Pillboxes were miniature forts or bunkers developed by the German army to give their trench lines extra strength in world war 1. Pillboxes are built in guard posts made out of concrete and they are most always equipped with loopholes through which the soldiers inside are able to fire small arms weapons. The very first name for pillboxes came from their similarity to the cylindrical and hexagonal boxes in which medical pills were sold before world war 1. They were also an effective tactic in trench warfare for the German and French armies during the course of world war 1. They were used to help protect the German soldiers and also the French soldiers against small arms fire, grenades and artillery fire and they were also raised up above the …show more content…
trenches to improve the field of fire while fighting in the trenches. Because they were raised above the trenches it made it harder for the enemy to see the soldiers in the pillboxes resulting in a advantage for the soldiers in the bunkers and pillboxes. The concrete nature of pillboxes means that they are a feature of prepared positions. Pillboxes were believed to be first used in the Hindenburg Line. This is where they were first given their name.
Some pillboxes were designed to be made beforehand and transported to their location for assembly. During World War I someone named Sir Ernest William Moir produced a design for concrete machine gun pillboxes constructed from a system of interlocking precast concrete blocks, with a steel roof. Around 1500 pillboxes were eventually produced and sent to the Western Front in 1918. German concrete pillboxes are camouflaged in order to conceal/hide their location and also they helped to maximize the element of surprise during the wars. During the course of world war 1 the British built very few machine-gun pillboxes because they said that the construction of pillboxes made the British troops think less offensive minded and more defensively minded. The official reason for not building them was that the British government said that concrete pillboxes were not worth the labor or the cost. The official reason they had not built them was because the British High Command thought that if the British troops would be less inclined to move forward in the trenches and that they would just hide in the pillboxes. Both the Germans and the French and also the British used smaller machine gun posts during world war 1 such as …show more content…
nests. The British army leaned towards the use of a machine gun called the Bergman machine gun rather than a what the Germans used which was a gun called the Maxim Machine gun in these smaller machine gun nests. According to the accounts of people that survived world war 1 the people said that the machine gunners were hated so much by the infantry that they were more likely to be killed if they were captured by the enemy.
The enemy was less likely to kill captured soldiers that were not machine gunners or the others in the pillboxes and machine gun nests. Pillboxes were for the most part always part of a trench system during world war 1 and world war 2. Pillboxes were built to form an interlocking line of defense with other pillboxes so they can be used to provide cover fire to each other if there was ever a battle in the trenches and they are also placed to guard strategic wartime structures for the Germans and the French during world war 1. The German and French Pillboxes and bunkers were formidable defensive tactics during World Wars I and II. After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and 1871, the newly formed German state and their rival France began rapidly building defensive networks to protect their borders against future attacks on both France and Germany. The French and also the Germans learned from previous wars such as the American Civil War and the Crimean War so they decided to build their fortifications stronger to defend against powerful and evolving artillery that was being created and improved over the course of world war 1 and also world war
2. The pillboxes/bunkers also had built in living quarters and they also had extremely long underground access tunnels that were used to go from parts of the trenches to bunkers and pillboxes all along the battlefield. The resulting German and French pillboxes featured steel rebar that also had a reinforced concrete cover layered with cast iron Armor.
In today’s world, the use of airplanes in wars or in everyday life has become a part of how we live as human beings. Removing the air forces of the world is like taking a step back in time when wars were only fought on land or sea. WWI began only eleven short years after the Wright brothers achieved powered flight in 19031 and yet aircrafts were being used for surveillance and eventually combat purposes. It is understood that these aircrafts were primitive, but they laid down the foundation for what we know today as fighter jets. The Fokker Eindecker “revolutionized air combat by successfully employing a synchronized forward -firing machine gun mounted on the engine cowling”2. Because this airplane became the first to successfully use a synchronized machine gun, it allowed its pilots to become the first aerial combat tactitions3.
As stated in the previous paragraph. The weapons used in the novel and during World War I were similar, but in the novel they have a large selection of weapons. "Bombardment, barrage, curtain-fire, mines, gas, tanks, machine-guns, hand-grenadeswords, words, but they hold the horror of the world." (Chapter 6 pg. 132) All these weapons played a huge role in helping the soldiers defend themselves. Every soldier used one of these weapons at least once throughout the war.
2nd Raider battalion was one of the first U.S. military units to use the newly issued M-1 Garand in combat. This special privilege allowed the Raiders to experiment with a variety of new innovations and weaponry, resulting in a unique, yet deliberately selected armory. With an emphasis on mobility, the Raiders opted for lighter weapons with higher rates of fire. For example the Raiders utilized the .30-caliber air-cooled Browning machine gun instead of its .50 caliber brother, issued to standard infantry units. The Raiders tested a plethora of innovative equipment including, individual, man portable stoves, collapsible bicycles, and eight foot toggle ropes which had a loop at one end and a peg at the other, useful for scaling cliffs. Certain items in the Raider arsenal became unique to the raiders such as the “Raider Stiletto,” a dagger issued to Raider units modeled after the British commandos Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife, and the “Gung Ho” knife and jacket, the later being a large heavy Bowie style knife and the jacket being a hunting jacket with large pockets replacing the need for a pack. One of the most unique weapons in the Raider arsenal was the British Boys anti-tank
The canister shot was a wooden cartridge carrying iron balls and when fired would explode like a shotgun for shorter range personnel. The cannons were mostly low trajectory as opposed to the mortars which were high trajectory and fire bomb shells. The mortar was based on a wooden platform and a wedge of wood was used to incline the front of the barrel. There were land service mortars and sea service mortars. The land service being more mobile and the sea service much heavier and were permanently positioned on ships.
The U. S. Soldiers used the M-79 40mm, also known as the thumper, which looked like a sawed shotgun. It could fire up to 300 meters and fire a 6.5 pound grenade. The M-72 is a BBMM light anti-tank weapon that weighs 5.2 pounds. It was also used as a bunker buster and fired a 1 kg rocket that could travel 300 meters. (173dairborne)”
The First World War saw a new form of warfare known as Trench warfare which involved trenches which were deep long dugouts made by the soldiers that lived in these trenches. The trenches proved useful as they protected the soldiers from artillery and bomb fire and were most likely situated in the eastern and western fronts of Europe. However the conditions of the trenches were far from exuberant but were in fact severely terrible. There was bad hygiene throughout the trenches, for example soldiers bathed probably only once a month and as such were prone to diseases such as trenches fever (which were due to the lice attracted by the bad hygiene). The weather was no exception as well, in the summer it would be too hot and in the winter it would be too cold and due to the nature of the trenches, when it rained the trenches would be filled with water, and due to such conditions welcomed the disease known as trench foot which was due to prolonged exposure to water and claimed the foots of many soldiers. There was also the constant danger of bomb fire and snipers would always be on the lookout for any movement. Latrines, which were toilets used in the trenches also sprouted fear as the enemy could see them in this area of the trenches and therefore were in constant danger of death. Soldiers also had to follow a strict code of conduct which was known as trench etiquette which ordered them to respect higher officers and they would have to be punished if the trench etiquette was ignored.
The stalemate on the Western front had developed by December 1914 because of the new advances in defensive weaponry where both sides had developed lethal weaponry like the machine guns and artillery, which subsequently led to trench warfare. The Machine Gun was a very dominant weapon in the First World War. It could kill hundreds of men a minute due to its rapid firing rate of 600 bullets a minute. However the machine guns that were used in the First World War weighed between 30kg – 60kg, would require a four to six operators and could heat up extremely quickly; clearly not very effective as a offensive weapon (Duffy, Michael. "Machine Guns.") Machine Guns were only effective for defense as they were extremely heavy, required a lot of ammunition a needed to be fixed into the ground. This made it severely difficult to attack and move with machine guns. Artillery was even deadlier as a defensive weapon and was one of the most important weapons of the First World War as it was the cause of the majority of human losses. The artillery ranged from field artillery to heavy and long range artillery that could fire long distances and would trap the enemies in their trenches. The Trench Mortar was also a very effective weapon in the war, which was a “tube” that would fire at a vertical angle (higher than 45 degrees) and could therefore be fired within the safety of the trench, unlike artillery. All these new advances in technology made trenches almost impossible to attack yet also kept each side trapped in their trenches.
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 Third System was the name applied to a string of coastal forts from the Florida Keys to Maine intended to defend the shores of the United States against hostile invaders (Our Georgia History). The parameter was built as a defensive response to the English attack on D.C. and Baltimore and Maryland at the time of the War of 1812. During 1861, Major Olmstead gained command of Fort Pulaski. His goal was to build two lines of defense on the outer coastal area of Georgia. Under his control, he established a series of batteries and forts along the parameter of the island. During 1861 and the first six weeks of 1862, thousands of pounds of gunpowder and ammunition were brought to the fort (Schiller). In addition, Olmstead was able to boost his artillery complement to 48 guns, including 12-inch mortars, two English Blakely rifles, and 10-inch columbiads (Schiller). The development of the rifle gun helped improve the defense of the fort. When General Lee made his rounds to Fort Pulaski, he insisted that Olmstead continue to build his inner coastal defenses in preparation of an attack from the federal forces. Olmstead took his advice and built sandbags around the barbette guns, to protect the gunners from fragmentation. He orders his army to dig ditches around the fields, to help trap rolling shells. Two months preparing for the attack from the Federal army has finally come. Colonel Olmstead took thirty minutes to position his men, he made sure the guns were manned and he issued ammunition.
As a result of these two conditions, many more casualties were sustained. Add to that the lack of medical knowledge of disease and infection and the numbers truly began to grow. This paper provides an overview of the types of weaponry that was used during this time. Artillery generally falls into three basic categories: guns, howitzers and mortars. The main difference between them is the trajectory of the round fire.
One weapon or machine was created, and an even better one was made. New developments such as machine guns, poison gas, tanks, and new strategies to thwart trench warfare affected how WWI was fought and it came with catastrophic results. Poison gas is perhaps the most feared weapon out of all. Created to overcome the long stalemate style of trench warfare, its purpose was to draw out soldiers hiding in the trenches. One side would throw the poison gas into the enemy trenches and they would either wait for their enemy to come out into open fire or perish in the trenches.
World War I had been fought primarily on French soil, and the military as well as the government never wanted that to happen again, therefore they wanted to reinforce their main border against any future German. Little did they know that only twenty-two years later they would be bested by German forces in a way that would shock the world.... ... middle of paper ... ... Situational awareness was almost non-existent, with many French commanders not even knowing where their own subordinate units were located.11
Long tunnels were dug up by British, French and Germans soldiers and filled with explosives destroying enemy trenches. The tunnels were used to build an underground network for the real battle. Twelve subways, reaching more than five kilometers deep, were dug at night by construction companies which allowed troops to move to their jumping points faster. Smaller tunnels called sapper, leading off subway to the front-line, were sealed until zero hour. At that point they were blown on, giving Germans an element of surprise, the soldiers attacked right on the front. The network reduced injuries among the troops and wounded soldiers could be brought back safely for recovery. The equipment could be carried to the battleground in less hazardous conditions. “Canadian and British engineers repaired 40 km of road in the Corps’ forward area and added 4.8 km of new road. They also reconditioned 32 km of tramways, over which light trains hauled by gasoline engines.” After widening the road and repairing the trail more dangerous, heavy and explosive equipment could be carried to the front for Canadian soldiers. All the firepower amounted was divided among the total
Trench warfare became a common practice in World War One, leading to a war of attrition. Both the Allies as well as the Germans enacted similar basic defense strategies and dealt with many of the same debilitating trench conditions. Trenches were built in an elaborate networking system, with three major sections, the front lines, the support, and the reserves. There was a rotation schedule for soldiers in the trenches, so that each regiment served time at the front lines. Trench conditions were horrendous including rodent infestation as well as unsanitary living spaces; many were infected with diseases such as trench foot with most trenches were filled with dead corpses for weeks after they were first killed. Defense mechanisms included creating dense fields of barbed wire in No Man’s Land, between the enemy trenches, in order to prevent an attack on the trench. Trench sanitation and defense were not the only reasons for the stalemate connected with World War One. The weather played
The First World War introduced a new type of warfare. New weapons were combined with old strategies and tactics. Needless to say, the results were horrific. However, a new type of warfare was introduced: trench warfare. In the movie War Horse, the character that owned the horse originally while he worked on his farm, Albert Narracott, finally was old enough to join the army. His first sight of battle was the Battle of Somme which took place in France near the Somme River. During this battle, the British troops start out in trenches, which were pretty much tunnels dug strategically to avoid gunfire. The soldiers would wait until they were told to advance, and they would run from one trench to the next. Trenches and the area between trenches were muddy and the trenches themselves were poorly conditioned (http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/chapters/ch1_trench.html). Many of the soldiers who fought in trenches succumbed to a foot disease called trench foot and if not treated immediately, gangrene could infect the foot and an amputation would be necessary for survival. Commanding officers ordered one or t...