EUROPEAN & WORLD HISTORY:
WORLD WAR ONE
1914 – 1918
KINROSS HIGH SCHOOL
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
S2
S2 – EUROPEAN & WORLD HISTORY
Before you start your work, here are some points, which we would like you
to remember:
Please…

Do try to keep your jotter as tidy as possible

Do write in blue or black ink

Do your drawings in pencil and colouring pencil

Do date and title all your work
Please…

Don’t write on the booklets. We want to be able to use them again

Don’t leave blank pages in your jotter – if you miss work then copy up
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WHAT WILL WE LEARN?
This unit looks at one of the most important events in the 20 th Century. It
brought about the death of millions, transformed Europe and signalled the
end of the British Empire.
In the coming weeks, we will find out about:
 The Causes of WW1
 Conditions in the trenches
 The weapons of war
 Propaganda and the Home Front
 The search for peace at the end of the war
The skills/attributes you will develop are:
 Researching
 Note-taking
 Making reasoned judgements
 Extended writing
 Understanding bias
 Working co-operatively with others
 Empathy
HOW WILL THE UNIT BE ASSESSED?
The unit will be assessed in 3 parts:
 Part 1: A newspaper report
 Part 2: An information booklet
 Part 3: An end of unit test
Depending on how well you perform in these assessments will determine
how far along you are in each level. You will be graded by the following
stages:
 Stage 1 = Developing (a basic understanding of the course)
 Stage 2 = Consolidating (a good understating of the course)
 Stage 3 = Secure (an excellent understanding of the course)
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WORLD WAR 1 – AN
INTRODUCTION
Aim:
 To find out some of the
background to WW1.
World War 1 began in 1914. Although it is called a world war, most of the fighting took
place in Europe. The Western Front had trench fighting and involved Britain (and its
Empire), France, Belgium and the USA fighting against Germany. The Eastern Front
involved fighting between Russia and Germany.
The War ended in 1918 with the surrender of Germany and the signing of the Treaty of
Versailles. During these 4 years, over 750,000 British people were killed and some
2,000,000 injured. Countries were created in the aftermath and Europe (and the rest of
the World) was never the same again.
TASKS:
1. Draw a timeline using the following events. Use a double page of your
jotter and add illustrations to make it visually appealing.
Date
August 1914
July 1916
July 1914
December 1914
November 1918
April 1917
February 1915
April 1915
January 1916
Event
Britain declares war on Germany
Battle of the Somme begins
Archduke Franz Ferdinand assassinated in Sarajevo
Christmas truce and football match
Germany surrenders, fighting ends
USA declares war on Germany
Germany begins submarine blockade of Britain’s ports
First use of poison gas used in trench warfare
Conscription introduced in British armed forces
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THE CAUSES OF WORLD WAR 1
Aim:
 To find out how the alliance
system caused WW1.
ALLIANCES
At the end of the 19th Century Europe was dominated by five major powers (GB,
Germany, France, Russia and Austria-Hungary). These 5 great powers began to
quarrel with each other, more and more angrily as the years went by, until, in 1914 their
quarrels flared up into a war.
Before we look at the actual quarrels, ask yourself, if you quarrel with a friend what is
your natural reaction?
Most people turn to other friends for support during a falling out. Friends and family
back you up and help support you during a quarrel. The same sort of thing happened
in Europe in 1900. Countries turned to friendly countries for support. They made
agreements to help each other against their common enemies. Such agreements are
called alliances. Each of the Great Powers made alliances.
WHAT IS AN ALLIANCE?
An alliance is an agreement made between countries to help defend each other in
the event of an invasion, for example if Germany attacked Russia, France would help
defend Russia as they had formed an alliance. When two countries sign an alliance
they become allies.
Why were alliances formed?
Alliances were formed for many reasons.
1. To isolate enemies, for example if Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary all
became allies France would be left out and isolated.
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2. To keep the peace - in theory if Europe was split into two big alliances
there would be a ‘balance of power’. Politicians thought that the size and
power of the two alliances would prevent either side from starting a war.
3. To give country’s a sense of security. Rather than settling disputes through
discussion and negotiation, most countries in Europe sought peace by
building their army and navy. No one would attack the country with the
largest army and/or navy, because they knew they couldn't win.
4. To help countries feel more secure if war did break out - the Great Powers
were nervous that there might be a war so they wanted to feel strong and
secure. By forming alliances each country felt a little safer as they had
more ‘people’ on their side.
WHAT ALLIANCES WERE THERE BY 1914?
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
THE TRIPLE ENTENTE
Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy
GB, France and Russia
Also, smaller alliances were being made between individual countries all over
Europe. The Treaty of London, signed in 1867 long before the Entente, agreed that
Britain would protect Belgium's right to be neutral in a European conflict.
Meanwhile Russia had signed an agreement promising to protect Serbia.
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WHAT WAS THE RESULT OF THE ALLIANCES?

Europe was split into ‘two armed camps’.

Far from bringing security and peace, the alliances only increased the
suspicion and distrust between the Great Powers of Europe.

Tension was building as the two alliance systems were afraid of each other
and started making plans for war.

The key problem of the alliance system was that if the powers stuck blindly
to their alliances, then a small-scale local dispute involving one power
might drag the other powers in and quickly escalate into a major war. As
we will see, this is exactly what happened in 1914….
TASKS:
1. Define the meaning of alliance.
2. Why were alliances formed?
3. Draw a table, like the one below, showing all the different alliances:
Alliance /
Year
Between
Why?
4. Explain the results of the alliance system.
5. Would the alliances help prevent a war? Explain your answer.
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THE ARMS RACE
Aim:
 To understand what the Arms Race
was and how it increased tension.
We have already learned that the countries of Europe were forming alliances.
Germany was also in a competition with Britain to build up the biggest navy. This
competition became known as the Naval Arms Race and was a cause of tension
between Britain and Germany in the years leading up to WW1.
WHY WAS THE NAVY SO IMPORTANT TO BRITAIN?
At the beginning of the 20th Century, Britain had the largest and most powerful navy in
the world. Britain is an island and had a large empire, so she needed a large fleet to
protect her colonies and the trade routes to them. The idea was to have a fleet so big
that no other navy would ever dare attack it. Consequently, any attempt by another
country to increase the size of her navy meant that Britain was forced to do the same.
WHY DID THE NAVAL ARMS RACE BEGIN?
The Naval arms race began because Kaiser Wilhelm (the leader of Germany) wanted
Germany to be a great world power. To achieve this, he needed a navy that could
challenge that of Britain. It didn’t have to be bigger, just big enough to be a threat.
The actual race began in 1900 when the German Navy Law ordered the building of 41
battleships and 60 cruisers. As a result of these actions, the British naval chief, Admiral
Fisher, decided to do the same. Therefore, by the beginning of the C20th, the size of
their navies was a cause of tension. This tension increased with the invention of the
Dreadnought.
WHAT WAS THE DREADNOUGHT?
On 10 February 1906, the shipbuilders at Portsmouth Dockyard watched a battleship
named Dreadnought slide into the sea. This event was important for two reasons.
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1. Dreadnought was the most powerful, fastest and
most heavily armoured battleship ever built. The
Dreadnought could fight at long range. Her ten
huge guns could blow up an enemy ship from 32
kilometres away. They made all other ships useless
because they would never be able to get close
enough to the Dreadnought to fire at them.
2. Its revolutionary new design made all other battle
ships out of date or obsolete. Since dreadnoughts
were now the ships that mattered, Germany could
more easily catch up on Britain’s lead by simply
building more Dreadnoughts.
German shipbuilders began work on Rheinland, the German version of Dreadnought.
The British replied to this in 1911 by building HMS Neptune a ‘super-Dreadnought’ with
even more guns and greater speed. In 1913, the HMS Queen Elizabeth was launched.
This was more powerful still.
WHY WAS THE NAVAL ARMS RACE SO SIGNIFICANT?
By 1914, Britain seemed to have won the Naval Arms Race because Germany had 17
Dreadnought-class battleships while Britain had 29. However, the main impact of the
naval arms race was that it put increasing strain on British and German relations.
Indeed, it was the tension caused by the Naval Arms Race, which encouraged Britain
to form the Triple Entente with Germany’s enemies, France and Russia.
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TASKS:
1. Why was the Navy so important to Britain?
2. Why did the Kaiser want Germany to build a powerful Navy?
3. Write the subheading Significant Dates and copy and complete the table
below.
Date
Event
Significance
1900
German Navy Law
passed
Ordered the building of 41 Battleships
and 60 Cruisers
1906
1911
1913
1914
4. Explain why the building of the Dreadnought was so significant. You should
mention two reasons.
5. Why was the Naval Arms Race significant in the long term.
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CAUSES OF WW1 – THE TRIGGER
Aims:

To understand the assassination of
Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo
on 28 June 1914.
On 28 June 1914 Archduke Franz-Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne was
assassinated by a young Bosnian named Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Black Hand,
in Sarajevo.
WHAT WAS THE BLACK HAND?
In May 1911, ten young army officers met in the Serbian capital Belgrade to form a
secret society called ‘Unity or Death’. The symbol of their society was to be a black
hand. Before long, the Black Hand had over 2,500 members, all sworn to secrecy and
to lay down their lives for the cause.
Their first aim was to join Bosnia-Herzegovina with Serbia. Members of the Black Hand
quickly engaged in terrorist attacks on Austrian officials, such as judges, police and
customs officers. They received weapons and training from the Serb Army, but this
probably happened without the knowledge or permission of the Serb government.
WHY WAS FRANZ-FERDINAND IN SARAJEVO?
The Austrians were extremely concerned by the terrorist atrocities committed by the
Black Hand. They feared that they would start a rebellion in Bosnia, which would then
spread throughout their whole empire. In this tense situation, the Austrians made a
very foolish decision. They announced that Franz-Ferdinand would visit to Bosnia in
June 1914. He would watch army exercises and then visit Sarajevo. This newspaper
announcement was foolish for two reasons.
1. 28 June was the National Day of the Serbian peoples when anti-Austrian feeling
was bound to be great.
2. By giving the exact date of Franz-Ferdinand’s visit, the Black Hand was given the
chance to plan their greatest act of terror yet. They realised that assassinating
the heir to the throne would be the greatest blow possible.
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The Black Hand quickly made plans. The recruited three young Bosnian Serbs. They
were given bombs and guns and trained how to use them. Their leader was nineteen
year old Gavrilo Princip. Three weeks before the visit was due to take place, the three
students slipped across the border from Serbia and made their way to Sarajevo.
WHAT HAPPENED IN SARAJEVO?
Archduke Franz-Ferdinand and his wife Sophie arrived in Sarajevo on the morning of 28
June. They climbed into the back seat of a large open-topped car to be driven to the
Town Hall. Crowds lined the streets as they drove through the sunny town. Waiting
among the crowds was Princip and his fellow students.
As the car sped along the road, one of the students stepped forward and threw a
bomb at it. Ferdinand saw the bomb coming and managed to deflect it into the road
where it exploded under the car behind. By the time the car reached the town hall,
Ferdinand was furious. He shouted at the Mayor who came out to greet him and
cancelled the rest of the visit.
On the way back to the railway station, the chauffeur took a
wrong turning then stopped the car and reversed. Quite by
chance, Gavrilo Princip was standing in the street. He stepped
forward and fired two pistol shots. One hit Ferdinand in the
throat; the other hit Sophie in the stomach. The royal couple
were driven off at top speed to the Bosnian Governor’s
residence where there might be a Doctor. Both died shortly after
arrival. Ferdinand’s last words were “Don’t die Sophie. Live for
our children.”
Princip meanwhile tried to commit suicide by swallowing poison but it failed to work.
He was arrested shortly after and taken to the police station where he was questioned
and beaten up.
Little did he know that he had fired the shots, which were to trigger the bloodiest war
the world had ever seen….
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TASKS:
1. Create a profile of the Black Hand. You should mention when they were
founded, membership details, aims and methods.
2. Why did Franz-Ferdinand visit Sarajevo?
3. Explain why it was a bad idea to announce his visit on 28.06.14 in the
newspaper?
4. How did the Black Hand respond to this news?
5. Describe the events of June 28th 1914 fully.
HOMEWORK:
Your task is to design a detailed newspaper report on the events of that day. You must
include:
 Name of the newspaper
 Headline
 Picture
 When it happened
 Who was assassinated
 Details of the day
 Who were the Black Hand Society?
 The name of the assassin
 The problems that it could cause in Europe
The homework must be at least one page of A4. You can use the information in your
jotters or any information you find on the internet. You can type or hand write the
report out.
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THE SCHLIEFFEN PLAN- CRACKING CODES
Aims:
 To find out what the Schlieffen plan was
 To find out why the plan failed
BACKGROUND
In 1914, Germany believed war with Russia was extremely
likely. If war broke out, Germany assumed France would also attack as she was both
an ally of Russia and keen for revenge for her defeat in the Franco-Prussian war.
If this happened, Germany would face a war on two fronts. Germany wanted to
avoid this at all costs.
This led to the development of the Schlieffen Plan.
PAIRED TASK:
Collect two coded telegrams. Using the code provided you must decipher the two
German telegrams to find out what was the Schlieffen Plan.
THE PLAN
In 1905, Count Alfred von Schlieffen was chief of the German General Staff. Europe
had divided into two camps by this year - Germany, Austria and Italy (the Triple
Alliance) on one side and Britain, France and Russia (the Triple Entente) on the other.
Schlieffen believed that France was Germany's most dangerous opponent. Russia
was not as advanced as France in many areas and Schlieffen believed that Russia
would take six weeks to mobilise her forces. He also believed that any fighting on the
Russian-German border could be coped with by the Germans for a few weeks while
the rest of her forces concentrated on defeating France.
Schlieffen concluded that a massive and successful surprise attack against France
would be enough to put off Britain becoming involved in a war. This would allow
Germany time to transfer soldiers, who had been fighting in the French campaign, to
Russia to take on the Russians.
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Schlieffen also planned for the attack on France to go through Belgium and
Luxemburg. Belgium had a treaty with Britain and so his strategy for success
depended on Britain not supporting Belgium.
Assumptions
Russia would take at least 6 weeks to mobilise.
France would be easily defeated in 6 weeks.
Belgium would not resist any German attack.
Britain would remain neutral.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED?
2nd August 1914, the German army invaded Luxembourg and Belgium according to
the Schlieffen Plan.
The Germans were held up by the Belgium army, backed up by the BEF (British
Expeditionary Force) which arrived extremely quickly.
Russia mobilised in just 10 days and Germany was forced to withdraw troops from the
Schlieffen Plan to defend her eastern border.
Germany did not take the chance to take Paris, instead decided to attack east of
the capital. They were met by French at the battle of the Marne (5-11 Sept) which
halted the German advance. Eventually, the Germans retreated to higher ground,
where they could establish a better defence. The French and Germans are believed
to have lost around 250,000 men in the battle. The British lost around 13,000.
To avoid gun fire both sides dug holes in the ground. These developed into trenches
and a stalemate (we will look at these in more detail next lesson).
On
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TASKS
1. To be successful, the Schlieffen Plan depended on 4 key assumptions.
What assumptions had General von Schlieffen made about
a)
b)
c)
d)
Belgium?
Britain?
France?
Russia?
2. Complete a flow diagram explaining how the Schlieffen plan led to a
stalemate. It should start with the invasion of Belgium and end with the
battle of Marne.
On 2nd August
1914, Germany
invaded
Belgium
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TRENCH DESIGN
Aim:
 to discover what the trenches
were like on the Western Front
BACKGROUND
The First World War was a war like none before it. With the development of the machine
gun and high explosive artillery thousands of men could be killed within hours. Soldiers on
both sides dug trenches to take shelter and protection from the heavy bombardment and
advancing troops of the enemy. Some trenches were defensive- built to keep hold of
areas of land. Other trenches were offensive- trying to gain land of importance from the
enemy.
Trench Layout
Supply Lines
Artillery Line
Communication
lines
First support line
trench
Machine
Gun nests
Bunkers
Front line support
Front Line Trench
Wire
obstacles
Listening Posts
Barbed Wire
Defence Line
No Man’s Land
To enemy Front line
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Cross section of a Front-line trench
TASKS
Using the diagrams complete the following tasks.
1. Draw and label the main features of a front line trench
Write the following answers in full sentences.
2. Explain why the front line trench was not built in a straight line?
3. What were the underground bunkers used for?
4. Why were duck boards (wooden planks) put down in the bottom of
the trenches?
5. Why was barbed wire a useful defensive tool?
6. What were the listening posts were used for?
7. What do think the sandbags were used for?
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TECHNOLOGY- WEAPONS OF WW1
Aims:
• To examine the different types of
technology used during the war
• To analyse their usefulness in the
war effort
The Bolt Action Rifle
The most common weapon that the standard
British soldier had was the bolt-action-rifle. This
was a new weapon which made it possible for
the soldier to fire 15 rounds a minute and was
so accurate that it could kill a person almost
1400 metres away. The French attached a
bayonet to this weapon for use in one on one
fighting. However, it required constant reloading and would often jam.
Machine Guns
They needed between 4-6 men to man them in 1914 and had
to be positioned on a flat surface. The new machine guns
could fire up to 600 rounds per minute (that is equivalent to 250
men with a rifle). But the machine guns could often overheat
and breakdown. They were also extremely heavy and so they
were not very portable and the ammunition belt often jammed
when being fed in.
Artillery Fire/Field Guns
Artillery was the word used to describe large mounted
field guns. Heavy artillery guns were used to fire shells
from behind the trenches. The shells had a thin casing
and were filled with led pellets and killed thousands of
men. They could fire up to 120km in distance and were
used to deliver devastating blows to the enemy. They
needed 12 men to work them and they weighed up to
900lb.
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Chemical Warfare
The First World War was also the first war in which gas was used. The three main gases
that were used were chlorine, phosgene and mustard gas.
Chlorine and Phosgene gas
Chlorine gas was first used by the Germans at
the Battle of Ypres in 1915. It was devastating
and killed thousands. It was yellowy in colour
and smelt of pineapple. Those being gassed
would suffer chest pains and a burning
sensation in their throats.
Death was very
painful – they suffocated.
Soldiers soon discovered that urine soaked cotton pads helped fight chlorine gas, but
it was not pleasant to fight like this. Phosgene gas soon followed. It wasn’t as deadly as
Chlorine but was more potent and would cause violent coughing fits. It also had a
delayed reaction and would take effect 48 hours after the attack.
Mustard Gas
Mustard gas was the most deadly biological weapon used in
the trenches. It had no smell and took 12 hours to work. It was
also very powerful, only small amounts needed to be added to
shells to be effective and it remained active for several weeks.
Mustard gas made the skin blister on contact. It would cause
internal and external bleeding and would target the lungs. It
could blind its victims and it could take up to 5 weeks to die. It
is estimated 35,000 soldiers killed and over 600,000 injured by
Mustard gas.
There were many problems with using gas. At first it was released from cylinders which
the enemy could attack with artillery, turning the gas back on those trying to use it. It
was also weather dependable. During a battle the wind could change and blow the
gas back on those using it. This happened to the British troops at the battle of Loos. To
address these problems gas shells were invented.
Tanks
Tanks were an invention of the British and used for the first
time during the Battle of Flers. Their appearance struck fear
in the German troops who had never seen a tank before.
The first tank was nicknamed ‘Little Willie’; it was a small
model and could only carry two-three soldiers. Its maximum
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speed was 3mph and it was unable to cross across trenches. They could fire 13,000
bullets and fire shells but had many problems. During the Somme the tanks got stuck in
the mud. They would often overheat and breakdown and because they were slow
they were easy targets for the enemy. At the Battle of Amiens the British sent 525 Tanks
and only 25 came back still working
A more successful model was built later. It was called the Fiat
Tipo! It could fit a maximum of 10 men and had the first revolving
turret and could actually reach speeds of 4mph! At the Battle of
Cambrai the tanks were able to break through German defences
and cross their trenches.
Planes
Planes were also a new form of warfare. At first they were used
to deliver arms and bombs and used reconnaissance (for spying
on the enemy). They were soon developed into fighter aircraft
armed with machine guns and bombs. Fights in the sky between
enemy aircraft were referred to as ‘dog fights’. Many of the
earlier models made of Canvas and wood and would easily go
on fire. Landing was also a problem with many of the models
crashing and the life expectancy of a pilot was a few weeks.
TASKS
Weapon Advantages Disadvantages
Rifle
1. Create a table that shows the main advantages and disadvantages of
each weapon.
2. Explain which WW1weapon you think was the most effective and why.
(You must give at least two reasons to justify your point of view)
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LIFE IN THE TRENCHES
Aim:

To find out what the actual experience of war was like for the soldiers
Dangerous, upsetting, traumatic,
dirty,
wet,
unhygienic,
smelly,
dull,
unhealthy,
boring
and
tiring.
Just
some
of
the
words
to
describe what it would have
been like in the trenches.
Life
was shaped by discipline, fear, a
dull daily routine, injury and loss.
BOREDOM
In the trenches the most commonly felt emotion was likely BOREDOM! This was
because the daily routine of trench life was repetitive and mindless.
You
would spend your time doing “fatigues” – tiring and boring tasks like cleaning
weapons, filling sandbags, digging and repairing trenches, repairing barbed
wire and emptying the latrines. Fighting was not constant and so most of your
time was spent doing dull fatigues.
FEAR OF DEATH
In the trenches most soldiers would have been troubled by the constant fear
of death. In the front line trenches you might be shot at by a sniper, gassed or
blown up by a shell, bomb or mine. At night patrols would be sent into ‘No
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Mans land’ to recover the dead and wounded comrades, carry out repairs or
cut the wire. The night patrols and other soldiers would see horrific sights
including swollen and decaying corpses. Seeing strangers, friends and family
die would take its toll on people.
Psychological Impact
The consequence of experiencing the
horrors of war would lead to nervous
disorders. Shock, confusion, loss of speech
and hysteria and were common. People
talked of shell shock which was like a
nervous breakdown caused by the noise
and trauma of the constant deafening
gunfire.
This quote gives an insight into what it was like to be surrounded by death and
trauma in the trenches.
“The horrible scenes of mass carnage in the dark trenches, the picture of
decimated corpses, combined with the moaning of the wounded, the deathrattling sounds of the dying, the screaming and ranting of the mad – al this
heightened the horrors of war.”
Before going over the top yourself, you would be given some rum for “Dutch
courage”, then the whistle would blow and you would go over the top unsure
of the dangers ahead.
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DEATH & DISEASE
There was a lot of disease in the
trenches ranging from diarrhoea to
trench fever. Drinking tea from a petrol
tin
led
to
sickness
and
diarrhoea.
Sometimes you’d be up to your waist in
mud leading to trench foot and trench
fever. Trench foot was caused by the
water soaking through your boots to
your feet causing your toes and feet to
rot. It was hard to wash in the trenches
and so hygiene was fairly poor - again
causing trench fever. This gave you a
very high temperature, constant diarrhoea and left you weak and tired.
Troops also suffered typhoid caused by lice which bred in their clothes.
Medical supplies were poor and many died from infected wounds. On the first
day of the Battle of the Somme, 1 July 1916 there were 60,000 British casualties
with 20,000 killed. Soldiers had been sent into machine gun fire, without any
cover whatsoever.
The sense of personal loss would have been almost
unbearable.
DISCIPLINE
In the harsh conditions officers were very strict. If you
questioned orders or disobeyed an order you would
be court martialled.
Soldiers found guilty of
cowardice or sleeping whilst on sentry duty (guard
duty) were shot by a firing squad or were sentenced
to hard labour. Over 3000 men were shot by their
own firing squad.
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LIVING CONDITIONS
In most instances living conditions were
appalling – sleeping for 4 hours a night in a
dug out, smelling open latrines (toilets),
being
cold
weather,
and
soaked
cramped,
dirty
in
the
and
wet
soldiers
would be nibbled by rats as they slept.
The diet was poor – bully beef, cheese and biscuits and tea from a dirty can.
Sausages were renamed barkers, as they tasted like they’d been made from
a dog!
Despite the dire conditions most of the
young men just ‘soldiered on’ – the
companionship of their “pals”, looking
forwards
to
leave,
getting
letters,
religion, cigarettes and a sense of
patriotism mostly kept the troops going.
Trench newspapers like the Bystander
and songs kept up morale. Oddly some
soldiers actually found the war exciting,
describing it afterwards as the greatest
adventure of their lives. As one soldier
wrote people saw both “the mud and the stars”.
TASKS
1) Using the information above fill in the worksheet provided
2) Create a diary of a soldier. It should have at least 3 entries and should
include descriptions of the living conditions, the noises and the smells of
the trenches. You should also include feelings and emotions in these
entries.
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THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME
Aim:
To discover the events of the battle
Background
The Battle of the Somme started in July 1st 1916 and lasted until November 1916.
Those who lead the British campaign have received a lot of criticism for the way the
Battle of the Somme was fought – especially General Sir Douglas Haig. This criticism
was based on the appalling casualty figures suffered by the British and the French.
By the end of the battle, the British Army
had suffered 420,000 casualties including
nearly 60,000 on the first day alone. The
French lost 200,000 men and the Germans
nearly 500,000.
Going ‘over the top’ at
the Somme was the first taste of battle
many of these men had, as many were
part
of
"Kitchener’s
Volunteer
Army"
persuaded to volunteer by propaganda
posters which we will look at later in the
unit.
The battle at the Somme started with a weeklong artillery bombardment of the
German lines.
1,738,000 shells were fired at the Germans. Haig believed that the
artillery guns would destroy the German trenches and barbed wire placed in front of
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the trenches. However, the Germans had deep, concrete lined, dugouts for their men
and all they had to do was stay in them when the bombardment started. When the
bombardment stopped, the Germans knew that this was the signal for an infantry
advance.
They moved from the safety of their dugouts and
manned their machine guns to face the British
and French. The Allied troops climbed out of their
trenches and moved over no man’s land towards
the German front lines. Many were gunned down.
However, some allied troops did get through to
the German lines. They were followed by cavalry.
This was not a great success. The muddy conditions meant the horses got stuck and
the riders easy targets.
The man to man combat that followed was bloody and helped contribute to the
already horrific death toll.
TASKS





Create a poster on the Battle of the Somme.
It should include:
Where the battle took place
When
The battle plan
What actually happened
Results
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THE BATTLE OF LOOS
Aims:

To understand the events of the battle

To investigate the role and sacrifice of Scottish soldiers at Loos
The Battle of Loos has often been
described as a “Scottish battle”. 35,000
Scots took part in the attack and, out
of
21,000
dead,
7000
were
from
Scottish regiments. Almost every town
and village in Scotland was affected. It
was said that “Scotland’s loss was
personal”.
The battle has been condemned as
Scottish infantry advancing through the gas at the
unnecessary
Battle of Loos, 1915
and
unwanted.
The
French put pressure on the British to
launch an attack to divert the German forces away from the French troops who were
planning their own offensive. However, British commanders knew that the volunteers of the
British Army were not yet fully trained. Furthermore, they were concerned about the
landscape at Loos. General Haig worried that his army would have to advance over flat
land without any cover, in full view of the German machine gunners. Nevertheless, the
French put pressure on Lord Kitchener, the British Secretary of state for War, and he
decided the attack should go ahead to promote British and French co-operation.
The Battle of Loos was the first time the British ever used poison gas. Just a year earlier, the
Allies had condemned German use of gas as “wickedness”, but now Britain decided to
use it too. However, the gas attack was dependent on the wind blowing towards the
German lines…
27
Soldiers from the Black Watch, the Cameron Highlanders, the Highland
Light Infantry, the Cameronians, the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders,
the Scots Fusiliers and the Gordon Highlanders were all to be sent into
battle. It is little
wonder that Loos was thought of as a “Scottish
battlefield”!
The battle begins…
The battle began on the 25th September 1915, after a four day long artillery barrage.
Source B is from a British Army report on the first day of the battle:
“The bombardment started on the Wednesday and continued until 05.00 on the Saturday.
Hundreds of guns poured shells onto the enemy lines, completely wiping out the first line of
trenches. At about 05.30, we sent over the gas. Our soldiers were keen to advance and did
not wait for the gas to be blown into the German trenches, so many of them caught up with
the cloud and a good number went down as a result.”
Whether the wind changed or the force of
the artillery barrage blew it back, many of
the attacking Scots troops were gassed.
The 10th Highland Light Infantry were
gassed while they were still in their
trenches. Elsewhere, troops were unable
to advance.
It
looked
like
the
attack
might
fail
completely, until Piper Daniel Laidlaw
climbed onto the parapet.
Piper Laidlaw’s memoirs
“I got my pipes going and the lads gave a cheer. As soon as they advanced, men started
to drop but they never wavered. I played ‘Blue Bonnets Over The Border’ as I ran forward. As
we got near the German lines, I was hit in the leg but I kept piping until I could hobble no
further, but I saw that our boys had taken the German trench”.
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Piper Laidlaw was later awarded the Victoria Cross
for bravery; keeping playing his bagpipes even
when he was lying on the ground, wounded.
He inspired the men in his battalion to keep going
and to reach the German trenches.
<< Piper Laidlaw playing on the parapet at Loos.
Confusion
In many parts of the battlefield, the Germans were pushed back, and the German trenches
breached. However, the British soldiers suffered horrendous casualties. Reinforcements were
needed, and this is when things started to fall apart.
The reserve troops were not fully
trained, and the commanders were
reluctant to send them into battle.
Meanwhile, German reinforcements
arrived and began to repair the
damaged defences. After 24 hours
of
indecision,
the
British
reinforcements were eventually sent
in but they had lost the element of
surprise. The Germans were waiting.
Slaughter
The German machine guns cut down the British troops in their
thousands.
Eventually, the slaughter became so bad that the German
gunners stopped firing to allow the British to withdraw and take
their wounded with them.
29
Aftermath
Loos was a “defeat snatched from the jaws of victory”. Although the battle lasted until the 18 th of
October, it was really over in three days. Battalions from every Scottish regiment fought and died at
Loos, and the huge number of casualties affected nearly every town and village in Scotland. In
total, there were 50,000 men dead and wounded.
However, far from being demoralised, the Scots gained a fearsome reputation as
aggressive fighting troops. Sir Henry Rawlinson said “as a fighter, there is none to
beat a Scotsman” and Lieutenant Thorburn of the Black Watch remembered that
one of his comrades “had a German in each hand, gripping them by their chests
and head butting them, as he seemed to have lost his rifle”.
After the battle, Douglas Haig (right) was put in charge of the British army. This
Scottish man would forever be associated with another example of horrendous
carnage on the Western Front – the Battle of the Somme.
TASKS
1. Explain why Loos is thought of as a “Scottish battlefield”?
2. Why did the battle take place?
3. What problems were there for the British soldiers?
4. Describe the first day of the battle.
5. Why is the Battle of Loos sometimes called a “defeat snatched from the
jaws of victory”?
30
The Home Front - Support for the war
Aims:
 To find out who supported the war, and why?
 To find out who opposed the war, and why?
In 1914 Britain had quite a small army
compared to Germany and France.
Kitchener hoped 100,000 men would
volunteer to join the British Army.
However, in the first month of the war
500,000 men enlisted (joined the army).
Because so many men joined up there
weren’t enough uniforms for all the new
soldiers.
Size of armies August 1914
Country
Soldiers
Britain
1 million
France
4 million
Russia
6 million
USA
200,000
Germany
4.5 million
Austria-Hungary
3 million
Italy
1.2 million
www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk
Why did so many support the war?
Adventure
Many men joined up because they thought the war would be a great
adventure. They were used to hearing stories of how the British Army had
easily defeated other countries around the world. Britain at that time ruled
over one quarter of the world’s population. Many men thought that enlisting
would give them an opportunity to travel with their comrades, and fight in a
short war – which they thought would be over by Christmas. Many left their
boring jobs to be part of a glorious victory.
Duty
Some men enlisted because they felt it was their duty to
fight for their country. They believed that if Britain was
fighting in a war then they should be prepared to
defend their families, friends, town, King and country
against the aggressive Germans. Women who had
loved ones fighting in the war did a variety of tasks from
knitting socks to working on the frontline in ambulances.
They saw it as their duty to support their country, as well
as their husbands or sons or brothers.
31
Peer pressure
Lots of men volunteered for the army because their friends
and workmates were all going and they didn’t want to be left
behind. There was an organisation of mainly women called
The Order of the White Feather. These women would pin white
feathers to men in the street who were not wearing uniforms.
The white feather was a symbol of cowardice, and was
meant to shame men into enlisting.
Propaganda
The government used propaganda to try and convince
people to support the war. Large meetings would be held
and the crowd would be whipped up into a patriotic frenzy
and convinced to join the army. Posters were produced
which tried to convince people to support the war effort in
many different ways.
Watch first 5 Minutes of War Game.
Knowledge tasks - 15 minutes
Write as much information as you can in the time you have
been given.
1. Why did Britain need so many volunteers at the
beginning of the war?
2. Why did people support the war effort?
32
Source task
Aim: To find out how propaganda posters tried to
convince people to support the war.
1. On each table is a propaganda poster in the
middle of a large sheet of paper.
Each group gets 1 minute at each table to write
down what methods are being used to persuade
people to support the war effort.
Examples of things to write:
 To do your bit for the war effort.
 Fight against the brutal Germans.
 Defend your families.
 Fight for justice.
 Fight for your country.
 Fight for your King.
Be prepared to feed back to the class what you
have found out about the poster on your table.
2. Now design your own wartime propaganda
poster.
Justice
King
Patriotism
Guilt
33
The Home Front - Anti-war feeling
Who opposed the war?
Not everyone supported the war, and as it went on fewer men joined up.
Anti-war groups united when war broke out. They consisted of Christians –
particularly Quakers – who believed all war was wrong. There were also a
variety of women’s groups involved like the Women’s Peace Crusade. Also,
there were many Socialists who believed ordinary British workers shouldn’t be
fighting ordinary German workers – for example Dick Fox stated:
We appealed to the workers’ experience. They knew that profiteers and
sweaters (factory owners) were getting rich out of this war, because they
knew these gentry (rich people) and had suffered them.
What did anti-war groups do?
The anti-war groups organised meetings and protests, sold badges, pamphlets
and newspapers. 10,000 marched in London on 2nd August, 1914. On 9th
August - five days after Britain declared war on Germany - the anti-war
movement in Glasgow organised a demonstration of 5,000 people. In July
1917, the Women’s Peace Crusade organised an anti-war demonstration of
14,000 people which marched to Glasgow Green.
Conscription
By 1916 thousands of soldiers were dying. The government had to introduce
conscription. Conscription is when you are forced to join the army - in Britain
this was for men between 18 and 41 years old. All the different groups in the
anti-war movement came together and set up a group called the NoConscription Fellowship – NCF.
Knowledge tasks - 10 minutes
Write as much information as you can in the time you have
been given.
1. Which groups were involved in the anti-war movement?
2. What did the anti-war movement do?
3. What happened when the government introduced
conscription?
Conscientious Objectors
34
Some men didn’t want to fight in the war because their conscience wouldn’t
let them – they thought it was the wrong thing to do. These people were
known as Conscientious Objectors – COs. Some people called them
“Conchies” – which was a term of abuse. These people were allowed to put
their case to a tribunal – a special court, and some were allowed to not fight
in the war. There were 16,000 COs recorded in World War One, 6,261 of these
spent some time in prison. Hubert Peet wrote a letter from prison to his children
outlining the reasons why he became a CO:
Source A
Daddy cannot be a soldier and go and try and kill the daddies of little
German boys and girls.
Hubert Peet
Absolutists
There were two types of CO. One type wouldn’t fight, but took part in the war
effort doing other duties like working in the Friends Ambulance Unit on the
battlefield. The other type of CO was known as an Absolutist and they didn’t
want to take part in any activity which would help the war effort at all.
When absolutists were drafted into the army they refused to follow orders and
were imprisoned. Many ended up in prison camps like Dyce Work Camp near
Aberdeen. Conditions were often very harsh. By the end of the war some 73
COs had died because of poor treatment. Harry Stanton recalls a punishment
given to him and another prisoner when he was in France:
Source B
As the ropes with which we were fastened were tied around barbed wire
instead of the usual thick wooden posts, it was possible to tie them much
more tightly, and I found myself drawn so closely into the fence that when I
wished to turn my head I had to do so very slowly and cautiously to avoid
my face being torn by the barbs. To make matters worse it came on to rain,
and a cold wind blew straight across the top of the hill.
Harry Stanton
Source tasks
1. Explain the argument the CO used in Source A to explain
why he did not want to fight in the war.
2. Describe the punishment given to a CO in Source B.
35
Friends Ambulance Unit
About 1,200 COs served in the Friends Ambulance Unit (FAU) during the war.
This was a voluntary organisation which treated wounded soldiers at the front
whether from Britain, France or Germany. Even though they disagreed with
the war they felt they ought to help out particularly when others were dying in
the war. Rachel Cadbury recalls her time as a nurse in the FAU:
Source C
Bombs the whole night, bombs and shells. Under fire from air, land and sea,
because we had a bombardment from the sea at one period. Sometimes
peopletasks
say, 15
‘Were
you frightened?’, I said, ‘Oh of course not, I was doing my
Source
minutes
job, I wasn’t frightened’.
Rachel Cadbury
Source task
3. Use Source C to describe what it could be like in the FAU.
Knowledge task
You are going to an anti-war
demonstration. Design a
placard which puts forward
your reasons for opposing
the war.
36
THE END OF THE WAR
Aim:
 To find out how Germany was treated at
the end of the war.
Germany could no longer fight the war. It had no money, the King had abdicated,
the people were starving and troops were mutinying and surrendering. On the 11 of
November 1918 at 11am an armistice was signed and WW1 was over.
The Paris Peace Conference – The Treaty of Versailles
The Armistice had been signed on the 11th November, 1918 but the peace settlement
still had to be agreed. In January 1919, just two months after the ceasefire,
representatives of 32 countries met at Versailles, outside Paris, to draw up a peace
settlement with the defeated nations. Germany and her allies were excluded from
discussions about the terms of the peace treaty.
THE TERMS OF THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES
On the 28th June,1919, representatives of the
German government were presented with the
terms of the Treaty of Versailles.
There were to be no negotiations, if they did not
accept war would start again. The Germans saw it
as a dictated peace. On the 28th June 1919, five
years after the assassination of Archduke Franz
Ferdinand the Treaty of Versailles was signed.
GERMANY LOST LAND
Germany lost about 13% of her European lands and about 10% of her population as a
result of the settlement. The lost lands included about 75% of her iron ore. In addition
she lost all of her colonies which were to be handed over to the new League of
Nations.
37
THE RHINELAND WAS DEMILITARISED
Germany was allowed to keep the Rhineland but all German soldiers and military
equipment were banned from the area which was demilitarised. Allied troops would
occupy part of the area.
GERMANY WAS DISARMED
The German army was reduced to 100,000 men and conscription was banned. The
navy was reduced to six pre-dreadnought battleships. Germany was not allowed to
keep any submarines and the German airforce (Luftwaffe) was disbanded. None of
the victorious countries at the end of WW1 disarmed.
THE WAR GUILT CLAUSE
Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles blamed Germany and her allies for starting World
War One. This part of the treaty is know as the War Guilt Clause.
REPARATIONS
Germany was forced to pay huge sums of money to the Allies by Article 232 of the
treaty. The actual amount was not fixed until 1921, when it was decided that
Germany should pay £6600 million to the Allies. It was unimaginable how the Germans
were going to pay.
TASKS:
Answer the questions below in your jotter
1.
2.
3.
4.
When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?
What would have happened to Germany if they had not signed the treaty?
How did the German people view the treaty?
Draw a table in your jotter and write in detail about the Terms of the Treaty of
Versailles
Points
1.Territorial
(Germany lost land)
2.Military
(Rhineland demilitarised and Germany
disarms)
3. War Guilt Clause
4. Reparations
Detail
6. Do you think the Treaty of Versailles was too harsh?
38