Establishment of the Western Front by the End of 1914 The Western Front was established due to the stalemate between British/French and German troops, due to the failure of German attempts to capture Paris. The Western Front was 700 Km of trenches containing around four million troops at any one time. In order to answer this question, it is best to start with the first and most important cause of the western front, the First World War. In order to have a war, you need yet more causes for that to come about, This brings me to my first point of analysis; the struggle between Austro-Hungary and Serbia. After Serbia has become an independent state in 1878, many Serbs living inside the Hapsburg Empire wanted independence from the Empire and a place in free Serbia. This in turn lead to problems, and the Austrian government accusing Serbia of stirring trouble in Bosnia, a Serbian region and couldn't face a possible loss of over 8 million Serbs to Serbia, as this would break up the Austro-Hungarian Empire for sure. On the 28th of June 1914, the heir to the Austrian throne and major political target was shot dead during a parade in Sarajevo. A month after this shooting, the First World War had begun. The declaration of war was due to the Austrian government blaming Serbia for the assassination. Although it was right-wing political protester and member of the Black Hand Gavrilo Princip that killed Archduke Ferdinand, the death of a major political player provided Austria with the reason they needed to go to war with Serbia and crush the menace before it was too late. This was why WWI came about, and I therefore feel it a relevant cause... ... middle of paper ... ...t have happened. This in itself is a very long-term cause of the Western Front, because it ensured the start of war, and Germany's involvement in it. As a summary, there were many reasons why the Western front was established in 1914, ranging from as far back as German independence from the Austro-Hungarian empire, to short term causes such as the 'Race to the Sea' and the Battle of the Marne. Although the timescale and relative scale of these causes varies greatly, all play a major part, and without one of these causes, I believe the Western Front would have never been established. It seems there is a pattern emerging amidst the many causes; political causes (long term) are more important over all because there would not have been a situation if the first place for the military causes (short term) to come about.
Firstly, war is initiated by country having more power and wanting to expand their territory or to gain more resources. For example, in the essay The Ecstasy of War (1997) by Barbara Ehrenreich, she stated “that wars are designed, at least ostensibly, to secure necessaries like land or oil” (Ehrenreich 43). Therefore, countries wanting to have more land or important resources will initiate a war if the other country is not in accordance in willing to
History is full of people fighting against one another and going to war for all types of different reasons. For the most part countries go to war to either protect their way of life, or for a better way of living. We want to preserve certain aspects of life like our rights, as well as helping others gain or maintain them, we also want to be able to prosper as a country. When one or some of these things are threatened a country will go to war. Some wars that fallow this trend include the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War. Besides protecting or bettering life, war can also make or break a countries economy.
People did not expect the war to develop in the way it did. In 1914
trying to obtain an hour or two of sleep. As well as being in the
context of world war 1 it was when the French and German sides dug in
Life on the Western Front During World War One A dispassionate look at the numbers of the horrendous casualties sustained by the armies of the Allies and the Central Powers on the Western Front in WW1, clearly indicate that these casualties figures are far inferior to what might be anticipated if, indeed, total war had reigned in every location, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and along all the 475 miles of trenches that extended from the North Sea to Switzerland. A couple of simple examples will readily make the case. Imagine two front-line trenches separated by only 20 to 30 yards of ‘No Man’s Land’ (in some extraordinary situations, distances were even less). A determined and prolonged effort by a few hand-grenade bombers on either side could make any hope of a sustained tenancy quite impossible. Again, given the accuracy and rapidity which trench mortars could be deployed against routinely manned trenches (one battalion per 1,000 yards) and their associated dug-outs, a quite short, but determined, and mutually hostile, barrage could readily reduce both trench systems to total ruin.
The Reasons why the Western Front was Broken There were many equally important reasons why the stalemate on the western front was finally broken: New technology like the tank The American entry into the war The blockading of German ports The German offensive in March 1918 Explain how far you agree with this statement The new technology and tactics helped to break stalemate. The machine gun and artillery had been used since the outbreak of the war making attacking almost impossible. Then they made the wonder-weapon other wise known as the tank. It was first used during the Somme by the British but they had very little tanks and most of them broke down before they arrived at the front.
In short term, the road to war began in Sarajevo 28 June 1914 when the
Some americans say that nations hinge on each other, while others say they also compete with one another. This gives rise to rivalry, which sometimes leads to war. Some wars emerge from differentiation in race, religion and culture. Due to the evolution of technology in an accelerated pace, highly sophisticated weapons are now available for use in wars. Wars also bring about widespread destruction, disrupt communication and hamper commerce. Thus, they cause heavy financial loss and great suffering to people. The effects of wars often affect countries that are not involved in the conflict. The threat of war can pressure a nation to waste immense amounts of money on defense instead of spending on developmental works like creating roads, hospitals, schools, and much more. War can halt a countries development. Some countries try to achieve political desires by using terrorism as a weapon against other countries. Terrorism spreads fear in civilians through acts of violence like killings and hostages. This intimidation has transformed into worldwide threat.
"THE ROLE OF ALLIANCES IN THE ORIGIN AND EXPANSION OF THE WAR IN 1914 HAS BEEN GREATLY EXAGGERATED"
It may seem like wars start abruptly, with little cause, but usually there is a bigger story. New policies, lack of equality, military influence, and too much government involvement usually stir up the peace initially. These turn the country or area into a ‘powder keg’, ready to explode into war at the smallest spark. Although the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand was the spark of World War I, policies at the time like nationalism and militarism were the underlying causes of the war.
World War 1 World War 1 was called “The Great War”, “The war to end all wars”, and “The first modern war”. It has many causes and a few repercussions and I will describe them in detail. The most widely known reason for the start of World War 1 was the assassination of the Arch Duke Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in the Serbian capital of Sarajevo. The ArchDuke was there to talk to the Serbian leaders about peace on the Balkan Peninsula. After a Serbian was arrested for the assassination, Austria-Hungary pulled out of the peace talks and declared war on Serbia.
War has always been, and will always be, a necessary action perpetrated by man. There are many reasons for war: rage, passion, greed, defense, and religion, to name a few. When differences cannot be resolved or compromised through mediation with an opposing party, war is the last remaining option. Muslim historian Ibn Khaldun wrote in fourteenth-century Spain, that “War is a universal and inevitable aspect of life, ordained by God to the same extent as the sky and the earth, the heat and the cold. The question of whether to fright is not a significant moral question because fighting is constant; the minor decision not to fight this war will be made only in the context of knowing that another war will present itself soon enough because it is simply always there.”
War has been around for centuries. From the time modern civilizations began, war has played an integral part in human history. It shaped the world into the modern world we live in. War has been said to be a great motivator, for example, the Great Wall of China was built to fend off the attackers from the north. However, the negative aspects of war far outweighs any positive effects it might have. The destruction of civilizations, cities and countries, mass killings of men, woman and children alike, the disastrous effect it has on economy and the after effects of war can last for centuries.
War is such a debatable topic of whether it is just to wage a war on our neighbours or invade a country.One thing is very clear there are consequence and a cost. Martin Luther once stated,“War is the greatest plague that can afflict humanity, it destroys religion, it destroys states, it destroys families”. This was exactly what did. War was not a fun game like what Jessie Pope described it as in her poem, ‘Who’s for the game’. What war did was it changed people and society. The war caused soldiers to suffer from PTSD, it left families to face the feeling of grief and it crippled the economy.