Era of the Great War Flashcards
Why did so many Scots rush to join up ? Try to give six points
Regular Wages Sense of Duty Staying out of Jail Chance to travel Respect for militarism Adventure Stories of German atrocities (Propaganda) Honour Supporting Football Teams Curiosity Escape from Drudgery/Poverty Patriotism Lack of realisation that war brought casualties National Pride Peer pressure Would be with friends (Pals Battalions)
Describe life in the Trenches?
- Trench foot
-Rain caused biggest problem as it fills up the trenches with water - standing in water all day without being able to clean your feet, your feet will go blue/purple . If left untreated will result in infections/gangrene leading to amputation.
-Rats would feed on the corpses in No man’s land, they would also try to feed on sleeping soldier’s finger/ ears
-Rats were bigger than normal in the trenches
-Couldn’t drop food as it would attract rats
-Lice were an irritant to Scottish troops in the pleats of their kilts
-Constant fear of death
-Early days if men had a nervous breakdown they were cowards- Eventually shell shock/PTSD
-Food wasn’t nutritious
-Fresh Fruit and Veg was rare
-canned meats
-share out rations
-Morning Hate - Wake up at dawn to make sure enemies don’t attack,bombard enemy, ate breakfast, cleaned rifles, work parties and Night time personal time
-British soldiers had a strict discipline code, brutal and not even-handed
-300 British men were shot as a result of the court martial verdicts between 1914 and 1918
-Shell Shock victims were sentenced to death
serious offences resulted in military prison with hard labour.
Describe the use of Machine guns during world war one.
Machine guns were developed and used as a weapon of defence - could fire 600 bullets per minute and were very heavy (hence why they were defence weapons)
Could tear men to shreds, cut them in half
Machine gun and rifle fire caused 39% of all injury on the western front
Range of 4,000 meters
Describe the use of Heavy artillery
Designed to destroy buildings,trenches and barbed wire
Took 12 men to operate
Deadliest weapons
“Paris Gun” of 1918 had a range of 75 miles
caused 60% of Injury on the Western front (Largest number)
Describe the use of gas
First introduced to the Battlefield in 1915 by Germany - trying to break the stalemate
+ Chlorine Gas +
- Heavier than air so would fill the trenches
- The men died of suffocation
- Made you thirsty but actually drinking would kill you
- British first used gas at the Battle of Loos, however the wind changed direction and caused casualties on the British Side
+ Phosgene Gas +
- Dangerous as you can’t see or smell it - panic and fear set in
- Sense of drowning
+ Mustard Gas +
- Most deadly biological weapon 1917
- only 2% of the soldiers attacked actually died - Up to 5 weeks to die for those who did
- Blindness, Internal/External bleeding, skin blistering
Describe the use of Tanks
First used in the Battle of the Somme
armoured and had caterpillar track
Were armoured, bullet proof and had machine guns
used to crush barbed wire
Troops would walk behind them for protection
Easily bogged down
couldn’t cope with really rough ground and mud
Describe the use of Aircraft
Planes were used to deliver bombs for the first time ever
Scouting planes - gather info on enemy placement
Fighter planes were fast and had machine guns
British plane = Voisin
German Plane = Fokker
Fights in the air were called ‘ Dog fights’
Biggest fear was fire
None carried parachutes but they were available
Why were people unhappy with the Government restrictions like DORA? Try to give six points
Believed that it gave the government too much power
Others were angry that their lives were affected
People with anti-war views were mad that they couldn’t share them in public
Some people worried that DORA rules wouldn’t end with the war
People feared that the government wouldn’t want to give the power up
Dora prevented people from taking part in legal activities
People who enjoyed kite flying or bell ringing did not believe that their actions would stop Britain from winning
Fear that DORA was limiting people’s free time
Concern about not being able to share private information
With the newspapers being censored people were unsure if they were being told the truth
Why was rationing introduced in the Great War?
- 60% or goods were imported - this was disrupted during the war
- The German u-boats were the cause of disruption - sinking ships
- Britain could not grow sufficient food for the population
- Fishing industry went into decline & could not produce enough to feed the country
- Skilled farm labourers/horses went off to war- lowered production
- Food became limited & fear broke out that Germany was trying to starve Britain into surrendering
- Because for limited goods prices went up & the poor would suffer the most
- Government wanted to ensure that everyone had the same access to food
How and Why was propaganda used by the British Government?
Encourage people to save food and to help the war effort
To hide what was really happening on the Front Lines
Encourage women to help
Encourage men to enlist
Strengthen people’s hatred of the Germans
What were some reasons for conscription? (Forced to sign up for Army)
War was now spreading to other parts of the World
Supporters said that men had a duty to defend their country
Death counts were rising
Machine guns and other new weapons were slaughtering thousands every day causing huge numbers of casualties
there were less volunteers because stories coming home about the dreadful condition and the horrors of war was realised
Recruitment campaigns falling short
How were Conscientious objectors treated during the war?
how were people who didn’t like the war treated?
They had to face military tribunal (only around 300 men were actually granted absolute exemption)
7,000 pacifists agreed to perform non combat service.
Some however were sent to fight anyway
16,000 conchies , 6,000 were put in prison
- They did menial tasks in prison
- Treated badly
- Beaten and tortured
- solitary confinement
- Force fed
- tied in straight jackets
- suspended by the wrists from a rope
- put into wooden cages like animals
- Given no sympathy from the British people
- They were called ‘cowards’ and disliked by the public press and authorities.
What were some restrictions introduced under The Defence of the Realm Act?
- Banned people from discussing military issues in public
- Illegal to spread rumours about military issues
- Newspapers were censored in what they were allowed to write about the war
- Private letters were influenced
- Any letter sent abroad was forbidden to use invisible ink
- Military censors read soldiers letters
- People could no longer go were they wanted
- Forbidden from trespassing or loitering near bridges or tunnels
Describe the Effects of Industrial decline in Scotland.
MASS UNEMPLOYMENT
- Unemployment was never lower than 20% in the 1920’s
- Old and the young found it hardest to find work
- Worst in specific areas e.g West of Scotland
POOR LIVING CONDITIONS
- Many Scot’s couldn’t afford good housing
- Families struggled to pay rents and didn’t have enough food to eat
PROTEST & DEMONSTRATION
- The Protesters held a mass rally when they arrived at Hyde Park in London (around 70,000 people). They demanded an interview with the Prime Minister which was refused
- 300 men, from across Scotland, began to march to London in 1922.
- The papers feared a revolution was on the horizon
- The National Unemployed Worker’s Movement (NUWM)
brought to light the many hardships suffered by the unemployed by organising hunger marches
HUGE INCREASE IN COST OF BENEFITS
- The number of people claiming benefits increased, draining the Government’s National Insurance Fund
- Means testing happened throughout the 1920’s - this meant that if a person claimed benefits, they had to undergo an official investigation
- It was Hated by many Scots
INDUSTRIAL ACTION
- Increase in strike action in the 1920’s from many Industries
- The government withdrew subsidies from Mining Industry and reduced miner’s wages
- Trade unions started a strike
EMIGRATION
- Scotland’s Population fell
- People opted to move abroad to escape the depression
- the highlands were the most affected
Why was there a decline in Heavy Industry in Scotland after the war?
- Scotland lost international export markets, which led to a decline in many heavy Industries
- There was a global economic downturn which led to fewer orders for the railway Industry
- Scotland’s Shipyard’s went into decline after 1920’s because of a lack of orders for ships
- By 1927, over half of Scotland’s Iron furnaces were closed because of increasing foreign competition
- There was a decline in demand for Iron and Steel Production because the demand for war goods was gone. (e.g munitions)
- New fuels, such as oil, were becoming popular, so demand for Scottish Coal fell
- Coal was being produced more cheaply abroad, so the demand for Scottish Coal Fell
- Scotland’s Companies did not invest in new technology- this made them less competitive and therefore, led to a decline in orders coming in
