Transcript The world at war

The World at War
The World at War
The World at War
“The Great War”
First War to take place across the World Atlantic, Pacific, Mediterranean, Africa,
Middle East, Europe, Russia, China
First War to have countries fighting
Look today at the conflict away from the
Western Front
Unfortunate that it turned out to be the “First
World War”
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The Eastern Front
The World at War
The Eastern Front
The World at War
Russia vs Germany and Austro Hungary
•Never settled to trench warfare as Western front
•Early invasion of Prussia and later success against AustroHungary led to German forces being diverted East
•Leader of Russian forces was initially Grand Duke Nicholas
(first Cousin once removed to Tsar)
•In 1915 Grand Duke removed and Tsar takes direct control
•Continued military failure contributes to February 1917
revolution
The World at War
Italy
A Witness
Sarah Macnaughton
Scottish aid worker in Russia
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Italy
Italy in World War One
What do we know about Italy in WW1?
Maybe only as a backdrop to a love story
But the War changed Italy’s borders, it changed Italy’s
politics and was just as awful as the War in France
Italy in World War One
Italy in 1914
Italy in World War One
Italian Politics in 1914
Italy in World War One
Italy in 1914
Italy in World War One
Why did Italy join the war ?
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Bribed by Britain, France and Russia (Treaty of London)
Seen as completing the Risorgimento
Desire to build an Empire like other big countries
Decision led by Prime Minister Salandra, with the King compliant
On 23 May 1915 Italy declared war on Austro-Hungary
Italy in World War One
The Treaty of London
In 1915 France, Britain and Russia signed a secret treaty with Italy
promising them :
•South Tyrol and Trentino
•Istria and Northern Dalmatia
•Protectorate of Albania
•The Dodecanese Islands (already held by Italy)
•Parts of German colonies in Africa
•Parts of Turkey if the Ottoman Empire was split up
The Russian communist regime revealed the Treaty in November 1917
Italy in World War One
Life as a Soldier
• All conscripted, many peasants from the countryside
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emmigrants returned home to fight
• Described as trench warfare at a slope of 40 degrees
• Much of the fighting (12 Battles) took place around the Isonzo
river on the modern day border with Slovenia
• Battlefields were mountains
651,000 soldiers died
Italy in World War One
Italian military leadership
• Centralised control led by Luigi Cadorna, Chief of Staff with limited
influence from Prime Minister/King
• Obsessed with taking the offensive
• Authorised the shooting of soldiers separated
from their units, or for disobedience
• Italy executed at least 1000 soldiers,
three times that of Britain
• Finally replaced, after the disaster of
Caparetto, by Armando Diaz
Italy in World War One
Caparetto
• In October 1917 a joint attack by Germany and Austro-Hungary,
using new tactics, drove the Italians almost back to Venice
Italy in World War One
Caporetto
• Pushed the Italians back over 60 miles, reaching the river Piave,
and just 15-20 miles from Venice
• 12,000 Italians died, 30,000 wounded and 294,000 taken prisoner
• British and French troops sent subsequently to support
• Cadorna sacked
A national humiliation
Caporetto is now Kobarid in Slovenia
The World at War
Italy
A Witness
Paolo Monelli
A trooper in an Italian Alpine Regiment
Italy in World War One
Life back home
The war brought massive hardship to the civilian population
•Chronic shortage of food
•Inflation - running at 35% by the war’s end
•Led to Industrial unrest in the Northern industrial cities
•With over 50% of the population still working on the land,
conscripting the young men removed the agricultural labour force
•Significant numbers of deserters in the countryside
Estimated that 589,000 civilians died
Italy in World War One
What did Italy get at the end of the War
The Versailles Peace Conference ignored previous agreements, and
introduced new countries and kingdoms
Italy got some of the Treaty of London promises:
•South Tyrol and Trentino - YES
•Istria and Northern Dalmatia – PARTLY (Istria only)
•Protectorate of Albania - NO
•The Dodecanese Islands (already held by Italy)- PARTLY (Rhodes
only)
•Parts of German colonies in Africa - NO
•Parts of Turkey if the Ottoman Empire was split up – NO
Nationalists saw it as a “mutilated” victory
Italy in World War One
Italy after the war
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Over 3% of the population lost
Let down by its allies, and ignored at Versailles
Stronger industries in the north
Strikes in the cities and anarchy
in the countryside
• Growth of nationalism during the war
All the ingredients for
Mussolini’s revolution
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The Balkans
"Some damn foolish thing in the Balkans“ (Otto von Bismark, 1897)
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
The Balkan Wars 1912-1913
•French investment had funded Serbian military development
•Russia moved to create Balkan League, seeing it as potential
ally against Austro-Hungary in the future
•France tried to stop 1st Balkan War, telling Russia it would not
take part in a conflict between Russia and Austro-Hungary
•British would not intervene to stop the war starting, but
encouraged Greece to join, to counter Russian ambitions
•Austro-Hungary were trying to deal with internal unrest of its
Slav populations and saw Serbia’s rise as fuelling them
•Germany was officially a supporter of the Ottomans but
thought Bulgaria could be a useful future ally
The Great Powers furthered their own aims through
the Balkan Countries
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Events in the Balkans
•28 June 1914 Assassination Archduke Franz Ferdinand
•28 July Austro-Hungarian forces invade Serbia – beaten back
•5 November 2nd Attack by Austro-Hungary – got as far as
Belgrade until they were beaten back
•23 September 1915 Bulgaria joins the Central Powers, despite
the Entente’s best efforts
•7 October Austro-Hungarians and Germans attack
•October 1915 British and French forces arrive in Salonika
(Greece), limited role in helping Serbians
•14 October Bulgaria attacks
•10 February 1916 Serbian Army is evacuated from Albania
Germans have clear railway link to Ottomans
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Events in the Balkans
•August 1916 – Allied forces attack on Bulgarian Front, moved
front 25 miles
•October 1916 – Bulgaria invades part of Greece. Greek king in
favour of letting them, Greek Officers were not. They launch a
coup and take the Northern part of Greece
•Jan 1917 – Blockade of Athens in support of the coup
•June 1917 Greek King exiled and Greece declares war
•May 1918 Allies take the offensive, Bulgaria starts secret peace
negotiations
•14 September 1918 Major Allied offensive against Bulgarians
•30 September armistice with Bulgaria – French forces head
towards Hungary, British forces towards Constantinople
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
The Allied Army of the Orient
•A multi-national force British, French, Serbian, Italian, Russian of
400,000 men forming the Macedonian front
•Bulgarians held the mountains
•August 1916 leadership of a French General agreed
•Joined by the Greeks after the coup, Russians left after Russian
Revolution but replaced by Czechoslovakian troops escaping from
Russia
•Criticised for lack of action – “ let them be known as the Gardeners
of the Salonika” (Clemenceau)
•But there were battles, not least two attempts to take the
mountains of Dorian in 1917
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
The Allied Army of the Orient
•Successful offensive in September 1918 under French General
Louis D’Esperey “Desperate Frankie” to the British.
•British part of the offensive – The Battle of Dorian – was an
attack up a 200ft ridge as bad as any Western front battle –
7000 British and Greek casualties in 2 days
•Important offensive because the resulting Bulgarian Armistice
was the first, triggering others
The World at War
The Balkans
A Witness
Olive King
An Australian driver in the Serbian Army
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Balkans
Afterwards
16% of Serbian population died – War, Typhus,
Starvation and Ethnic Cleansing
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The Middle East
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The steady loss of
the Ottoman
Empire
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
British Interests in the Middle East
•Suez canal key to linking the Empire
•Anglo-Persian Oil company(oil discovered 1908)
•Aden – Key port to control seas in area
•Egypt – Both Mediterranean base and the canal
•Cyprus – Leased to British in 1878, another important
base
•Competition with the other colonial powers
•Countering Russian expansion (and supporting Russia
during the war)
More strategic for Britain than Belgium ?
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Interest of other powers
•Germany – Close commercial partner with Ottoman
Empire
•Germany – Divert Allies resources
•Ottoman Empire – potential for winning back some lost
territory
•Russia – Gain territory in North-East of Ottoman Empire
(Armenia, Baku Oilfields) and Black Sea
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The Fighting in the Middle East
•Late 1914 The British land an Anglo-Indian force at Basra protecting
the pipeline and indicating intentions
•Early 1915 the Central, primarily Ottoman, powers strike towards
Suez but are pushed back
Late 1915 an British (Anglo-Indian) force moved out of Basra up the
Tigris river towards Baghdad. They went too far and were besieged
in Kut-el- Amara leading to the British Army’s worst surrender
(13,000 men), in April 1916.
•The army in Basra was reinforced with men and material, and this
lead to the capture of Baghdad in March 1917, although an offensive
across the Sinai failed.
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
The Fighting in the Middle East
• In 1917 the Russian revolution eased pressure on the Ottomans,
submarine warfare threatened supplies to Britain, and additional
support was needed on the Western front.
•Late 1917 a new British General – Allenby- led an advance through
Gaza to Jerusalem but in 1918 much of his infantry had to be sent to
France to stem the German spring offensive.
•In September 1918 Allenby destroyed the remaining Ottoman
forces and the British military controlled the peninsular
Throughout there was the support of Arab “Guerrilla” forces funded
and supported by the British, with other groups supporting the
Ottomans
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Fighting in the Middle East was not the Trenches !
•Heat, dust and disease
•Long distance movements needed lots of supplies moved,
especially WATER
•Cavalry was more important, several battles used them
•Extensive use of Anglo-Indian troops and Australian units
•Ottoman troops supplemented by German and Austro-Hungarian
troops and equipment
•British estimated as having over ½ million casualties (dead,
wounded, sick) but 90% were non battle casualties
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Fighting in the Middle East
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Fighting in the Middle East
•Ottoman troops, with some German Generals commanding their
troops and with limited German troops in support
• Ottoman Empire troops not only responsible for the Armenian
Massacres but also gave poor treatment to prisoners and undertook
killing of other Christian populations
•After the siege of Kut of the 13,000 prisoners taken only 30%
survived the war because of poor treatment
•The majority of local Arab population not involved
The World at War
The Middle East
A Witness
Edward Mounsley
An Artillery officer at the siege of Kut
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Arab Supporters
•Arabian peninsular had Kingdoms/Tribes, some under Ottoman
authority
•Saudi and Rashid tribes fought for control of Arabia in the 19th
century
• Rashid tribe sided with the Ottomans, Saudis with Britain
•British recognise Ibn Saud and Saudi kingdom (Treaty of Darin) and
made it a British protectorate
•As part of the treaty he promised not to attack other British
protectorates in the Gulf BUT did not promise not to attack other
British supporters (eg the leaders of the Pan Arab revolt)
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Arab Supporters
•Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashim, the Sharif of Mecca supported
the British by declaring a Pan-Arab revolt
•T.E.Lawrence was the British link with this group, fighting
with them as a guerrilla army of a few thousand men
•In the negotiations with the British leading up to the revolt
Hussein was promised leadership of all Arabia
•His sons Faisal and Abdullah were made kings of Iraq and
Transjordan under the British mandates
•In the early 1920s the Saudis defeated Hussein and he
was driven out of Arabia
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Lawrence of Arabia
•Archaeologist, soldier and diplomat who had travelled
extensively in the Middle East
•Foreign Office decides to encourage an Arab revolt to tie
down Ottoman troops and assigns Lawrence
•Role was to link actions of the Arab troops to the British
military actions – so cutting railway lines etc.
•Lots of diplomacy to keep the Arab factions of the group
working together
•Encouraged the idea of an independent Arab nation in
opposition to the final result
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Lawrence of Arabia
•Became a celebrity after the War, initially because of Lowell
Thomas (an American correspondent) who publicises him, including
lecture tours featuring him
•Published his own book “Seven pillars of Wisdom” and an
abbreviated version which sold well
•Subsequently backed out of the publicity, joining RAF under an
assumed name, and died in a motor cycle accident in 1935
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
•The McMahon-Hussein Agreement
An exchange of letters (July 1915-January 1916) between Sir Henry
McMahon, British High Commissioner for Egypt, and Hussein bin Ali,
Sharif of Mecca, agreeing to support Arab independence, after a
successfully winning the war, in return for Arab participation.
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
•The final letter agreed to Hussein proposals with certain
towns, including Damascus exempted, and a reference to
not affecting French interests
•The correspondence does not indicate Palestine being any
different, or the issue of a Jewish Homeland
•No reference to the then secret Sykes-Picot agreement
•Balfour Declaration comes 9 months after this, making
public the aim for a Jewish Homeland in Palestine
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
The Middle East after the war, and perhaps now, was bedevilled by
conflicting promises and agreements
•The Sykes-Picot Agreement
A secret agreement signed in May 1916 between Britain and France,
with the assent of Russia, to define spheres of influence in the
Middle East on defeat of the Ottoman Empire
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
•The agreement defined Spheres of Influence as
Britain – River Jordan, Jordan, Southern Iraq and Haifa/Acre
France – South-East Turkey, Northern Iraq, Syria, Lebanon
Russia - Istanbul, Turkish Straits, Ottoman Armenia
“International control” - Palestine
•Technically “spheres of influence” did not preclude honouring the
commitment to Arab supporters for Kingdoms
•Ironically Arabia did not seem worthy of being involved so Ibn Saud
had a free hand (oil not discovered until 1930s!)
Following the Russian Revolution the Bolshevik
Government exposed this and other secret agreements
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
•The Balfour Declaration
Public letter from Balfour (Foreign Secretary) to Baron Rothschild in
November 1917
“His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in
Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their
best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being
clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice
the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in
Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any
other country”
Not absolutely conflicting with the McMahon-Hussein letters but
hardly likely to be popular!
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
Agreements and Promises
•The Treaty of Sevres 1920
This treaty was with the Ottoman Empire, leaving a Turkish portion
as independent but splitting its territory up between the Allies
(including parts of modern Turkey)
•The Middle East was effectively split between Britain and France
along the boundaries of the Sykes-Picot agreement but under a
League of Nations Mandate system.
•The Mandates were defined as “near” independent states:
Palestine (eventually Jordan and Israel ) – Britain
Syria and Lebanon – France
Mesopotamia (becoming Iraq 1922, independent 1932) – Britain
Not Just Trenches and Poems
The Middle East
So are we responsible for the 21st century situation in the
Middle East ?
•Conflicting agreements cannot have helped long term trust from
Arab leaders
•Balfour declaration led to Jewish immigration to Palestine and
ultimately Israel’s formation by force
•Sykes- Picot division still quoted by ISIL as something they want to
end
BUT
•Mandates did lead to the establishment of viable countries,
although not necessarily Western style democracies