World War One was the start of many devastating wars. World War Two happened right after World War One giving the world a break of only 20 years! Not enough. The Soviet Union and America soon found themselves indirectly at war with one another. But what were the effects of the first world war?
The cause of other two major wars.
As I discussed in the introduction, World War One was the reason behind World War Two and The Cold War. I’ll briefly explain it to you. The reason the second world war happened is because of Germany’s desire for the glory and pride it had before. Adolf Hitler wanted that pride and glory more than anyone and so he broke the Treaty Of Versailles and started attacking. World War Two raged on and ended (That is for another blog.)
America and the Soviet Union emerged from World War Two as two leading superpowers in the world. This made them fight indirectly. If they had struck directly it would have meant the end of the world as both superpowers had developed bombs that could lay waste to countries for centuries.
Deaths and Casualties.
The deaths of World War One came up to 20 million and the casualties (Deaths and Injuries) climbed up to 41 million. It was quite obvious that War meant deaths.
The death of two empires.
Two vast empires broke up after World War One. The Austria-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire. A funny coincidence I see in this is that both empires sided with the Central Powers. It clearly emphasizes their loss.
The Russian Revolution.
The Russian Revolution was affected by World War One and vice-versa. Here’s how. Due to to the First World War, there wasn’t any peace among the Russians, and that was how the Bolshevik came to power. They promised peace, land and bread.
The way they achieved peace was by bringing Russia out of the war. This in turn strengthened the Germans as they didn’t have to fight on two fronts. They also could get German war camp prisoners out of Russia due to the armistice signed between Germany and Russia.
Economies Crashed.
The most appropriate way to describe World War One is to call it a battle of attrition. Where the main goal was to bring down the opponent rather than fighting them head on. Due to this, many countries crashed as they needed supplies for war. The most suitable example is Britain. In the years before the war, they had a strong economy. They imported raw materials and exported finished goods. They also had trains which made transportation faster. In a nutshell, they were way ahead of their time. But after World War I, the public debt increased. The economy was plagued by high unemployment rates and low trade.
New Type of Warfare’s.
In the battle of Ypres, the Germans used gas attacks. This was the first use of gas in warfare. There was also the introduction of trench warfare. A battle of attrition. At the Battle of the Somme, a tank that could possibly counter trench warfare was tested.
Indian Soldiers brought in revolutionary ideas.
Indian soldiers also participated in the war and due to this, they were allowed to leave their homeland and see the world outside. The soldiers that managed to return brought new ideas along with them.
Women got jobs
While men fought battles, women took on their jobs, working in industries as a result. This allowed women to also work. Probably destroying women’s stereotype.