One of the most bloody and large-scale was the First World War. It lasted from July 28, 1914 to November 11, 1918. The first battle of the First World War became an occasion for neutral countries to engage in confrontation. Thirty-eight countries were drawn into this conflict, representing the interests of large coalitions on two sides: the Entente and the Fourth Union. The first block included states such as France, Russia, England and others. The second side of the conflict was represented by Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria, Germany.
Occasion
The first battle of the First World War was caused by provocation: they killed Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of Austria, together with his wife. This led to a conflict between the affected country and Serbia. Germany sided with Austria, speaking for her. The first battle of World War I dates back to July 28th. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Germany dragged Russia into the war on August 1, and two days later declared war on France and its ally.
How did the First World War begin?
The first battle of World War I in 1914 took place on French territory. Later it was called "Running to the Sea." Each opposing side sought to encircle the enemy troops and moved along the front line towards the coast. As a result, France managed to maintain control over its port cities. In the intention to quickly capture France, the German command miscalculated. The battle of the First World War on the Western Front quickly assumed a positional character, since forces were quickly exhausted on both sides.
Successful offensive of Russia
On August 17, the main course of hostilities shifted to the Eastern Front. The Russian army went on the offensive towards East Prussia. The battles of the First World War on this front were at first successful. The main role here was played by the victory in the Battle of Galicia, which ended on August 18. Society accepted the news with incredible enthusiasm. After this defeat, Austria tried not to get involved in serious conflicts with Russia until the end of 1914.
New allies and opponents
In the same year, Japan entered the war against Germany. She began to launch a campaign in the island colonies of Germany. It was here that naval battles took place . World War I ended 1914 with unsuccessful attempts by both sides of the conflict to succeed in their intentions. Russia's attempts to establish maritime communications with allied countries were also unsuccessful. The Ottoman Empire, which spoke on the side of Germany, opened the Caucasus front at the Black Sea, thereby breaking the water ties of Russia.
The main battles of the First World War unfolded in 1915. From this moment, the second campaign began. Fierce battles took place on the Western Front. Desperate, Germany and France made unsuccessful attempts to turn the tide of events in their direction. However, all this did not lead to the desired results.
In fact, the front line did not change by the end of 1915. Neither the French spring offensive in Artois nor the operations carried out in Champagne in the fall affected the situation.
The deterioration of the situation in Russia
On the Russian front, the situation grew tense and changed not for the better. A winter unsuccessful attack attempt crashed. First of all, this was due to poor training of the Russian army. In turn, the Germans launched a summer counterattack. As a result, they managed to recapture Galicia and Poland from Russia. There is an opinion that the defeat of the Russian army in these battles was caused by supply problems.
The situation was stabilized only by the fall. However, the location of the Russian and French troops served as a prerequisite for the beginning of a positional war.
In 1915, declaring war on Austria-Hungary, Italy entered into conflict. In the same period, Entente declares war on Bulgaria. All this leads to a complication of the situation in Serbia.
Verdun battle
The year 1916 was marked by a period during which a major battle of the First World War took place. Photos of these battles are still kept in some large museums. Verdun battle claimed more than a thousand human lives. It began with the desire of Germany to crush the resisting France. Near Verdun ledge were located the main German forces. This was done in the hope of destroying the defense of France and England. During this battle, the flamethrower was used for the first time - a new weapon for those times. At the time of the German attack on France, the Russian command launched an offensive operation, which was carried out on the Western Front. The German troops had no choice but to relocate the main forces to the site of the offensive of the Russian troops. This greatly facilitated the position of France and England in the war. During this period, active clashes between the largest powers were fought both on land and at sea. The battle of Jutland became the largest confrontation on the water.
The years 1917 and 1918 were marked by the victories of the Entente. However, at this point, all countries participating in the conflict were suffering from a significant weakening of the economy, as well as increased internal tension. In this regard, the military activity of the countries decreased. Nevertheless, the German troops did not abandon attempts to defeat England by manipulating the submarine fleet. It became obvious that the Entente was heading for victory, so the United States of America joined it. Russia at this moment is experiencing internal political problems. The October events became the point of heating, after which she leaves the war. This gave rise to Germany to liquidate the Eastern Front and conclude a peace treaty with countries such as Ukraine, Russia, Romania. The Brest peace treaty provided for the fulfillment of difficult conditions for Russia, however, it was signed by both parties. After some time, the contract was canceled.
Aggressor surrender
Germany continued the offensive. Soon she was able to occupy countries such as Poland, Belarus. The Baltic was also captured. After a series of victories, Germany decided to transfer its forces towards the Western Front. However, the allies of the Entente bloc had a clear technical superiority, in connection with which the German troops were defeated. By the end of 1918, Germany signed the act of unconditional surrender.
At the end of the war, the economies of the participating countries were in a terrible situation. The pace of work of the national economy decreased, and the standard of living of the population decreased. The only ones to whom the war played into the hands were military corporations and monopolies.
For Russia, the war became the catalyst that had a huge impact on the rapid development of the revolution, as well as on the outbreak of civil war.