Features of the World War 1

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Updated: Apr 15, 2022
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Category:Conflicts
Date added
2022/04/15
Pages:  2
Words:  489
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World War I was unlike any previous wars because of its reliance on advanced industrial technology and the economic and political organization of nations at war. World War I saw the first widespread use of machine guns, air power, submarine operations, poison gas and armored vehicles. The war was also characterized by mobilization of civilian resources to make the pace of combat much faster. The technology of World War I was unlike any the world had ever seen used in warfare.

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Submarines became effective weapons when Germany imposed Britain between 1914 and 1918. World War I saw the first use of machine gun batteries. No other major war had ever used aircraft nor did it have the modern artillery of combatant nations used during the 19th-century European wars. Poison gas was also new as were the tanks that first appeared on the battlefield in 1915.

During the war, whole populations were mobilized, and millions of men all sides were sent to fight, while factories were repurposed to make massive amounts of war materiel. New technology made World War I a more impersonal war, as well as a far deadlier one and Imperialism added more fuel to the fire. Imperialism is when a country expands its influence and power into a large empire. By the 1880s, Britain and France had colonies in Africa and Asia that provided raw materials and markets for their products. Germany wanted its own colonies and a share of this lucrative trade. Competition for trade and colonies further strained relations and also made this war unlike any previously. The US was motivated more by idealism than realism to ender WWI because of allies with belligerents, the Sinking of Lusitania, and the Violation of the Sussex Pledge. To start, The majority of Americans favored the Allies. Many felt connected by ancestry, language, culture, and democratic values. In 1914, more than 32 million Americans—a full one-third of the population—were either foreign-born or the children of foreign-born parents. Many of these Americans had strong emotional ties to their homelands and found it hard to remain neutral.

Next, On May 7, 1915, a U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania without warning. Among the 1,198 dead were 128 Americans. Germany tried to absolve itself from blame by arguing that the ship was armed and was carrying weapons and ammunition. The second charge was true. Former president Theodore Roosevelt denounced Germany’s actions as ‘murder on the high seas.’ Finally, the Sussex Incident left 80 casualties, including two Americans wounded. The attack prompted a U.S. threat to sever diplomatic relations. The German government responded with the Sussex pledge agreeing to give adequate warning before sinking merchant and passenger ships and to provide for the safety of passengers and crew. The pledge was upheld until February 1917, when unrestricted submarine warfare was resumed. This shows idealism because these events were guided by morals and ethics, motivated by the desire to help others, and acted in the best interests of the US. 

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Features of the World War 1. (2022, Apr 15). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/features-of-the-world-war-1/