War
World War I Begins
The beginnings of World War I had been brewing for decades as alliances between countries shifted and unrest was
occurring in Balkan countries. In 1882, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy had formed the Triple Alliance
agreement
to remain neutral toward each other in the case that any power entered into war.
Various alliances were subsequently made between Germany and Russia, between France and Russia, and
between Britain and Japan. Britain was contemplating becoming allied with Germany because of its poor relations with
France. In 1904, Britain finally allied with France, signing the Entente Cordiale
, and in 1907, the British
agreement with Russia formed the Triple Entente
of France, Britain, and Russia. Although none of these nations
desired war, they were all preparing their militaries in case war should occur and because
they couldn't necessarily rely on the aid of their allies through diplomacy alone.
The tipping point for war to begin came when the future Austrian-Hungarian ruler, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914, by Gavrilo Princip a Bosnian student trained by Serbian nationalists. The assassination gave Austria the excuse to wage war on Serbia, however, war with Serbia meant bringing their Russian allies into the conflict. If Austria went to war, then Germany would become involved by the Triple Alliance agreement. However, Germany's elaborate and rigid war plans called for war against France first, meaning Britain would also become involved due to the Triple Entente. Austria gave an ultimatum to Serbia on July 23, 1914, conveniently when France's President Raymond Poincaré was at sea. The ultimatum contained demands that would be intentionally unacceptable to Serbia; Serbia agreed to only 8 of the 10 terms. Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. Austrian and Russian forces had become fully mobilized by July 31st. Events were rapidly escalating. On August 1st, Germany declared war on Russia. Germany decided to invade neutral Belgium in order to bring France and Britain to her aid; Germany declared war with France on August 3rd. The following quote in the London Times summarized the imminent feeling about the war:
The die is cast...Europe is to be the scene of the most terrible war that she has witnessed since the fall of the Roman Empire.
Total war had begun. World War I started with 7 nations and about 7 million men involved, and by the end of the war in 1918, 30 countries and 65 million men were involved.
Naval War Tactics
Although the Allies portrayed the Lusitania tragedy as an act of ruthlessness that violated previously agreed upon
behavior on the seas, both the Allied and Central Powers employed dirty war tactics.
Britain blockaded northern sea access to Germany in order to cut off supplies, affecting both the military and civilians.
Germany started cruising the shipping routes with its fleet of 20 submarines, also trying to prevent supply shipments
from reaching Britain.
From 1914 onward British merchant ships were ordered not to obey a submarine's order to halt and submit to a search,
and were to engage the enemy with arms, or to ram them if unarmed. Winston Churchill wanted to force the Germans to
undersea attacks where there was a greater chance of mistaking neutral ships for British ones.
Captured German U-boat crews were to be treated as felons, not as prisoners of war (which meant the Germans could either be
taken prisoner or shot).
Churchill ordered that In all action, white flags [of surrender] should be fired upon with promptitude
.
In February 1915, Germany declared that all ships entering British coastal waters would be sunk without warning.
Additional naval war tactics included:
- Flying flags of neutral countries as a disguise
- Painting stacks and lettering black to confuse enemy ships
- Implementation of British mystery or Q-ships: merchant ships began disguising guns on deck behind fake cargo boxes and under hatches and used naval crews dressed as civilians
- Carrying munitions cargo on passenger and merchant ships
- Using under water mines to sink or damage ships
- Painting entire ships in dazzle or camouflage paint schemes to make them difficult to see and identify
War Propaganda
The goal of war propaganda was to make citizens despise the enemy, encourage sympathy of Allies, and maintain friendship with Allied or neutral powers. Examples of World War I propaganda included enlistment posters, Lusitania sinking medals, and political cartoons.
Sinking of the Lusitania medals
Germany cast a medal meant to ridicule Britain's decision to carry passengers into a war zone, but that appeared to celebrate the Lusitania's sinking. The British took offense, recasting the medal for distribution as evidence of Germany's evil and murderous intentions. Forty-four medals were originally cast by Germany; 300,000 were reproduced and distributed by Britain.
War posters
While the Germans published posters that showed the Lusitania sinking with gun turrets exposed, implying she was armed and dangerous and worthy of sinking, the British and Americans used the Lusitania tragedy in war posters to increase sympathy for the Allied cause, to enrage civilians, to encourage enlistment in the armed forces, and to sell war bonds. "Take up the Sword of Justice" and "Remember the Lusitania" were used as rallying cries to arms. The Lusitania's sinking became the perfect subject for war propaganda, involving a cruel enemy, innocent victims, unarmed boat and crew, and with neutral (American) passengers aboard.
Political cartoons
Allied political cartoons showed Kaiser Wilhelm II as a caped villian or a barbarian "Hun", replete with spiked helmet, while German cartoons portrayed King George as an idiot and Uncle Sam as a hillbilly.
