Unlike World War Two, the First World War does not follow the same sense of inevitability. Those who look back on it and see the end result and take it for granted are missing something. If we look at the beginning of 1918, you see a war whose ending is very much in doubt, with the eventual victors looking as if they instead could be facing defeat.
The previous year had seen two revolutions in Russia, taking them out of the war. Rumania too had been taken off the list of the Allies. The United States had declared war on Germany, but was all but demilitarized and was not ready to contribute for a long time. The Italians had suffered a humiliating defeat at Caporetto, the French had had mutinies, Britain and its empire were starting to wonder about the huge casualties they were suffering in battle.
Germany had suffered from the British naval blockade, but the end of the war in the East had helped on the manpower front, and the hope was it would give them material support as well. Boissevain native Marc George, a retired army officer and World War One historian, said Germany had benefits early in the year.
“In March 1918, Germany has the advantage on the Western Front,” George explains. “Due to Russia surrendering, the Germans are able to move the equivalent of 50 divisions to the Western Front. The Allies on the Western Front are outnumbered by the Germans and many of the Allied formations are exhausted and suffering from low morale. US troops have not yet arrived in significant numbers to tip the balance back to the allies.”
Russia’s departure should have helped Germany’s allies, but they had their own issues. Both Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were riven by internal ethnic conflict on top of military struggles. The Austrians had lost the capacity to fight on their own, and though they and the Germans had pushed back the Italians at Caporetto, the monarchy was in trouble. The Ottomans were struggling against Britain in the Levant and were troubled by an on-again, off-again Arab Revolt. The Bulgarians were troubled by anti-monarchy and anti-war sentiment, which hampered them in their war against a polyglot army on the Salonika Front.
George said the Germans knew that they would not be able to win in the West once American troops came in bigger numbers, so they must attack before this happens.
Both sides had made some advancements in tactics over the years of slaughter. George said the Germans had developed outstanding infiltration tactics, and quick, accurate artillery bombardments. They had concentrated their best troops in assault divisions, leaving older soldiers defending static positions. They had many well-trained and equipped divisions ready for the spring offensive. On the other side, the Allies had also developed good attack tactics, including accurate creeping barrages, air support and large tank formations. However, morale was brittle, British defenses left a lot to be desired, and German morale was high as they expected to win the war. The Allies expected an attack, but seemed unprepared.
“Lieutenant-General Currie (Canadian Commander) later wrote that the British made insufficient effort to prepare for the German offensive and that lead to the initial breakthrough.”
The Germans launched their attack, the Kaiser’s Battle in March. They knew it was their last chance and took it. George said they did create large salients in the front, but commanders lost operational focus, and were not able to create the important breakthrough. He added on the Allied side, the situation was really saved by the fact the French Army had enough troops in reserve to bolster the front. An interesting note is that the Germans did not launch an attack on the Canadian-held positions, as our soldiers had a good fighting reputation and were felt to be too well dug in. At one point, Canadian troops held 20% of the British line.
The Germans took heavy casualties during their offensive, and their failure broke their morale. The Allies appointed French Marshal Foch as their overall commander, creating a more coordinated effort. George said the Allies did not realize how bad the German morale was, and so Foch planned a few small attacks with a major offensive in 1919.
What would be called the Last Hundred Days began with an assault on Amiens on August 8. The Canadians and Australians led the British attack, which was to eliminate one of the German salients. However, the German Army suffered a much bigger defeat, with many surrendering. German General Erich Ludendorff called it the “black day of the German Army.”
“Foch realized that German morale had collapsed and ordered general offensives all along the front,” George said.
The German Army was steadily driven back from that day forward, but still fought hard. Its allies all collapsed during this time, getting out of the war. Large numbers of American troops began to be involved, which helped Allied manpower, but as George said, the Canadian Corps was the spearhead.
“Canada suffered about 20% of our total casualties in the entire war in the last 100 days. The Canadians met and destroyed approximately a quarter of all of the German divisions on the Western Front during the 100 days. It is a fighting record unrivalled in military history.”
By November 11, the German Army had collapsed, and an armistice was signed. Although American General Pershing thought the Allies should have continued into Germany to let them know they were beaten, George said he later apologized for that. There were too many casualties, and it was time for peace.
The end of the war did not mean the end of death, as the influenza epidemic killed millions. As well, the “war to end all wars” did nothing but create conditions for more conflict. George said the chaos and harsh peace treaties helped create the Soviet Union, laid the groundwork for Hitler, and border problems that continue today. World War Two, the Cold War, the conflict in the Middle East and Islamic extremism all have their genesis in the Great War.
George feels that people are still very aware of the Great War and the sacrifices made. We still live with conflicts that have their roots there, and he firmly believes nothing good came from it – instead just more suffering.
“The Great War is one of the most tragic episodes in human history,” he explained. “The lesson is that we must never allow something like it to happen again. We ignore this lesson at our peril. Taking two minutes a year to reflect on that is time well spent in my view.”
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff