Unit 3 - The Part Played By The British On The Western Front Flashcards
When did the First World War break out?
Third of August 1914
Who led the British expeditionary force (BEF)?
General French
Where did the BEF first encounter the German army?
Mons in Belgium on 22nd of August
How many men were in the BEF compared to the German army?
In the BEF there are 70,000 men
In the German army there was 160,000 men
What kind of rifles did the British use very efficiently?
Lee Enfield rifles
What was the 600 km line of trenches known as?
The Western front
Whose idea was the Schlieffen plan?
General Alfred von Schlieffen
When was the Battle of the Marne?
5th to 11th of September 1914
How many casualties were there at the battle of Ypres in November 1914?
German casualties: 134,000
British casualties: 142,000
Who was Britain’s Secretary of State?
Lord Kitchener
What was meant by the method of breakthrough?
General send loads of soldiers into no mans land in an attempt to get a breakthrough into the other sides trench
What was the method attrition?
It meant wearing the enemy down so so their supplies ran out first
When was the Battle of Verdun?
Fairbury 1916 till July
It was for to protect the castle of Verdun
How many machine guns did the Germans have?
12,000 in 1914 and over 100,000 by the end of the war
How many bullets can machine guns fire per minute?
400 to 600
When did the Germans first launch gas?
April 1915
What are the three types of gases?
Chlorine and phosgene: caused suffocation
Mustard: ate away the lungs
What distance could artillery shells fire from?
13 km
How many artillery shells to Britain fire throughout the war?
Over 170 million
What was meant by the ‘creeping barrage’?
The artillery fire moved in front of the soldiers
When we tanks first used by the British?
At the Battle of the Somme in 1916
What was General Haig nicknamed?
The butcher of the Somme
When was the Battle of the Somme?
July to November 1916
What were the casualties in the battle of the Somme?
German: 500,000
British/French: 620,000
