|
Member Article:
The Great Retreat, Eastern Front 1915
by Michael Kihntopf
By 23 August 1915 the Russian positions on their fronts with the Central Powers
of Austria-Hungary and Germany were crumbling like mud walls in a rainstorm.
Since April, the combined armies had slowly and methodically destroyed one
Russian corps after another as they marched across the Polish salient and
through the Carpathian Mountains. The strong fortresses of the Vistula River
had succumbed. Voices from the trenches to the desks of the Russian General
Staff or Stavka whispered innuendos of betrayal and incompetence and called for
something to be done before the German hordes gobbled up any more of holy
mother Russia. Tsar Nicholas II, encouraged by his wife, finally gave in to the
allegations and sacked the commander in chief, his uncle, Nicholas Nikolovich,
and took up the reigns of command himself.
Member Article:
Was Britain's Participation in WWI Justified?
by Andrew Wright
In the summer of 1914 Europe plunged into war. Isolated by the English Channel
and protected by the much vaunted Royal Navy, Britain, as always, had the chance
to decide whether or not to participate in the struggle. After the German
invasion of Belgium, Britain decided to come to the aid of Belgium and France
and subsequently declared war on Germany. During the next four years Britain
would suffer horrendous casualties, lose much of her vast wealth, and surrender
her paramount position as the leading power of the world. But does this mean it
was a mistake for Britain to participate in the First World War? It is likely
that without British intervention the Germans would have won the war and
dominated the continent of Europe. England also had legal and moral obligations
to her allies.
Member Article:
Motivations of the Lafayette Escadrille Pilots
by Guy Nasuti
The experience of American pilots who flew and fought for France in the early
years of the First World War led to the spectacular showing of air power by the
United States. In addition, the pilots' knowledge contributed greatly to
advances in the aeronautic and military use of aircraft. These young
volunteers, especially of the Lafayette Escadrille, were motivated by a longing
to get out of the horrors of the trenches, the innovativeness of flight coupled
with a romantic sense of adventure, and revenge. Aeronautics was about a decade
old when the war began in 1914. It was therefore still in its infancy, and the
militaries of the belligerent countries were beginning to see some use, however
small at first, for these new machines. Aerial combat had not yet begun, and
aerial bombings were still primitive at best. The airplane was used mainly in
photographic and topographical areas. Already many forward-thinking young men
were viewing the new innovation of flight as an enthralling and challenging
instrument of the future.
Dead Man's Penny
by Ken Wright
 Somewhere
amongst the vandalised graves, rusting wrought iron railing and a few empty
beer bottles, lays the final resting place of Private Robert John Bruce of C
Company 46th Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces. His grave in the Will Will
Rook cemetery located in Melbourne's outer suburb of Broadmeadows is impossible
to find as many graves have long since disappeared through years of wanton
destruction and an indifferent public appreciation of the historical
significance of the cemetery.
Read more...
Financing War
by Ken Wright
Early in 1915, the British Government began to feel the financial pressure of
the war and indicated to the Australian Government that it would be better if
Australia could finance her own share of the war effort. After deducting the
war loans already received or promised by Britain, the Australian Government
concluded the war was going to be more of a financial burden to the country
than first realised in 1914. The Government decided to raise loans from the
public and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia was entrusted with the job of
managing the operation on behalf of the Commonwealth Government. On the 1st
July 1915, the first of seven war loans was launched with the Government hoping
to raise 5 million pounds. Public enthusiasm for the war effort was so great;
that the sum received at the close of the first loan was 13,389,440 pounds.
Read more...
One of Ten Thousand
by Ken Wright
This is the story of Henry James Wright, who enlisted in the Australian
Imperial Forces in 1915. His parents, Edward and Marion Wright and their seven
sons and two daughters lived at No 6 Winfred Street, North Essendon, a suburb
of Melbourne. When war was declared on 4 August 1914, patriotic fever spread
through out Australia. Henry was the first of the sons to answer the call to
fight for King and Country.
While he was overseas, Henry was a prolific letter writer, but most of those
letters have now been lost as his brothers and sisters have long since died.
The information used to present Henry’s story is from the postcards and letters
that have survived. Henry was not the only family member to enlist and fight in
the Great War.
Read more...
 The
Design Was Not Passed On
by Ken Wright
By early 1915, the fighting on the Western Front had stalemated into static
trench warfare. The death toll had reached such epic proportions that neither
the British, French or Germans could keep up the insane tactics of mass charges
by their troops across no-mans land only to be slaughtered in vast numbers by
machine gun fire, artillery barrages or die entangled in barbed wire or drown
in mud. Static warfare was not how the generals of the time wanted the war
conducted and Allied General Headquarters in France began demanding a solution
to the trench warfare be found.
Read more...
Subverting the Sultan:
British Arms Shipments to the Arabs of Darfur, 1915-16
by Dr. Andrew McGregor
In recent years the Sudan government has been responsible for pouring weapons
into Darfur at a time when territorial and environmental tensions were already
high. Rather than encourage and supervise resolutions to these issues the
government has chosen to inflame ethnic and racial divisions in the region. The
well-known devastation created by this policy has a precedent in British
activities in the region in 1915-16 as part of the buildup to the
Anglo-Egyptian invasion that brought the independent Sultanate of Darfur under
the control of the Khartoum government.
Read more...
The Victories and Defeats of
the Russian Army: 1914
by Patrick Murphy
During the last days of the Tzarist Empire, the Russian soldier had, in many
cases, given up on fighting and wanted only to return home. The common Russian,
like the nation, was crippled from years of destructive war. Russia was damaged
most by Germans, whom they were forced to sign a separate peace treaty with at
Brest-Litovsk in 1918. Leading up to the treaty were a string of major losses,
shattering the last foundations of the Tzar's government. One can see in the
early stages of the First World War the impending collapse of the army's
command authority and fighting potential.
Read more...
Antwerp
by Michael Kihntopf
War planners in the German General Staff planned to outflank the French
fortress line by an invasion of Belgium. What they expected the Belgian army to
do as they advanced across the country isn’t quite clear, although historians
agree that the Belgians were not expected to put up too much of a fight. Within
moments of crossing the borders, the Germans found themselves faced with a well
equipped and organized army that stood behind an admittedly antiquated but
impressive, massive array of fortresses.
Read more...
The Battle of St. Etienne: The 36th
Division in World War One
by Bruce L. Brager
The United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917. Though the exact
nature and degree of American participation in the Allied cause had to be
worked out, some token contribution to the Allied World War I effort was needed
as soon as possible. Four infantry regiments of the Regular Army were
collected, the 16th, 18th, 26th and 28th Infantry, formed into the 1st Division
-- the "Big Red One," still in existence -- and sent overseas. The regiments
still had to be expanded, and sailed to Europe about two-thirds new recruits.
Read more...
In Defense of the Russian
Revolutionary Soldier, The Kerensky Offensive, July 1917
by Michael Kihntopf
By the middle of 1917, the Russian army stood at a crossroad in history, hat in
hand, asking for direction as to which path was the best to follow. The path
behind showed the ebb and flood of bloodstained footprints from nearly three
years of war and could not be turned back upon. Before it lie three lanes, each
leading toward a different future. Adding to its confusion as to which route to
follow, there were the throngs of people who attempted to give directions. One
group of would be directors said that the soldiers should remember their place
and that no reforms were necessary; only the winning of the war mattered. Some
other advisors talked about land reform but only after the war was over. The
most vocal arguers told the soldiers to vote with their feet and go home; the
war would take care of itself. At this moment of despair Alexander Fedorevich
Kerensky stepped into the crossroad. Deftly he pushed aside all the would-be
directors and called upon his revolutionary comrades to remember their
obligation to the revolution and Russian pride. He asked the soldiers to take
up their weapons and free the ancient soil from the invader so that the
people's revolution could nurture itself. The mood was infectious and for a
brief moment the soldiers' confusion disappeared.
Read more...
Fighting for Respect:
African-American Soldiers in WWI
by Jami Bryan
As the people of the United States watched World War I ignite across Europe,
African American citizens saw an opportunity to win the respect of their white
neighbors. America was a segregated society and African Americans were
considered, at best, second class citizens. Yet despite that, there were many
African American men willing to serve in the nation’s military, but even as it
became apparent that the United States would enter the war in Europe, blacks
were still being turned away from military service.
Read more...
|
|
|
