part 3 - ending the war Flashcards
1
Q
When did Russia leave the war?
A
1917
2
Q
What was the situation in Russia in 1916?
A
- Suffered two major defeats against Germany and AH due to poor leadership and lack of equipment
- Tsar was a terrible military leader and was blamed for the defeats
- Government was run by the Tsarina and her controversial advisor Rasputin
- Shortage of workers due to 15 million men joining the army
- Fuel and food in short supply
- Power failures in major cities as the railway system could not cope with the demands of war, and fuel/supplies could not be transported
- None of the leading figures in Russia had any solutions to these problems
3
Q
How did the situation in Russia change by 1917?
A
- The feelings of discontent transformed into open opposition
- Riots and strikes
- Soldiers deserted
- Workers and soldiers set up the Petrograd Soviet to coordinate the revolution
- When the Tsar returned to Petrograd, no civilians or soldiers were willing to listen to him
4
Q
When did the Tsar abdicate?
A
15th March 1917
5
Q
What happened to the Tsar and his family?
A
They were imprisoned and killed
6
Q
Who replaced the Tsar?
A
A temporary government, who were not yet ready to leave the war
They launched a large attack on Germany, but ended in heavy defeat, causing even more anger among the Russian people
7
Q
How did the Bolshevik revolution occur?
A
- Germans smuggle Vladimir Lenin back into Russia, who had been exiled for revolutionary ideals
- Germans thought he could kickstart another revolution
- Lenin gathered a large group of supporters (Bolsheviks) and revolted, overthrowing the government
8
Q
What did Lenin do once in charge of Russia?
A
Declared he would make peace with Russia’s enemies
9
Q
What was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and when was it signed?
A
March 1918, a treaty between Russia and Germany + AH
Russia lost farmland and resource rich areas
Britain and France angry
Germans gained a big advantage
10
Q
Why was Russia leaving the war beneficial for Germany?
A
- Germany no longer had to fight a war on two fronts, and could move its troops from the Eastern Front onto the Western Front
- Gained large amounts of land and resources from the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
- Germany had a big opportunity to make a comeback
11
Q
What had the USA’s stance on the war previously been?
A
They were neutral and felt the conflict was too distant to get involved in
They were economically involved, as they sold goods to Britain and its allies, making the USA very rich
12
Q
Why did America join the war?
A
- The sinking of the Lusitania (Woodrow not ready to declare war yet)
- In 1917, America discovered a secret telegram message between Germany and Mexico, proposing an alliance
Germany would provide money and weapons to Mexico to attack the USA, in exchange for Texas, New Mexico and Arizona
13
Q
Who was the President of America in 1917?
A
Woodrow Wilson
14
Q
When did the USA declare war on Germany?
A
April 1917
15
Q
Why was the USA joining beneficial for Britain?
A
- USA would provide a large amount of coal, iron, oil and soldiers
- This came at the perfect time, as Russia was just leaving the war
16
Q
What was the situation in 1917?
A
- Russia leaving war
- USA would take a few months to arrive in Europe
- It was a race against time for Germany to see if they could break through the weakened British and French lines before America arrived to support them
17
Q
How did naval technology change in WW1?
A
- U boats combatted with depth charges, minefields, convoy system
- Hydrophone could locate submarines by listening to underwater sounds
- Aircraft carriers created (not many + hard to land/recover planes)
18
Q
Which ship was the first official aircraft carrier?
A
HMS Argus, a British ship that became the first in 1918 after a plane successfully landed on it
19
Q
How did tanks develop in ww1?
A
- first used by the British at the Battle of the Somme but were slow and broke down
- Saw success at the Battles of Amiens and Cambrai, where they helped British and French troops advance
- By 1918, Germans had retaliated by creating anti-tank guns and anti-tank trenches
20
Q
How did artillery improve in WW1?
A
- Shells developed which could break barbed wire and explode on contact
- “Creeping Barrage” tactic created, where artillery would follow behind the attacking troops, providing a wall of shellfire
- Anti-aircraft guns developed
- Artillery became larger + more accurate
- Paris guns created (could fire 80 miles, enough to reach Paris)
21
Q
How did air warfare develop in WW1?
A
- Planes made with better materials for durability/manoeuvrability
- Mechanism created so machine gun fitted could fire between propellor blades
- Larger fuel tanks to fly further
- Fighter and bomber planes created
- Pilots learned to fly in formations to overwhelm enemy
- Radio developed for communication between pilots and soldiers
22
Q
How did infiltration tactics develop?
A
- New technique developed late into war
- Elite soldiers armed with light machine guns, grenades, flamethrowers would advance ahead of main attack and destroy key points/machine guns on enemy line
- Germans first to use this tactic after intercepting the plan
- Originally, soldier moved swiftly, but later variations saw them crawling towards the enemy to avoid detection
- Germany began training groups of these soldiers - Sturmmann - in 1917, and saw success
- soon, other countries began to use infiltration tactics too
23
Q
What was the plan of Ludendorff’s spring offensive?
A
- Germans would attack at several points along British and French lines
- The main attack would happen at Arras
- Chosen as British trenches were poorly constructed there
- start with MASSIVE bombardment from artillery
- stormtroopers then break through enemy lines, confusing them
- attacks would take place in 3 other areas, overwhelming the British and French and forcing them to surrender
24
Q
When did the Spring Offensive begin?
A
21st March 1918
25
How was the stalemate broken on the first day of the Spring Offensive?
- 1 million shells fired at British and French in 5 hours
- Mustard gas released
- Thousands of German stormtroopers, causing chaos and confusion
- 20,000 British killed, 35,000 wounded, 21,000 captured
- Germans reclaimed River Somme and advanced far into French territory
26
WHAT WERE THE PROBLEMS WITH THE SPRING OFFENSIVE?
- 220,000 German soldiers lost between April - March 1918
- Germany would soon run out of men if they expended them at this rate
- Stormtroopers worked too well, and advanced too far into French territory, so supplies struggled to reach them
- As the advance slowed, British and French troops began to fight back, and US troops were arriving
27
How did the British and French retaliate against the Spring Offensive?
- They united their armies under one leader, Ferdinand Foch, meaning they could attack as a unified force
- The German advance had caused a bulge in their front lines, known as a SALIENT
- This weak point could be exploited by Foch
- American soldiers were rapidly arriving and many soldiers were prepared in reserves
- Foch was ready to unleash a counter-attack
28
What happened on the 15th July 1918?
Ludendorff ordered a final attack in the Spring Offensive, but failed as Germany ran out of supplies
29
How many men did the Germans lose during the Spring Offensive?
800,000
30
What was General Foch's plan for a counterattack?
- a series of attacks at different points along the German line, stretching their resources and weakening their defences
- British, French, Belgian and other allies would attack the North, while the fresh American troops would attack the East
31
When did the Hundred Days begin?
8th August 1918
32
What was the Hundred Days?
The British/French/Other allies' retaliation to the Spring Offensive, led by General Foch
33
How did the retaliation against the Spring Offensive go?
- Started at Amiens, 11km of territory captured day one
- British and Australian troops went on to capture Albert
- French captured Noyon
- British captured Bapaume
- Germans pushed back to concrete trenches known as the Hindenburg line
- By early October, the allies had broken through the German defences, and they started to retreat
- German leaders began to accept war was over
34
What was the home front?
the ordinary citizens back home that did not directly participate in the war
35
How did WW1 impact the home front?
- industries taken over to make ammunition/vehicles
- women found work as men were fighting
- Food shortages in Germany (winter 1916-17 nicknamed 'turnip winter')
- Rationing in Britain
- France and Belgian land devastated
- protests in Germany and Russia due to anger with their leaders
36
What was the situation for Germany in September 1918
- not good
- British naval blockade affected heavily affected supplies of food and medicine
- Flu epidemic
- nearing defeat on battlefield
- navy mutinied
- workers staged revolution and took over towns and cities
- country was in chaos, and Kaiser had no choice but to abdicate
37
When did the Kaiser abdicate?
9th November 1918
38
Who took over after the Kaiser?
Friedrich Ebert, leader of the SDP, who decided to surrender
39
when was the armistice signed?
11th November 1918
40
what did the ARMISTICE agree?
- all fighting to end in 6 hours
- German troops to pull out of Belgium, Luxembourg, France, AH, Romania and Turkey
- Allies to occupy 30km of German territory
- Germany to hand over its largest weapons and many battleships, submarines
- The naval blockade would continue
- A financial settlement would be agreed upon at a later date (Treaty of Versailles)
