Sea and Air war WW`

The airplane, regarded by military authorities in 1914 as little more than a novelty, became over the next four years a military necessity. Remarkable technical advances in aerial warfare enabled the aircraft to fulfill ever-expanding functions. In the early stages of the war aircraft were used largely for reconnaissance, to observe enemy troop movements and spot artillery, and to obtain photographs and motion pictures. Then came the bombers and fighters as airmen sought to destroy railroad centres and industrial targets far behind enemy lines, to destroy Zeppelin bases, and to hunt submarines at sea.

Vigilance of the British navy kept most of the German fleet bottled up in home ports, and at the same time British warships freed the seas of German commerce raiders. The rival fleets met only once, in the battle of Jutland off the coast of Denmark. The British suffered heavily in this encounter, but the decisive result was that the German battle fleet never again dared to leave its bases.

Deprived of the use of surface ships Germany increasingly resorted to submarine warfare to bring Britain to her knees. The German U-boat fleet preyed on enemy and often neutral ships, sank merchantmen on sight, and threatened the supply lines on which the survival of the Allies depended. Protests from the United States brought a reluctant promise in 1915 not to sink ships without warning, but this greatly reduced the effectiveness of the submarine as a weapon.By the end of 1916 the British blockade was beginning to be felt severely in Germany. In January 1917 the Germans, convinced they could starve Britain in five months, prepared to risk the American entry into the war. They resumed unrestricted submarine warfare.

Passchendaele

This was an offensive launched on 31st July 1917, the Brits offensive in Flanders had aimed to drive Germans away from the Chennel ports to eliminate U-Boat bases on the coast, but because of rain and shellfire reduced the battlefield to a vast bog of bodies, mud and craters. Sir Douglas Haig, the commander in chief ordered Canadians to deliver the victory, as all of the other countreis have failed to take this position. Sir Arthur Currie, command of the Canadian corps told off Sir Douglas Haig in order for him to get him guns to secure this ridge, originally Douglas Haig declined his request, but as soon as Arthur told him off saying that he would not move a single troops unless he gets his guns, Douglas approved his request. In total The Brits lost close to 300000 men at passchendaele and the German's lost close to 250000 men. Making it one of the most costly battles of the war. Though after 2 weeks of capturing passchendaele the ridge was retaken by the Germans, as passchendaele was just a large piece of land encircled by the Germans.

Propaganda of the WW1

Propaganda was used in WW1 as in any war - and the truth suffered. Propaganda ensured that the people only got to know what their governments wanted them to know. In WW1, the lengths to which governments would go to in an effort to blacken the enemy’s name reached a new level. To make everybody thought in the way the government wanted, all forms of information were controlled. Newspapers were expected to print what the government wanted the reader to read. In fact, though this would appear to be a form of censorship, the newspapers of Britain, effectively controlled by the media barons of the time, were happy to play ball. They printed headlines that were designed to stir up emotions regardless of whether they were accurate or not. A lot of famous designs were made up during this time period for example, posters of German officers cruxifying Canadian officers, German soldiers cutting off hands of Belgium kids. All of these posters made the people think that the Germans are a bunch of savages and that they must be eliminated in order for the world to have peace, hence creating a kind of hatred among the people toward the Germans. This is what the government wanted to create a common enemy for the people, something for them to blame. 

Ypres 1915

In the first week of April 1915, the Canadian troops were moved from their quiet sector to a bulge in the Allied line in front of the City of Ypres. This was the famed—or notorious—Ypres Salient, where the British and Allied line pushed into the German line in a concave bend. On April 22, the Germans sought to remove the Salient by introducing a new weapon, poison gas. Following an intensive artillery bombardment, they released 160 tons of chlorine gas from cylinders dug into the forward edge of their trenches into a light northeast wind. As thick clouds of yellow-green chlorine drifted over their trenches the French defences crumbled, and the troops, completely bemused by this terrible weapon, died or broke and fled, leaving a gaping 6.5km hole in the Allied line. All through the night, Canadians fought and even hosted a counter offensive towards the Germans. Although the casualties from these offensive were heavy, it gives the allies a lot of time for them to send in reinforcements and to block the gap that was formed by the fleeing French.