WWI A-Z

Over 16 million animals served during World War I. This included cats, dogs, horses, mules, camels, monkeys, carrier pigeons, even bears and lion cubs. All played a crucial role in the war effort while also acting as companions for military personnel on both sides. 

Originally developed in the United States to restrict cattle movements, barbed wire was used during World War I as a deadly means of hindering troop movements across No Man’s Land. Years after the war, French and Belgian farmers were still removing it, along with artillery shells, from their fields.

Likely originating while Americans were stationed on the Mexican border prior to World War I, the term “doughboys” became the most enduring nickname for General John J. Pershing’s American Expeditionary Forces that fought with the Allies in France. 

The war in East Africa proved just as violent and horrific as that seen on the European fronts. German forces in the colony held out against the Allies for the entire war, not surrendering for several weeks after the November 11 armistice on the Western Front.

The first successful use of poison gas occurred at the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915. By the end of the war, both sides had used chlorine, phosgene and mustard gas against the enemy with horrific effect. 

From 1915 to 1917, the Italian and Austro-Hungarian armies fought twelve battles along the Isonzo River in what is now Slovenia. The final battle, also known as Caporetto, was a disastrous defeat for the Italians, who were nearly knocked out of the war.

After suffering a near-150-day siege, British forces surrendered to the Ottoman Empire at Kut al-Amara in modern day Iraq. Although a great victory for the Ottomans, they were ultimately unable to use the success to their advantage, allowing the Allies to regain the initiative in Mesopotamia.

Mud was an integral part of the First World War, in the same way that artillery, trenches, barbed wire and machine guns were. This was especially true on the Western Front, which countless photographs and personal accounts attest to.

Typically associated with the Allied war machine of World War II, oil was first developed as an industry of war a generation earlier, with airplanes, motorized vehicles and ships relying on the fuel. Oil was also one of the key factors behind the postwar mandate system in the Middle East.

The youngest son of former U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt, Quentin Roosevelt was killed in aerial combat over France in July 1918. Originally buried with full honors by the Germans, Roosevelt’s body was later moved to the Normandy American Cemetery to be next to his eldest brother Ted (Theodore) who died in France in 1944.

The collection of war souvenirs was a means by which soldiers could both remember the conflict and tell the story of their experience. One very popular example was trench art, decorative pieces made from artillery or rifle cartridges.

One of the most important technological innovations of World War I was the tank, designed to break the stalemate on the Western Front. They first appeared on the battlefield in 1916 and while slow and bulky, they did offer protection to troops. The full military potential of the tank was not realized until World War II. 

One of the more famous American army groups was the U.S. Signal Corps Telephone Operators, an all-women’s unit that worked the switchboards connecting the front lines with supply depots and the AEF military leadership. Despite their valuable contribution to the war effort, the women were denied veteran status, and the benefits that entailed, until the 1970s.

In the aftermath of World War, I towns and cities across the world erected war memorials to remember and commemorate their loss. In 1926, Kansas Citians dedicated what is now known as the National WWI Museum and Memorial.

Beginning in early 1917, women in the U.S. could enlist in the navy due to a loophole in the Naval Act of 1916. Known as Yeoman (F), they served as radio operators, mechanics, truck drivers, stenographers, cryptographers, nurses and munitions makers. Their voluntary participation helped pave the way for greater female participation in the military.

First built before 1914, Zeppelins were initially used by the German army and navy for reconnaissance. As the war settled into a stalemate, the airships were sent to bomb British cities, with the first raid in early 1915. By the time Zeppelin raids were called off in 1917 (due to increased British anti-airship defenses), over 1500 British civilians had been killed.