Technology During World War I

Many new technologies appeared during World War I, including the machine gun, airplane, tank and barbed wire. It is important to examine the historical circumstances of their development, their introduction onto the battlefront and the effect each had in bringing victory to countries that employed them. It can be categorically said that without giant strides made prior to and during the World War I (914-1918) it would never have taken on titanic proportions that it did. The Perfection of technology in the hands of imperfect man or man-the-beast resulted in the tragedy of World War I. However, during this war, technology advancement that had led to the formation of colonies in countries received a new life and influenced WWI by a great degree.

It was accompanied by modern artillery as well as airplanes. Vast supplies were possible because of railroad connections. Horses were taken off the battlefield and used only for carrying goods. In 1916 tanks entered the battle scene. However, the weapon that proved to be most destructive, the humble barbed wire, had been invented in 1874, DeKalb, Illinois. A farmer started the use of a type of barbed wire had seen at a rural fair to control his cattle. The barbed wire came into great use during World War I by being strung in front of trenches. Soldiers dashing across no-man’s-land got entangled in the wires and became sitting ducks for machine gunfire from the opposite trenches. Thus, the initial years of the war saw the military concentrating on snipping off the wires – a task in which they failed

However, in war use the problem was mounting it avoiding the propeller blades. It was solved by the introduction of the interrupter gear. In those days, once the plane took to the skies, there was no contact with land. Flags and lamp signals had to suffice. Radio use solved this problem.

Other technologies that had come into use many decades prior to the outbreak of this war were widely used during the combat, and these proved to be decisive factors in forcing the outcome – machineguns, massive use of artillery (long-range), mortars, hand grenades and the barbed wire. There were other less known technologies introduced – diesel engines, motorized tractors and steam turbines. Advances were made in field of medicines; firearms sans smoke and one of the most effective weapons were high explosives.