Weapons of World War I

There was a 17% difference in casualties from the Napoleonic Wars to World War I. This can be credited mainly to the new weapons. There were many different weapons in World War I, whether they were completely new or just variations and improvements of previous weapons. Some of the new weapons included machine guns, mustard gas, Zeppelins, and planes, while some of the improved weapons included the bolt-action rifle, the Howitzer, and pistols. The innovative new weapons that were introduced in World War I have forever changed the way wars were fought.

World War I was the bloodiest and most brutal battle at its time, and without all the new weapons, it might not have been. World War I started in 1914 and ended in 1918. It was a war fought between the Allied Powers and the Central Powers in various locations in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, China, and the Pacific Islands. It had been triggered by the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The war was finally brought to an end on June 28, 1919 by the Treaty of Versailles.

A huge variety of weapons were created during and around the time of World War I. Weapons were created for sea combat, land combat, and air combat. Some of the weapons were completely new and revolutionary, while others were just improvements built off of previous weapons. The large amount of weapons that were created for the war, helped changed the outcome of it drastically. The amount of casualties had reached a new level, going up to about 37,000,000 in World War I. These weapons certainly helped pave a way for the standards of future wars. Not only did they set a standard for wars, but many of the weapons being used today were built off of these weapons.

The battles/attacks at sea were a huge part of World...

... middle of paper ...

...gave me information about various weapons used in World War I, including who they were used by.

Bosco, Antoinette, and Peter I. Bosco. World War I (America at War). Updated ed. New York: Facts on File, 2004. Print. This book gave me background information on all aspects of World War I and it gave me a better understanding of how the weapons were used.

"Casualties: First World War." Spartacus Educational - Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2010. . This site showed the statistics of casualties during World War I, which helped to show how the weapons made WWI the bloodiest war at the time.

Pimlott, John. Conflict in the 20th Century, The First World War. New york: Gallery Books, 1986. Print. This book gave me information on World War I in general and on how the different countries used weapons to their advantages.