New Weapons of World War 1
WW1 saw industrial technology applied to killing on an unprecedented scale. New weapons made the war uniquely horrifying.
The Machine Gun
The problem: One machine gun could mow down hundreds of advancing infantry.
- Maxim gun (water-cooled, reliable)
- Vickers (British standard)
- MG 08 (German standard)
Machine guns made frontal assaults suicidal, creating the trench stalemate.
Artillery
Artillery caused 60% of WW1 casualties.
- Larger calibers (German Big Bertha: 420mm)
- High-explosive shells
- Gas shells
- Creeping barrages (infantry followed moving curtain of fire)
- Counter-battery fire (artillery vs. artillery)
The constant bombardment created shell shock (PTSD) and lunar landscapes.
Poison Gas
First use: German chlorine attack at Ypres (April 1915).
- Chlorine: Yellow-green, attacked lungs
- Phosgene: More deadly, delayed effect
- Mustard gas: Blistered skin, blinded, lingered for days
Gas masks became essential. Gas was terrifying but rarely decisive — weather made it unpredictable.
Tanks
Invented to break the trench deadlock.
First use: British Mark I at the Somme (September 1916).
- Slow (4 mph)
- Mechanically unreliable
- Vulnerable to artillery
By 1918, massed tank attacks (Cambrai, Amiens) achieved breakthroughs.
Aircraft
Aviation evolved from observation to combat:
1914: Unarmed reconnaissance planes.
1915: First fighter aircraft with synchronized machine guns.
1916-1918: Air combat intensified. Aces like the Red Baron became famous.
Bombers: Strategic bombing began (German Zeppelin and Gotha raids on London).
Submarines
U-boats: German submarines nearly starved Britain.
Unrestricted submarine warfare: Sinking neutral ships brought America into the war.
Flamethrowers
German Flammenwerfer terrorized trenches. Limited range but devastating psychological impact.
Legacy
WW1 weapons foreshadowed WW2: tanks, aircraft, and combined arms would dominate future warfare.
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