Weapons and Equitment in World War I

World War I is considered the first ''modern war" due to industrialized powers fighting each other with industrialized militaries and weapons. New, advanced weapons and equipment were used during the war such as:

• Rifles
• Machine Guns
• Gas
• Blimps (Zeppelin)
• Tanks
• Planes and Torpedoes
• Bayonet
• Pistols
• Grenades and Mortars
• Cannons

RIFLES
Rifles were the standard weapons for fighters in each country. Rifles were so abundant because they were cheap to produce, accurate and easy to carry. The British soldiers, unlike the Germans, used Lee-Enfield 300s and the Germans used 7.29 Mausers. Both guns were reliable and could fire 15 rounds in a minute, however, the Enfield was better for long distances. Unfortunately the Enfield gave little advantage because most battles were fought in trenches as close as 40 meters apart.

German Mauser

British Lee Enfield

MACHINE GUNS
Machine guns were less mobile than rifles, requiring 4-6 men to work on them and needing to be on a flat surface. However, machine guns had the fire power of 100 guns. In the beginning of war the German army were heavily equipped with accurate machine guns and could fire 500 rounds in a minute. However, the heavy machine guns often overheated and required cooling systems in order to prevent jamming or exploding.

GAS
Chlorine gas, which causes burning sensations, throat and chest pains, was first used by the German army at the battle of Ypres. One downside of using gas, was the fact that you needed to ensure the wind was just right so the gas did not blow back at your own troops. A colorless, sulfur gas, called Mustard gas, was often used in trench warfare. This deadly gas was fired into trenches in shells and caused a long painful death. However, in the long run, gas did not kill a large percentage of people because all soldiers began to wear protective masks to prevent death.

TANKS

These modern machines were first used in the Battle of Somme and only reached a slow 3 mph, holding only 3 men. Tanks were first created to use in the stationary conditions of the Western Front. British armies built offensive tanks and brought one of their first tanks, "Mark I" to battle only to see it break down and prove useless. However,  British engineers later developed more tanks and by the end of the war a tank could hold 10 men and could travel 4 mph. 

"Little Willie" the first tank

PLANES and TORPEDOS

World War I was the first war to include fights between planes, know as "dogfights." Planes were initially used to drop bombs and spy on other countries, but later became equipped with machine guns and became fighter planes. Some planes could also drop torpedoes into the sea. Torpedoes were self-propelled missiles launched from submarines and ships. Torpedoes were first slow and inaccurate, but later were developed by the Germans and could travel up to 47 mph. Torpedoes were especially used by and against German U-boats.

BAYONET

A bayonet is a bracketed dagger that is attached to the end of a riffle barrel. It was a thrusting weapon, but was also used for psychological reasons. Armies would march in rows thrusting their bayonets to intimidate their enemies. Also, when not it battle bayonets were used for tools to dig or open cans. 

PISTOLS

Pistols or revolvers were mainly given to officers, instead of soldiers in World War I. Pistols were used in situations were rifles would be too untamed. The most famous pistol in World War I was the Luger. It was made my the Germans and had a 7 shot magazine. The British used a pistol called a Webley Mark IV. This pistol was reliable, however it was heavy and bulky. For this reason the British army often used stolen German Lugers as their pistols. 

GRENADES AND MORTARS 

Grenades are small bombs that are thrown by hand or by a mortar and explode on impact or by a timer. Germany excelled in grenade development as the Allies struggled. They first used Mark I grenades, which were essentially a cylinder shaped bomb on top of a short stick. These often exploded unexpectedly and soon mill bombs were created. These pineapple shaped bombs had safety pins and had to be hurled at the enemies by arm. Armies then began to used mortars, which  launched grenades short distances and were especially useful in trench warfare because they could lob grenades from a protected position. 

Mill Bomb

CANNONS

Cannons had the greatest effect of all the weapons used in WWI. Huge cannons were able to fire explosive rounds that not only caused death to enemy soldiers, but also damaged enemy equipment and land. During the war these reliable cannons became mobile. 

WORKS CITED

"Weapons of World War I." Alpha History. Alpha History, n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2015. 
     <http://alphahistory.com/worldwar1/weapons/>. 

"World War One- Weapons." History on the Net. History on the Net, Nov. 2000. 
     Web. 18 Mar. 2015. <http://www.historyonthenet.com/ww1/weapons.htm

Images

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