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Golly Batman…it
sure has been a
long time since
we last talked
about WWI…I
mean, the gaps in
my memory are
almost this big!
Alarming alliances
Batman! They could
do a lot of damage!
Didn’t anyone do
anything about this?
Alas, my young
friend, this was a
secret alliance…
nobody knew!
Crazy clandestine
compacts Batman!
It gets worse Robin!
Gee wilikers…there are
so many troublesome
treaties Batman!
Yes my consummate
companion…but a war,
treaties do not make…
But wait Batman…I’m
spectacularly stupefied…
how did the assassination
of an Austrian monarch by
a bunch of Serbian radicals
cause an entire world war?
The answer is
simple Robin:
The
Alliance
System!
Serbia and Russia were both Slavic nations…so Russia came to Serbia’s support
when Austria-Hungary threatened war if the assassins were not turned over.
It all went down hill from there…Austria-Hungary bombarded Serbia. Russia
declared war against Austria. Germany declared war on Russia, then France.
I know.
This is the largest
war I’ve ever seen.
Gee, Batman.
Europe is sure in
a big mess.
Patience young
friend…let’s take a
look at the map!
Do you think the
Central Powers can
win, Batman?
I know! Their
general must be
both crazy and
brilliant!
Golly!
This all just seems so
complicated! I mean,
who could really even
understand any of that?
I have a
spectacular
plan.
The Schlieffen Plan
• Attack France first through
Belgium
• France had mobilized quickly
along the German border
• France’s northern border was
unprotected
After defeating
the French we
will turn quickly
and destroy the
slow mobilizing
Russians
It would look something like this
The Schlieffen Plan
• After France’s defeat, crush
Russia to the East
• Russia was not well prepared
• Russian troop movements were
slow due to a lack of railroads
But Batman, I feel like I
am remember something
from history which may
cause a problem…won’t
attacking Belgium bring
Britain into the war?
That sounds like a
Schliefftacular
plan…it certainly
couldn’t fail!
Yes…not to
mention it relies on
quick German
victories…
So true Robin!
Perhaps this
plan is flawed.
Perhaps we
should write it
down…
Brilliant
observation
Robin!
The Schlieffen Plan
• Plan relied upon swift German
victories
• Successful at first
Look Batman!
Up there!
It’s the German
invasion of France!
I see it Robin… those
Germans are an impressive
force to be sure…and they
have cool hats!
Batman…are you
jealous of their hats?
I kind of am…
Maybe I am Robin…maybe I
am…lets fly up there in the
Batcopter and take a look!
The French, with the support of the British, were able to delay the
Germans at the Battle of the Marne (September 5th, 1914)
The Schlieffen Plan
• Came to a halt at the Battle of the
Marne (Sept 5, 1914)
I do not
believe it will
be good
Robin! This
could
become a
bloody
stalemate!
Holy holdups Batman…what will this
mean for the future of the war?
A Bloody Stalemate
• Trench Warfare
• Armies dug miles of trenches to
defend themselves
• Soldiers spent weeks in the filthy
ditches
• Fighting consisted of going “over the
top” into “no man’s land”
A Bloody Stalemate
• Front stretched from the sea to
the Swiss border (500 miles)
• Many died fighting over mere
yards
• The countryside was
destroyed
Gee Batman…based on looking at those pictures
on the Bat-Super Computer , being in the
trenches doesn’t seem so bad…I mean, at least
you are safe! Their bullets can’t hit you. I mean,
sure, there might be the occasional artillery shell
strike, but at least they aren’t marching in straight
lines directly into enemy fire…
Sure Robin…
trenches seem like a
great idea at first…
but there are some
problems…just look:
Gee Batman…
that does look bad! Almost
as bad as being stuck by my
Bat-Belt to a magnetic
projector buoy…
Poor Robin…that is not even
the worst of it…there are
torpedoes coming…terrible
torpedoes…oh, and bad stuff
from the trenches too…
Holy nasty feet
Batman!
This war is
awful!
True Robin…but at least
we escaped from that
buoy…if we had been out
there any longer my little
Bat-Toes might have
rotted off too…
A Bloody Stalemate
• Life was difficult in the trenches
• Had to cross no man’s land to
reach the enemy
• Soldiers plagued by rats, trench
feet, flies, boredom, and shell
shock
Gee Batman…with
trenches it seems
like this war could
go on forever…
It sure could Robin.
We call that a war
of ATTRITION!
Troublesome
terminology
Batman…what
fiendish definition
does that word have?
The war of attrition on the
Western Front ranged from
the North Sea to the Swiss
border in the South
Freaky 500 miles
Batman! That is
almost this far!
Yes Robin…and
much of the fighting
was done with brand
new technologies…
That stuff doesn’t look so
cool…I mean, the Batmobile is
way better than all of those!
Sure Robin…but
remember, this was
1915 and those
weapons did an
incredible amount
of damage!
I heard the Battle of the
Somme, the first in which the
tank was used, was
particularly deadly…
True Robin!
It was a
terrible battle…
Calamitous conflict Batman!
Could it get any worse?
Oh gentle Robin, I
wish it could
not…but I fear
great peril is in the
world’s future…
but before we
move on, let’s
write in the notes
and then take a
quick five minute
Bat-Stretch…
A Bloody Stalemate
• New weapons contributed to HUGE loss of
life
• 1.2 million died in the Battle of the Somme
alone
That was all just
along the border of
France and
Germany. The
other half of the
German forces had
to run off and fight
the Russians.
The Eastern Front
• Fighting stretched from the Baltic to the
Black Sea
• Russians and Serbs fought Germans,
Austrians, and Turks
Limited Industrialization
Communists
threatened
domestic
stability
U-Boats blocked
shipping
The Russian army had only one asset—its
numbers. Throughout the war the Russian
army suffered enormous battlefield losses.
More than 2 million Russian soldiers were
killed, wounded, or captured in 1915 alone.
And yet the army continually rebuilt its ranks
from the country's enormous population. For
more than three years, the battered Russian
army managed to tie up hundreds of
thousands of German troops in the east.
Thus, Germany could not hurl its full fighting
force at the west.
This looks
bad for me…
Russia’s War Effort Weakens
• Country was not industrialized
• Ports were blocked, no shipping
• Czar Nicholas joined the troops,
leaving the capital empty and
unstable
• Communist revolution was gaining
momentum
Gee Batman…this is all taking
place in Europe. Why do we
call this a world war?
Brilliant analysis Robin…you see,
fighting began to take place in
European colonies, and those that
weren’t fighting began sending troops!
T.E. Lawrence
(Lawrence of Arabia)
France and England
wanted Germany’s
African colonies
Japan joined the Allies to fight for Asian colonies
Global Warfare
• Allies wanted Dardanelles in Turkey as a supply
route to Russia (The Gallipoli Campaign)
• British helped Arabs revolt against Turkish rulers
• Japan joined the Allies and fought Germany for
Asian outposts
• France and England wanted Germany’s African
colonies
Back at
home,
women had
to keep the
world running
The Home Front
• Government encouraged people at home
to contribute to the war effort
• People told to work in factories to produce
war supplies
• Rationing = consumption of goods
controlled
• War bonds were sold
The Home Front
• Propaganda used to encourage efforts on
home front
• Manipulation of the media to promote
sympathy for a cause
Wow! I’d love to see
some original European
propaganda posters.
Come back tomorrow to
hear more about the
War to End All Wars!