WW1-stalemate Flashcards
Where and when did Gallipoli take place?
- Turkey
- Feb 1915- Jan 1916
What was the aim of Gallipoli?
- Allied navies would clear a strait of mines to let other ships through
- They would bombard the coast to destroy Ottoman defences
- British, ANZAC & French troops would land at Gallipoli and advance to the capital
- Capturing the capital was expected to make Ottomans surrender, making things easier for allies and removing a German ally
Why did Gallipoli fail?
- Allies didn’t think the Ottomans would fight
- Allies planned based on poor info such as tourist guides
- Ottomans had warning, giving them time to prepare
- Ottomans had high ground
- When Allies launched attacks to advance, Ottoman trenches were too well hidden and defended
- Allies struggled to keep forces supplied with ammunition and water
- trenches were unsanitary
- extreme weather made conditions worse (both hot and cold)
What were the consequences of Gallipoli?
113,000 died and another 220,000 injured, and Ottomans remained in the war
Where and when did Verdun take place?
- Near the town of Verdun in France
- Feb- Dec 1916
Where and when did the Somme take place?
-Along the Somme river, France
- 1st Jul-18th Nov 1916
Where and when did Jutland take place?
- North sea
- 31st May 1916
What was the aim of Verdun?
1.Germany army aimed to win war by “bleeding French white” (attrition) - meaning they kill so many French soldiers that they can’t be replaced fast enough
2. Germany also thought attrition would weaken alliance between France and Britain
What was the aim of the Somme?
- British aimed to launch a large attack to draw German soldiers away from Verdun
- Attrition- wanted to kill many soldiers
What was the aim of Jutland?
- The German Navy aimed to sneak past the British blockade and then destroy small groups of Royal Navy ships
- However, the Royal Navy knew about the plan, and instead aimed to trap the German fleet themselves
Why did Verdun fail?
- before the attack, Germany bombarded Verdun with over 4mil shells, warning its defenders
- French retreated into 17th century forts
- General Petain successfully rallied French defenders
Why did the Somme fail?
- Germans had high ground and clear view
- British artillery leading up to attack was not as effective as they thought- shells were damaged and poor quality
- British advanced slowly
- British soldiers lacked clear orders after officers killed
- Haig refused to change tactics despite Rawlinson trying to persuade him
Why did Jutland fail?
For Germans:
- British ships more powerful and stronger, for example the dreadnought
-Jellicoe used tactic “crossing the T” which allowed as many British guns as possible to fire, and also minimised how many German guns could fire
For Britain:
- German ships were more agile and used more accurate guns
- Beatty attacked despite being outnumbered
- Beatty ordered safety doors to be kept open, which sped up firing but also made it easier for fires to spread, causing the destruction of a few British ships
- Admiral Scheer used torpedoes to stop British from chasing German fleet when it retreated
What were the consequences of Verdun?
- frontline unchanged
- Britain and France’s alliance unchanged
What were the consequences of the Somme?
- capture of Verdun avoided
- small strip of land acquired by allies
- 1,120,000 killed or injured
-Haig nicknamed “butcher of the Somme” - British morale fell
What were the consequences of Jutland? (short vs long term)
- short term - Germans won (destroyed 14 ships, killed 6097 men)
- long term - Royal Navy won (easily replaceable lost ships and men and blockade stayed in place)
What were the consequences of Passchendaele?
- British forces captured 5 miles of territory, including village of Passchendaele
- 520,000 casualties
What were the consequences of Unrestricted Submarine Warfare?
- U boat attacks on American merchant shipping led them to join war
- Nov 1918- 0.3% allied ships were being sunk by German U boats
Why did Passchendaele fail?
- German defences were strong
- huge downpour meant MUD- lots of it
- British advanced slowly, making it easier for them to be shot
- British morale fell due to appalling living conditions and constant bloody fighting
- Haig was inflexible and ignored advice
Why did Unrestricted Submarine Warfare fail?
- merchant shipping forced to use convoy system (groups travelling together)
- ships used tactics such as moving in zigzags and using smokescreens to make it harder for Germans
- British magnetic sea mines could destroy 1 in 3 U boats
- Q ships introduced - gunboats disguised as merchant shipping
What was the aim of Passchendaele?
- The British aimed to break through German lines then capture ports on the Dutch Coast - as U boats were housed in these ports, and their loss would weaken Germany’s war effort
- British generals believed they had learned from mistakes at Somme
What was the aim of Unrestricted Submarine Warfare?
- Germany wanted to use U boats (submarines) to cut off Britain’s source of materials to fight the war- especially food
- they estimated that within 5 months if enough merchant shipping was sunk
Where and when did Passchendaele take place?
- Belgium
- 31st Jul- 10 Nov 1917
Where and when did Unrestricted Submarine Warfare take place?
- Typically Atlantic and North sea
- 1915, then February 1917 to Nov 1918
