Summary:
World War I brought technological developments that transformed combat forever. The machine gun, the flamethrower, and the tank were three such technologial developments that came forth during this conflict.
New weapons of war revolutionized the style of combat throughout World War One. Without the new revolutionary weapons, World War One's combat between the sides would not have transformed from a quick, noble and brief battle into a whole new representation: trench warfare. Whether it was the further use of machine guns, the well known "Chariots of God", or tanks, the inevitably refined flamethrowers, also known as the flammenwerfer, or the many other new technological developments that were brought into the first World War; this new style of revolutionary warfare transformed combat forever.
Machine guns were the cause of many of the casualties in both war fronts during World War One. The men that came out of trenches had little chance of survival if the enemy opened fire with their machine guns. Although it was not the first occurrence with machine guns, they were used to a greater extent during WWI, and were one of the main weapons that inflicted the majority of casualties throughout the war. Machine guns were able to shoot hundreds of rounds of ammunition per minute, unlike any other gun that had been used in combat. During the beginning of the war, the senior British army officers were unsure as to how effective the machine guns were, so they usually only issued two to each Battalion. This was much less than the Germans, who were much more aware of the effectiveness. To ensure efficiency, the German soldiers placed their machine guns slightly in front of their lines; making for a clear view of the battle front. During the Battle of the Somme, the effectiveness and accuracy of the machine guns lead to the deaths of more than a thousand British troops in the first few minutes. Without machine guns, the war would have been a lot slower, and less efficient for both sides.
Tanks had an interesting role in the First World War. The tank was primarily used at the little known Battle of Flers. It was soon after used with less success at the Battle of the Somme, similar to the machine gun. Although the tank was extremely unreliable, it was a great factor to deal with the horrors of trench warfare and rescued some of the mobility in the Western Front. On the 15th of September, 1916 history was made. Captain H. W. Mortimore of Britain, led a D1 tank into battle at the infamous Delville Wood. Soon after, thirty-six more tanks led the battles in an attack at Flers. The attack was triumphant - the unexpected appearance of the new machine stunned their German opponents. Although tanks were quite effective, they were often damaged and proved to be disgracefully undependable.
The flamethrower was also an additional valuable weapon of World War One. It brought horror to the British and French armed forces; after use by the German army in the early stages of World War One in 1914 and 1915. It was promptly adopted by both the French and British, but was by no means a pioneering weapon. During the war, the Germans launched in intemperance of 650 flamethrower attacks; no statistics subsist for British or French attacks. The flamethrower or as Germans translated it; the Flammenwerfer tended to be used in groups of six during an attack, and each machine was worked by two men. Usually they were used to clear forward defenders throughout the launch of a German attack, foregoing their infantry equals. They were unquestionably helpful when used in short-range, although they restricted wider efficiency, particularly once the French and British had overcome their preliminary unease at their use. The procedure of the flamethrower gear also lived a most hazardous subsistence.
The use of machine guns, flamethrowers, tanks and many other new technological developments that were brought into World War One transformed combat forever. Without the rapid fire of the machine gun, the supremacy of the tank, or the horrific results that the flamethrower fashioned, the new weapons of war were a great factor in the First World War.
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