WW1 Flashcards
When did Germany invade Belgium?
4th August 1914
Who killed Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand and his wife?
Javrilo Princip
When was Franz Ferdinand killed?
28 June 1914
Who were the Triple Entente?
France, Britain Russia.
Who were the Central Powers (Triple Alliance)?
Germany, Austria/ Hungary, Italy
How many troops did Germany have?
2.2 million
What does BEF stand for?
British Expeditionary Force
Who ruled Germany?
Kaiser Whilhelm II
Why do some people say the war started with a sandwich?
Because Javrilo Princip was leaving a restaurant eating a sandwich.
What was the Schlieffen plan?
A plan to circle Paris to force France’s surrender. To then move forward to take on Russia.
Who was the steamroller and why were they called this?
Russia. Because they were slow to get moving but when they got going they were hard to stop.
How long did Germany think it would take for Russia to mobilise?
6 weeks
Why didn’t Germany invade through Alsace-Lorraine?
Because it was too mountainous and France had too many forts
What was plan XVII?
French plan to invade through Alsace-Lorraine, take it over, then take over Berlin.
Did the Schlieffen plan work?
No. It failed within 2 months. Historians think it was because of Von Moltke.
Why did the Schlieffen plan fail?
Because of Von Moltke, Russia mobilised quickly. Bad communication between Moltke and the front line. Exhaustion. Swept east of Paris instead of west. Were held up by Belgium. The BEF fought.
Why didn’t Germany think Britain would fight.
Because the treaty was made in 1839 and Germany thought that it was just a piece of paper.
Why did Germany believe Belgium would surrender immediately and not fight?
Because Germany would bring to much force than Belgium could handle.
Did Plan XVII work?
No. It completely failed. France lost 300,000 men
When was the battle of Mons?
23 August
What happened because of the failure to sweep around Paris and instead sweep east of it?
The Battle Of The Marne
What happened at the Battle Of The Marne?
Germany were stopped and were forced to retreat. Germany lost so many troops the number has never been published. Started the Race to the Sea.
When was the Battle of the Marne?
5-9 September 1914
Which three places in the Race to the Sea did Germany take? What dates?
Ostend 8 October. Antwerp 15 October. Ypres 18 October
How long were the trenches?
470km from the North Sea to Switzerland
What does the term “dug in” mean?
Digging trenches presumably in a hurry
How many days were soldiers supposed to be on the front line for?
8 days but it reality it was more like 2-3 weeks
What were duckboards for?
For soldiers to stand on them without getting their feet wet in the water underneath.
What was the name given to lice?
Chats.
What was in a soldiers normal daylight routine?
Stand to half an hour before dawn. Breakfast with a biscuit, 1/3 of a loaf of bread, jam and tea with no milk. Then jobs (wide variety). They stood down at dusk to have a strong dose of rum before they go to sleep.
What does going “over the top” mean?
Getting out of your trenches to run across “no man’s land” to try make it to the other side. This very rarely happened as most of them were killed by machine guns or barbed wire.
What may a soldier do at night besides sleeping?
Go over the top into a shell bunker and listen to what the enemy was saying. They could also been planting explosives or mining through to the other side
Why was gas so afraid of?
Because soldiers could fight against it. The symptoms were terrible. It could strike at any moment.
What are the types of gas used in WW1?
Chlorine, Phosgene and Mustard. Tear gas was also used but it doesn’t really count.