Weapons of World War I Max Campbell Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………. Page 3 Chapter 1: Submarines……………………………………………………Page 4 Chapter 2: Tanks…………………………………………………………..Page 7 Chapter 3: Gas…………………………………………………………….Page 9 Chapter 4: Aircraft………………………………………………………Page 13 Conclusion………………………………………………………………..Page 16 Works Cited………………………………………………………………Page 17 Images Cited……………………………………………………………...Page 18 2 Introduction For my expert project I chose to study weapons of World War I. I chose my topic because I thought the war was not talked about as much as the other wars. At first I thought I did not have a connection with World War I, but then I learned that my great-great grandfather served in the war. World wars are interesting to me because they are long and have to have detail to explain what happened. When I started exploring this topic I had many big questions. What impact did World War I have on the world today? How would World War I be different nowadays? How did different countries' technology affect the outcome of the war? I learned so much information about the weapons of World War I. The weapons of World War I changed the strategies of fighting and combat because of the advancements in technology which allowed for more effective war tactics. 3 Chapter 1: Submarines The very first submarines were made before World War I. Cornelis Drebble invented the first navigable submarine in 1620, while working for the English Royal Navy. He built two more submarines and all three were successful. He took King James I under the Thames River in 1626. Eventually, submarines would change the outcome of World War I and change modern day technology. The United Kingdom created the first submarines for warfare. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom had the best submarines in 1914 because they were the first made and the most armoured. UK submarines were some of the first submarines to go out to sea. The UK invented the Dreadnought, ​ ​ which changed the war because it was heavily armoured and took great power to sink. The UK helped the war advance by making multiple new submarines. This gave allied countries advantages, but also made the war longer and harder. With submarines, countries had to fight on water as well as fight on land. The Germans invented the concept of submarine warfare, even though at the beginning of the war the Germans were the most hesitant to make submarines. They thought submarines were too fragile on the surface and too slow submerged to attack enemy war ships. However, the Germans had the best submarines by the end of the war. They also had the most submarines. The German submarines were very thick and armoured. They were bigger and carried more people. German 4 submarines could also stay underwater for longer periods of time. The Germans decided to use submarines not just to attack war ships, but also to sink civilian and merchant ships. Eventually this led the U.S. into the war. The Germans and their use of submarines changed the war and changed technology today. Other countries made submarines as well. For example, the Tennessee Class ​ was the best American class of submarines. The Electric Boat Company was commissioned to make six more submarines after the US Navy saw their prototypes. Tennessee Class U.S.A. was the last submarine built in America during ​ ​ ​ ​ World War I. At the same time, the Japanese had very powerful vessels. They were also very heavy. The French would put very powerful guns on their ships. With each country making modifications to submarine design their changes were all important in the war. Submarines were designed to carry various amounts of people. The Moeda ​ Class complemented 1,053. This means it could carry over one thousand people on ​ board. The Chuthum Class only complemented 490. Even though submarines ​ ​ could carry various amounts of people most carried enough to also make transportation of troops easier. Submarines were built with various amounts of weight. Submarines could weigh up to 50,000 pounds. The Fuso Class, made in Japan, was 29,880 tons on its ​ ​ own. With people and weapons it weighed 36,500 tons. The weight of the submarine was important to keep it balanced and stable. Submarines could have different weapons on them. Some used guns. For example, the Pennsylvania Class U.S.A. had triple turrets on it. The Lion Gambetta ​ ​ ​ Class, built in France, had 194mm guns on it. There were also new weapons made ​ just for submarines: torpedos. Robert Whitehead invented the first torpedo named 5 the Whitehead Torpedo. Some submarines used the Whitehead Torpedo, which was ​ ​ ​ ​ powered by gas. The weapons on the submarines were important so they could fight back. World War I saw big advancements in weapons and armour of naval submarines. 6 Chapter 2: Tanks The use of tanks changed throughout World War I. Prior to the development of tanks European militaries designed a type of armoured vehicle that could transport soldiers. These armoured cars were lighter than tanks and they were effective before tanks entered the war. Ernest Suinton had the idea of tanks in WWI. Tanks were a huge advantage to warfare because they could also go over small trenches. The tanks were used to kill people in the trenches. Tanks were used in a different way than initially expected. Tanks were initially heavy and slow. There were tanks that were 14 tons. The maximum number of people in tanks was 5-10, and they could only go 5-10 mile per hour (mph). The British demanded the tanks were no slower than four mph. Because of their size, tanks were mainly used to wreck structures instead of transporting people. The French and US both had tanks in World War I. The French started making their own type of tank not knowing the British were also making tanks too. The French developed a powerful tank called the Canon de 75ML that they thought would help them win the war because it was so powerful and strong. The American Halt was a small powerful tank that was made for heavy artillery. Other countries began to develop powerful tanks too. The Germans were also creating a powerful tank called the MKIV. The MKIV and MKV 7 had guns on the front and right or left, sometimes both. This was a new development in tank weaponry. The MKV was classed as a male because the guns on this tank shot much larger ammunition than the machine guns found on female classed tanks. The MKIV and the MKV made a huge difference in the war. The UK invented the Big and Small Willy which was one of the best tanks in the war. The UK made the Big Willy in secret so the Germans did not find out. The UK wanted 150 of the Big Willy tanks made. There was a prototype of the Big Willy called the Small Willy. The Big Willy met all the requests for the UK. It had a new track system that allowed it to cross wider trenches. The Big Willy was so powerful and strong which made it the best tank in WWI. Some militaries added guns on to trains at the beginning of the war. Trains were commonly used in WWI. While adding cannons on to trains came first, adding cannons on to tanks was easier and more efficient. Tanks were then some of the best weapons at the time. The combination of tanks with cannon ammunition was very powerful. The shells of the ammunition were very powerful. Special ammunition had to be made for tank cannons because of their size. They had cannons that could shoot 10,170 yards. Tank cannon ammunition was dangerous, but very effective because it was very destructive. 8 Chapter 3: Gas The French originally came up with the idea of using gas as a weapon, but the Germans are credited for experimenting and creating gas for warfare. In 1914 Fritz Haber began studying deadly gases. The German companies were not allowed to use the word gas so they used the term accessory. Even the Germans were not ready for the power of gas. By introducing chemical warfare, war would change forever. On January 31, 1915 the Germans used tear gas for the first time. Later that year, they launched 150 tons of chlorine gas on the French army. French sentrys noticed a yellow gas coming toward them. The French thought the Germans were using a smoke screen at first. As the gas covered the French soldiers and moved into the trenches, two divisions of French soldiers were decimated. The German soldiers were so shocked, they failed to take full advantage of the break in the line. The world had just started to realize the effects of gas as a weapon. Germans started evolving the ways to carry and use gas throughout the war. Enemies would crawl towards the opposing military lines, put canisters of gas on the ground and roll them towards their enemy. They often had a timed release, similar to a hand grenade. Throwing gas grenades was invented shortly after gas 9 canisters. The British once threw gas grenades in the line of the wind to hit the Germans, but the wind changed directions and killed 2,000 British soldiers. Militaries began using gas shells instead of using hand grenades because they could send them further away from their own lines, eventually even dropping them out of aircraft. Gas shells are big shells that would go in tanks or cannons and could hold gas. Chlorine gas was a very popular gas in World War I because it was very effective for killing soldiers quickly.