front moved to the former territory of Austria-Hungary, where the Russians retained part of the Tarnopol region in Galicia. Further, to the Bessarabia province, the front returned to the pre-war border with Austria-Hungary and ended at the border with neutral Romania.
The new configuration of the front, which had no protrusions and was densely filled with troops of both sides, naturally pushed for a transition to trench warfare and defensive tactics.
Results of the 1915 campaign on the Eastern Front. The results of the 1915 campaign for Germany in the east were in some ways similar to the 1914 campaign in the west: Germany was able to achieve significant military victories and capture enemy territory, Germany's tactical advantage in maneuver warfare was obvious; but at the same time, the general goal - the complete defeat of one of the opponents and its withdrawal from the war - was not achieved in 1915. While winning tactical victories, the Central Powers were unable to completely defeat their leading opponents, while their economy became increasingly weaker. Russia, despite large losses in territory and manpower, fully retained the ability to continue the war (although its army lost its offensive spirit during the long period of retreat). In addition, by the end of the Great Retreat, the Russians managed to overcome the military supply crisis, and the situation with artillery and shells for it returned to normal by the end of the year. Fierce fighting and heavy losses of life led the economies of Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary to overstrain, the negative results of which would be more and more noticeable in the coming years.
Russia's failures were accompanied by important personnel changes. On June 30 (July 13), Minister of War V. A. Sukhomlinov was replaced by A. A. Polivanov. Subsequently, Sukhomlinov was put on trial, which caused another outbreak of suspicion and spy mania. On August 10 (23), Nicholas II assumed the duties of commander-in-chief of the Russian army, moving Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich to the Caucasian front. The actual leadership of military operations passed from N. N. Yanushkevich to M. V. Alekseev. The Tsar's assumption of supreme command entailed extremely significant domestic political consequences.
Italy's entry into the war
Since the beginning of the war, Italy remained neutral. On August 3, 1914, the Italian king informed William II that the conditions for the outbreak of war did not correspond to those conditions in the Treaty of the Triple Alliance under which Italy should enter the war. On the same day, the Italian government published a declaration of neutrality. After lengthy negotiations between Italy and the Central Powers and the Entente countries, the London Pact was concluded on April 26, 1915, according to which Italy pledged to declare war on Austria-Hungary within a month, as well as to oppose all enemies of the Entente. A number of territories were promised to Italy as “payment for blood.” England provided Italy with a loan of 50 million pounds. Despite subsequent reciprocal offers of territories from the Central Powers, against the backdrop of fierce internal political clashes between opponents and supporters of the two blocs, on May 23, Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary.
Balkan theater of war, Bulgaria's entry into the war
Until the autumn there was no activity on the Serbian front. By the beginning of autumn, after the completion of a successful campaign to oust Russian troops from Galicia and Bukovina, the Austro-Hungarians and Germans were able to transfer a large number of troops to attack Serbia. At the same time, it was expected that Bulgaria, impressed by the successes of the Central Powers, intended to enter the war on their side. In this case, sparsely populated Serbia with a small army found itself surrounded by enemies on two fronts, and faced inevitable military defeat. Anglo-French assistance arrived very late - only on October 5 did troops begin to land in Thessaloniki (Greece); Russia could not help, since neutral Romania refused to let Russian troops through. On October 5, the offensive of the Central Powers from Austria-Hungary began; on October 14, Bulgaria declared war on the Entente countries and began military operations against Serbia. The troops of the Serbs, British and French were numerically inferior to the forces of the Central Powers by more than 2 times and had no chance of success.
By the end of December, Serbian troops left the territory of Serbia, going to Albania, from where in January 1916 their remnants were evacuated to the island of Corfu and Bizerte. In December, Anglo-French troops retreated to Greek territory, to Thessaloniki, where they were able to gain a foothold, forming the Thessaloniki Front along the Greek border with Bulgaria and Serbia. The personnel of the Serbian Army (up to 150 thousand people) were retained and in the spring of 1916 they strengthened the Thessaloniki Front.
The accession of Bulgaria to the Central Powers and the fall of Serbia opened up direct land communication for the Central Powers with Turkey.
Military operations in the Dardanelles and Gallipoli Peninsula
By the beginning of 1915, the Anglo-French command developed a joint operation to break through the Dardanelles Strait and reach the Sea of Marmara, towards Constantinople. The objective of the operation was to ensure free maritime communication through the straits and divert Turkish forces from the Caucasian front.
According to the original plan, the breakthrough was to be made by the British fleet, which was to destroy the coastal batteries without landing troops. After initial unsuccessful attacks by small forces (19–25 February), the British fleet launched a general attack on 18 March, which involved more than 20 battleships, battlecruisers and obsolete ironclads. After the loss of 3 ships, the British, without achieving success, left the strait.
After this, the Entente’s tactics changed - it was decided to land expeditionary forces on the Gallipoli Peninsula (on the European side of the straits) and on the opposite Asian coast. The Entente landing force (80 thousand people), consisting of the British, French, Australians and New Zealanders, began landing on April 25. The landings took place on three beachheads, divided between the participating countries. The attackers managed to hold out only on one of the sections of Gallipoli, where the Australian and New Zealand Corps (ANZAC) was landed. Fierce fighting and the transfer of new Entente reinforcements continued until mid-August, but none of the attempts to attack the Turks produced any significant results. By the end of August, the failure of the operation became obvious, and the Entente began to prepare for the gradual evacuation of troops. The last troops from Gallipoli were evacuated in early January 1916. The bold strategic plan, initiated by W. Churchill, ended in complete failure.
On the Caucasian Front in July, Russian troops repelled the offensive of Turkish troops in the area of Lake Van, while ceding part of the territory (Alashkert operation). The fighting spread to Persian territory. On October 30, Russian troops landed in the port of Anzeli, by the end of December they defeated pro-Turkish armed forces and took control of the territory of Northern Persia, preventing Persia from attacking Russia and securing the left flank of the Caucasian army.
1916 campaign
Having failed to achieve decisive success on the Eastern Front in the 1915 campaign, the German command decided in 1916 to deliver the main blow in the west and take France out of the war. It planned to cut it off with powerful flank attacks at the base of the Verdun ledge, encircling the entire Verdun enemy group, and thereby create a huge gap in the Allied defense, through which it was then supposed to strike the flank and rear of the central French armies and defeat the entire Allied front.
On February 21, 1916, German troops began offensive operation in the area of the Verdun fortress, called the Battle of Verdun. After stubborn fighting with huge losses on both sides, the Germans managed to advance 6-8 kilometers forward and take some of the forts of the fortress, but their advance was stopped. This battle lasted until December 18, 1916. The French and British lost 750 thousand people, the Germans - 450 thousand.
During the Battle of Verdun, a new weapon was used for the first time by Germany - a flamethrower. In the skies over Verdun, for the first time in the history of wars, the principles of aircraft combat were worked out - the American Lafayette squadron fought on the side of the Entente troops. The Germans pioneered the use of a fighter aircraft in which machine guns fired through the rotating propeller without damaging it.
On June 3, 1916, a major offensive operation of the Russian army began, called the Brusilov breakthrough after the front commander A. A. Brusilov. As a result of the offensive operation, the Southwestern Front inflicted a heavy defeat on German and Austro-Hungarian troops in Galicia and Bukovina, whose total losses amounted to more than 1.5 million people. At the same time, the Naroch and Baranovichi operations of the Russian troops ended unsuccessfully.
In June, the Battle of the Somme began, which lasted until November, during which tanks were used for the first time.
On the Caucasian front in January-February, in the Battle of Erzurum, Russian troops completely defeated the Turkish army and captured the cities of Erzurum and Trebizond.
The successes of the Russian army prompted Romania to take the side of the Entente. On August 17, 1916, an agreement was concluded between Romania and the four Entente powers. Romania undertook to declare war on Austria-Hungary. For this she was promised Transylvania, part of Bukovina and the Banat. On August 28, Romania declared war on Austria-Hungary. However, by the end of the year the Romanian army was defeated and most of the country was occupied.
Military campaign 1916 was marked important event. On May 31 - June 1, the largest naval battle of Jutland took place in the entire war.
All previous described events demonstrated the superiority of the Entente. By the end of 1916, both sides had lost 6 million people killed, and about 10 million were wounded. In November-December 1916, Germany and its allies proposed peace, but the Entente rejected the offer, pointing out that peace was impossible “until the restoration of violated rights and freedoms, recognition of the principle of nationalities and the free existence of small states is ensured.”
1917 campaign
The situation of the Central Powers in 17 became catastrophic: there were no longer reserves for the army, the scale of hunger, transport devastation and the fuel crisis grew. The Entente countries began to receive significant assistance from the United States (food, industrial goods, and later reinforcements), while simultaneously strengthening the economic blockade of Germany, and their victory, even without offensive operations, was only a matter of time.
However, when after the October Revolution the Bolshevik government, which came to power under the slogan of ending the war, concluded a truce with Germany and its allies on December 15, the German leadership began to hope for a favorable outcome of the war.
Eastern front
On February 1-20, 1917, the Petrograd Conference of the Entente countries took place, at which plans for the 1917 campaign and, unofficially, the internal political situation in Russia were discussed.
In February 1917, the size of the Russian army, after a major mobilization, exceeded 8 million people. After February Revolution in Russia, the Provisional Government advocated the continuation of the war, which was opposed by the Bolsheviks led by Lenin.
On April 6, the United States came out on the side of the Entente (after the so-called “Zimmerman telegram”), which finally changed the balance of forces in favor of the Entente, but the offensive that began in April (the Nivelle Offensive) was unsuccessful. Private operations in the area of Messines, on the Ypres River, near Verdun and Cambrai, where tanks were used on a massive scale for the first time, did not change the general situation on the Western Front.
On the Eastern Front, due to the defeatist agitation of the Bolsheviks and the indecisive policies of the Provisional Government, the Russian army was disintegrating and losing its combat effectiveness. The offensive launched in June by the forces of the Southwestern Front failed, and the front armies retreated 50-100 km. However, despite the fact that the Russian army had lost the ability for active combat operations, the Central Powers, which suffered huge losses in the 1916 campaign, could not use the favorable opportunity created for themselves to inflict a decisive defeat on Russia and take it out of the war by military means.
On the Eastern Front, the German army limited itself to only private operations that did not in any way affect the strategic position of Germany: as a result of Operation Albion, German troops captured the islands of Dago and Ezel and forced the Russian fleet to leave the Gulf of Riga.
On the Italian front in October-November, the Austro-Hungarian army inflicted a major defeat on the Italian army at Caporetto and advanced 100-150 km deep into Italian territory, reaching the approaches to Venice. Only with the help of British and French troops deployed to Italy was it possible to stop the Austrian offensive.
In 1917, there was relative calm on the Thessaloniki front. In April 1917, the Allied forces (which consisted of British, French, Serbian, Italian and Russian troops) carried out an offensive operation that brought minor tactical results to the Entente forces. However, this offensive could not change the situation on the Thessaloniki front.
Due to the extremely harsh winter of 1916-1917, the Russian Caucasian Army did not conduct active operations in the mountains. In order not to suffer unnecessary losses from frost and disease, Yudenich left only military guards at the achieved lines, and placed the main forces in the valleys in populated areas. At the beginning of March, the 1st Caucasian Cavalry Corps Gen. Baratova defeated the Persian group of Turks and, having captured the important road junction of Sinnah (Sanandaj) and the city of Kermanshah in Persia, moved southwest to the Euphrates to meet the British. In mid-March, units of the 1st Caucasian Cossack Division of Raddatz and the 3rd Kuban Division, having covered more than 400 km, joined the allies at Kizil Rabat (Iraq). Türkiye lost Mesopotamia.
After the February Revolution, there were no active military operations by the Russian army on the Turkish front, and after the Bolshevik government concluded the truce with the countries of the Quadruple Alliance in December 1917, it ceased completely.
On the Mesopotamian front, British troops achieved significant success in 1917. Having increased the number of troops to 55 thousand people, the British army launched a decisive offensive in Mesopotamia. The British captured a number of important cities: Al-Kut (January), Baghdad (March), etc. Volunteers from the Arab population fought on the side of the British troops, who greeted the advancing British troops as liberators. Also, by the beginning of 1917, British troops invaded Palestine, where fierce fighting ensued near Gaza. In October, having increased the number of their troops to 90 thousand people, the British launched a decisive offensive near Gaza and the Turks were forced to retreat. By the end of 1917, the British captured a number of settlements: Jaffa, Jerusalem and Jericho.
In East Africa, German colonial troops under the command of Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck, significantly outnumbered by the enemy, put up prolonged resistance and in November 1917, under pressure from Anglo-Portuguese-Belgian troops, invaded the territory of the Portuguese colony of Mozambique.
Diplomatic efforts
On July 19, 1917, the German Reichstag adopted a resolution on the need for peace by mutual agreement and without annexations. But this resolution did not meet with a sympathetic response from the governments of England, France and the USA. In August 1917, Pope Benedict XV offered his mediation to conclude peace. However, the Entente governments also rejected the papal proposal, since Germany stubbornly refused to give unequivocal consent to the restoration of Belgian independence.
1918 Campaign
Decisive victories of the Entente
After the conclusion of peace treaties with the Ukrainian People's Republic (Ukr. Beresteysky world), Soviet Russia and Romania and the liquidation of the Eastern Front, Germany was able to concentrate almost all of its forces on the Western Front and try to inflict a decisive defeat on the Anglo-French troops before the main forces of the American army arrived at the front.
In March-July, the German army launched a powerful offensive in Picardy, Flanders, on the Aisne and Marne rivers, and during fierce battles advanced 40-70 km, but was unable to defeat the enemy or break through the front. Germany's limited human and material resources were depleted during the war. In addition, having occupied vast territories of the former Russian Empire after the signing of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, the German command, in order to maintain control over them, was forced to leave large forces in the east, which negatively affected the course of hostilities against the Entente. General Kuhl, Chief of Staff of Prince Ruprecht's Army Group, puts the number of German troops on the Western Front at approximately 3.6 million; There were about 1 million people on the Eastern Front, including Romania and excluding Turkey.
In May, American troops began operating at the front. In July-August, the second Battle of the Marne took place, which marked the beginning of the Entente counter-offensive. By the end of September, Entente troops, in the course of a series of operations, eliminated the results of the previous German offensive. In a further general offensive in October and early November, most of the captured French territory and part of Belgian territory were liberated.
In the Italian Theater at the end of October, Italian troops defeated the Austro-Hungarian army at Vittorio Veneto and liberated Italian territory captured by the enemy the previous year.
In the Balkan theater, the Entente offensive began on September 15. By November 1, Entente troops liberated the territory of Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, entered the territory of Bulgaria after the truce and invaded the territory of Austria-Hungary.
On September 29, Bulgaria concluded a truce with the Entente, on October 30 - Turkey, on November 3 - Austria-Hungary, on November 11 - Germany.
Other theaters of war
There was a lull on the Mesopotamian front throughout 1918; the fighting here ended on November 14, when the British army, without encountering resistance from Turkish troops, occupied Mosul. There was also a lull in Palestine, for the eyes of the parties were turned to more important theaters of military operations. In the fall of 1918, the British army launched an offensive and occupied Nazareth, the Turkish army was surrounded and defeated. Having captured Palestine, the British invaded Syria. The fighting here ended on October 30.
In Africa, German troops, pressed by superior enemy forces, continued to resist. After leaving Mozambique, the Germans invaded the territory of the British colony of Northern Rhodesia. Only when the Germans learned of Germany's defeat in the war did the colonial troops (which numbered only 1,400 people) lay down their arms.
Results of the war
Political results
In 1919, the Germans were forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles, which was drawn up by the victorious states at the Paris Peace Conference.
Peace treaties with
- Germany (Treaty of Versailles (1919))
- Austria (Treaty of Saint-Germain (1919))
- Bulgaria (Treaty of Neuilly (1919))
- Hungary (Treaty of Trianon (1920))
- Turkey (Treaty of Sèvres (1920)).
The results of the First World War were the February and October Revolutions in Russia and the November Revolution in Germany, the liquidation of three empires: the Russian, Ottoman Empires and Austria-Hungary, and the latter two were divided. Germany, having ceased to be a monarchy, is reduced territorially and weakened economically. The Civil War began in Russia; on July 6-16, 1918, the left Socialist Revolutionaries (supporters of Russia's continued participation in the war) organized the murder of the German ambassador Count Wilhelm von Mirbach in Moscow and the royal family in Yekaterinburg, with the aim of disrupting the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk between Soviet Russia and Kaiser Germany. After the February Revolution, the Germans, despite the war with Russia, were worried about the fate of the Russian imperial family, because the wife of Nicholas II, Alexandra Feodorovna, was German, and their daughters were both Russian princesses and German princesses. The USA has become a great power. The difficult conditions of the Treaty of Versailles for Germany (payment of reparations, etc.) and the national humiliation it suffered gave rise to revanchist sentiments, which became one of the prerequisites for the Nazis coming to power and unleashing World War II.
Territorial changes
As a result of the war, England annexed Tanzania and South-West Africa, Iraq and Palestine, parts of Togo and Cameroon; Belgium - Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda; Greece - Eastern Thrace; Denmark - Northern Schleswig; Italy - South Tyrol and Istria; Romania - Transylvania and Southern Dobrudzha; France - Alsace-Lorraine, Syria, parts of Togo and Cameroon; Japan - the German islands in the Pacific Ocean north of the equator; French occupation of the Saarland.
The independence of the Belarusian People's Republic, the Ukrainian People's Republic, Hungary, Danzig, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Finland and Yugoslavia was proclaimed.
The Republic of Austria is founded. The German Empire became a de facto republic.
The Rhineland and the Black Sea straits have been demilitarized.
Military results
The First World War spurred the development of new weapons and means of combat. For the first time, tanks, chemical weapons, gas masks, anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns were used. Airplanes, machine guns, mortars, submarines, and torpedo boats became widespread. The firepower of the troops increased sharply. New types of artillery appeared: anti-aircraft, anti-tank, infantry escort. Aviation became an independent branch of the military, which began to be divided into reconnaissance, fighter and bomber. Arose tank forces, chemical troops, air defense troops, naval aviation. The role of engineering troops increased and the role of cavalry decreased. “Trench tactics” of warfare also appeared with the aim of exhausting the enemy and depleting his economy, working on military orders.
Economic results
Grandiose scale and the protracted nature of the First World War led to an unprecedented militarization of the economy for industrial states. This had an impact on the course of economic development of all major industrial states in the period between the two world wars: strengthening state regulation and economic planning, the formation of military-industrial complexes, accelerating the development of national economic infrastructures (energy systems, a network of paved roads, etc.) , an increase in the share of production of defense products and dual-use products.
Opinions of contemporaries
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Humanity has never been in such a situation. Without achieving much more high level virtue and without much wiser guidance, people for the first time got into their hands such tools with which they could destroy all of humanity without fail. This is the achievement of all of them glorious history, all the glorious works of previous generations. And people will do well to stop and think about this new responsibility. Death stands on the alert, obedient, expectant, ready to serve, ready to sweep away all peoples "en masse", ready, if necessary, to turn into powder, without any hope of revival, all that remains of civilization. She is only waiting for the word of command. She is waiting for this word from the fragile, frightened creature, who has long served as her victim and who has now become her master for the only time. Churchill |
Churchill on Russia in the First World War:
Losses in the First World War
Losses armed forces of all powers participating in the world war amounted to about 10 million people. There is still no generalized data on civilian casualties from the effects of military weapons. Famine and epidemics caused by the war caused the death of at least 20 million people.
Memory of the war
France, UK, Poland
Armistice Day (French) jour de l'Armistice) 1918 (11 November) is a national holiday of Belgium and France, celebrated annually. In England, Armistice Day ArmisticeDay) is celebrated on the Sunday closest to November 11 as Remembrance Sunday. On this day, the fallen of both the First and Second World Wars are remembered.
In the first years after the end of the First World War, every municipality in France erected a monument to fallen soldiers. In 1921, the main monument appeared - the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
The main British monument to those killed in the First World War is the Cenotaph (Greek Cenotaph - “empty coffin”) in London on Whitehall Street, the monument to the Unknown Soldier. It was built in 1919 to mark the first anniversary of the end of the war. On the second Sunday of every November, the Cenotaph becomes the center of national Remembrance Day. A week before this, small plastic poppies appear on the chests of millions of Englishmen, which are bought from a special charity Fund for Veterans and War Widows. At 11pm on Sunday, the Queen, ministers, generals, bishops and ambassadors lay poppy wreaths at the Cenotaph and the whole country pauses for two minutes of silence.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw was also originally built in 1925 in memory of those who fell on the fields of the First World War. Now this monument is a monument to those who fell for their Motherland in various years.
Russia and Russian emigration
There is no official day of remembrance in Russia for those killed in the First World War, despite the fact that Russia's losses in this war were the largest of all the countries involved in it.
According to the plan of Emperor Nicholas II, Tsarskoe Selo was to become a special place for the memory of the war. The Sovereign's Military Chamber, founded there back in 1913, was to become a Museum Great War. By order of the emperor, a special plot was allocated for the burial of the dead and deceased ranks of the Tsarskoye Selo garrison. This site became known as the “Heroes’ Cemetery.” At the beginning of 1915, the “Cemetery of Heroes” was named the First Fraternal Cemetery. On its territory, on August 18, 1915, the foundation stone of a temporary wooden church took place in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Quench My Sorrows” for the funeral service of soldiers who died and died from wounds. After the end of the war, instead of a temporary wooden church, it was planned to erect a temple - a monument to the Great War, designed by architect S. N. Antonov.
However, these plans were not destined to come true. In 1918, a people's museum of the war of 1914-1918 was created in the building of the War Chamber, but already in 1919 it was abolished, and its exhibits replenished the funds of other museums and repositories. In 1938, the temporary wooden church at the Fraternal Cemetery was dismantled, and what remained of the graves of soldiers was a wasteland overgrown with grass.
On June 16, 1916, a monument to the heroes of the Second Patriotic War was unveiled in Vyazma. In the 1920s, this monument was destroyed.
On November 11, 2008, a memorial stele (cross) dedicated to the heroes of the First World War was erected on the territory of the Fraternal Cemetery in the city of Pushkin.
Also in Moscow on August 1, 2004, on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the start of the First World War, on the site of the Moscow City Fraternal Cemetery in the Sokol district, memorial signs were placed “To those who fell in the World War of 1914-1918”, “To the Russian Sisters of Mercy”, “To the Russian Aviators” , buried in the Moscow city fraternal cemetery."
The twentieth century has forever entered into world history not only due to a series of discoveries that radically changed the face of human civilization, but also because of two large-scale military conflicts called world wars.
About the First World War
One of the most global and bloody wars lasted four years - from 1914 to 1918. Despite the fact that these events are separated from us by much less time than from the legendary battles of the Middle Ages, a lot of information remains unknown to a large number of people. But even the generally known data is striking. It was during First World War tanks and gas weapons were used for the first time. Historians are still arguing whether it was possible to resolve the existing conflicts between the alliances of European countries peacefully, or whether war was the only way out. The two main opposing parties were the Quadruple Alliance (Austria-Hungary, Germany, Turkey (or the Ottoman Empire) and Bulgaria) and the Entente, which included France, England, the Russian Empire and many other countries.
The First World War is divided by historians into five military campaigns. Military operations were carried out on two fronts - Eastern and Western. The Western Front moved across the territory of France, gradually moving towards the sea coast.
On the Eastern Front, the troops of the Russian Empire began an offensive on the eastern territories of Prussia, and to the south, in the Balkans, Austria was in conflict with Serbia. Japan also joined the war, beginning active operations against Germany.
The First World War is also known for its huge number of casualties. According to modern scientists, almost 10 million soldiers died during the war. Despite the fact that there is no exact data on civilian casualties, historians believe that famine, epidemics and harsh living conditions caused the death of about 20 million people. Both the victors and the defeated countries in this war found themselves in a difficult situation.
The Great Patriotic War
In the time since the end of World War II, a lot has been said and written about this large-scale military conflict. Every now and then new information emerges about the actions of the command, the secret development of new weapons that could radically change the course of history.
The Great Patriotic War began on June 22, 1941. The Barbarossa plan, developed by the German military command, envisaged a very quick capture of the main cities of the USSR with the help of tanks, armored personnel carriers and other mobile equipment. At the start of the war, the Soviet army was dispersed over a large area and was unable to provide effective resistance, which resulted in the retreat of Soviet soldiers. During military operations near Kiev, several Soviet armies were defeated. Winter Battle of Stalingrad became the bloodiest battle in the entire history of human civilization - according to historians, more than two million people died here.
The Great Patriotic War ended in May 1945 with the capture of Berlin. On May 7, the act of surrender of Germany was signed. The second, more famous document was the act signed on May 8, which was adopted by Marshal Zhukov, representing the forces Soviet Union. The Victory Parade took place on Red Square in Moscow on June 24.
Memory of wars
The Great Patriotic War ended almost 70 years ago, but studying the history of the first half of the twentieth century and two world wars is a very important part of the school history course. Despite all the exploits and heroic deeds of the fighters during the war, the war itself remains a terrible shock for human civilization.
Contemporaries said that this would be the war to end all wars, and they were very wrong. The First World War began on August 1, 1914 with provocation and regicide and ended with the first Compiègne truce on November 11, 1918. The influence on the territories and countries that participated in the war was so great that it became possible to sum up its results and conclude the Treaty of Versailles only in the middle of the next year, 1919 of the year. Six out of ten people across the planet have experienced this war to one degree or another. This is one of the dark pages in the history of mankind.
They say it was inevitable. The disagreements between the future participants were too strong, leading to constantly creating and collapsing alliances. The most inconsistent was Germany, which almost at the same time tried to set Great Britain against France and organize a continental blockade of Britain itself.
Prerequisites for the First World War
If you look at the positions from which countries became involved in the First World War of 1914–1918, the reasons, in fact, will lie on the surface. England, France and Austria-Hungary at the beginning of the twentieth century sought to redistribute the world map. The main reason for this was the collapse of colonialism and prosperity only at the expense of its own satellites. The main European powers were faced with a difficult choice, since resources important for the economy and prosperity of the country (primarily its elite) could no longer be taken away from India or Africa.
The only thing Possible Solution lurked precisely in military conflicts for raw materials, labor and territories for living. Main conflicts, which flared up on the basis of territorial claims were as follows:
How did the war begin?
It can be said very clearly when did the First World War (WWII) begin?. At the end of June 1914, on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the city of Sarajevo, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Franz Ferdinand, was killed. This was a provocation on the part of the Austrians and with the active participation of British diplomats and the press, a reason for the escalation of the conflict in the Balkans.
The killer was a Serbian terrorist, a member of the extremist organization “Black Hand” (otherwise called “Unity or Death”) Gavrilo Princip. This organization, along with other similar underground movements, attempted to spread nationalist sentiment throughout the Balkan Peninsula in response to the 1908 annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary, ushering in the Bosnian Crisis.
There have already been several assassination attempts on the account of such formations both successful and unsuccessful, in prominent politicians empire and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The day of the assassination attempt on the Archduke was not chosen by chance, because on June 28 he was supposed to participate in events dedicated to the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. Such events on this date were considered by many Bosnians to be a direct insult to their national pride.
In addition to the assassination of the Archduke, during these days there were several attempts to eliminate public figures who opposed the outbreak of hostilities. Thus, a few days before June 28, an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of Grigory Rasputin, known, among other things, for his anti-war sentiments and great influence at the court of Emperor Nicholas II. And the next day, June 29, Jean Jaurès was killed. He was an influential French politician and public figure, who fought against imperialist sentiments, colonialism and, like Rasputin, was an ardent opponent of war.
British influence
After the tragic events in Sarajevo, the two largest powers in Europe - Germany and the Russian Empire - tried to avoid open military confrontation. But this situation did not suit the British at all and diplomatic leverage was used. Thus, after Princip’s assassination of Franz Ferdinand, the English press openly began to call the Serbs barbarians and call on the leadership of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to give them a decisive and tough response. At the same time, through the ambassador, they created pressure on the Russian emperor, calling for all possible assistance to be provided to Serbia if Austria-Hungary decided on any provocations.
And she made up her mind. Almost a month after the successful assassination attempt on the heir, Serbia was presented with demands that were impossible to fulfill. For example, one of its points was the admission of police officers to the territory of a foreign state. The Serbs did not accept only this point, which, as expected, served as a declaration of war. Moreover, the first bombs fell on its capital the very next morning, which clearly indicated the Austro-Hungarians’ readiness to fight immediately.
The Russian Empire, which has always been considered a shield of Orthodoxy and Slavism, had to, after unsuccessful attempts at a diplomatic ceasefire, declare the mobilization of the entire country. Thus, Russian participation in the First World War was inevitable.
Progress of the war
After a series of provocations, the source of the military conflict began to flare up even faster. In about six months, two main military alliances were formed that took part in the confrontation:
Events of 1914
There were several major theaters of combat- the war raged in France, in Russia, in the Balkans, the Middle East and Caucasus and in the former colonies of Europe. The German Schlieffen Plan, which called for a lightning war, lunch in Paris and dinner in St. Petersburg, failed due to Germany's systematic underestimation of its rivals and repeated revisions of strategic tables. In general, the overwhelming majority of participants in the war were absolutely confident that it would end soon, confidently speaking about the possibility of victory in a few months. No one expected the conflict to reach such proportions, especially on the Western Front.
First, Germany occupied Luxembourg and Belgium. At the same time, the French invasion of Alsace and Lorraine, which was important for them, was unfolding, where after the successful actions of the German army, which restrained and then reversed the offensive, the situation changed dramatically. The French, instead of seizing their historical territories, ceded part of their land without putting up a strong enough resistance. After the events called by historians the “Run to the Sea” and France’s retention of its most important ports, a period of trench warfare followed. The confrontation greatly exhausted both sides.
Eastern front was opened by an offensive on the territory of Prussia by Russian troops on August 17, and the very next day it was won major victory over the Austro-Hungarians in the Battle of Galicia. This made it possible to remove the empire from confrontation with Russia for a long time.
This year Serbia drove the Austrians out of Belgrade and firmly occupied it. Japan declared war on the Triple Alliance and launched a campaign to take control of the German island colonies. At the same time, in the Caucasus, Turkey entered the war with Russia, entering into a coalition with the Austrians and Germans. Thus, she cut off the country from its allies and involved it in hostilities on the Caucasian front.
Russia's failure in 1915
On the Russian front the situation worsened. The army was poorly prepared for the winter offensive, failed it and received a counter-offensive operation from the Germans in the middle of the year. Poorly organized supply of troops led to a large-scale retreat; the Germans carried out the Gorlitsky breakthrough and, as a result, first gained Galicia, and then a significant part of Polish territory. After this, the stage of trench warfare began, largely due to the same reasons as in the West.
In the same year, on May 23, Italy entered the war with Austria-Hungary, which resulted in the collapse of the coalition. However, Bulgaria, which took part in the confrontation on its side in the same year, not only marked the rapid formation of a new union, but also accelerated the fall of Serbia.
Key moments of 1916
Throughout this year of war, one of its largest battles continued - Battle of Verdun. Because of its scale, the nature of the clashes and the consequences, it was called the Verdun Meat Grinder. A flamethrower was used here for the first time. The losses of all troops amounted to over a million people. At the same time, the Russian army carried out an offensive known as the Brusilov breakthrough, drawing significant German forces away from Verdun and easing the Entente's situation in the region.
The year was also marked by the largest naval battle - the Jutland battle, after which the Entente fulfilled its main goal - to dominate the region. Some members of the enemy tried to agree on peace negotiations even then.
1917: Russia's withdrawal from the war
The year 1917 was rich in major events in the war. It has already become obvious who will win. It is worth noting 
3 most important points for understanding the situation:
- The United States, after biding its time, joined the obvious winner - the Entente.
- The revolution in Russia actually brought it out of the war.
- Germany is using submarines, hoping to thereby turn the tide of battle.
1918: German surrender
Russia's withdrawal from active hostilities made things easier for Germany, because without the Eastern Front, it could concentrate its forces on more important things. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded, parts of the Baltic region and the territory of Poland were occupied. After this, active operations began on the Western Front, which were not crowned with success for her. They began to leave the Fourth Alliance and conclude peace treaties other participants are with the opponent. A revolution began to flare up in Germany, forcing the emperor to leave the country. The signing of the act of surrender of Germany on November 11, 1918 can be considered the end of the active phase of hostilities.
If we talk about the results of the First World War, then for almost all participating countries they were with a minus sign. Briefly point by point:
It is worth noting that even then the preconditions for the Second World War began to take shape. It was only a matter of time before a leader emerged who would rally the revenge-seeking residents of defeated Germany.