Contemporaries said that this would be a war that would put an end to all wars, and they were greatly mistaken. World War I began on August 1, 1914 with a provocation and regicide and ended with the first Compiègne truce on November 11, 1918. The influence on the territories and countries that participated in the war was so great that it became possible to sum up its results and conclude the Treaty of Versailles only in the middle of the next, 1919 of the year. Six out of ten people across the planet have experienced this war in one way or another. This is one of the dark pages in the history of mankind.

They say she was inevitable. The disagreements between the future participants were too strong, leading to constantly creating and collapsing alliances. The most inconsistent was precisely Germany, which almost at the same time tried to turn Great Britain against France and organize a continental blockade of Britain itself.

Prerequisites for World War I

If you look at the positions from which the countries were involved in the First World War of 1914-1918, the reasons, in fact, will lie on the surface. England, France and Austria-Hungary at the beginning of the twentieth century sought to redistribute the world map. The main reason for this was the collapse of colonialism and prosperity only at the expense of its own satellites. The main European powers were faced with a difficult choice, since the resources important for the economy and prosperity of the country (primarily its elite) could no longer be taken away from India or Africa.

The only thing Possible Solution hid precisely in military conflicts for raw materials, labor and territories for life. Major conflicts that flared up on the basis of territorial claims were as follows:

What started the war

It is very clear to say when World War I (WWI) started. At the end of June 1914, on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the city of Sarajevo, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire Franz Ferdinand was killed. It was a provocation on the part of the Austrians and, with the active participation of British diplomats and the press, a reason for the escalation of the conflict in the Balkans.

The killer was a Serbian terrorist, a member of the extremist organization "Black Hand" (otherwise called "Unity or Death") Gavrilo Princip. This organization, along with other similar underground movements, attempted to spread nationalist sentiment throughout the Balkan Peninsula in response to the 1908 annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary, setting off the Bosnian crisis.

There have already been several assassination attempts on the account of such formations. both successful and unsuccessful, prominent politicians empire and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The day of the assassination attempt on the Archduke was not chosen by chance, because on June 28 he was supposed to participate in events dedicated to the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. Such events on this date were considered by many Bosnians a direct insult to their national pride.

In addition to the assassination of the Archduke, these days there were several attempts to liquidate public figures who opposed the outbreak of hostilities. So, a few days before June 28, an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of Grigory Rasputin, known, among other things, for his anti-war sentiments and great influence at the court of Emperor Nicholas II. And the next day, June 29, Jean Jaures was killed. He was an influential French politician and public figure who fought against imperialist sentiments, colonialism and, like Rasputin, was an ardent opponent of the war.

British influence

After the tragic events in Sarajevo, the two largest powers in Europe - Germany and the Russian Empire tried to avoid open military confrontation. But this situation did not suit the British at all and diplomatic levers were put into play. So, after the murder of Franz Ferdinand by Princip, the English press openly began to call the Serbs barbarians and call on the top of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to give them a decisive and tough answer. At the same time, through the ambassador, they created pressure on the Russian emperor, calling for Serbia to provide all possible assistance if Austria-Hungary decides on any provocations.

And she made up her mind. Almost a month after the successful assassination attempt on the heir, Serbia was presented with demands that were impossible to fulfill. For example, one of its points was the admission of police officers to the territory of a foreign state. The Serbs did not accept only this point, which, as expected, served as a declaration of war. Moreover, the first bombs fell on its capital the very next morning, which clearly indicated the readiness of the Austro-Hungarians to fight immediately.

The Russian Empire, which has always been considered a shield of Orthodoxy and Slavism, had, after unsuccessful attempts at a diplomatic ceasefire, to declare the mobilization of the entire country. Thus, Russia's participation in the First World War was inevitable.

The course of the war

After a series of provocations, hotbed of military conflict began to flare up even faster. In about six months, two main military alliances were formed that took part in the confrontation:

Events of 1914

There were several major theaters of war- the war blazed in France, in Russia, in the Balkans, the Middle East and the Caucasus and in the former colonies of Europe. The German Schlieffen plan, which included a blitzkrieg, lunch in Paris and dinner in St. Petersburg, failed due to Germany's systematic underestimation of its rivals and repeated revision of strategic tables. In general, the vast majority of the participants in the war were absolutely sure of its imminent end, confidently speaking about the possibility of winning in a few months. No one expected the conflict to take on such proportions, especially on the Western Front.

First, Germany occupied Luxembourg and Belgium. At the same time, the French invasion unfolded in Alsace and Lorraine, which were important to them, where, after the successful actions of the German army, which held back and then reversed the offensive, the situation changed dramatically. The French, instead of capturing their historical territories, ceded part of their land without putting up a strong enough resistance. After the events called by historians the "Run to the Sea" and the holding by France of its most important ports, a period of trench warfare followed. The confrontation severely exhausted both sides.

Eastern front was opened by an offensive on the territory of Prussia by Russian troops on August 17, and the very next day a major victory was won over the Austro-Hungarians in the Battle of Galicia. This made it possible to withdraw the empire from the confrontation with Russia for a long time.

Serbia this year drove the Austrians out of Belgrade and firmly occupied it. Japan declared war on the Triple Alliance and launched a campaign to take control of the German island colonies. At the same time, in the Caucasus, Turkey entered the war with Russia, entering into a coalition with the Austrians and Germans. Thus, she cut off the country from the allies and involved in hostilities on the Caucasian front.

The failure of Russia in 1915

On the Russian front, the situation worsened. The army was poorly prepared for an offensive in the winter, failed it and received a counter-offensive operation from the Germans in the middle of the year. Poorly organized supply of troops led to a large-scale retreat, the Germans carried out the Gorlitsky breakthrough and, as a result, first received Galicia, and then a significant part of Polish territory. After that, the stage of trench warfare began, largely due to the same reasons as in the west.

In the same year, on May 23, Italy entered the war with Austria-Hungary, which led to the collapse of the coalition. However, Bulgaria, which took part in the confrontation on its side in the same year, not only marked the rapid formation of a new union, but also accelerated the fall of Serbia.

Key moments in 1916

During this year of the war, one of its largest battles continued - battle of verdun. Because of its scale, the nature of the collisions and the consequences, it was called the Verdun meat grinder. This is where the flamethrower was used for the first time. The losses of all troops amounted to over a million people. At the same time, the Russian army launched an offensive known as the Brusilovsky breakthrough, pulling significant German forces away from Verdun and easing the Entente's situation in the region.

The year was also marked by the largest naval battle - Jutland, after which the Entente fulfilled its main goal - to dominate the region. Some members of the enemy tried even then to agree on peace negotiations.

1917: Russia's exit from the war

1917 was rich in major events in the war. It was already obvious who would win. It is worth noting The 3 most important moments for understanding the situation:

• The United States, after waiting for time, joined the obvious winner - the Entente.
• The revolution in Russia actually brought her out of the war.
• Germany uses submarines, hoping thereby to turn the tide of battles.

1918: German capitulation

Russia's withdrawal from active hostilities made things easier for Germany, because without the Eastern Front, she could concentrate her forces on more important things. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded, parts of the Baltic region and the territory of Poland were occupied. After that, active operations began on the Western Front, which were not crowned with success for her. Other participants began to withdraw from the Quarter Union and conclude peace treaties with the enemy. In Germany, a revolution began to flare up, forcing the emperor to leave the country. The end of the active phase of hostilities can be considered the signing of the act of surrender of Germany on November 11, 1918.

If we talk about the results of the First World, then for almost all participating countries they were with a minus sign. Briefly on points:

It is worth noting that even then the prerequisites for the Second World War began to take shape. It was only a matter of time before a leader emerged who would rally the revenge-hungry inhabitants of defeated Germany.

Content:

Any war, no matter what its nature and scale, always brings tragedy with it. It is the pain of loss that does not subside with time. This is the destruction of houses, buildings and structures that are monuments of centuries-old culture. During the war, families break up, customs and foundations are broken. All the more tragic is a war involving many states, and which, in this regard, is defined as a world war. One of the saddest pages in the history of mankind was the First World War.

Main reasons

Europe on the eve of the 20th century was formed as a conglomerate of Great Britain, Russia and France. Germany remained on the sidelines. But only as long as its industry stood on solid feet, its military power strengthened. So far, she did not aspire to the role of the main force in Europe, but she began to lack markets for the sale of her products. There was a lack of space. Access to international trade routes was limited.

Over time, the highest echelons of power in Germany realized that the country lacked colonies for its development. Russia was a vast state with vast expanses. France and England did not develop without the help of the colonies. Thus Germany was the first to ripen for the necessity of repartitioning the world. But how to fight against the bloc, which included the most powerful countries: England, France and Russia?

It is clear that one cannot do it alone. And the country enters into a bloc with Austria-Hungary, Italy. Soon this block was named Central. In 1904, England and France enter into a military-political alliance and call it the Entente, which means "cordial agreement." Before that, France and Russia signed an agreement in which the countries pledged to help each other in case of military conflicts.

Therefore, the alliance between Great Britain and Russia was a matter of the near future. Soon this happened. In 1907, these countries entered into an agreement in which they defined spheres of influence in Asian territories. With this, the tension that separated the British and Russians was removed. Russia joined the Entente. Some time later, already during the hostilities, Germany's former ally Italy also gained membership in the Entente.

Thus, two powerful military blocs were formed, the confrontation of which could not but result in a military conflict. The most interesting thing is that the desire to acquire colonies and markets that the Germans dreamed of is far from the main reasons for the subsequent outbreak of world war. There were mutual claims of other countries to each other. But all of them were not so important as to unleash a global fire of war because of them.

Historians are still scratching their heads over main reason that prompted all of Europe to take up arms. Each state names its own reasons. One gets the feeling that this most important reason was not at all. Has the global slaughter of people become the reason for the ambitious mood of some politicians?

There are a number of scholars who believe that the contradictions between Germany and England gradually escalated until a military conflict arose. The rest of the countries were simply forced to fulfill their allied duty. There is also another reason. This is the definition of the path of socio-economic development of society. On the one hand, the Western European model dominated, on the other, the Central-South European one.

History, as you know, does not like subjunctive mood. And yet, more and more often the question arises - was it possible to avoid that terrible war? Of course. But only in the event that the leaders of European states, primarily the German one, would like it.

Germany felt its power and military strength. She could not wait to walk around Europe with a victorious step and stand at the head of the continent. No one then could have imagined that the war would drag on for more than 4 years, and what consequences it would lead to. Everyone saw the war fast, lightning-fast and victorious on each side.

The fact that such a position was illiterate and irresponsible in all respects is evidenced by the fact that 38 countries were involved in the military conflict, covering one and a half billion people. Wars with such a large number of participants cannot end quickly.

So, Germany was preparing for war, waiting. I needed a reason. And he did not keep himself waiting.

The war started with one shot

Gavrilo Princip was an unknown student from Serbia. But he was in the youth revolutionary organization. On June 28, 1914, the student immortalized his name with black glory. He shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. Among some historians, no, no, yes, a note of annoyance will slip through, they say, if the fatal shot had not happened, the war would not have arisen. They are wrong. There would still be a reason. Yes, and organizing it was not difficult.

Less than a month later, on July 23, the Austrian-Hungarian government issued an ultimatum to Serbia. The document contained requirements that could not be met. Serbia undertook to fulfill many points of the ultimatum. But Serbia refused to open the border for law enforcement agencies of Austria-Hungary to investigate the crime. Although there was no outright refusal, it was proposed that negotiations be held on this item.

Austria-Hungary rejected this proposal and declared war on Serbia. In less than a day, bombs rained down on Belgorod. Following on the territory of Serbia entered the Austro-Hungarian troops. Nicholas II telegraphs Wilhelm I with a request to peacefully resolve the conflict. Recommends that the dispute be brought to the Hague Conference. Germany responded with silence. On July 28, 1914, the First World War began.

Huge plans

It is clear that Germany stood behind Austria-Hungary. And her arrows were directed not towards Serbia, but towards France. After the capture of Paris, the Germans intended to invade Russia. The goal was to subjugate part of the French colonies in Africa, some provinces of Poland and the Baltic states, belonging to Russia.

Germany intended to further expand its possessions at the expense of Turkey, the countries of the Middle and Near East. Of course, the redistribution of the world was started by the leaders of the German-Austrian bloc. They are considered the main culprits of the started conflict, which escalated into the First World War. It is amazing how simple the leaders of the German General Staff, who were developing the blitzkrieg operation, imagined the victory march.

Given the impossibility of conducting a quick campaign, fighting on two fronts: with France in the west and with Russia in the east, they decided to deal with the French first. Assuming that Germany would mobilize in ten days, and Russia would need at least a month for this, they intended to deal with France in 20 days, in order to then attack Russia.

So the military leaders of the General Staff calculated that in parts they would deal with their main opponents and that same summer of 1914 they would celebrate the victory. For some reason, they decided that Great Britain, frightened by Germany's victorious march across Europe, would not get involved in the war. As for England, the calculation was simple. The country did not have strong ground forces, although it had a powerful navy.

Russia did not need additional territories. Well, the turmoil started by Germany, as it seemed then, was decided to be used to strengthen its influence on the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, subjugate Constantinople, unite the lands of Poland and become a sovereign mistress in the Balkans. By the way, these plans were part of the general plan of the Entente states.

Austria-Hungary did not want to stand aside. Her thoughts extended exclusively to the Balkan countries. Each country got involved in the war, not only fulfilling its allied duty, but also trying to grab its own part of the victory pie.

After a break, caused by waiting for an answer to the telegram, which never followed, Nicholas II announced a general mobilization. Germany issued an ultimatum demanding that the mobilization be cancelled. Here Russia has already kept silent and continued to carry out the decree of the emperor. On July 19, Germany announced the beginning of the war against Russia.

And yet on two fronts

In planning for victories and celebrating forthcoming conquests, countries were ill-prepared for war in technical terms. At this time, new, more advanced types of weapons appeared. Naturally, they could not help but influence the tactics of warfare. But this was not taken into account by the military leaders, who were accustomed to using the old, outdated methods.

An important point was the involvement of more soldiers during operations, specialists who can work on new technology. Therefore, the schemes of battles and diagrams of victories drawn at the headquarters were crossed out by the course of the war from the first days.

However, powerful armies were mobilized. The Entente troops numbered up to six million soldiers and officers, the Triple Alliance gathered three and a half million people under its banner. For the Russians, this was a big test. At this time, Russia continued military operations against the Turkish troops in the Transcaucasus.

On the Western Front, which the Germans initially considered the main one, they had to fight the French and the British. In the east, the Russian armies entered the battle. The United States refrained from military action. Only in 1917, American soldiers landed in Europe and took the side of the Entente.

The Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich became the Supreme Commander in Russia. As a result of mobilization, the Russian army grew from one and a half million people to five and a half million. 114 divisions were formed. 94 divisions came out against the Germans, Austrians and Hungarians. Germany fielded 20 of its own and 46 allied divisions against the Russians.

So the Germans began to fight against France. And they stopped almost immediately. The front, which at first arched towards the French, soon leveled off. They were assisted by the British units that arrived on the continent. The battles went on with varying success. This came as a surprise to the Germans. And Germany decides to withdraw Russia from the theater of operations.

First, fighting on two fronts was unproductive. Secondly, it was not possible to dig trenches along the entire length of the Eastern Front because of the vast distances. Well, the cessation of hostilities promised Germany the release of armies to use them against England and France.

East Prussian operation

At the request of the command of the French armed forces, two armies were hastily formed. The first was commanded by General Pavel Rennenkampf, the second - by General Alexander Samsonov. Armies were built in haste. After the mobilization was announced, almost all the military personnel who were in the reserve arrived at the recruiting stations. There was no time to sort things out, officer positions were filled quickly, non-commissioned officers had to be enrolled in the rank and file.

As historians note, at that moment both armies were the color of the Russian army. They were led by military generals, glorified in battles in the east of Russia, as well as in China. The beginning of the East Prussian operation was successful. On August 7, 1914, the 1st Army, near Gumbinen, utterly defeated the German 8th Army. The victory turned the heads of the commanders of the North-Western Front, and they ordered Rennenkampf to advance on Königsberg, then go to Berlin.

The commander of the 1st Army, following the order, was forced to remove several corps from the French direction, including three of them from the most dangerous sector. The 2nd Army of General Samsonov was under attack. Further events were disastrous for both armies. Both of them began to develop offensives, being far from each other. The warriors were tired and hungry. There was not enough bread. Communication between the armies was carried out by radiotelegraph.

The messages were sent in plain text, so the Germans knew about all the movements of military units. And then there were also messages from higher commanders that brought disorder into the deployment of armies. The Germans managed to block the army of Alexander Samsonov with the help of 13 divisions, deprive it of its advantageous strategic position. On August 10, the German army of General Hindenburg begins to surround the Russians and by August 16 drives it into swampy places.

Selected guards corps were destroyed. Communication with the army of Paul Rennenkampf was interrupted. At an extremely tense moment, the general with staff officers leaves for a dangerous facility. Realizing the hopelessness of the situation, acutely experiencing the death of his guardsmen, the illustrious general shoots himself.

Appointed instead of Samsonov as commander, General Klyuev gives the order to surrender. But not all officers followed this order. Officers who did not obey Klyuev led about 10,000 soldiers out of the swampy cauldron. It was a crushing defeat for the Russian army.

General P. Rennenkampf was blamed for the disaster of the 2nd Army. He was credited with treason, cowardice. The general was forced to leave the army. On the night of April 1, 1918, the Bolsheviks shot Pavel Rennenkapf, accusing him of betraying General Alexander Samsonov. That's really, as they say, from a sick head to a healthy one. Back in tsarist times, the general was even credited with the fact that he bore a German surname, which means he had to be a traitor.

In this operation, the Russian army lost 170,000 fighters, the Germans were missing 37,000 people. That's just the victory of the German troops in this operation was strategically equal to zero. But the destruction of the army settled in the souls of the Russians devastation, panic. The mood of patriotism has disappeared.

Yes, the East Prussian operation was a disaster for the Russian army. Only she confused the cards for the Germans. The loss of the best sons of Russia became a salvation for the French armed forces. The Germans failed to capture Paris. Subsequently, Marshal Foch of France noted that thanks to Russia, France was not wiped off the face of the earth.

The death of the Russian army forced the Germans to switch all their forces and all their attention towards the east. This, ultimately, predetermined the victory of the Entente.

Galician operation

In contrast to the northwestern theater of operations in the southwestern direction, the affairs of the Russian troops were much more successful. In the operation, later called the Galician, which began on August 5 and ended on September 8, the troops of Austria-Hungary fought against the Russian armies. Approximately two million soldiers from both sides took part in the battles. 5,000 guns fired at the enemy.

The front line stretched for four hundred kilometers. The army of General Alexei Brusilov launched an attack on the enemy on August 8. Two days later, the rest of the armies entered the battle. It took the Russian army a little more than a week to break through the enemy defenses and go deep into enemy territory up to three hundred kilometers.

The cities of Galich, Lviv, as well as the vast territory of the whole of Galicia, were captured. The Austro-Hungarian troops lost half their strength, approximately 400,000 fighters. The enemy army lost its combat capability until the very end of the war. Losses Russian formations amounted to 230,000 people.

The Galician operation affected further military operations. It was this operation that broke all the plans of the German General Staff for a lightning-fast military campaign. German hopes faded armed forces allies, in particular Austria-Hungary. The German command had to urgently redeploy military units. And in this case I had to withdraw divisions from the Western Front.

It is also important that it was at this time that Italy left its ally Germany and took the side of the Entente.

Warsaw-Ivangorod and Lodz operations

October 1914 was also marked by the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation. On the eve of October, the Russian command decided to transfer the troops stationed in Galicia to Poland in order to subsequently deliver a direct blow to Berlin. The Germans, to support the Austrians, transferred the 8th Army of General von Hindenburg to help her. The armies were given the task of entering the rear of the Northwestern Front. But first, it was necessary to attack the troops of both fronts - the North-Western and South-Western.

The Russian command sent three armies and two corps from Galicia to the Ivangorod-Warsaw line. fighting accompanied by a large number of dead and wounded. The Russians fought bravely. Heroism took on a massive character. It was here that for the first time the name of the pilot Nesterov, who committed a heroic deed in the sky, became widely known. For the first time in the history of aviation, he went to ram an enemy aircraft.

On October 26, the advance of the Austro-German forces was stopped. They were pushed back to their original positions. The troops of Austria-Hungary during the period of the operation lost up to 100,000 people killed, the Russians - 50,000 fighters.

Three days after the completion of the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation, hostilities moved to the Lodz region. The Germans set out to encircle and destroy the 2nd and 5th armies, which are part of the Northwestern Front. The German command transferred nine divisions from the Western Front. The fights were very stubborn. But for the Germans, they were unsuccessful.

The year 1914 became a strength test for the warring armies. A lot of blood was shed. The Russians lost up to two million soldiers in battles, the German-Austrian troops thinned out by 950,000 soldiers. None of the parties received a tangible advantage. Although Russia, not being ready for military action, saved Paris, forced the Germans to fight on two fronts at once.

Everyone suddenly realized that the war would be protracted, and a lot more blood would be shed. The German command began to develop an offensive plan in 1915 along the entire line of the Eastern Front. But again, a hatred mood reigned in the German General Staff. It was decided to quickly deal with Russia first, and then one by one to defeat France, then England. By the end of 1914, there was a lull on the fronts.

Calm before the storm

Throughout 1915, the belligerents were in a state of passive support of their troops in their positions. There was a preparation and redeployment of troops, the delivery of equipment, weapons. This was especially true for Russia, since by the beginning of the war the factories producing weapons and ammunition were not fully prepared. The reform in the army at that time was not yet completed. The year 1915 gave a favorable respite for this. But it was not always quiet on the fronts.

Having concentrated all forces on the Eastern Front, the Germans initially achieve success. The Russian army is forced to leave positions. This takes place in 1915. The army retreats with heavy losses. The Germans did not take into account one thing. The factor of vast territories begins to act against them.

Out on Russian land after thousands of kilometers of foot crossings with weapons and ammunition, the German soldiers were left without strength. Having won a part Russian territory they didn't win. However, it was not difficult to defeat the Russians at this moment. The army was almost without weapons and ammunition. Sometimes three ammunition made up the entire arsenal of means of one gun. But even in an almost unarmed state, Russian troops inflicted significant damage on the Germans. The highest spirit of patriotism was also not taken into account by the conquerors.

Having not achieved noticeable results in the battles with the Russians, Germany returned to the Western Front. The Germans and the French met on the battlefield near Verdun. It was more like exterminating each other. In that battle, 600 thousand soldiers fell. The French survived. Germany was unable to turn the tide of battle in its favor. But that was already in 1916. Germany became more and more bogged down in the war, dragging after itself more and more countries.

And 1916 began with the victories of the Russian armies. Turkey, which was at that time in alliance with Germany, suffered a series of defeats from the Russian troops. Having advanced deep into Turkey up to 300 kilometers, the armies of the Caucasian Front, as a result of a number of victorious operations, occupied the cities of Erzerum and Trebizond.

After the lull, the victorious march was continued by the army under the command of Alexei Brusilov.

To ease the tension on the Western Front, the Entente allies turned to Russia with a request to start hostilities. Otherwise, the French army could be destroyed. Russian military leaders considered this an adventure that could turn into a collapse. But the order came to attack the Germans.

The offensive operation was led by General Alexei Brusilov. According to the tactics developed by the general, the offensive was launched on a broad front. In this state, the enemy could not determine the direction of the main attack. For two days, on May 22 and 23, 1916, artillery salvos thundered over the German trenches. Artillery preparation gave way to a lull. As soon as the German soldiers got out of the trenches to take up positions, the shelling began again.

It took only three hours to crush the enemy's first line of defense. Several tens of thousands of soldiers and officers of the enemy were captured. The Brusilovites advanced for 17 days. But the command did not allow Brusilov to develop this offensive. The order was given to stop the offensive and go on the defensive.

It's been 7 days. And Brusilov was again given the command to go on the attack. But time has been lost. The Germans managed to pull up reserves and well prepare fortification redoubts. Brusilov's army had a hard time. Although the offensive continued, but slowly, and with losses that could not be called justified. With the onset of November, Brusilov's army completed its breakthrough.

The results of the Brusilov breakthrough are impressive. 1.5 million enemy soldiers and officers were killed, another 500 were taken prisoner. Russian troops entered Bukovina, occupied part of the territory of East Prussia. The French army was saved. The Brusilovsky breakthrough was the most notable military operation of the First World War. But Germany continued to fight.

A new commander-in-chief was appointed. The Austrians transferred 6 divisions from the south, where they opposed the Italian troops, to the Eastern Front. For the successful advance of Brusilov's army, support was needed from other fronts. She didn't follow.

Historians give this operation very great importance. They believe that it was a crushing blow to the German troops, after which the country never recovered. Its result was the practical withdrawal of Austria from the war. But General Brusilov, summing up his feat, noted that his army worked for others, and not for Russia. By this, he seemed to say that the Russian soldiers saved the allies, but did not reach the main turning point of the war. Even though there was a fracture.

The year 1916 became favorable for the troops of the Entente, in particular, for Russia. At the end of the year, the armed forces numbered 6.5 million soldiers and officers, of which 275 divisions were formed. In the theater of operations stretching from the Black to the Baltic Seas, 135 divisions participated in military operations from Russia.

But the losses of Russian military personnel were huge. During the entire period of the First World War, Russia lost seven million of its best sons and daughters. Tragedy Russian troops was particularly pronounced in 1917. Having shed a sea of ​​blood on the battlefields, and emerging victorious in many decisive battles, the country did not take advantage of the fruits of its victories.

The reason was that the Russian army was demoralized by the revolutionary forces. On the fronts, fraternization with opponents began everywhere. And the defeat began. The Germans entered Riga, captured the Moondzun archipelago, located in the Baltic.

Operations in Belorussia and Galicia ended in defeat. The country was swept by a wave of defeatism, the demands for an exit from the war sounded louder and louder. The Bolsheviks used this brilliantly. Having proclaimed the Decree on Peace, they attracted to their side a significant part of the military who were tired of the war, from the incompetent leadership of military operations by the supreme command.

The country of the Soviets came out of the First World War without hesitation, concluding the Brest Peace with Germany in the March days of 1918. On the Western Front, military operations ended with the signing of the Compiegne Armistice Treaty. This happened in November 1918. The final results of the war were formalized in 1919 at Versailles, where a peace treaty was signed. Soviet Russia was not among the participants in this agreement.

Five periods of opposition

It is customary to divide the First World War into five periods. They are correlated with the years of confrontation. The first period falls on 1914. At this time, hostilities took place on two fronts. On the Western Front, Germany was at war with France. In the East - Russia collided with Prussia. But before the Germans turned their weapons against the French, they easily occupied Luxembourg and Belgium. Only after that they began to speak out against France.

Lightning war did not work. Firstly, France turned out to be a hard nut to crack, which Germany never managed to crack. On the other hand, Russia put up a worthy resistance. The plans of the German General Staff were not given to be realized.

In 1915 fighting between France and Germany alternated with long periods of calm. The Russians had a hard time. Poor supply was the main reason for the retreat of the Russian troops. They were forced to leave Poland and Galicia. This year has become tragic for the warring parties. A lot of fighters died on both sides. This stage in the war is the second.

The third stage is marked by two big events. One of them became the most bloody. This is the battle of the Germans and the French at Verdun. Over a million soldiers and officers were killed during the battle. The second important event was the Brusilovsky breakthrough. He entered the textbooks of the military educational institutions many countries, as one of the most ingenious battles in the history of wars.

The fourth stage of the war came in 1917. The bloodless German army was no longer capable not only of conquering other countries, but also of putting up serious resistance. Therefore, the Entente dominated the battlefields. The coalition troops are being reinforced by US military units, which have also joined the military bloc of the Entente. But Russia leaves this union in connection with the revolutions, first the February, then the October.

The final, fifth period of the First World War was marked by the conclusion of peace between Germany and Russia on very difficult and extremely unfavorable conditions for the latter. The Allies leave Germany, having made peace with the Entente countries. Revolutionary moods are maturing in Germany, defeatist moods are roaming in the army. As a result, Germany was forced to surrender.

Significance of World War I

The First World War was the largest, bloodiest for many countries that took part in it in the first quarter of the 20th century. The Second World War was still far away. And Europe tried to heal the wounds. They were significant. Approximately 80 million people, including military personnel and civilians, were killed or seriously injured.

In a very short period of time in five years, four empires ceased to exist. These are Russian, Ottoman, German, Austro-Hungarian. In addition, the October Revolution took place in Russia, which firmly and for a long time divided the world into two irreconcilable camps: communist and capitalist.

There have been tangible changes in the economies of countries that are in colonial dependence. Many ties in trade between countries were destroyed. With the reduction in the flow of industrial goods from the metropolises, the colonially dependent countries were forced to organize their production. All this accelerated the process of development of national capitalism.

The war caused enormous damage to the agricultural production of the colonial countries. At the end of World War I, there was a surge of anti-war protests in the countries that participated in it. In a number of countries it developed into a revolutionary movement. Subsequently, following the example of the world's first country of socialism, parties of a communist orientation began to be created everywhere.

Following Russia, revolutions took place in Hungary and Germany. The revolution in Russia overshadowed the events of the First World War. Many heroes are forgotten, the events of those days are erased from memory. In Soviet times, there was an opinion that this war was senseless. To some extent, this may be true. But the sacrifices were not in vain. Thanks to the skillful military actions of the generals Alexei Brusilov? Pavel Rennenkampf, Alexander Samsonov, other military leaders, as well as the armies led by them, Russia defended its territories. Mistakes of military operations were adopted by the new military leaders and subsequently studied. The experience of this war helped during the Great Patriotic War survive and win.

By the way, the leaders of Russia at the present time are calling for the use of the definition “Patriotic” in relation to the First World War. There are more and more insistent calls to announce the names of all the heroes of that war, to perpetuate them in history books, in new monuments. During the First World War, Russia once again showed that it knows how to fight and defeat any enemy.

Faced with a very serious enemy, Russian army fell under the onslaught of the internal enemy. And again there were human losses. It is believed that the First World War gave rise to revolutions in Russia and in other countries. The statement is controversial, as well as the fact that another result was the Civil War, which also claimed the lives of people.

It is important to understand something else. Russia survived a terrible hurricane of wars that devastated it. Survived, revived. Of course, today it is impossible to imagine how strong the state would be if there were no multimillion-dollar losses, if not for the destruction of cities and villages, and for the devastation of the most grain-growing fields in the world.

It is unlikely that anyone in the world understands this better than the Russians. And that is why they do not want war here, in whatever form it may be presented. But if a war happens, the Russians are ready to once again show all their strength, courage and heroism.

Notable was the creation in Moscow of the Society for the Remembrance of the First World War. The collection of data on that period is already underway, the documents are being examined. The Society is an international public organization. This status will help to receive materials from other countries.

WORLD WAR I
(July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918), the first military conflict on a global scale, in which 38 of the 59 independent states that existed at that time were involved. About 73.5 million people were mobilized; 9.5 million of them were killed and died from wounds, more than 20 million were injured, 3.5 million were left crippled.
Main reasons. The search for the causes of the war leads to 1871, when the process of unification of Germany was completed and the hegemony of Prussia was consolidated in the German Empire. Under Chancellor O. von Bismarck, who sought to revive the system of alliances, the foreign policy of the German government was determined by the desire to achieve Germany's dominant position in Europe. To deprive France of the opportunity to avenge the defeat in the Franco-Prussian war, Bismarck tried to link Russia and Austria-Hungary with Germany by secret agreements (1873). However, Russia came out in support of France, and the Union of the Three Emperors fell apart. In 1882, Bismarck strengthened Germany's positions by creating the Tripartite Alliance, which united Austria-Hungary, Italy and Germany. By 1890, Germany came to the fore in European diplomacy. France emerged from diplomatic isolation in 1891-1893. Taking advantage of the cooling of relations between Russia and Germany, as well as Russia's need for new capital, she concluded a military convention and an alliance treaty with Russia. The Russian-French alliance was supposed to serve as a counterbalance to the Triple Alliance. Great Britain has so far stood aloof from rivalry on the continent, but the pressure of political and economic circumstances eventually forced her to make her choice. The British could not help but be disturbed by the nationalist sentiments that prevailed in Germany, its aggressive colonial policy, rapid industrial expansion and, mainly, the buildup of power. navy. A series of relatively quick diplomatic maneuvers led to the elimination of differences in the positions of France and Great Britain and the conclusion in 1904 of the so-called. " cordial consent"(Entente Cordiale). Obstacles to Anglo-Russian cooperation were overcome, and in 1907 an Anglo-Russian agreement was concluded. Russia became a member of the Entente. Great Britain, France and Russia formed a Triple Entente alliance as opposed to the Triple Alliance. Thus, the division of Europe into two armed camps took shape.One of the causes of the war was the widespread strengthening of nationalist sentiments.Formulating their interests, the ruling circles of each of European countries sought to present them as popular aspirations. France hatched plans for the return of the lost territories of Alsace and Lorraine. Italy, even being in alliance with Austria-Hungary, dreamed of returning their lands to Trentino, Trieste and Fiume. The Poles saw in the war an opportunity to recreate the state destroyed by the divisions of the 18th century. Many peoples who inhabited Austria-Hungary aspired to national independence. Russia was convinced that it could not develop without limiting German competition, protecting the Slavs from Austria-Hungary and expanding influence in the Balkans. In Berlin, the future was associated with the defeat of France and Great Britain and the unification of the countries of Central Europe under the leadership of Germany. In London, it was believed that the people of Great Britain would live in peace only by crushing the main enemy - Germany. Tension in international relations was intensified by a series of diplomatic crises - the Franco-German clash in Morocco in 1905-1906; the Austrian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908-1909; finally, the Balkan wars of 1912-1913. Great Britain and France supported Italy's interests in North Africa and thereby weakened her commitment to the Triple Alliance so much that Germany could hardly count on Italy as an ally in a future war.
July crisis and the beginning of the war. After the Balkan Wars, active nationalist propaganda was launched against the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. A group of Serbs, members of the conspiratorial organization "Young Bosnia", decided to kill the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The opportunity for this presented itself when he and his wife went to Bosnia for the teachings of the Austro-Hungarian troops. Franz Ferdinand was killed in the city of Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip on June 28, 1914. Intending to start a war against Serbia, Austria-Hungary enlisted the support of Germany. The latter believed that the war would take on a local character if Russia did not defend Serbia. But if she helps Serbia, then Germany will be ready to fulfill its treaty obligations and support Austria-Hungary. In an ultimatum presented to Serbia on July 23, Austria-Hungary demanded that its military formations be allowed into Serbian territory in order to prevent hostile actions together with Serbian forces. The answer to the ultimatum was given within the agreed 48-hour period, but it did not satisfy Austria-Hungary, and on July 28 it declared war on Serbia. SD Sazonov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, openly spoke out against Austria-Hungary, having received assurances of support from French President R. Poincaré. On July 30, Russia announced a general mobilization; Germany used this occasion to declare war on Russia on August 1, and on France on August 3. Britain's position remained uncertain due to its treaty obligations to protect Belgium's neutrality. In 1839, and then during the Franco-Prussian War, Great Britain, Prussia and France provided this country with collective guarantees of neutrality. After the Germans invaded Belgium on August 4, Great Britain declared war on Germany. Now all the great powers of Europe were drawn into the war. Together with them, their dominions and colonies were involved in the war. The war can be divided into three periods. During the first period (1914-1916), the Central Powers achieved superiority on land, while the Allies dominated the sea. The situation seemed to be a stalemate. This period ended with negotiations on a mutually acceptable peace, but each side still hoped for victory. In the next period (1917), two events occurred that led to an imbalance of power: the first was the entry into the war of the United States on the side of the Entente, the second was the revolution in Russia and its exit from the war. The third period (1918) began with the last major advance of the Central Powers in the west. The failure of this offensive was followed by revolutions in Austria-Hungary and Germany and the surrender of the Central Powers.
First period. Allied forces initially included Russia, France, Great Britain, Serbia, Montenegro and Belgium and enjoyed overwhelming naval superiority. The Entente had 316 cruisers, while the Germans and Austrians had 62. But the latter found powerful remedy countermeasures - submarines. By the beginning of the war, the armies of the Central Powers numbered 6.1 million people; Entente army - 10.1 million people. The Central Powers had an advantage in internal communications, which allowed them to quickly transfer troops and equipment from one front to another. In the long term, the Entente countries had superior resources of raw materials and food, especially since the British fleet paralyzed Germany's ties with overseas countries, from where before the war German enterprises received copper, tin and nickel. Thus, in the event of a protracted war, the Entente could count on victory. Germany, knowing this, relied on a lightning war - "blitzkrieg". The Germans put into action the Schlieffen plan, which was supposed to ensure a rapid success in the West with a large offensive against France through Belgium. After the defeat of France, Germany hoped, together with Austria-Hungary, by transferring the liberated troops, to strike a decisive blow in the East. But this plan was not carried out. One of the main reasons for his failure was the sending of part of the German divisions to Lorraine in order to block the enemy's invasion of southern Germany. On the night of August 4, the Germans invaded Belgian territory. It took them several days to break the resistance of the defenders of the fortified areas of Namur and Liège, which blocked the path to Brussels, but thanks to this delay, the British transported almost 90,000 expeditionary force across the English Channel to France (August 9-17). The French, on the other hand, gained time to form 5 armies that held back the German advance. Nevertheless, on August 20, the German army occupied Brussels, then forced the British to leave Mons (August 23), and on September 3, the army of General A. von Kluk was 40 km from Paris. Continuing the offensive, the Germans crossed the Marne River and on September 5 stopped along the Paris-Verdun line. The commander of the French forces, General J. Joffre, having formed two new armies from the reserves, decided to go on the counteroffensive. The first battle on the Marne began on 5 and ended on 12 September. It was attended by 6 Anglo-French and 5 German armies. The Germans were defeated. One of the reasons for their defeat was the absence of several divisions on the right flank, which had to be transferred to the eastern front. The French advance on the weakened right flank made it inevitable that the German armies would retreat northward to the line of the Aisne River. The battles in Flanders on the rivers Yser and Ypres on October 15 - November 20 were also unsuccessful for the Germans. As a result, the main ports on the English Channel remained in the hands of the Allies, which ensured communication between France and England. Paris was saved and the Entente countries got time to mobilize resources. The war in the west took on a positional character; Germany's hopes of defeating and withdrawing France from the war turned out to be untenable. The opposition followed a line running south from Newport and Ypres in Belgium to Compiègne and Soissons, then east around Verdun and south to the salient near Saint-Miyel, and then southeast to the Swiss frontier. Along this line of trenches and barbed wire, approx. 970 km trench war was fought for four years. Until March 1918, any, even minor changes in the front line were achieved at the cost of huge losses on both sides. Hopes remained that on the Eastern Front the Russians would be able to crush the armies of the Central Powers bloc. On August 17, Russian troops entered East Prussia and began to push the Germans to Koenigsberg. The German generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff were entrusted with directing the counteroffensive. Taking advantage of the mistakes of the Russian command, the Germans managed to drive a "wedge" between the two Russian armies, defeat them on August 26-30 near Tannenberg and force them out of East Prussia. Austria-Hungary did not act so successfully, abandoning the intention to quickly defeat Serbia and concentrating large forces between the Vistula and the Dniester. But the Russians launched an offensive in a southerly direction, broke through the defenses of the Austro-Hungarian troops and, having captured several thousand people, occupied the Austrian province of Galicia and part of Poland. The advance of the Russian troops posed a threat to Silesia and Poznan, important industrial regions for Germany. Germany was forced to transfer additional forces from France. But an acute shortage of ammunition and food stopped the advance of the Russian troops. The offensive cost Russia huge losses, but undermined the power of Austria-Hungary and forced Germany to keep significant forces on the Eastern Front. As early as August 1914, Japan declared war on Germany. In October 1914, Turkey entered the war on the side of the bloc of the Central Powers. With the outbreak of war, Italy, a member of the Triple Alliance, declared its neutrality on the grounds that neither Germany nor Austria-Hungary had been attacked. But at the secret London talks in March-May 1915, the Entente countries promised to satisfy the territorial claims of Italy in the course of the post-war peace settlement if Italy came out on their side. On May 23, 1915, Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, and on August 28, 1916, on Germany. On the western front, the British were defeated in the second battle of Ypres. Here, during the battles that lasted for a month (April 22 - May 25, 1915), chemical weapons were used for the first time. After that, poison gases (chlorine, phosgene, and later mustard gas) began to be used by both warring parties. The large-scale Dardanelles landing operation, a naval expedition that the Entente countries equipped in early 1915 with the aim of taking Constantinople, opening the Dardanelles and Bosporus for communication with Russia through the Black Sea, withdrawing Turkey from the war and attracting the allies to the side of the Allies, also ended in defeat. Balkan states. On the Eastern Front, towards the end of 1915, German and Austro-Hungarian troops ousted the Russians from almost all of Galicia and from most of the territory of Russian Poland. But it was not possible to force Russia to a separate peace. In October 1915 Bulgaria declared war on Serbia, after which the Central Powers, together with a new Balkan ally, crossed the borders of Serbia, Montenegro and Albania. Having captured Romania and covered the Balkan flank, they turned against Italy.

War at sea. Control of the sea allowed the British to freely move troops and equipment from all parts of their empire to France. They kept sea lanes open for US merchant ships. The German colonies were captured, and the trade of the Germans through the sea routes was suppressed. In general, the German fleet - except for the submarine - was blocked in their ports. Only occasionally did small fleets come out to attack British seaside towns and attack Allied merchant ships. During the entire war there was only one major naval battle- when the German fleet entered the North Sea and unexpectedly met with the British near the Danish coast of Jutland. The Battle of Jutland May 31 - June 1, 1916 led to heavy losses on both sides: the British lost 14 ships, approx. 6,800 killed, captured and wounded; Germans who considered themselves winners - 11 ships and approx. 3100 people killed and wounded. Nevertheless, the British forced the German fleet to withdraw to Kiel, where it was effectively blockaded. The German fleet no longer appeared on the high seas, and Great Britain remained the mistress of the seas. Having occupied a dominant position at sea, the Allies gradually cut off the Central Powers from overseas sources of raw materials and food. According to international law, neutral countries, such as the United States, could sell goods that were not considered "military contraband" to other neutral countries - the Netherlands or Denmark, from where these goods could be delivered to Germany. However, the warring countries usually did not bind themselves to the observance of international law, and Great Britain so expanded the list of goods considered contraband that in fact nothing passed through its barriers in the North Sea. The naval blockade forced Germany to resort to drastic measures. Her only effective tool a submarine fleet remained at sea, capable of freely bypassing surface barriers and sinking merchant ships of neutral countries that supplied the allies. It was the turn of the Entente countries to accuse the Germans of violating international law, which obliged them to save the crews and passengers of torpedoed ships. On February 18, 1915, the German government declared the waters around the British Isles a military zone and warned of the danger of ships from neutral countries entering them. On May 7, 1915, a German submarine torpedoed and sank the ocean-going steamship Lusitania with hundreds of passengers on board, including 115 US citizens. President Wilson protested, the US and Germany exchanged sharp diplomatic notes.
Verdun and the Somme. Germany was ready to make some concessions at sea and seek a way out of the deadlock in action on land. In April 1916, British troops had already suffered a serious defeat at Kut-el-Amar in Mesopotamia, where 13,000 people surrendered to the Turks. On the continent, Germany was preparing for a large-scale offensive operation on the Western Front, which was supposed to turn the tide of the war and force France to ask for peace. The key point of the French defense was the ancient fortress of Verdun. After an artillery bombardment of unprecedented power, 12 German divisions went on the offensive on February 21, 1916. The Germans slowly advanced until the beginning of July, but they did not achieve their intended goals. The Verdun "meat grinder" clearly did not justify the calculations of the German command. Operations on the Eastern and Southwestern Fronts were of great importance during the spring and summer of 1916. In March, at the request of the Allies, Russian troops carried out an operation near Lake Naroch, which significantly influenced the course of hostilities in France. The German command was forced to stop attacks on Verdun for some time and, holding 0.5 million people on the Eastern Front, transfer an additional part of the reserves here. At the end of May 1916, the Russian High Command launched an offensive on the Southwestern Front. During the fighting under the command of A.A. Brusilov, it was possible to carry out a breakthrough of the Austro-German troops to a depth of 80-120 km. Brusilov's troops occupied part of Galicia and Bukovina, entered the Carpathians. For the first time in the entire previous period of trench warfare, the front was broken through. If this offensive had been supported by other fronts, it would have ended in disaster for the Central Powers. To relieve pressure on Verdun, on July 1, 1916, the Allies launched a counterattack on the Somme River, near Bapaume. For four months - until November - there were incessant attacks. Anglo-French troops, having lost approx. 800 thousand people were never able to break through the German front. Finally, in December, the German command decided to stop the offensive, which cost the lives of 300,000 German soldiers. The 1916 campaign claimed more than 1 million lives, but did not bring tangible results to either side.
Basis for peace negotiations. At the beginning of the 20th century completely changed the way of warfare. The length of the fronts increased significantly, the armies fought on fortified lines and attacked from the trenches, machine guns and artillery began to play a huge role in offensive battles. New types of weapons were used: tanks, fighters and bombers, submarines, asphyxiating gases, hand grenades. Every tenth inhabitant of the warring country was mobilized, and 10% of the population was engaged in supplying the army. In the warring countries, there was almost no room for ordinary civilian life: everything was subordinated to the titanic efforts aimed at maintaining the military machine. The total cost of the war, including property losses, according to various estimates, ranged from 208 to 359 billion dollars. By the end of 1916, both sides were tired of the war, and it seemed that the right moment had come to start peace negotiations.
Second period.
On December 12, 1916, the Central Powers asked the United States to send a note to the Allies with a proposal to start peace negotiations. The Entente rejected this proposal, suspecting that it was made to break up the coalition. In addition, she did not want to talk about a world that would not provide for the payment of reparations and the recognition of the right of nations to self-determination. President Wilson decided to initiate peace negotiations and December 18, 1916 turned to the warring countries with a request to determine mutually acceptable peace terms. As early as December 12, 1916, Germany proposed to convene a peace conference. The civil authorities of Germany were clearly striving for peace, but they were opposed by the generals, especially General Ludendorff, who was confident of victory. The Allies specified their terms: the restoration of Belgium, Serbia and Montenegro; withdrawal of troops from France, Russia and Romania; reparations; the return of Alsace and Lorraine to France; liberation of subject peoples, including Italians, Poles, Czechs, elimination of the Turkish presence in Europe. The Allies did not trust Germany and therefore did not take seriously the idea of ​​peace negotiations. Germany intended to take part in a peace conference in December 1916, relying on the benefits of her martial law. The case ended with the Allies signing secret agreements designed to defeat the Central Powers. Under these agreements, Great Britain laid claim to the German colonies and part of Persia; France was to receive Alsace and Lorraine, as well as establish control on the left bank of the Rhine; Russia acquired Constantinople; Italy - Trieste, Austrian Tyrol, most of Albania; Turkey's possessions were to be divided among all the allies.
US entry into the war. At the beginning of the war, public opinion in the United States was divided: some openly sided with the Allies; others - like the Irish-Americans who were hostile to England, and the German-Americans - supported Germany. Over time, government officials and ordinary citizens leaned more and more on the side of the Entente. This was facilitated by several factors, and above all the propaganda of the Entente countries and the German submarine war. On January 22, 1917, President Wilson presented in the Senate terms of peace acceptable to the United States. The main one was reduced to the demand for "peace without victory", i.e. without annexations and indemnities; others included the principles of the equality of peoples, the right of nations to self-determination and representation, freedom of the seas and trade, the reduction of armaments, the rejection of the system of rival alliances. If peace is made on the basis of these principles, Wilson argued, then a world organization of states can be created that guarantees security for all peoples. On January 31, 1917, the German government announced the resumption of unlimited submarine warfare in order to disrupt enemy communications. Submarines blocked the supply lines of the Entente and put the allies in an extremely difficult position. There was growing hostility towards Germany among Americans, as the blockade of Europe from the west boded ill for the United States. In the event of a victory, Germany could establish control over everything Atlantic Ocean. Along with the noted circumstances, other motives also pushed the United States to the war on the side of the allies. The economic interests of the United States were directly connected with the countries of the Entente, since military orders led to the rapid growth of American industry. In 1916, the warlike spirit was spurred on by plans to develop combat training programs. The anti-German sentiments of the North Americans increased even more after the publication on March 1, 1917 of Zimmermann's secret dispatch of January 16, 1917, which was intercepted by British intelligence and handed over to Wilson. German Foreign Minister A. Zimmerman offered Mexico the states of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona if it would support Germany's actions in response to the US entry into the war on the side of the Entente. By the beginning of April, anti-German sentiment in the United States reached such a pitch that on April 6, 1917, Congress voted to declare war on Germany.
Russia's exit from the war. In February 1917, a revolution took place in Russia. Tsar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate. The provisional government (March - November 1917) could no longer conduct active military operations on the fronts, since the population was extremely tired of the war. On December 15, 1917, the Bolsheviks, who took power in November 1917, signed an armistice agreement with the Central Powers at the cost of huge concessions. Three months later, on March 3, 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded. Russia gave up its rights to Poland, Estonia, Ukraine, part of Belarus, Latvia, Transcaucasia and Finland. Ardagan, Kars and Batum went to Turkey; huge concessions were made to Germany and Austria. In total, Russia lost approx. 1 million sq. km. She was also obliged to pay Germany an indemnity in the amount of 6 billion marks.
Third period.
The Germans had good reason to be optimistic. The German leadership used the weakening of Russia, and then her withdrawal from the war, to replenish resources. Now it could transfer the eastern army to the west and concentrate troops on the main directions of the offensive. The allies, not knowing where the blow would come from, were forced to strengthen their positions along the entire front. American help was late. In France and Great Britain, defeatism grew with threatening force. On October 24, 1917, Austro-Hungarian troops broke through the Italian front near Caporetto and defeated the Italian army.
German offensive 1918. On a foggy morning on March 21, 1918, the Germans launched a massive attack on the British positions near Saint-Quentin. The British were forced to retreat almost to Amiens, and its loss threatened to break the united Anglo-French front. The fate of Calais and Boulogne hung in the balance. On May 27, the Germans launched a powerful offensive against the French in the south, pushing them back to Château-Thierry. The situation of 1914 was repeated: the Germans reached the Marne River, just 60 km from Paris. However, the offensive cost Germany heavy losses - both human and material. The German troops were exhausted, their supply system was shattered. The Allies were able to neutralize the German submarines by creating convoy and anti-submarine defense systems. At the same time, the blockade of the Central Powers was carried out so effectively that food shortages began to be felt in Austria and Germany. Soon long-awaited American aid began to arrive in France. The ports from Bordeaux to Brest were filled with American troops. By the beginning of the summer of 1918, about 1 million American soldiers had landed in France. On July 15, 1918, the Germans made their last attempt to break through at Château-Thierry. A second decisive battle unfolded on the Marne. In the event of a breakthrough, the French would have to leave Reims, which, in turn, could lead to the retreat of the allies along the entire front. In the first hours of the offensive, the German troops advanced, but not as fast as expected.
The last offensive of the allies. On July 18, 1918, a counterattack by American and French troops began to relieve pressure on Château-Thierry. At first they advanced with difficulty, but on August 2 they took Soissons. In the battle of Amiens on August 8, the German troops suffered a heavy defeat, and this undermined their morale. Earlier, German Chancellor Prince von Gertling believed that the Allies would sue for peace by September. “We hoped to take Paris by the end of July,” he recalled. “So we thought on the fifteenth of July. And on the eighteenth, even the most optimistic among us realized that everything was lost.” Some military men convinced Kaiser Wilhelm II that the war was lost, but Ludendorff refused to admit defeat. The Allied advance began on other fronts as well. On June 20-26, the Austro-Hungarian troops were driven back across the Piave River, their losses amounted to 150 thousand people. Ethnic unrest flared up in Austria-Hungary - not without the influence of the Allies, who encouraged the defection of Poles, Czechs and South Slavs. The Central Powers mustered the last of their forces to contain the expected invasion of Hungary. The way to Germany was open. Tanks and massive artillery shelling became important factors in the offensive. In early August 1918, attacks on key German positions intensified. In his Memoirs, Ludendorff called August 8 - the beginning of the battle of Amiens - "a black day for the German army." The German front was torn apart: entire divisions surrendered almost without a fight. By the end of September, even Ludendorff was ready to surrender. After the September offensive of the Entente on the Solonik front, Bulgaria signed a truce on September 29. A month later, Turkey capitulated, and on November 3, Austria-Hungary. For peace negotiations in Germany, a moderate government was formed, headed by Prince Max of Baden, who already on October 5, 1918, invited President Wilson to begin the negotiation process. In the last week of October, the Italian army launched a general offensive against Austria-Hungary. By October 30, the resistance of the Austrian troops was broken. The Italian cavalry and armored vehicles made a swift raid behind enemy lines and captured the Austrian headquarters in Vittorio Veneto, the city that gave the battle its name. On October 27, Emperor Charles I issued an appeal for a truce, and on October 29, 1918, he agreed to a peace on any terms.
Revolution in Germany. On October 29, the Kaiser secretly left Berlin and headed for General base feeling safe only under the protection of the army. On the same day, in the port of Kiel, a team of two warships broke out of obedience and refused to go to sea on a combat mission. By November 4, Kiel came under the control of the rebellious sailors. 40,000 armed men intended to establish councils of soldiers' and sailors' deputies on the Russian model in northern Germany. By November 6, the rebels took power in Lübeck, Hamburg and Bremen. Meanwhile, the Supreme Allied Commander, General Foch, announced that he was ready to receive representatives of the German government and discuss with them the terms of a truce. The Kaiser was informed that the army was no longer under his command. On November 9, he abdicated and a republic was proclaimed. The next day, the German emperor fled to the Netherlands, where he lived in exile until his death (d. 1941). On November 11, at the Retonde station in the Compiègne forest (France), the German delegation signed the Compiègne truce. The Germans were ordered to liberate the occupied territories within two weeks, including Alsace and Lorraine, the left bank of the Rhine and the bridgeheads in Mainz, Koblenz and Cologne; establish a neutral zone on the right bank of the Rhine; transfer to the allies 5,000 heavy and field guns, 25,000 machine guns, 1,700 aircraft, 5,000 steam locomotives, 150,000 railway wagons, 5,000 vehicles; immediately release all prisoners. Naval Forces were to surrender all submarines and almost the entire surface fleet and return all Allied merchant ships captured by Germany. The political provisions of the treaty provided for the denunciation of the Brest-Litovsk and Bucharest peace treaties; financial - the payment of reparations for the destruction and the return of valuables. The Germans tried to negotiate a truce based on Wilson's Fourteen Points, which they believed could serve as a provisional basis for a "peace without victory." The terms of the armistice demanded almost unconditional surrender. The Allies dictated their terms to a bloodless Germany.
The conclusion of the world. A peace conference was held in 1919 in Paris; during the sessions, agreements on five peace treaties were determined. After its completion, the following were signed: 1) the Treaty of Versailles with Germany on June 28, 1919; 2) Saint-Germain peace treaty with Austria on September 10, 1919; 3) Neuilly peace treaty with Bulgaria November 27, 1919; 4) Trianon peace treaty with Hungary on June 4, 1920; 5) Sevres peace treaty with Turkey on August 20, 1920. Subsequently, according to the Lausanne Treaty on July 24, 1923, amendments were made to the Sevres Treaty. At the peace conference in Paris, 32 states were represented. Each delegation had its own staff of specialists who provided information on the geographical, historical and economic situation of those countries on which decisions were made. After Orlando left the internal council, dissatisfied with the solution of the problem of territories in the Adriatic, the "big three" - Wilson, Clemenceau and Lloyd George - became the main architect of the post-war world. Wilson compromised on several important points in order to achieve the main goal - the creation of the League of Nations. He agreed with the disarmament of only the Central Powers, although he initially insisted on general disarmament. The size of the German army was limited and was supposed to be no more than 115,000 people; universal military service was abolished; the German armed forces were to be recruited from volunteers with a service life of 12 years for soldiers and up to 45 years for officers. Germany was forbidden to have combat aircraft and submarines. Similar conditions were contained in the peace treaties signed with Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria. Between Clemenceau and Wilson unfolded a fierce discussion on the status of the left bank of the Rhine. The French, for security reasons, intended to annex the area with its powerful coal mines and industry and create an autonomous Rhineland. France's plan ran counter to the proposals of Wilson, who opposed annexations and advocated the self-determination of nations. A compromise was reached after Wilson agreed to sign free military treaties with France and Great Britain, under which the United States and Great Britain pledged to support France in the event of a German attack. The following decision was made: the left bank of the Rhine and the 50-kilometer strip on the right bank are demilitarized, but remain part of Germany and under its sovereignty. The Allies occupied a number of points in this zone for a period of 15 years. Coal deposits, known as the Saar basin, also passed into the possession of France for 15 years; the Saarland itself came under the control of the Commission of the League of Nations. After a 15-year period, a plebiscite was envisaged on the question of the state ownership of this territory. Italy got Trentino, Trieste and most of Istria, but not the island of Fiume. Nevertheless, Italian extremists captured Fiume. Italy and the newly created state of Yugoslavia were given the right to decide for themselves the issue of disputed territories. Under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany lost its colonial possessions. Great Britain acquired German East Africa and the western part of German Cameroon and Togo, the British dominions - the Union of South Africa, Australia and New Zealand - were transferred to South-West Africa, the north-eastern regions of New Guinea with the adjacent archipelago and the Samoa Islands. France got most of the German Togo and the eastern part of Cameroon. Japan received the German-owned Marshall, Mariana and Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean and the port of Qingdao in China. Secret treaties among the victorious powers also assumed the division of the Ottoman Empire, but after the uprising of the Turks, led by Mustafa Kemal, the allies agreed to revise their demands. The new Treaty of Lausanne canceled the Treaty of Sevres and allowed Turkey to retain Eastern Thrace. Turkey took back Armenia. Syria passed to France; Great Britain received Mesopotamia, Transjordan and Palestine; the Dodecanese islands in the Aegean were ceded to Italy; the Arab territory of the Hijaz on the Red Sea coast was to gain independence. Violations of the principle of self-determination of nations caused Wilson's disagreement, in particular, he sharply protested against the transfer of the Chinese port of Qingdao to Japan. Japan agreed to return this territory to China in the future and fulfilled its promise. Wilson's advisers suggested that, instead of actually handing over the colonies to new owners, they should be allowed to administer as Trustees of the League of Nations. Such territories were called "mandatory". Although Lloyd George and Wilson opposed penalties for damages, the fight over the issue ended in victory for the French side. Reparations were imposed on Germany; the question of what should be included in the list of destruction presented for payment was also subjected to lengthy discussion. At first, the exact amount did not figure, only in 1921 was its size determined - 152 billion marks (33 billion dollars); later this amount was reduced. The principle of self-determination of nations has become a key one for many peoples represented at the peace conference. Poland was restored. The task of defining its boundaries proved to be difficult; of particular importance was the transfer to her of the so-called. "Polish corridor", which gave the country access to Baltic Sea separating East Prussia from the rest of Germany. New independent states arose in the Baltic region: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland. By the time the conference was convened, the Austro-Hungarian monarchy had already ceased to exist, in its place were Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Romania; the borders between these states were disputed. The problem turned out to be difficult due to mixed settlement different peoples. When establishing the borders of the Czech state, the interests of the Slovaks were hurt. Romania doubled its territory with Transylvania, Bulgarian and Hungarian lands. Yugoslavia was created from the old kingdoms of Serbia and Montenegro, parts of Bulgaria and Croatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina and Banat as part of Timisoara. Austria remained a small state with a population of 6.5 million Austrian Germans, a third of whom lived in impoverished Vienna. The population of Hungary has greatly decreased and is now approx. 8 million people. At the Paris Conference, an exceptionally stubborn struggle was waged around the idea of ​​creating a League of Nations. According to the plans of Wilson, General J. Smuts, Lord R. Cecil and their other associates, the League of Nations was to become a guarantee of security for all peoples. Finally, the League's charter was adopted, and after lengthy debate, four working groups were formed: the Assembly, the Council of the League of Nations, the Secretariat and the Permanent Court of International Justice. The League of Nations established mechanisms that could be used by its member states to prevent war. Within its framework, various commissions were also formed to solve other problems.
See also LEAGUE OF NATIONS. The League of Nations Agreement represented that part of the Treaty of Versailles that Germany was also asked to sign. But the German delegation refused to sign it on the grounds that the agreement was not in line with Wilson's Fourteen Points. In the end, the German National Assembly recognized the treaty on June 23, 1919. The dramatic signing took place five days later at the Palace of Versailles, where in 1871 Bismarck, ecstatic with victory in the Franco-Prussian War, proclaimed the creation of the German Empire.
LITERATURE
History of the First World War, in 2 vols. M., 1975 Ignatiev A.V. Russia in the imperialist wars of the early 20th century. Russia, the USSR and international conflicts in the first half of the 20th century. M., 1989 On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the start of the First World War. M., 1990 Pisarev Yu.A. Secrets of the First World War. Russia and Serbia in 1914-1915. M., 1990 Kudrina Yu.V. Returning to the origins of the First World War. Pathways to safety. M., 1994 The First World War: debatable problems of history. M., 1994 World War I: pages of history. Chernivtsi, 1994 Bobyshev S.V., Seregin S.V. The First World War and the prospects for the social development of Russia. Komsomolsk-on-Amur, 1995 World War I: Prologue of the 20th century. M., 1998
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