SOLDIERS ON THE WESTERN FRONT: WORLD WAR 1

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Table of Contents

Historical Context of War

What was World War I? World war I was a war between the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance, which started on the 28th of July 1914 and lasted until the 11th of November 1918. The war started for several reasons, which can be summarised in the acronym M.A.I.N., the four aspects being militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism

Militarism is a trend caused by new technology, an arms race, and is an important force as it shapes the public’s opinion and glorifies the military. Alliances are the result of world division, it is based on traditions, strengths, treaties, and factors; if one nation declared war all groups allied would join The act of extending the power of a nation through acquisition is imperialism, they profit through goods and labour from the nations they conquered and build up militaries to protect their conquered nations. Lastly, nationalism is the idea that your nation is greater than other nations, and it can be expressed through aggression towards other nations; nationalism is often identified through a shared set of values or ethnicity factors

The trigger to declarations of war was the response to the assassination of Austrian archduke, Franz Ferdinand on the 28th of June 1914 Franz Ferdinand was an important figure as he was the eldest son of the archduke Charles Louis and heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Charles Louis was the brother of an AustroHungarian emperor known as Franz Joseph. In response to the assassination, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on the 28th of July 1914 and Russia officially ordered the mobilization of the four military districts facing the AustroHungarian Empire However, on August 1st, after Russia defied the demands to halt mobilization, Germany declared war on Russia; and France, Russia’s ally, ordered its own militarization, which lead to France and Germany declaring war on each other

Newspaper informing citizens of the war

Soldiers going to World War I

Historical Context of War

Who were the two main alliances in World War I?

One of the two main alliances in World War I was the Triple Entente, who were an international military alliance led by France, Britain, and Russia after they signed the Anglo-Russian agreement of 1907 Through a treaty formed in May 1882 between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, where the three powers pledged to assist one another if attacked by other nations

Australians were involved in World War I as they had pledged an alliance to the British Empire and joined the war on the 6th of August 1914 416809 Australians served in World War I, and they served in several locations such as Gallipoli and on The Western Front Most of the recruited men in the AIF (Australian Imperial Force) in 1914 were sent to Egypt, and after four months of training were sent to the Gallipoli peninsula, the goal of the deployment was to assist a navy operation by Britain, who were aiming for the Dardanelles Strait to conquer Constantinople, a Turkish capital.

Battles on The Western Front started on the 4th of August after the German’s failed a plan of attack called the Schlieffen Plan The Western Front stretched over 700 kilometres from the Belgian coast to France through the Swiss Border, exposing soldiers to industrialized war, with new levels of technology such as powerful artillery.

Australia’s first large involvement on The Western Front was at Fromelles on the 19th of July 1916, where they suffered heavy losses. Significant battles took place at Bullecourt, Messines, 3rd Ypres, Amiens, Villers-Bretonneux and Mont St Quentin, where Australian’s also fought and developed a tenacious reputation as fighters.

When the war ended in 1918, over 46000 Australian Soldiers had lost their lives, and over 132000 had been injured. About 50000 men joined the AIF in the first four months as they were loyal and willing to support the British Empire, or needed the War Pay Army Order 1 (1918). The War Pay Army Order 1 paid soldiers the sum of one penny per day in respect of each completed year of the soldier’s service

EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS

The Western Front

What is The Western Front?

The Western Front started on the 4th of August 1914, due to the German’s plan of attack known as the Schlieffen Plan and ended on the 11th of November 1918. It was a large, 700-kilometre stretch of land from the Belgian Coast to France through the Swiss border Over 295000 Australian soldiers served on The Western front between March 1916 and November 1918. Within the 295000 soldiers who had served, over 46000 lost their lives and more than 130000 were wounded These soldiers served in several different locations on The Western Front including Fromelles, Bullecourt, Passchendaele, Villers-Bretonneux, Messines and the Somme The Western Front was a 700km stretch of land known as no-man’s land and was between German trenches and British trenches.

Conditions on The Western Front

During 1916, soldiers who had served on Gallipoli considered The Western Front more comfortable As there were army canteens selling groceries, tobacco, and clothes; soldiers could also buy champagne and beer from the shops. However, this luxury changed with the arrival of winter, the most severe cold northern France had experienced in 36 years. The ground, thoroughly mixed by the battles of the Somme, became extremely waterlogged and turned into a quagmire that was almost impossible to pass through Large rainfalls throughout October and November were followed by everlasting frost and snow, which worsened the unpleasant living conditions near the front

A section of The Western Front trench viewed from a plane

A preserved WWI trench currently

EXPERIENCES AND IMPACTS

The Western Front

What were the conditions on The Western Front?

Soldiers fought in a range of harsh conditions, with a variety of illnesses and weather threatening their lives According to articles, “In 1914, the winter weather was particularly bad with enormous amounts of rain” (bbc.co.uk). When soldiers found themselves standing in muddy water for days on end this led to a condition known as Trench Foot, with small cuts and blisters becoming infected. Extreme cases of this were feet being amputated and soldiers losing their toes Amputation can affect a person’s everyday life for long periods of time, including home and work, it can also have psychological effects such as post-traumatic stress disorder

Other common problems include lice, due to poor hygiene and overcrowding, many soldiers found themselves infested with lice whilst they were serving in the trenches. An infection was spread by lice, known as ‘trench fever’, due to the bacteria passed through humans from the contact with lice

The short-term effects of war:

. Short-term effects of World War One include the collapse of four empires, the large human losses from modern warfare, and the large material losses from modern warfare World War I was the leading cause of the collapse of Romanov Russia, Hapsburg Austria, Ottoman Turkey, and the German Empire, who were all defeated in war causing the ruling dynasties of these four nations to collapse.

What were the long-term effects of war?

A long-term effect of the war was when soldiers returned from serving in World War I and disembarked at docks over Australia, the experiences, and effects of war troubled troops Due to new technology that was used in warfare, the soldiers suffered horrific injuries and many of those suffered from the physical and mental effects Many soldiers found it difficult to return to civilian life, more than 330000 men had seen overseas service, “For some men the hardest adjustments were those of the mind” (ergo slv vic gov au)

An experimental WWI tank

Snow covered trenches

Soldiers picking lice from their clothes

CASE STUDY

Eric Kingsley Abraham

Experiences of Eric Kingsley Abraham:

An Australian World War I veteran, known as Eric Kingsley Abraham, is notable for having been the last surviving recruit of Australia’s famous snowball march, the March of the Dungarees He had witnessed The Red Baron being shot down; the Red Baron was a deadly German fighter pilot known as Manfred con Richthofen As he was chasing down a plane, his “81st kill” (slq.qld.gov.au), was when it was suddenly shot down from behind by another plane on the 21st of April 1918

When Abraham was discharged in October 1919, he considered himself lucky to return home alive. He described the conditions at war as “ghastly”, due to the unpredictability of who would be killed in battle With mud up to the soldier’s ankles submerged their feet and made them susceptible to “Trench Foot”. Trench foot hindered their mobility and caused immense pain, soldiers endured this whilst also encountering heavy shell fire and action

Abraham, Eric Kingsley was a soldier who served on The Western Front, as a private in the 4th battalion volunteer defence corps (VDC), he enlisted on the 26th of November 1915 in Ipswich Queensland.

According to the virtual war memorial, “It was Eric’s spirit of adventure that motivated him to join the Dungaree recruitment march”, he submitted an enlistment form stating his age was 18 years and 7 months when he enlisted in Ipswich, despite being only 17 years old. Abraham was born on the 20th of April 1898 in Hemmant Queensland, and he died peacefully at the age 104 on the 20th of March 2003.

A picture of Eric Kingsley Abraham when he enrolled

CASE STUDY

Eric Kingsley Abraham

Eric Kingsley Abraham had been working as a postal assistant before enrolling in the war, and when he finished training in the Gallipoli campaign he was sent to The Western Front. He served in the Somme, Passchendaele, Villers, Polygon Wood, Bretonneux and Peronne

When he had been hospitalized in England in 1917 due to bronchitis and pleurisy, after recovering he departed from England on the 23rd of June 1919; and arrived in Sydney on the 9th of August 1919.

Kingsley was awarded with the 1914/15 star, the British war Medal, the Victory Medal, and The Legion of Honour of France. Eric had served and survived as one of the last surviving Dungaree Diggers, and he was one of the last Queenslanders of the generation who served during World War I

Eric Abraham, Howard Pope, Charlie Mance, and Ted Smout at the internment of PTE Russell Bosisto

The Western Front Map

A map consisting of The Western Front and memorable places where battles were fought

The Western Front

Onthe28thofJune, AustrianArchdukeFranz Ferdinandwas assassinated.

DuetoassassinationoftheAustrian ArchdukeFranzFerdinand,AustriaHungarydeclaredwaronSerbia WorldWarIstartsduetothe declarationsofwar

TheWesternFrontoccurs afterthefailureofthe Germanplanofattack(The SchlieffenPlan)

Australiansoldiersaresent toFrancetofightonThe WesternFront.

MARCH1ST

TheBattleofFromellesoccurred, thiswasaninitiativetoopposethe GermanfrontlineinFrenchFlanders. Thisbattlewasthefirstinvolvement oftheAustralianfifthdivisionand claimedthelivesof5500troops.

Australiansoldiersweredeployedto TheFirstBattleofBullecourttoaid theBritishArrasoperationThe4th divisionsuccessfullyinfiltrated Germandefences,however3300 soldierswerekilledandnotmuch progresswasmade

WhenVillers-Bretonneuxwas capturedbyGermans,Australians clearedthetownofenemyforces. Thecounterattackwasconsidereda monumentalsuccessandremainsas oneoftheAIF'smostwell-known actions.

Aftersubstantialeffortstheallied forcesattackwassuccessful,and GermanysurrenderedAnarmistice wassignedatLeFrancport,that endedfightingbetweentheTriple EntenteandTripleAlliance

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Reference list

Australian War Memorial 2013, Enlistment statistics, First World War | The Australian War Memorial, Awm.gov.au, Australian War Memorial, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/enlistment/ww1>.

2017, Gallipoli | The Australian War Memorial, awm.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/gallipoli>.

Backhouse, F 2019, Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria-Este | Biography, Assassination, & Facts, Encyclopædia Britannica, viewed 1 June 2023,

<https://www.britannica.com/biography/Franz-Ferdinand-Archduke-of-AustriaEste>.

Esri Australia 2022, Australia’s Involvement in WWI, ArcGIS StoryMaps, viewed 1 June 2023,

<https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/487b208cd36643a5b73d6991c7d5d1ca>. JOL Admin 2017, Eric Abraham, 25th Infantry Battalion: Oral History, State Library Of Queensland, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/ericabraham-25th-infantry-battalion-oral-history>.

Library of Congress 2015, Timeline (1914 - 1921), The Library of Congress, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.loc.gov/collections/stars-and-stripes/articles-andessays/a-world-at-war/timeline-1914-1921/>.

Queensland Government 2018, Australia on the Western Front, Qld.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://anzac100.initiatives.qld.gov.au/remember/westernfront/index.aspx>.

Sir John Monash Centre 2017, Australians on the Western Front | Sir John Monash Centre, Sir John Monash Centre, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://sjmc.gov.au/australians-on-the-western-front/>.

2018, The Battle of Villers-Bretonneux | Sir John Monash Centre, Sir John Monash Centre, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://sjmc.gov.au/battle-villersbretonneux/>.

The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica 2018a, Triple Alliance | Definition, Countries, Facts, & Significance, Encyclopædia Britannica, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.britannica.com/event/Triple-Alliance-Europe-1882-1915>.

2018b, Triple Entente | European alliance, Encyclopædia Britannica, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.britannica.com/topic/Triple-Entente>.

2019, First Battle of the Somme | Forces, Outcome, & Casualties, Encyclopædia Britannica, viewed 1 June 2023,

<https://www britannica com/event/First-Battle-of-the-Somme>

Unknown 2023a, Returning Soldiers | Ergo, ergo slv vic gov au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://ergo slv vic gov au/explore-history/australia-wwi/abroad-wwi/returningsoldiers>

2023b, Trench Warfare, BBC Bitesize, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www bbc co uk/bitesize/topics/zdp6d6f/articles/ztkmxbk>

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