luitimLater the media confirms my assessment. Scotland who had been on a crest of a wave after some extraordinary wins, were defeated in Georgia after never getting going. It is perhaps just as well that on returning to the Great War DVD's we moved from the failure of the expeditionary force on the Western Front to the position of our navy which had ruled the seas since Nelson's victory, and where the fleet had been assembled just before the war commenced for a review and had been placed on war alert by Churchill at its Scarpa Flow station.
The Kaiser and his advisers had realised that if ever they were to compete away from their home land with the British Empire, they needed a navy of superior strength and commenced to do that. Mindful that the British Navy was usually dispersed protecting traditional routes around the world, they developed the submarine and under water mine technology as well as traditional battle other ships. Britain had failed to take stock of the industrial technological base which German had developed at the Ruhr and had become the best organised nation in the world and add to this a unity and a commitment and their self confidence in the ability to dominate the world was justified, something which other western nations, especially the British Empire had failed to comprehend
The British nations were geared to the production and sale of goods and to the provision of a mobile trained army relying on the authority of its officers and the bravery of its men. As with the French and the Russians they thought that calling upon the rest of its men to take up arms would combined me sufficient to push back the German and Austrian armies to their borders and then deliver a publishing and winning blow. They did not appreciate the extent of the German arsenal of heavy guns, ten times as many as the French. And an industrial war machine which could provide an unlimited supply of ammunition. They were fortunate to contain the advancing German armies to a western line of 400 miles from the coast to Switzerland before the winter halted the situation into stalemate. The German army used the time to strengthen its defences and build up its supplies of arms and manpower. In the East two Russian advances lead to a horrendous loss of life with over 100000 men dying in each instance.
There were question about the potential effectives of the fleet, given that it had been largely untested however the first months were very successful as the main German naval force was kept pinned in safe harbours, and with comparatively ease with only limited set back, all the German overseas possessions, mainly in Africa where they held land four times the size of the home country, was taken. Samoa by New Zealand without any fighting and New Guinea by Australia with minimum casualties. The effect was to reassert control over the shipping of goods and men, with no military men lost in transit and to put a severe lock on German trade, stretching the neutrality of USA to the limit by hitting its trade. This also meant control of the vital coaling stations given that one ton was needed to fuel each mile and some vessels required 2000 tons to ensure mobility between the stations.
Even at sea everything was not plain sailing for the British Fleet and interests. There were losses from submarine and mine and one Scarlet Pimpernel character played havoc sinking merchant ships and raiding ports although the attack on a radio station led to the undoing as a signal was despatched which enabled the location to be communication to the searching pursuers. Another thorn was a small group led by Von Spee who had won a fair battle sinking his pursuers within an hour. It took five hours and a minor Armada to defeat this warrior off the Falklands. The experience revealed problems with the gunners and with communications and a lack of preparation and development in relation to submarines, mines and separate naval planning and development hierarchy. The Navy did achieve what it set out to do within the first six months of the war but it was not on the scale of the victory achieved by Admiral Nelson at Trafalgar. It also worth reflecting that twenty years later when the Second World War commenced Germany had learnt from its mistakes and was more than a match in terms of Naval and Air power as well as its Military might.
It was over the winter that the Russian began to learn the real strength of the German army which was not because of its fighting but its organised industrial might in the Ruhr which had prepared ten times more heavy weaponry than the French and an unlimited supply of ammunition. !00000 Russian lay dead frozen in the snow. After the Russians had success against the ragbag mixture of the Austrian many of who had no sympathises with their ruler German led retaliation sent another 100000 men to their early graces and the beaten Russian armies were in retreat. In the west along the 400 mile front the allies were unable to grasp the reality of what had happened and still dreamed, as they did throughout the Empire of the days of quick battle were the resolve and bravery of a few could overcome the power of badly led great armies where many lacked the will. Thus it was that the order was given tot eh French and Uk forces to attack and reclaim the French land under occupation, to free Belgium and reclaim the areas of Alsace and Lorraine. What happened then would to day have led to those who commanded being prosecuted because men went sent against the strongly fortified German defences without the heavy guns and without the ammunition to avoid massacre. One has only to think of the British public reaction to the loss of a few hundred men and a few thousand wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq and compared this to the Millions dead and wounded before the first year of the Great War was over to understand that I am not exaggerating what the Politicians and the Generals got away with in that first year.
And then any resemblance to the wars of the past ended as the German army unleashed poison gas opening up a four and half mile gap in the allied lines who were then ordered to shoot on their colleagues as they dropped their personal weapons, fleeing in all directions, clutching their throats, as effectively they were drowned from the inside. In some ways this was an act of mercy, although it was not the intention. For several months the public were kept in ignorance of the actual situation, whereas in hundreds of thousands of home in France and Russia, they mourned their dead or commenced to care for those maimed for the rest of their lives. Lloyd George was one politician who explained the need to reorganise what he recognised as the then greatest industrial nation on the planet into total war production. Until then the concept had been one of small armies fighting quick wars. The Woolwich Arsenal was just that with the ammunition treated as if it was gold bars, with much attention to stock taking and presentational order. The idea of converting all engineering factories into producing war materials had to be justified and the population prepared for deprivations and hardship, meanwhile young blood flowed in abundance.
The impact of a prolonged war had economic and social implication which were to transform the nations who became the victors. The immediate impact in the UK was the creation of a national government and under Lloyd George, involving Labour as well as the Conservatives and the Liberals, and a Ministry of munitions. However it was to take over year to change from producing les than a quarter of a million shells to 7 million. As in France where widows and wives, young girls and elders were driven and then required to switch to manual work and office jobs previously undertaken only by men , in the UK this created major problems for Government, challenging the trade unions who had fought hard to create a wage structure which differentiated from those of skill, to those with semi and those without. For the first time Government sat down with the unions to agree a contract under which there would be a return to positions after the war. It is sometimes forgotten that just as the Labour and Trade union did not support the Jarrow Crusade for work in the 1930's, the Labour and Trade union movement were hostile to the emancipation of women.
But at home it was not only hardship and suffering because of the loss of a combatant within families, the rise in food prices and he need for everyone to work long hours and as hard as humanly possible to improve productivity which affected everyone, including the middle and upper classes who until the Spring of 1915 had been largely immune from deprivation. At sea the submarine continued to attack merchant ship. And the passenger, with the sinking of Lusitania, and the use of Zeplin airships to drop bombs. As casualties entered the first million, and Italy who had not been drawn in into the conflict joined the allies against neighbours Austria, the nations of Europe entered into total war. To-day the leaders of a majority of European nations, with the exclusion of Russia met together to agree on a new Treaty which will bind them together m more stronger economically, although the a political and economic constitution has been rejected and in the UK the same little island self deception about our ability to function independently risks the welfare of future generations. Damn those with small minds and no vision but also show forgiveness and the way forward.
The Kaiser and his advisers had realised that if ever they were to compete away from their home land with the British Empire, they needed a navy of superior strength and commenced to do that. Mindful that the British Navy was usually dispersed protecting traditional routes around the world, they developed the submarine and under water mine technology as well as traditional battle other ships. Britain had failed to take stock of the industrial technological base which German had developed at the Ruhr and had become the best organised nation in the world and add to this a unity and a commitment and their self confidence in the ability to dominate the world was justified, something which other western nations, especially the British Empire had failed to comprehend
The British nations were geared to the production and sale of goods and to the provision of a mobile trained army relying on the authority of its officers and the bravery of its men. As with the French and the Russians they thought that calling upon the rest of its men to take up arms would combined me sufficient to push back the German and Austrian armies to their borders and then deliver a publishing and winning blow. They did not appreciate the extent of the German arsenal of heavy guns, ten times as many as the French. And an industrial war machine which could provide an unlimited supply of ammunition. They were fortunate to contain the advancing German armies to a western line of 400 miles from the coast to Switzerland before the winter halted the situation into stalemate. The German army used the time to strengthen its defences and build up its supplies of arms and manpower. In the East two Russian advances lead to a horrendous loss of life with over 100000 men dying in each instance.
There were question about the potential effectives of the fleet, given that it had been largely untested however the first months were very successful as the main German naval force was kept pinned in safe harbours, and with comparatively ease with only limited set back, all the German overseas possessions, mainly in Africa where they held land four times the size of the home country, was taken. Samoa by New Zealand without any fighting and New Guinea by Australia with minimum casualties. The effect was to reassert control over the shipping of goods and men, with no military men lost in transit and to put a severe lock on German trade, stretching the neutrality of USA to the limit by hitting its trade. This also meant control of the vital coaling stations given that one ton was needed to fuel each mile and some vessels required 2000 tons to ensure mobility between the stations.
Even at sea everything was not plain sailing for the British Fleet and interests. There were losses from submarine and mine and one Scarlet Pimpernel character played havoc sinking merchant ships and raiding ports although the attack on a radio station led to the undoing as a signal was despatched which enabled the location to be communication to the searching pursuers. Another thorn was a small group led by Von Spee who had won a fair battle sinking his pursuers within an hour. It took five hours and a minor Armada to defeat this warrior off the Falklands. The experience revealed problems with the gunners and with communications and a lack of preparation and development in relation to submarines, mines and separate naval planning and development hierarchy. The Navy did achieve what it set out to do within the first six months of the war but it was not on the scale of the victory achieved by Admiral Nelson at Trafalgar. It also worth reflecting that twenty years later when the Second World War commenced Germany had learnt from its mistakes and was more than a match in terms of Naval and Air power as well as its Military might.
It was over the winter that the Russian began to learn the real strength of the German army which was not because of its fighting but its organised industrial might in the Ruhr which had prepared ten times more heavy weaponry than the French and an unlimited supply of ammunition. !00000 Russian lay dead frozen in the snow. After the Russians had success against the ragbag mixture of the Austrian many of who had no sympathises with their ruler German led retaliation sent another 100000 men to their early graces and the beaten Russian armies were in retreat. In the west along the 400 mile front the allies were unable to grasp the reality of what had happened and still dreamed, as they did throughout the Empire of the days of quick battle were the resolve and bravery of a few could overcome the power of badly led great armies where many lacked the will. Thus it was that the order was given tot eh French and Uk forces to attack and reclaim the French land under occupation, to free Belgium and reclaim the areas of Alsace and Lorraine. What happened then would to day have led to those who commanded being prosecuted because men went sent against the strongly fortified German defences without the heavy guns and without the ammunition to avoid massacre. One has only to think of the British public reaction to the loss of a few hundred men and a few thousand wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq and compared this to the Millions dead and wounded before the first year of the Great War was over to understand that I am not exaggerating what the Politicians and the Generals got away with in that first year.
And then any resemblance to the wars of the past ended as the German army unleashed poison gas opening up a four and half mile gap in the allied lines who were then ordered to shoot on their colleagues as they dropped their personal weapons, fleeing in all directions, clutching their throats, as effectively they were drowned from the inside. In some ways this was an act of mercy, although it was not the intention. For several months the public were kept in ignorance of the actual situation, whereas in hundreds of thousands of home in France and Russia, they mourned their dead or commenced to care for those maimed for the rest of their lives. Lloyd George was one politician who explained the need to reorganise what he recognised as the then greatest industrial nation on the planet into total war production. Until then the concept had been one of small armies fighting quick wars. The Woolwich Arsenal was just that with the ammunition treated as if it was gold bars, with much attention to stock taking and presentational order. The idea of converting all engineering factories into producing war materials had to be justified and the population prepared for deprivations and hardship, meanwhile young blood flowed in abundance.
The impact of a prolonged war had economic and social implication which were to transform the nations who became the victors. The immediate impact in the UK was the creation of a national government and under Lloyd George, involving Labour as well as the Conservatives and the Liberals, and a Ministry of munitions. However it was to take over year to change from producing les than a quarter of a million shells to 7 million. As in France where widows and wives, young girls and elders were driven and then required to switch to manual work and office jobs previously undertaken only by men , in the UK this created major problems for Government, challenging the trade unions who had fought hard to create a wage structure which differentiated from those of skill, to those with semi and those without. For the first time Government sat down with the unions to agree a contract under which there would be a return to positions after the war. It is sometimes forgotten that just as the Labour and Trade union did not support the Jarrow Crusade for work in the 1930's, the Labour and Trade union movement were hostile to the emancipation of women.
But at home it was not only hardship and suffering because of the loss of a combatant within families, the rise in food prices and he need for everyone to work long hours and as hard as humanly possible to improve productivity which affected everyone, including the middle and upper classes who until the Spring of 1915 had been largely immune from deprivation. At sea the submarine continued to attack merchant ship. And the passenger, with the sinking of Lusitania, and the use of Zeplin airships to drop bombs. As casualties entered the first million, and Italy who had not been drawn in into the conflict joined the allies against neighbours Austria, the nations of Europe entered into total war. To-day the leaders of a majority of European nations, with the exclusion of Russia met together to agree on a new Treaty which will bind them together m more stronger economically, although the a political and economic constitution has been rejected and in the UK the same little island self deception about our ability to function independently risks the welfare of future generations. Damn those with small minds and no vision but also show forgiveness and the way forward.
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