The First World War - Hunt Tooley

Over the past two weeks I have been being making notes on a few asspects of the First World War from Tooley, H., The Western Front (Basingstoke, 2003)

Below is a brief summary of what I have looked at:

Reasons for the USA joining the war

-German hopes for American neutrality

- ‘Neutral’ USA’s assistance to the Allies

- Wilson – Fourteen Points, new international system, presidential election

- ‘Zimmerman Note’

- Change in balance of power between the Germans and the Allies

The Western Front

-Route and different terrain

- Rough layout – The various trenches, No Mans Land etc.

-Where each country was stationed along the front

- Overview of trench life – attacks, injuries, surroundings, Soldiers vs. officers, some of the differences between the different armies

The Battle of the Somme

-Location and reasons for

- Why a British attack

- Different interpretations of Haig

-Previous battle knowledge – of battle planners and soldiers

- British battle plans and preparation

- Events and outcome of the battle

- Experience gained

The end of the War and Peace Treaties

The end of the War

- German defeat

- Surprise of German people at defeat

- Acceptance of German armistice (reactions of different Allied leaders)

- Allied conditions to Germany on acceptance of the armistice

-The cease fire – 11/11/1918

-The German Revolution

The Peace

- The Paris Peace – five different treaties

- Presence of Wilson

- Different ambitions of Allied leaders with peace

- German acceptance of Treaty of Versailles

The Damage

-Damage in East Prussia and reconstruction

- Damage in France and reconstruction

- Comparisons between France and East Prussia

- Damage along the Western Front and the problems it posed to post war life – Debris (metal, bodies, shells, mines etc.)