The First World War is a war between two coalitions of powers: Central Powers, or Quadruple union(Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria) and Entente(Russia, France, Great Britain).

A number of other states supported the Entente in the First World War (that is, they were its allies). This war lasted for about 4 years (officially from July 28, 1914 to November 11, 1918). It was the first military conflict on a global scale, in which 38 of the 59 independent states that existed at that time were involved.

During the war, the composition of coalitions changed.

Europe in 1914

Entente

british empire

France

Russian empire

In addition to these main countries, more than twenty states grouped on the side of the Entente, and the term "Entente" began to be used to refer to the entire anti-German coalition. Thus, the anti-German coalition included the following countries: Andorra, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Italy (since May 23, 1915), Japan, Liberia, Montenegro , Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Siam, USA, Uruguay.

Cavalry of the Russian Imperial Guard

Central Powers

German Empire

Austria-Hungary

Ottoman Empire

Bulgarian kingdom(since 1915)

The predecessor of this block was Triple Alliance, formed in 1879-1882 as a result of agreements concluded between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. Under the treaty, these countries were obliged to provide each other with support in case of war, mainly with France. But Italy began to draw closer to France and at the beginning of the First World War declared its neutrality, and in 1915 withdrew from the Triple Alliance and entered the war on the side of the Entente.

Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined Germany and Austria-Hungary already during the war. The Ottoman Empire entered the war in October 1914, Bulgaria - in October 1915.

Some countries participated in the war in part, others entered the war already in its final phase. Let's talk about some features of the participation in the war of individual countries.

Albania

As soon as the war began, the Albanian prince Wilhelm Vid, a German by birth, fled the country to Germany. Albania took neutrality, but was occupied by the Entente troops (Italy, Serbia, Montenegro). However, by January 1916, most of it (Northern and Central) was occupied by Austro-Hungarian troops. In the occupied territories, with the support of the occupying authorities, the Albanian Legion was created from the Albanian volunteers - a military formation consisting of nine infantry battalions and numbering up to 6,000 fighters in its ranks.

Azerbaijan

On May 28, 1918, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was proclaimed. Soon, she concluded an agreement “On Peace and Friendship” with the Ottoman Empire, according to which the latter was obliged to “ provide assistance by armed force to the government of the Republic of Azerbaijan, if such is required to ensure order and security in the country". And when the armed formations of the Baku Council of People's Commissars launched an attack on Elizavetpol, this became the basis for the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic to apply for military assistance to the Ottoman Empire. As a result, the Bolshevik troops were defeated. On September 15, 1918, the Turkish-Azerbaijani army occupied Baku.

M. Dimer "The First World War. Air battle"

Arabia

By the beginning of the First World War, she was the main ally of the Ottoman Empire in the Arabian Peninsula.

Libya

The Muslim Sufi religious and political order of Senusia began to conduct military operations against the Italian colonialists in Libya as early as 1911. Senusia- a Muslim Sufi religious and political order (brotherhood) in Libya and Sudan, founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Great Senussi, Muhammad ibn Ali as-Senussi, and aimed at overcoming the decline of Islamic thought and spirituality and the weakening of Muslim political unity). By 1914, the Italians controlled only the coast. With the outbreak of World War I, the Senusites received new allies in the fight against the colonialists - the Ottoman and German empires, with their help, by the end of 1916, Senusia drove the Italians out of most of Libya. In December 1915, Senusite detachments invaded British Egypt, where they suffered a crushing defeat.

Poland

With the outbreak of the First World War, the Polish nationalist circles of Austria-Hungary put forward the idea of ​​creating the Polish Legion in order to get the support of the Central Powers and with their help partially solve the Polish question. As a result, two legions were formed - Eastern (Lviv) and Western (Krakow). The Eastern Legion, after the occupation of Galicia by Russian troops on September 21, 1914, dissolved itself, and the Western Legion was divided into three brigades of legionnaires (each of 5-6 thousand people) and continued to participate in hostilities in this form until 1918.

By August 1915, the Germans and Austro-Hungarians occupied the territory of the entire Kingdom of Poland, and on November 5, 1916, the occupation authorities promulgated the "Act of the Two Emperors", proclaiming the creation of the Kingdom of Poland - an independent state with a hereditary monarchy and a constitutional system, the boundaries of which are precisely defined were not.

Sudan

By the beginning of the First World War, the Darfur Sultanate was under the protectorate of Great Britain, but the British refused to help Darfur, not wanting to spoil their relations with their Entente ally. As a result, on April 14, 1915, the Sultan officially declared the independence of Darfur. The Darfur sultan hoped to receive the support of the Ottoman Empire and the Sufi order of Senusia, with whom the sultanate had established a strong alliance. A two thousandth Anglo-Egyptian corps invaded Darfur, the army of the sultanate suffered a series of defeats, and in January 1917 the accession of the Darfur Sultanate to Sudan was officially announced.

Russian artillery

Neutral countries

The following countries maintained full or partial neutrality: Albania, Afghanistan, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg (it did not declare war on the Central Powers, although it was occupied by German troops), Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Paraguay, Persia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tibet, Venezuela, Italy (August 3, 1914 - May 23, 1915)

As a result of the war

As a result of the First World War, the block of the Central Powers ceased to exist with the defeat in the First World War in the autumn of 1918. At the signing of the armistice, they all unconditionally accepted the terms of the winners. Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire disintegrated as a result of the war; the states created on the territory of the Russian Empire were forced to seek the support of the Entente. Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland retained their independence, the rest were again annexed to Russia (directly to the RSFSR or entered the Soviet Union).

World War I- one of the largest armed conflicts in the history of mankind. As a result of the war, four empires ceased to exist: Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and German. The participating countries lost about 12 million people killed (including civilians), about 55 million were injured.

F. Roubaud "The First World War. 1915"

Dated August 1, 1914. The main reasons for the beginning of this bloody action can be called political and economic conflicts between the states that were part of two military-political blocs: the Triple Alliance, which consisted of Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary, and the Entente, which included Russia, France and Great Britain.

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Tip 2: Why Germany failed to implement the Schlieffen Plan

Schlieffen's strategic plan, which assumed a quick victory for Germany in the First World War, was not implemented. But he still continues to excite the minds of military historians, because this plan was unusually risky and interesting.

Most military historians are inclined to think that if the plan of the Chief of the German General Staff Alfred von Schlieffen had been implemented, the First World War could have gone completely to the scenario. But back in 1906, the German strategist was removed from his post and his followers were afraid to implement Schlieffen's idea.

Lightning war plan

At the beginning of the last century, Germany began planning for a major war. This was due to the fact that France, defeated several decades earlier, was clearly hatching plans for military revenge. The German leadership was not particularly afraid of the French threat. But in the east, Russia, which was an ally of the Third Republic, was gaining economic and military power. For Germany, there was a real danger of a war on two fronts. Well aware of this, Kaiser Wilhelm ordered von Schlieffen to develop a plan for a victorious war under these conditions.

And Schlieffen, in a fairly short time, created such a plan. According to his idea, Germany was to start the first war against France, concentrating 90% of all its armed forces in this direction. Moreover, this war was supposed to be lightning fast. Only 39 days were allotted for the capture of Paris. For the final victory - 42.

It was assumed that Russia would not be able to mobilize in such a short time. German troops, after the victory over France, will be transferred to the border with Russia. Kaiser Wilhelm approved the plan, saying at the same time the famous phrase: "We will have lunch in Paris, and we will have dinner in St. Petersburg."

Failure of the Schlieffen plan

Helmut von Moltke, who replaced Schlieffen with the Chief of the German General Staff, took the Schlieffen plan without much enthusiasm, considering it too risky. And for this reason, he subjected him to a thorough processing. In particular, he refused to concentrate the main forces of the German army on the western front and, for reasons of precaution, sent a significant part of the troops to the east.

But Schlieffen planned to cover the French army from the flanks and completely encircle it. But due to the transfer of significant forces to the east, the German group of troops on the western front simply did not have enough available funds for this. As a result, the French troops not only were not surrounded, but also managed to launch a powerful counterattack.

The calculation of the slowness of the Russian army in terms of protracted mobilization also did not justify itself. The invasion of Russian troops into East Prussia literally stunned the German command. Germany found itself in the grip of two fronts.

Sources:

• Side Plans

On August 1, 1914, Germany declared war on the Russian Empire. The First World War (1914-1918) became the second Patriotic War for Russia.

This unprecedented war must be brought to complete victory. Whoever thinks about peace now, who desires it, is a traitor to the Fatherland, his traitor.

From the farewell address of Nicholas II to the troops(March 8, 1917)

In that war, the Russian Empire saved Europe, but did not reach the Victory. The reasoning of Churchill, a direct participant in the events, is well known: “Fate has not been so cruel to any country as to Russia. Her ship sank with the harbor in sight. She had already weathered the storm when everything collapsed. All the sacrifices have already been made, all the work is done. The selfless impulse of the Russian armies that saved Paris in 1914; overcoming a painful, shellless retreat; slow recovery; Brusilov's victories; Russia's entry into the 1917 campaign invincible, stronger than ever. With victory already in her hands, she fell to the ground. There is truth in these arguments. The line of Russian history in October 1917 (and possibly even earlier, after the emperor's abdication) diverged from the logic of the great war. Tragedy? Undoubtedly.

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, Chief Researcher of the Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IVI RAS), President of the Russian Association of World War I Historians (RAIPMV) Evgeny Sergeev spoke about the history of this war, about what it was for Russia.

Visit to Russia of French President R. Poincaré. July 1914

What the masses don't know about

Evgeny Yurievich, the First World War (WWI) is one of the main areas of your scientific activity. What influenced the choice of this topic?

This is an interesting question. On the one hand, the significance of this event for world history leaves no doubt. This alone can inspire a historian to engage in WWI. On the other hand, this war still remains, to a certain extent, “terra incognita” of Russian history. The Civil War and the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) overshadowed it, relegated it to the background in our minds.

No less important are the extremely interesting and little-known events of that war. Including those whose direct continuation we find during World War II.

For example, there was such an episode in the history of WWI: On August 23, 1914, Japan declared war on Germany., being in alliance with Russia and with other countries of the Entente, supplied weapons and military equipment to Russia. These deliveries went through the Chinese Eastern Railway (CER). The Germans organized an entire expedition (sabotage team) there in order to blow up the tunnels and bridges of the CER and interrupt this communication. Russian counterintelligence officers intercepted this expedition, that is, they managed to prevent the elimination of the tunnels, which would have caused significant damage to Russia, because an important supply artery would have been interrupted.

- Marvelous. How is it, Japan, with which we fought in 1904-1905 ...

By the time the WWI began, relations with Japan were different. Relevant agreements have already been signed. And in 1916, an agreement on a military alliance was even signed. We had a very close collaboration.

Suffice it to say that Japan gave us, although not free of charge, three ships that Russia lost during the Russo-Japanese War. "Varangian", which the Japanese raised and restored, was among them. As far as I know, the Varyag cruiser (the Japanese called it Soya) and two other ships raised by the Japanese were bought by Russia from Japan in 1916. On April 5 (18), 1916, the Russian flag was raised over the Varyag in Vladivostok.

At the same time, after the victory of the Bolsheviks, Japan participated in the intervention. But this is not surprising: after all, the Bolsheviks were considered accomplices of the Germans, the German government. You yourself understand that the conclusion of a separate peace on March 3, 1918 was essentially a stab in the back of the allies, including Japan.

Along with this, of course, there were quite specific political and economic interests of Japan in the Far East and Siberia.

- But were there other interesting episodes in WWI?

Certainly. It can also be said (few people know about this) that the military convoys known from the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 were also in the WWII, and also went to Murmansk, which in 1916 was specially built for this. A railroad connecting Murmansk with the European part of Russia was opened. The deliveries were quite significant.

Together with the Russian troops, a French squadron operated on the Romanian front. Here is the prototype of the squadron "Normandie - Neman". British submarines fought in the Baltic Sea alongside the Russian Baltic Fleet.

Cooperation on the Caucasian front between the corps of General N. N. Baratov (who, as part of the Caucasian army, fought there against the troops of the Ottoman Empire) and British forces is also a very interesting episode of WWI, one might say, a prototype of the so-called “meeting on the Elbe” during the Second World War . Baratov made a march and met with British troops near Baghdad, in what is now Iraq. Then it was the Ottoman possessions, of course. As a result, the Turks were squeezed into pincers.

Visit to Russia of French President R. Poincaré. Photo 1914

Great plans

- Evgeny Yurievich, but who is still to blame for unleashing the First World War?

The blame clearly lies with the so-called Central Powers, that is, with Austria-Hungary and Germany. And even more in Germany. Although WWI began as a local war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, but without the firm support that was promised to Austria-Hungary from Berlin, it would not have acquired first a European, and then a global scale.

Germany needed this war very much. Its main goals were formulated as follows: to eliminate the hegemony of Great Britain on the seas, to seize its colonial possessions and to acquire "living space in the East" (that is, in Eastern Europe) for the rapidly growing German population. There was a geopolitical concept of "Middle Europe", according to which the main task of Germany was to unite European countries around itself into a kind of modern European Union, but, of course, under the auspices of Berlin.

For the ideological support of this war in Germany, a myth was created about the "encirclement of the Second Reich by a ring of hostile states": from the West - France, from the East - Russia, on the seas - Great Britain. Hence the task: to break through this ring and create a prosperous world empire with its center in Berlin.

- In the event of its victory, what role did Germany assign to Russia and the Russian people?

In case of victory, Germany hoped to return the Russian kingdom to the borders of about the 17th century (that is, before Peter I). Russia, in the German plans of that time, was to become a vassal of the Second Reich. The Romanov dynasty was supposed to be preserved, but, of course, Nicholas II (and his son Alexei) would have been removed from power.

- How did the Germans behave in the occupied territories during WWI?

In 1914-1917, the Germans managed to occupy only the extreme western provinces of Russia. They behaved quite reservedly there, although, of course, they carried out requisitions of the property of the civilian population. But there was no mass deportation of people to Germany or atrocities directed against civilians.

Another thing is 1918, when German and Austro-Hungarian troops occupied vast territories in the conditions of the actual collapse of the tsarist army (I remind you that they reached Rostov, the Crimea and the North Caucasus). Mass requisitions for the needs of the Reich had already begun here, and resistance detachments appeared, created in Ukraine by nationalists (Petlyura) and Socialist-Revolutionaries, who came out sharply against the Brest peace. But even in 1918, the Germans could not particularly turn around, since the war was already coming to an end, and they threw their main forces on the Western Front against the French and British. However, the partisan movement against the Germans in 1917-1918 in the occupied territories was nevertheless noted.

World War I. Political poster. 1915

Session of the III State Duma. 1915

Why did Russia get involved in the war

- What did Russia do to prevent war?

Nicholas II hesitated to the end - whether to start a war or not, offering to resolve all controversial issues at a peace conference in The Hague through international arbitration. Such offers from Nicholas were made to Wilhelm II, the German emperor, but he rejected them. And therefore, to say that the blame for the outbreak of the war lies with Russia is absolute nonsense.

Unfortunately, Germany ignored Russian initiatives. The fact is that German intelligence and the ruling circles were well aware that Russia was not ready for war. And Russia's allies (France and Great Britain) were not quite ready for it, especially Great Britain in terms of ground forces.

Russia in 1912 began to carry out a large program of rearmament of the army, and it should have ended only by 1918-1919. And Germany actually completed preparations for the summer of 1914.

In other words, the “window of opportunity” was rather narrow for Berlin, and if a war was to be started, then it had to be started in 1914.

- How justified were the arguments of the opponents of the war?

The arguments of the opponents of the war were quite strong and clearly formulated. There were such forces among the ruling circles. There was a fairly strong and active party that opposed the war.

A note is known from one of the major statesmen of that time - P. N. Durnovo, which was filed at the beginning of 1914. Durnovo warned Tsar Nicholas II about the perniciousness of the war, which, in his opinion, meant the death of the dynasty and the death of imperial Russia.

There were such forces, but the fact is that by 1914 Russia was in allied relations not with Germany and Austria-Hungary, but with France, and then with Great Britain, and the very logic of the development of the crisis associated with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, the heir to Austria -Hungarian throne, brought Russia to this war.

Speaking about the possible fall of the monarchy, Durnovo believed that Russia would not be able to withstand a large-scale war, that a supply crisis and a crisis of power would arise, and this would ultimately lead not only to the disorganization of the political and economic life of the country, but also to the collapse of the empire. , loss of control. Unfortunately, his prediction came true in many respects.

- Why did the anti-war arguments, for all their validity, clarity and clarity, not have the proper impact? Russia could not help but enter the war, even despite such clearly expressed arguments of its opponents?

Allied debt on the one hand, on the other hand, the fear of losing prestige and influence in the Balkan countries. After all, if we did not support Serbia, it would be disastrous for Russia's prestige.

Of course, the pressure of certain forces set up for war also had an effect, including those associated with some Serbian circles at the court, with Montenegrin circles. The well-known "Montenegrins", that is, the spouses of the Grand Dukes at court, also influenced the decision-making process.

It can also be said that Russia owed significant amounts of money received as loans from French, Belgian and English sources. The money was received specifically for the rearmament program.

But the question of prestige (which was very important for Nicholas II) I would still put in the foreground. We must give him his due - he always advocated maintaining the prestige of Russia, although, perhaps, he did not always understand this correctly.

- Is it true that the motive for helping the Orthodox (Orthodox Serbia) was one of the decisive factors that determined Russia's entry into the war?

One of the most important factors. Maybe not decisive, because - I emphasize again - Russia needed to maintain the prestige of a great power and not turn out to be an unreliable ally at the very beginning of the war. This is probably the main motive.

The sister of mercy writes down the last will of the dying. Western Front, 1917

Myths old and new

WWI became the Patriotic War for our Motherland, the Second Patriotic War, as it is sometimes called. In Soviet textbooks, the WWI was called "imperialist". What is behind these words?

Giving WWI an exclusively imperialist status is a serious mistake, although this moment is also present. But first of all, we must look at it as the Second Patriotic War, bearing in mind that the First Patriotic War was the war against Napoleon in 1812, and we had the Great Patriotic War back in the 20th century.

Taking part in WWI, Russia defended itself. After all, it was Germany that declared war on Russia on August 1, 1914. The First World War became the Second Patriotic War for Russia. In support of the thesis about the main role of Germany in unleashing WWI, one can also say that at the Paris Peace Conference (which was held from 01/18/1919 to 01/21/1920), the Allied Powers, among other requirements, set the condition for Germany to agree with the article on "war crime and acknowledge their responsibility for starting the war.

The whole people then rose up to fight against the foreign invaders. War, I emphasize again, was declared to us. We didn't start it. And not only active armies took part in the war, where, by the way, several million Russians were called up, but the whole people. The rear and the front acted together. And many of the trends that we later observed during the Great Patriotic War originate precisely in the period of WWI. Suffice it to say that partisan detachments were active, that the population of the rear provinces actively showed themselves when they helped not only the wounded, but also refugees from the western provinces fleeing the war. The sisters of mercy were active, the clergy who were at the forefront and often raised troops to attack showed themselves very well.

It can be said that the designation of our great defensive wars by the terms: “First Patriotic War”, “Second Patriotic War” and “Third Patriotic War” is the restoration of that historical continuity that was broken in the period after WWI.

In other words, whatever the official goals of the war, there were ordinary people who perceived this war as a war for their Fatherland, and died and suffered precisely for this.

- And what, from your point of view, are the most common myths about WWI now?

We have already named the first myth. It is a myth that the WWI was unequivocally imperialistic and was conducted solely in the interests of the ruling circles. This is probably the most common myth that has not yet been eliminated even on the pages of school textbooks. But historians are trying to overcome this negative ideological legacy. We are trying to take a different look at the history of WWI and explain to our students the true essence of that war.

Another myth is the idea that the Russian army only retreated and suffered defeat. Nothing like this. By the way, this myth is widespread in the West, where, in addition to the Brusilov breakthrough, that is, the offensive of the troops of the Southwestern Front in 1916 (spring-summer), even Western experts, not to mention the general public, no major victories of Russian weapons in WWI they cannot name.

In fact, excellent examples of Russian military art were demonstrated in WWI. Say, on the Southwestern Front, on the Western Front. This is the Battle of Galicia, and the Lodz operation. . Osowiec is a fortress located on the territory of modern Poland, where the Russians defended themselves from superior German forces for more than six months (the siege of the fortress began in January 1915 and lasted 190 days). And this defense is quite comparable with the defense of the Brest Fortress.

You can give examples with Russian pilots-heroes. One can recall the sisters of mercy who saved the wounded.

There is also a myth that Russia fought this war in isolation from its allies. Nothing like this. The examples I gave earlier debunk this myth.

The war was coalition. And we received significant assistance from France, Great Britain, and then the United States, which entered the war later, in 1917.

- Is the figure of Nicholas II mythologized?

In many ways, of course, mythologized. Under the influence of revolutionary agitation, he was branded almost as an accomplice of the Germans. There was a myth according to which Nicholas II allegedly wanted to conclude a separate peace with Germany.

Actually, it wasn't. He was a sincere supporter of waging war to a victorious end and did everything in his power for this. Already in exile, he extremely painfully and with great indignation took the news that the Bolsheviks had concluded a separate Brest peace.

Another thing is that the scale of his personality as a statesman was not quite adequate for Russia to be able to go through this war to the end.

None I emphasize , none documentary evidence of the desire of the emperor and empress to conclude a separate peace not found. He didn't even think about it. These documents do not exist and could not exist. This is another myth.

As a very vivid illustration of this thesis, one can cite Nicholas II’s own words from the Act of Abdication (March 2 (15), 1917 at 15:00): "In the days of the greatstruggle with an external enemy who has been striving to enslave our homeland for almost three years, the Lord God was pleased to send Russia a new ordeal. The outbreak of internal popular unrest threatens to have a disastrous effect on the further conduct of the stubborn war.The fate of Russia, the honor of our heroic army, the good of the people, the whole future of our dear Fatherland demand that the war be brought to a victorious end at all costs. <…>».

Nicholas II, V. B. Frederiks and Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich at Headquarters. 1914

Russian troops on the march. Photo 1915

Defeat a year before victory

The First World War - is, as some believe, a shameful defeat of the tsarist regime, a catastrophe or something else? After all, as long as the last Russian tsar remained in power, the enemy could not enter the Russian Empire? Unlike the Great Patriotic War.

You are not quite right that the enemy could not enter our borders. He nevertheless entered the Russian Empire as a result of the offensive of 1915, when the Russian army was forced to retreat, when our opponents transferred virtually all their forces to the Eastern Front, to the Russian front, and our troops had to retreat. Although, of course, the enemy did not enter the deep regions of Central Russia.

But I would not call what happened in 1917-1918 a defeat, a shameful defeat of the Russian Empire. It would be more correct to say that Russia was forced to sign this separate peace with the Central Powers, that is, with Austria-Hungary and Germany and with other members of this coalition.

This is a consequence of the political crisis in which Russia found itself. That is, the reasons for this are internal, and by no means military. And we must not forget that the Russians actively fought on the Caucasian front, and the successes were very significant. In fact, the Ottoman Empire was dealt a very serious blow by Russia, which later led to its defeat.

Although Russia has not fully fulfilled its allied duty, it must be admitted, it certainly made its significant contribution to the victory of the Entente.

Russia lacked literally a year of some kind. Maybe a year and a half in order to adequately end this war as part of the Entente, as part of a coalition

And how was the war generally perceived in Russian society? The Bolsheviks, representing an overwhelming minority of the population, dreamed of the defeat of Russia. But what was the attitude of ordinary people?

There was a sharp aggravation of contradictions between the leading countries of the world as a result of their uneven development. An equally important reason was the arms race, on the supply of which the monopolies received super profits. The militarization of the economy and the consciousness of huge masses of people took place, the mood of revanchism and chauvinism grew. The most profound were the contradictions between Germany and Great Britain. Germany sought to put an end to British dominance at sea, to seize her colonies. Germany's claims to France and Russia were great.

The plans of the top military German leadership included the seizure of the economically developed regions of northeastern France, the desire to wrest the Baltic states, the "Don region", the Crimea and the Caucasus from Russia. In turn, Great Britain wanted to maintain its colonies and dominance at sea, to take oil-rich Mesopotamia and part of the Arabian Peninsula from Turkey. France, which suffered a crushing defeat in the Franco-Prussian war, hoped to regain Alsace and Lorraine, annex the left bank of the Rhine and the Saar coal basin. Austria-Hungary hatched expansionist plans for Russia (Volhynia, Podolia), Serbia.

Russia sought to annex Galicia and take possession of the Black Sea straits of the Bosporus and the Dardanelles. By 1914 the contradictions between the two military-political groupings of the European powers the Triple Alliance and the Entente escalated to the limit. The Balkan Peninsula became a zone of special tension. The ruling circles of Austria-Hungary, following the advice of the German emperor, decided to finally establish their influence in the Balkans with one blow against Serbia. Soon there was a reason to declare war. The Austrian command launched military maneuvers near the Serbian border. The head of the Austrian "military party" heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand defiantly inflicted
visit to the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. On June 28, a bomb was thrown into his carriage, which the Archduke threw away, demonstrating the presence of mind. On the way back, another route was chosen.

But for some unknown reason, the carriage returned through the labyrinth of poorly guarded streets to the same place. A young man ran out of the crowd and fired two shots. One bullet hit the Archduke in the neck, the other in the stomach of his wife. Both died within minutes. The terrorist act was carried out by Serbian patriots Gavrilo Princip and his associate Gavrilovich from the Black Hand paramilitary organization. July 5, 1914 Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the Austrian government received assurances from Germany to support its claims against Serbia. Kaiser Wilhelm II promised the Austrian representative, Count Hoyos, that Germany would support Austria even if the conflict with Serbia led to war with Russia. On July 23, the Austrian government delivered an ultimatum to Serbia.

It was presented at six in the evening, the answer was expected in 48 hours. The terms of the ultimatum were harsh, some seriously hurting Serbia's pan-Slavic ambitions. The Austrians neither expected nor desired that the terms would be accepted. On July 7, having received confirmation of German support, the Austrian government decided to provoke a war with an ultimatum and was drawn up with this in mind. Austria was also encouraged by the conclusion that Russia was not ready for war: the sooner it happens, the better, they decided in Vienna. The response of the Serbs to the ultimatum of July 23 was rejected, although it did not contain an unconditional recognition of the demands, and on July 28, 1914. Austria declared war on Serbia. Both sides began to mobilize even before the answer was received.

August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia, and two days later on France. After a month of mounting tension, it became clear that a major European war could not be avoided, although Britain still hesitated. A day after the declaration of war on Serbia, when Belgrade was already bombed, Russia began to mobilize. The initial order for general mobilization, an act tantamount to a declaration of war, was almost immediately canceled by the tsar in favor of partial mobilization. Perhaps Russia did not expect large-scale action from Germany. On August 4, German troops invaded Belgium. Luxembourg suffered the same fate two days earlier. Both states had international guarantees against attack, however, only Belgian guarantees provided for the intervention of the guaranteeing power. Germany made public the "reasons" for the invasion, accusing Belgium of "non-neutral behaviour", but no one took it seriously. The invasion of Belgium brought England into the war. The British government issued an ultimatum demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of German soldiers.

The demand was ignored, thus, all the great powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Russia and England were drawn into the war. Although the great powers had been preparing for war for many years, it still took them by surprise. For example, England and Germany spent huge amounts of money on the construction of a navy, but bulky floating fortresses played an insignificant role in the battles, although they undoubtedly had strategic importance. Similarly, no one expected that the infantry (especially on the Western Front) would lose their ability to move, being paralyzed by the power of artillery and machine guns (although this was predicted by the Polish banker Ivan Bloch in his work "The Future of War" in 1899). In terms of training and organization, the German army was the best in Europe. In addition, the Germans burned with patriotism and faith in their great mission, not yet realized.

In Germany, the importance of heavy artillery and machine guns in modern combat, as well as the importance of railway communications, was best understood. The Austro-Hungarian army was a cast of the German one, but was inferior to it because of the explosive mixture of different nationalities in its composition and mediocre performance in previous wars.

The French army was only 20% smaller than the German one, but its manpower was barely more than half. The main difference, then, was in the reserves. Germany had a lot of them, France had nothing at all. France, like most other countries, hoped for a short war. She was unprepared for a prolonged conflict. Like the rest, France believed that movement would decide everything, and did not expect static trench warfare.

Russia's main advantage was its inexhaustible manpower and the proven courage of the Russian soldier, but its leadership was corrupt and incompetent, and its industrial backwardness made Russia unsuitable for modern warfare. Communications were very poor, the borders were endless, and the allies were geographically cut off. The Russian involvement, billed as a "pan-Slavic crusade", was supposed to be a desperate attempt to restore ethnic unity, led by the tsarist government. The position of Britain was quite different. Britain never had a large army and as early as the 18th century depended on naval forces, and traditions rejected a "standing army" from even more ancient times.

The British army was thus extremely small, but highly professional and had the main goal of maintaining order in overseas possessions. There were doubts whether the British command would be able to run a real company. Some of the generals were too old, although this defect was also inherent in Germany. The most striking example of the misjudgment of the nature of modern warfare by the commanders on both sides was the widespread belief that the cavalry was the most important role. At sea, traditional British superiority was challenged by Germany.

In 1914 Britain possessed 29 capital ships, Germany 18. Britain also underestimated enemy submarines, although it was particularly vulnerable to them due to its dependence on overseas supplies of food and raw materials for its industry. Britain became the main factory for the allies, what Germany was for its own. The First World War was fought on almost a dozen fronts in different parts of the globe. The main fronts were the Western, where the German troops fought against the British, French and Belgian troops; and Vostochny, where Russian troops opposed the combined forces of the Austro-Hungarian and German armies. The human, raw material and food resources of the Entente countries significantly exceeded the resources of the Central Powers, so the chances of Germany and Austria-Hungary to win the war on two fronts were small.

The German command understood this and therefore relied on a lightning war. The plan of military operations, developed by the Chief of the General Staff of Germany, von Schlieffen, proceeded from the fact that Russia would need at least a month and a half to concentrate its troops. During this time, it was supposed to defeat France and force her to surrender. Then it was planned to transfer all German troops against Russia.

According to the Schlieffen Plan, the war was to end in two months. But these calculations did not come true. In early August, the main forces of the German army approached the Belgian fortress of Liege, which covered the crossings across the Meuse River, and after bloody battles captured all its forts. On August 20, German troops entered the capital of Belgium, Brussels. German troops reached the Franco-Belgian border and in the "border battle" defeated the French, forcing them to retreat deep into the territory, which posed a threat to Paris. The German command overestimated its successes and, considering the strategic plan in the West fulfilled, transferred two army corps and a cavalry division to the East. In early September, German troops reached the Marne River in an effort to encircle the French. In the Battle of the Marne, September 3-10, 1914. Anglo-French troops stopped the German advance on Paris and even for a short time managed to go on the counteroffensive. One and a half million people participated in this battle.

Losses on both sides amounted to almost 600 thousand people killed and wounded. The result of the Battle of the Marne was the final failure of the "blitzkrieg" plans. The weakened German army began to "burrow" into the trenches. The Western Front, stretching from the English Channel to the Swiss border, by the end of 1914. stabilized. Both sides began to build earth and concrete fortifications. The wide strip in front of the trenches was mined and covered with thick rows of barbed wire. The war on the Western Front turned from "maneuverable" into positional. The offensive of the Russian troops in East Prussia ended unsuccessfully, they were defeated and partially destroyed in the Masurian swamps. The offensive of the Russian army under the command of General Brusilov in Galicia and Bukovina, on the contrary, threw back the Austro-Hungarian units to the Carpathians. By the end of 1914 on the Eastern Front, too, there was a respite. The belligerents switched to a long positional war.

August Icon of the Mother of God

The August icon of the Most Holy Theotokos is an icon revered in the Russian church, painted in memory of her appearance in 1914 to Russian soldiers on the North-Western Front, shortly before the victory in the August battle, near the city of Augustow, Suwalki province of the Russian Empire (now in Eastern Poland). The very event of the appearance of the Mother of God took place on September 14, 1914. The Gatchina and Tsarskoye Selo Cuirassier Life Guards Regiments were moving towards the Russian-German border. At about 11 am, the Mother of God appeared to the soldiers of the cuirassier regiment, the vision lasted 30-40 minutes. All the soldiers and officers knelt down and prayed, observing the Mother of God in the dark night starry sky: in an extraordinary radiance, with the Divine Infant Jesus Christ sitting on Her left hand. With her right hand, She pointed to the west - the troops were just moving in this direction.

A few days later, at Headquarters, a message was received from General Sh., commander of a separate unit in the Prussian theater of operations, which said that after our retreat, a Russian officer with a whole half-squadron saw a vision. It was 11 o'clock in the evening, a private comes running with a surprised face and says; "Your Honor, go." Lieutenant R. went and suddenly sees the Mother of God in heaven with Jesus Christ on one hand, and with the other hand pointing to the West. All the Lower ranks are on their knees and pray to the Heavenly Patroness. He looked at the vision for a long time, then this vision changed into a Grand Cross and disappeared. After that, a great battle broke out in the west near Augustow, which was marked by a great victory.

Therefore, this appearance of the Mother of God was called the "Sign of the August Victory", or the "August Appearance". The appearance of the Mother of God in the Augustow forests was reported to Emperor Nicholas II, and he gave the order to paint an icon-painting image of this phenomenon. The Holy Synod considered the issue of the appearance of the Mother of God for about a year and a half and on March 31, 1916 decided: “to bless the celebration in the temples of God and the houses of believers of icons depicting the aforementioned appearance of the Mother of God to Russian soldiers ...”. On April 17, 2008, at the suggestion of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia blessed the celebration of the August Icon of the Mother of God into the official calendar.

The celebration is set to take place on September 1 (14). November 5, 1914 Russia, Britain and France declared war on Turkey. In October, the Turkish government closed the Dardanelles and the Bosporus to Allied ships, effectively isolating Russia's Black Sea ports from the outside world and causing irreparable damage to its economy. Such a move by Turkey was an effective contribution to the military efforts of the Central Powers. The next provocative step was the shelling of Odessa and other southern Russian ports at the end of October by a squadron of Turkish warships. The declining Ottoman Empire gradually fell apart and during the last half century lost most of its European possessions. The army was exhausted in the unsuccessful military operations against the Italians in Tripoli, and the Balkan Wars caused further depletion of its resources. The Young Turk leader Enver Pasha, who, as Minister of War, was a leading figure on the Turkish political scene, believed that an alliance with Germany would serve his country's best interests, and on August 2, 1914, a secret treaty was signed between the two countries.

The German military mission has been active in Turkey since the end of 1913. She was instructed to carry out the reorganization of the Turkish army. Despite strong objections from his German advisers, Enver Pasha decided to invade the Caucasus, which belonged to Russia, and in mid-December 1914 launched an offensive in difficult weather conditions. Turkish soldiers fought well, but suffered a severe defeat. Nevertheless, the Russian high command was concerned about the threat posed by Turkey to the southern borders of Russia, and the German strategic plans were well served by the fact that this threat in this area pinned down Russian troops, which were in great need on other fronts.

Turning to international relations in the first decades of the 20th century, historians most often try to find an answer to the question: why did the world war begin? Consider events and phenomena that will help to find out the causes of its occurrence.

International relations in the late XIX - early XX century

The rapid industrial development of the countries of Europe and North America at that time pushed them to enter the broad world market, spreading their economic and political influence in different parts of the world.
The powers that already had colonial possessions sought to expand them in every possible way. So, France in the last third of the XIX - early XX century. increased the territory of its colonies by more than 10 times. The clash of interests of individual European powers led to armed confrontation, as, for example, in Central Africa, where the British and French colonizers competed. Great Britain also tried to strengthen its position in South Africa - in the Transvaal and the Orange Republic. The determined resistance of the descendants of European settlers who lived there - the Boers - led to Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902).

The guerrilla struggle of the Boers and the cruelest methods of warfare by the British troops (up to the burning of peaceful settlements and the creation of concentration camps, where thousands of prisoners died) showed the whole world the terrible face of war in the coming 20th century. Great Britain defeated the two Boer republics. But this inherently imperialist war was then condemned by most European countries, as well as by democratic forces in Britain itself.

Completed by the beginning of the 20th century. the colonial division of the world did not bring peace to international relations. Countries that have made significant progress in industrial development (USA, Germany, Italy, Japan) are actively involved in the struggle for economic and political influence in the world. In some cases, they tore away the colonial territories from their owners by military means. This is what the United States did by unleashing a war against Spain in 1898. In other cases, the colonies "bargained". This was done, for example, by Germany in 1911. Having declared its intention to seize part of Morocco, it sent a warship to its shores. France, which had previously penetrated into Morocco, in exchange for the recognition of its priority, ceded to Germany part of its possessions in the Congo. The following document testifies to the decisiveness of Germany's colonial intentions.

From the parting words of Kaiser Wilhelm II to the German troops heading to China in July 1900 to suppress the Yihetuan uprising:

“There are great tasks ahead of the newly emerged German Empire across the sea ... And you ... must teach the enemy a good lesson. Converging with the enemy, you must beat him! Give no mercy! Take no prisoners! With those who fall into your hands, do not stand on ceremony. Just as a thousand years ago, under their king Attila, the Huns glorified their name, which is still preserved in fairy tales and legends, so the name of the Germans should evoke such feelings in China in a thousand years, so that no Chinese would ever again dare to look askance to the German!

The increased conflicts between the great powers in different parts of the world caused concern not only in public opinion, but also among the politicians themselves. In 1899, at the initiative of Russia, a peace conference was held in The Hague with the participation of representatives of 26 states. The second conference in The Hague (1907) already involved 44 countries. At these meetings, conventions (agreements) were adopted that contained recommendations on the peaceful settlement of international disputes, limiting cruel forms of warfare (prohibiting the use of explosive bullets, poisonous substances, etc.), reducing military spending and armed forces, humane treatment of prisoners, and also defined the rights and obligations of neutral states.

The discussion of general problems of maintaining peace did not prevent the leading European powers from dealing with completely different issues: how to ensure the achievement of their own, not always peaceful, foreign policy goals. It was increasingly difficult to do this alone, so each country was looking for allies. From the end of the 19th century two international blocs began to take shape - the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Franco-Russian alliance, which outgrew at the beginning of the 20th century. in the Triple Entente of France, Russia, Great Britain.

Dates, documents, events

Triple Alliance
1879 - secret treaty between Germany and Austria-Hungary on joint defense against Russian attack.
1882 - Triple alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy.

Franco-Russian alliance
1891-1892 - Consultative pact and military convention between Russia and France.

Entente
1904 - agreement between Great Britain and France on the division of spheres of influence in Africa.
1906 - negotiations between Belgium, Great Britain and France on military cooperation.
1907 - agreement between Great Britain and Russia on the division of spheres of influence in Iran, Afghanistan and Tibet.

International conflicts of the early XX century. were not limited to disputes over overseas territories. They also appeared in Europe itself. In 1908-1909. the so-called Bosnian crisis. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, which were formally part of the Ottoman Empire. Serbia and Russia protested, as they were in favor of granting independence to these territories. Austria-Hungary announced mobilization and began to concentrate troops on the border with Serbia. The actions of Austria-Hungary received the support of Germany, which forced Russia and Serbia to come to terms with the capture.

Balkan Wars

Other states also sought to take advantage of the weakening of the Ottoman Empire. Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and Montenegro formed the Balkan Union and in October 1912 attacked the empire in order to liberate the territories inhabited by Slavs and Greeks from Turkish rule. In a short time, the Turkish army was defeated. But the peace negotiations turned out to be difficult, because the great powers joined in: the Entente countries supported the states of the Balkan Union, and Austria-Hungary and Germany supported the Turks. Under the peace treaty signed in May 1913, the Ottoman Empire lost almost all of its European territories. But less than a month later, a second Balkan war broke out - this time between the victors. Bulgaria attacked Serbia and Greece, trying to get its part of Macedonia liberated from Turkish rule. The war ended in August 1913 with the defeat of Bulgaria. She left behind unresolved interethnic and interstate contradictions. These were not only mutual territorial disputes between Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Romania. The dissatisfaction of Austria-Hungary with the strengthening of Serbia as a possible center for the unification of the South Slavic peoples, some of which were in the possession of the Habsburg Empire, also grew.

The beginning of the war

On June 28, 1914, in the capital of Bosnia, the city of Sarajevo, a member of the Serbian terrorist organization Gavrilo Princip killed the heir to the Austrian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife.

June 28, 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sofia in Sarajevo Five minutes before the assassination attempt

Austria-Hungary accused Serbia of instigation, to which an ultimatum note was sent. The fulfillment of the requirements contained in it meant for Serbia the loss of its state dignity, consent to Austrian interference in its affairs. Serbia was ready to fulfill all the conditions, except for one, the most humiliating for it (about the investigation by the Austrian services on the territory of Serbia of the reasons for the Sarajevo assassination attempt). However, on July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Two weeks later, 8 states of Europe were involved in the war.

Dates and events
August 1 - Germany declares war on Russia.
August 2 - German troops occupied Luxembourg.
August 3 - Germany declared war on France, its troops moved to France through Belgium.
August 4 - Britain enters the war against Germany.
August 6 - Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
August 11 - France enters the war against Austria-Hungary.
August 12 - Great Britain declares war on Austria-Hungary.

On August 23, 1914, Japan declared war on Germany and began seizing German possessions in China and the Pacific. In the autumn of the same year, the Ottoman Empire entered the struggle on the side of the Triple Alliance. The war went beyond the borders of Europe and turned into a world war.

The states that entered the war, as a rule, explained their decision by “higher interests” - the desire to protect themselves and other countries from aggression, allied duty, etc. But the true goals of most of the participants in the conflict were to expand their territories or colonial possessions, to increase the influence in Europe and other continents.

Austria-Hungary wanted to subjugate the growing Serbia, to weaken Russia's position in the Balkans. Germany sought to annex the border territories of France and Belgium, the Baltic states and other lands in Europe, and also to expand its colonial possessions at the expense of English, French, and Belgian colonies. France resisted the onslaught of Germany and at least wanted to return Alsace and Lorraine captured from her in 1871. Britain fought to preserve its colonial empire and wished to weaken Germany, which had gained strength. Russia defended its interests in the Balkans and the Black Sea, and at the same time was not averse to annexing Galicia, which was part of Austria-Hungary.

Some exceptions were Serbia, which became the first victim of the attack, and Belgium, occupied by the Germans: they fought the war primarily for the restoration of their independence, although they also had other interests.

War and Society

So, in the summer of 1914, the wheel of war rolled out of the hands of politicians and diplomats and invaded the lives of millions of people in dozens of countries in Europe and the world. How did people feel when they learned about the war? In what mood did the men go to the mobilization points? What were those who were not supposed to go to the front preparing for?

Official announcements about the beginning of hostilities were accompanied by patriotic appeals and assurances of an imminent victory.

French President R. Poincaré noted in his notes:

“The German declaration of war aroused in the nation a magnificent outburst of patriotism. Never in all its history has France been so beautiful as in these hours which we have been given to witness. The mobilization, which began on August 2, ended today, was carried out with such discipline, in such order, with such calmness, with such enthusiasm, that the government and military authorities admire ... In England, the same enthusiasm as in France; the royal family was the subject of repeated standing ovations; patriotic demonstrations everywhere. The Central Powers aroused the unanimous indignation of the French, English and Belgian peoples.

A significant part of the population of the countries that entered the war was seized by nationalist sentiments. The attempts of pacifists and some socialists to raise their voice against the war were drowned out by a wave of jingoistic patriotism. The leaders of the workers' and socialist movement in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France put forward the slogans of "civil peace" in their countries and voted for war loans. The leaders of the Austrian Social Democracy called on their supporters "to fight against tsarism", while the British socialists decided above all to "fight against German imperialism". The ideas of the class struggle and the international solidarity of the workers were relegated to the background. This led to the collapse of the Second International. Only a few groups of social democrats (including the Russian Bolsheviks) condemned the outbreak of the war as imperialist and called on the working people to refuse to support their governments. But their voices were not heard. Thousands of armies went to fight, hoping for victory.

The failure of the lightning war plans

Although the leadership in declaring war belonged to Austria-Hungary, the most decisive action was immediately launched by Germany. She sought to avoid a war on two fronts - against Russia in the east and France in the west. The plan of General A. von Schlieffen, developed even before the war, provided first for the rapid defeat of France (in 40 days), and then for an active struggle against Russia. The German strike group, which invaded Belgian territory at the beginning of the war, approached the French border in a little over two weeks (later than planned, because the fierce resistance of the Belgians prevented it). By September 1914, the German armies crossed the Marne River and approached the fortress of Verdun. It was not possible to fulfill the plan of "blitzkrieg" (blitzkrieg). But France was in a very difficult position. Paris was in danger of being invaded. The government left the capital and turned to Russia for help.

Despite the fact that the deployment and equipping of the Russian troops had not been completed by that time (this is exactly what Schlieffen was counting on in his plan), two Russian armies under the command of Generals P.K. Rennenkampf and A.V. Samsonov were abandoned on the offensive in August in East Prussia (here they soon failed), and the troops under the command of General N.I. Ivanov in September - in Galicia (where they dealt a serious blow to the Austrian army). The offensive cost the Russian troops heavy losses. But to stop him, Germany transferred several corps from France to the Eastern Front. This allowed the French command to gather forces and repel the onslaught of the Germans in a difficult battle on the Marne River in September 1914 (more than 1.5 million people participated in the battle, losses on both sides amounted to almost 600 thousand killed and wounded).

The plan to quickly defeat France failed. Unable to get the better of each other, the opponents “sat down in trenches” along a huge front line (600 km long) that crossed Europe from the North Sea coast to Switzerland. A protracted positional war broke out on the Western Front. By the end of 1914, a similar situation had developed on the Austro-Serbian front, where the Serbian army managed to liberate the country's territory, previously captured (in August - November) by the Austrian troops.

During a period of relative calm on the fronts, diplomats became more active. Each of the warring groups sought to attract new allies into their ranks. Both sides negotiated with Italy, which at the beginning of the war declared its neutrality. Seeing the failure of the German and Austrian troops in conducting a blitzkrieg, Italy in the spring of 1915 joined the Entente.

On the fronts

Since the spring of 1915, the center of hostilities in Europe has moved to the Eastern Front. The combined forces of Germany and Austria-Hungary carried out a successful offensive in Galicia, driving out Russian troops from there, and the army under the command of General P. von Hindenburg captured the Polish and Lithuanian territories that were part of the Russian Empire (including Warsaw) by autumn.

Despite the difficult situation of the Russian army, the French and British command was in no hurry to advance on their front. Military reports of the time included the proverbial phrase: "All Quiet on the Western Front." True, positional warfare was also an ordeal. The fight intensified, the number of victims steadily increased. In April 1915, on the Western Front near the Ypres River, the German army carried out its first gas attack. About 15 thousand people were poisoned, of which 5 thousand died, the rest remained disabled. In the same year, war at sea between Germany and Great Britain intensified. To block the British Isles, German submarines began to attack all ships going there. During the year, over 700 ships were sunk, including many civilian ships. Protests from the United States and other neutral countries forced the German command to abandon attacks on passenger ships for some time.

After the successes of the Austro-German forces on the Eastern Front in the fall of 1915, Bulgaria entered the war on their side. Soon, as a result of a joint offensive, the Allies occupied the territory of Serbia.

In 1916, believing that Russia was sufficiently weakened, the German command decided to deliver a new blow to France. The goal of the German offensive, undertaken in February, was the French fortress of Verdun, the capture of which would open the way for the Germans to Paris. However, it was not possible to take the fortress.

This was explained by the fact that during the previous break in active operations on the Western Front, the British-French troops secured a superiority over the Germans by several dozen divisions. In addition, at the request of the French command in March 1916, an offensive was launched by Russian troops near Lake Naroch and the city of Dvinsk, which diverted significant German forces.

Finally, in July 1916, a massive offensive by the British-French army began on the Western Front. Particularly heavy fighting took place on the Somme. Here the French concentrated powerful artillery, which created a continuous shaft of fire. The British, for the first time, used tanks, which caused a real panic among the German soldiers, although they had not yet been able to turn the tide of battles.

The bloody battle, which lasted almost half a year, in which both sides lost about 1 million 300 thousand people killed, wounded and captured, ended with a relatively small advance of the British and French troops. Contemporaries called the battles of Verdun and the Somme "meat grinders".

Even the inveterate politician R. Poincare, who at the beginning of the war admired the patriotic upsurge of the French, now saw a different, terrible face of the war. He wrote:

“How much energy does this life of troops require daily, half underground, in trenches, in rain and snow, in trenches destroyed by grenades and mines, in shelters without clean air and light, in parallel ditches, always subject to the destructive action of shells, in side passages , which can suddenly be cut off by enemy artillery, at posts advanced forward, where a patrol can be caught every minute by an impending attack! How can we still know moments of deceptive calm in the rear, if there, at the front, people like us are doomed to this hell?

Significant events unfolded in 1916 on the Eastern Front. In June, Russian troops under the command of General A. A. Brusilov broke through the Austrian front to a depth of 70-120 km. The Austrian and German command hastily transferred 17 divisions from Italy and France to this front. Despite this, Russian troops occupied part of Galicia, Bukovina, entered the Carpathians. Their further advance was suspended due to lack of ammunition, isolation of the rear.

In August 1916, Romania entered the war on the side of the Entente. But by the end of the year, her army was defeated, the territory was occupied. As a result, the front line for the Russian army increased by another 500 km.

Position in the rear

The war required the belligerent countries to mobilize all human and material resources. The life of people in the rear was built according to the laws of wartime. The working hours were extended at the enterprises. Restrictions were imposed on holding meetings, rallies, strikes. The newspapers were censored. The state strengthened not only political control over society. During the war years, its regulatory role in the economy grew noticeably. State bodies distributed military orders and raw materials, disposed of the produced military products. They formed an alliance with the largest industrial and financial monopolies.

The daily life of people has also changed. The work of young, strong men who left to fight fell on the shoulders of old men, women and teenagers. They worked in military factories, cultivated the land in immeasurably more difficult conditions than before.

From the book by S. Pankhurst "The Home Front" (the author is one of the leaders of the women's movement in England):

“In July (1916) I was approached by women who worked in aviation enterprises in London. They covered airplane wings with camouflage paint for 15 shillings a week, working from 8 o'clock in the morning until half past six in the evening. They were often asked to work until 8 o'clock in the evening, and they were paid for this overtime work as usual ... According to them, constantly six or more of the thirty women who worked on the painting were forced to leave the workshop and lie down on the stones for half an hour and more before they could return to their workplace.”

In most of the warring countries, a system of strictly rationed distribution of food and essential goods on cards was introduced. At the same time, the norms, compared with the pre-war level of consumption, were cut two to three times. It was possible to buy products in excess of the norm only on the "black market" for fabulous money. Only industrialists and speculators who got rich on military supplies could afford it. Most of the population was starving. In Germany, the winter of 1916/17 was called "rutabaga", because due to a poor potato harvest, rutabaga became the main food product. People also suffered from lack of fuel. In Paris, during the said winter, there were cases of people dying from the cold. The prolongation of the war led to an ever greater deterioration in the situation in the rear.

The crisis is ripe. The final stage of the war

The war brought ever-increasing losses and suffering to the peoples. By the end of 1916, about 6 million people died on the fronts, about 10 million were injured. The cities and villages of Europe became battlefields. In the occupied territories, the civilian population was subjected to robbery and violence. In the rear, both people and machines worked for wear and tear. The material and spiritual forces of the peoples were depleted. This was already understood by both politicians and the military. In December 1916, Germany and its allies proposed that the Entente countries begin peace negotiations, and representatives of several neutral states spoke in favor of the same. But each of the warring parties did not want to recognize itself as a loser and sought to dictate its own terms. The negotiations did not take place.

Meanwhile, in the warring countries themselves, dissatisfaction with the war and those who continued to wage it was growing. "Civil Peace" was falling apart. Since 1915, the strike struggle of the workers has intensified. At first, they demanded mainly higher wages, which were depreciated all the time due to rising prices. Then, anti-war slogans began to sound more and more often. The ideas of struggle against the imperialist war were put forward by the revolutionary Social Democrats in Russia and Germany. On May 1, 1916, during a demonstration in Berlin, the leader of the leftist Social Democrats, Karl Liebknecht, issued calls: "Down with the war!", "Down with the government!" (for this he was arrested and sentenced to four years in prison).

In England, the strike movement of workers in 1915 was led by the so-called guild elders. They presented the demands of the workers to the administration and steadily achieved their fulfillment. Active anti-war propaganda was launched by pacifist organizations. The national question has also become aggravated. In April 1916 there was an uprising in Ireland. Rebel detachments led by socialist J. Connolly seized government buildings in Dublin and proclaimed Ireland an independent republic. The uprising was mercilessly crushed, 15 of its leaders were executed.

An explosive situation has developed in Russia. Here the matter was not limited to the growth of strikes. The February Revolution of 1917 overthrew the autocracy. The provisional government intended to continue the war "to the bitter end." But it did not retain power over either the army or the country. In October 1917, Soviet power was proclaimed. As for their international consequences, the most tangible at that moment was Russia's withdrawal from the war. At first, unrest in the army led to the collapse of the Eastern Front. And in March 1918, the Soviet government concluded the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany and its allies, under whose control vast territories in the Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine and the Caucasus remained. The impact of the Russian revolution on events in Europe and the world was not limited to this, it, as it became clear later, also touched the internal life of many countries.

Meanwhile, the war continued. In April 1917, the United States of America declared war on Germany, and then on its allies. They were followed by several states of Latin America, China and other countries. The Americans sent their troops to Europe. In 1918, after the conclusion of peace with Russia, the German command made several attempts to attack in France, but to no avail. Having lost about 800 thousand people in battles, the German troops withdrew to their original lines. By the autumn of 1918, the initiative in the conduct of hostilities passed to the Entente countries.

The question of ending the war was decided not only on the fronts. Anti-war protests and discontent grew in the warring countries. At demonstrations and rallies, the slogans put forward by the Russian Bolsheviks were increasingly heard: “Down with the war!”, “A world without annexations and indemnities!” Workers' and soldiers' councils began to appear in different countries. The French workers adopted resolutions stating: "From the spark ignited in Petrograd, light will light up over the rest of the world enslaved by militarism." In the army, battalions and regiments refused to go to the front lines.

Germany and her allies, weakened by defeats on the fronts and internal difficulties, were forced to ask for peace.

On September 29, 1918, Bulgaria ceased hostilities. On October 5, the German government made a request for a truce. On October 30, the Ottoman Empire signed a truce with the Entente. On November 3, Austria-Hungary surrendered, seized by the liberation movements of the peoples living in it.

On November 3, 1918, an uprising of sailors broke out in Germany in the city of Kiel, which marked the beginning of the revolution. On November 9, the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II was announced. On November 10, a Social Democratic government came to power.

On November 11, 1918, the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in France, Marshal F. Foch, in his staff car in the Compiègne forest, dictated the terms of the armistice to the German delegation. Finally, the war ended, in which more than 30 states participated (by the number of inhabitants they accounted for more than half of the world's population), 10 million were killed and 20 million were injured. The road to peace lay ahead.

References:
Aleksashkina L. N. / General History. XX - the beginning of the XXI century.