Why was it called ‘The Great War’?

This was because of a number of linked factors.

+ there was a fighting in several areas;

+ many countries and peoples were at war, on one side or another;

+ the conflict lasted a long time;

+ fighting spread to war at sea and in the air;

+ the war affected millions of households by creating shortages and altering patterns of work;

+ for the first time ever people at home, as well as soldiers, faced death or injury from air attacks;

+ the weapons used caused a high casualty rate (5,509 death per day on average)

+ fighting on land was based on heavily defended positions (both sides dug trenches to create front)

+ the degree of fighting, in a small area, caused mass casualties (over 8,200,000 deaths alone on the Main Front)

+ most battle tactics led to heavy casualties (both sides mounted offensives; many of these failed with heavy loss of life);

+ most families and communities were permanently changed by the effects of the conflict (the annual Poppy Day appeal and war memorials are visible signs that people in Britain still remember the war).

World War I was not only a world war but a total war. Both sides called on the farm, the factory, and the science laboratory for products to help fight and win the war. All the inventions of the Industrial Revolution were turned to wartime uses.

What was the nature of the war of 1914-18? The First World War was a new type of war, it took place from 1914 to 1918 (it was a long war) and it was conducted on a scale unknown to previous generations:

*there was a fighting in several areas and many countries and peoples were at war, on one side or another;

*fighting on land was based on heavily defended positions (both sides dug trenches to create front)

*fighting spread to war at sea and in the air; for the first time ever people at home, as well as soldiers, faced death or injury from air attacks;

*much larger armies were involved and casualties were much higher

*the whole population was involved in the war effort

*the state controlled the people and the resources of every country to a much greater extent than ever before

*weapons were more destructive and more varied than previously, and included gas, flame throwers, aircraft, huge artillery, more developed machine guns.

The Industrial Revolution, the growth of modern science and technology, larger populations, a revolution in transport (especially railways), the growth of mass communication and national feeling were factors that had revolutionised warfare since 1815. The industries developed in the 19 th century allowed the production of weapons on a scale exceeding any previous war. Mass armies could be raised, supplied and transported. The whole nation could be involved in sustaining war.

Was the conflict a World War?

Although it was a ‘world war’, the struggle of 1914-18 was largely carried out on two fronts. The so-called Western Front extended from the English Channel to the Swiss frontier and the Eastern Front, which was much more extensive, stretching from the Baltic to the Black sea.

Beyond the two main theatres of war some more fluid campaigns took place – in the Middle East, in the Balkans and in Africa. Fighting also took place in Italy after they joined the war in support of France and Britain in 1915; however, the nature of the conflict in Italy was slow and static.

A key feature of the war for much of its duration was attrition: neither side found it possible to achieve a decisive outcome on the battlefield, so they had to wear down the enemy by draining it of men and resources. The use of air power pointed the way to future developments, but the technology of the past was not far enough advanced for air warfare to play a decisive role.

The war at sea saw few decisive encounters and was characterised by blockades and attacks on merchant shipping as each side tried to starve the other. The U-boat campaign helped to bring America into the war on the side of Britain and France. By 1917 U-boats were trying to sink any ship that might be trading with Britain. This involved attacks on American ships. After the attack on the ship Lusitania, the American government responded by declaring war on Germany in April 1917. The power and wealth of the USA greatly strengthened the position of the Allies. There was no decisive victory in the war at sea

In March 1917 there was a revolution in Russia. In March 1918 the new communist government made peace with Germany. After this the Germans launched a final enormous attack on France, before many American troops arrived. But they could not break through. Back in Germany, people had had enough of the war, and food shortages were so bad that they were starving. So Britain and its allies took the opportunity to counter-attack. They began to push the German army back. The German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm, fled from the country and the government which replaced him asked for an armistice (cease fire). On 11 November 1918 the war was over.

In the east, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia fought a more mobile but deadly war on a much longer front.