World War One History

 The First World War changed history forever. Before World War One most of the world was ruled by the French, Dutch, German, Italian and British Monarchies. That is how it became a world war because it wasn't just a few countries against another group of countries. It was also British colony versus German colony. The German and Austro- Hungarian Empires had colonies in Africa and the pacific. They also had ports in Asia. The British on the other hand ruled about one fourth of the earths surface. Hence the old expression "the sun never sets on the British Empire". With the European colonies spread across the globe and the tensions rising in the European continent. That set the stage for what would involve over thirty countries in a World War that would be fought on all six inhabited continents! The main cause of the First World War or the Great War was the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on June 28th 1914. He was the next heir for the Austrian throne. It caused a lot of upheaval in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and led to the first declaration of war in WW One. Although this is the main cause of WW One. The tensions between the countries were already mounting before this time. It was a time period in Europe that was called the "armed peace". That eventually led to the armed war of course.  

   Sadly as the years go on more people have forgotten about the First World War This also means that they have forgotten our War Hero's (both man and animal). Horses have played huge roles in warfare throughout the millennia. In World War One they pulled the ambulances, carried the officers, pulled the supplies and large artillery guns, transported the dead and were in the last cavalry charges. These horses dealt with lice, rats, disease, poor food, inadequate shelter, mud and the cold wet winters, but the soldiers dealt with the exact same horrible conditions. One of the last and greatest cavalry charges was made at the Moreuil wood on March 30th 1918. The charge was made by the Royal Canadian Army. The Attack failed and the casualties of men and horses hovered over 70%. The attack was unsuccessful and it resulted into a German victory. Trenches, barbed wire, land mines, artillery and the deadly machine gun made Cavalry charges possible, but deadly. Horses also had difficulty navigating through barbed wire as it usually resulted in injury or tetanus. Although horses are fast and agile, they are also very large targets for enemy machine guns. Modern Warfare turned the glorious cavalry charges into bloodbaths for both soldiers and steeds. Modern weapons and warfare has slowly led to the extinction of the glorious and renowned war horse. 

  One huge change that sprouted from the First World War was its transition from beasts of burden to affordable machinery. Almost the whole world in 1914 still derived off from oxen to plow the fields and horses for transportation. Machinery was only used by those who could afford it. Not that many people had tractors or cars. Planes had limited accessibility, since they were only invented in 1903 . Once the war started cars, tractors, ambulances, and planes were produced in masses. With mass productions of vehicles and planes a lot of their shortcomings were modified and machinery was improved leading up to the military and civilian cars, tractors and planes we use today.  In 1914 before World War One women were hardly in the workforce. When all of the eligible men for service were sent oversees. The women took over their jobs in factories and shops across many nations. Women played a huge role as nurses, ambulance drivers and doctors on the front lines during the war. Before the United States Women's Auxiliary Corp and other military groups for women were founded in the Second Great War. Women were not allowed to be in the military, but there was one exception. There was a loophole in the Naval Act of 1916. That loophole allowed women to join the navy as non commissioned officers and receive the same pay as the men. Over 12,000 Women joined the Navy during World War One. One other major change was the map. In 1914 there were around 50 independent countries and approximately 60 colonies. Most of those colonies were ruled by European Empires. After the First and Second World Wars colonies gained their independence and new countries were formed resulting in the 197 independent countries the world has today.      

  World War One was an absolute blood bath. It destroyed families, homes, heritage, culture, generations and it etched the future for the Second World War. WW One caused inflations and depression both in the United States and other European countries. The war was brutal for the horses, soldiers and the European civilians. Starvation was rampant in Europe and towns and fields in Belgium and France were obliterated. It sadly led to around 10,000,000 civilian deaths and approximately 9,700,000 deaths of soldiers and military personnel. Sadly it was just as bad for horses as 8,000,000 horses died during World War One.  The First World War led up to the Second as the Socialist and Communist parties were vying for power and domination in Europe. Adolf Schicklgruber (Also known as Hitler) infiltrated himself into power after the allies had destroyed the German Government with the Treaty of Versailles. Hitler was a smooth talking and convincing leader to lead 11 million of his own people to their deaths in his concentration camps. Ioseb (Joseph) Besarionis dze Jughashvili changed his name to Joseph Stalin which means man of steel. Stalin was the head of the Communist party in Russia in WW2. The Germans had undermined the Czar of Russia in WW1 causing the Czar to abdicate. The Germans sent Communist Russians to undermine the monarchy and cause upheaval in Russia. They were hoping it would collapse under the political uprising, but it did not. Instead Communism was born in Russia and Stalin had taken over as dictator. Stalin had incarcerated 17 million of his own people and many of them died at his horrific work camps. Those are just two ways in which the First Great War led to more destruction, death and tragedy in the next one.