Questions tagged [world-war-one]
Questions on World War I, events that caused it, strategy and tactics employed by the battling sides and the consequences of this war.
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Is this photo of the Red Baron authentic?
I belong to a German singing club in Austin, Texas which was founded in 1879. Hanging on the wall of our club room is the photo below. In the upper left corner is an inscription, which I can't quite ...
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What's the history of this mortar shell?
I was wondering if anyone could give me some history on this shell, which was left to my son by his great grandmother.
Could anyone give me information about these markings on this mortar shell. ...
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Can you identify the markings on this WW1 trench art?
enter image description hereCan anyone help me decode these markings?
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WW1 shell case markings
The inscription listed below is on a shell case which was in my grandmothers house. Can any one tell me what they mean.
BRC
QF. 18.PR
V11
FS
TR
MH
9.11.15
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What can I learn from these WW1 shell cases?
We found these two shell cases in my parents garage. They were allegedly brought back from France by my great grandfather, but that’s all we know and we’d really like to know more about them and ...
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Can anyone tell me anything about the markings on these shell casings?
These shell casings have been passed down. Can anyone tell me anything about the markings?
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What are they wearing over their shoulders?
What is the Tsar wearing over his shoulder? I believe this has been worn by armies since the 18th century up to around WW2. I scanned through this article but to no end: https://www.rbth.com/arts/2015/...
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What was the difference between the Sykes Picot and League of Nations Mandate? [duplicate]
I can't really understand. I read history that says the Sykes-Picot Agreement was this secret agreement and it is why the Middle East is the way it is today.
But then there's this other League of ...
MCW♦
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How were Mercy Dogs of WWI and WWII trained to know which soldier is from their side and which one isn't?
So, I have been reading about the Mercy Dogs of WWI and WWII. I was wondering, how did they actually train dogs to know which soldier belonged to their 'side', and which soldier belonged to the 'enemy ...
MCW♦
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Is Dual alliance, Entente Cordiale in this context?
We imagined the Franco-German War of 1870-71 and the Russo-Turkish War
of 1877-78 were the final conflicts between Great Powers, that now
there was a Balance of Power sufficiently stable to make ...
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What is the origin of the expression "I'm the culture they're dying for"?
There is an anecdote about a young man (a poet) being berated by an older woman during WWI where she asks him if he is not ashamed of letting all those other young men die to protect their culture, to ...
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What was the device that general Birdwood was using in the "Gallipoli" TV series?
Since this is a question about historical detail, I think it suits more this site than Movies SE.
The miniseries Gallipoli tells the story of the invasion on that peninsula during the Great War. I ...
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Did anyone face consequences (charges / court-martial) for the 1914 Christmas truce in WWI?
A copy of the Daily Mail from Dec. 31, 1914 reports on the Christmas truce. Source: The Star
As a follow-up to this question about impromptu football / soccer games between troops from opposite ...
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What can I learn from this man's uniform?
This is my Polish Great Grandfather - I'm trying to create his story by looking at his uniform. Imperial Russian Uniform? Lithuanian cross? Help!
Photo taken in Saint Petersburg, Russia
He was born ...
MCW♦
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Why did fighter pilots wear their hats lopsided during the World Wars?
In many photographs of flying aces of the two World Wars, they wear their hats in a lopsided manner instead of straight. Here's photos of Albert Ball, a British WWI era pilot, and Erich Hartmann, the ...
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Why did the German army execute so few soldiers in World War I compared to most other armies?
According to Alexander Watson's Ring of Steel and other sources during the whole of the First World War the German army only executed 48 of its soldiers, compared to over 300 in the British and 600-...
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Why did the French SFIO abandon its anti-militaristic views after Jaures' death?
Before his murder on July 31st 1914, Jaures and the SFIO attempted to unite the workers of the different European countries to not take part in what became WWI. However, only two days after his death, ...
MCW♦
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Was there anything similar to the World War 1 Christmas truce in World War 2?
I know that there was an unofficial Christmas truce during World War I, so now my question is this: was there anything similar during World War 2? It is close to the holidays as I am writing this ...
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Did Nicholas II of Russia send telegrams demanding evacuation of Serbs?
During World War I, in 1915, the Serbian army had no other option but to retreat from their territory, over Albanian mountains, to Greece, who was an ally. Just to note that it was in winter, and ...
CommunityBot
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In 1914 why didn't Germany simply mobilize its army without declaring war?
I can't understand why members of the the Triple Entente and also members of the Triple Alliance were so offended by the mere mobilization of their enemies' armies, so that they demanded a cessation ...
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What do the collar symbols / insignia on this WW I Austrian soldiers uniform mean?
I am trying to determine what the rank or group of a soldier in a vintage photo is. I've been searching the internet for collar insignia but coming up short. I'd appreciate any help given. ...
MCW♦
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Was WW1 generally foreseen?
I am looking for information on the general perception of the educated population in the decade leading up to WW1. I would like to know to what extent a tragedy of the scale of WW1 was foreseen. Was ...
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How have estimates of the deaths in WWI and WWII changed over time?
I am curious about what the generally accepted death figures in the two world wars were at times between the wars and the present time.
There are many sources on the internet today which give numbers ...
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What was the strategy to protect the British Museum during the World Wars?
Today I was surprised with the claim by the CNN, that the Rosetta Stone was:
on display in The British Museum since 1802 with only one two-year
break during World War I
I assumed at first that it ...
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Can anyone identify the uniform my great uncle (child in the front of the photo) is wearing or any others in the pic?
Family photo taken on a family trip to Europe, possibly Belgium in 1918.
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Who are the "Millennial Folk" being referred to here?
This came up on an episode of QI where the question was, "When was the First World War, first called as such". The answer was:
The First World War was given its title as early as the ...
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Can you identify this (possibly Bulgarian) uniform?
can someone identify the country the uniform is from?
Context:
Must have been born before 1880. First served in the Austro-Hungarian army, perhaps as an officer servant, possibly to a man who later ...
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What do the markings in 75mm WW1 trench art mean?
Great Uncle brought home Trench art from Verdun with a Lorraine cross. Markings are 75 DE and A RS /333. 15. There are 5 punch marks and what looks like a small K near the primer. Can anyone explain ...
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Is there a correlation or causation between generalized economic crises and world wars?
I don't recall where I heard in an interview or read in an article that there is a causation between economic crises and the two world wars, is there is historical truth in that?
For the second war ...
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How unfavorable were the terms of Germany's "surrender" in WW1?
The First World War ended when an armistice was signed between the Germans and the Allies. At that point, while Germany had no realistic hopes of winning the war, they had no enemies within their ...
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Were biological weapons used in WW1?
WW1 was, among other things, the first war where chemical weapons were used on massive scale.
However, I never heard of any mention of biological weapons used in WW1, despite the fact that they were ...
MCW♦
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How did public opinion of the wars change from 19th to the 21th century?
This question is inspired by a discussion I had with my friend recently, about ordinary people's perception and support of the many wars in the 19 and 20th century. Nowadays, the overwhelming majority ...
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Where can I find information on a WWI soldier?
Does anyone know where to find details on WWI soldiers? I am researching a captain called Thomas Zachary Woods. Thus far I have found this website: http://doingourbit.ca/profile/thomas-woods. Where ...
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What is the proof that during WW I, belligerent countries censored reports on the Spanish influenza?
Wikipedia has the following on the Spanish flu:
The pandemic broke out near the end of World War I, when wartime
censors suppressed bad news in the belligerent countries to maintain
morale, but ...
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Has anyone come across WW1 large brass casing engraved with French cities?
I recently found two large brass casing, German made from 1901 and 1914.
They both have US military Divs ie. 2nd, 26th and 28th Div, along with cities in France and Germany that the Divisions were ...
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What was middle class in Sweden in WW1?
This is written in the English Wikipedia article for "Madicken": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madicken
Du är inte klok Madicken is about a 7-year-old middle class girl, during World War I.
...
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Help with identifying my great-grandfather's pre-WWI Cossack uniform
My great-grandfahter was a Cossack from "Then Russia" "Now Belarus" where the Belarus, Ukraine and Poland borders met, but I don't now which "type" like Don or Kuban etc. He fled from the place he ...
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Was "The war to end all wars" viewed as cynically during WW1 as it is today?
I was watching Wonder Woman and noticed that it had been shifted from her typical origin story of being found by a WW2 fighter pilot to being found by a WW1 spy. Chris Pine called WW1 the war to end ...
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How did an unditching beam work?
Some of the second generation British tanks in World War One carried "unditching beams" atop the hull. I know the beams were used to extricate the tanks from holes, but I have never found ...
MCW♦
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Why did the Schlieffen Plan prioritize invading France?
AFAIK, the consensus is that the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia, which led to Russia coming to Serbia's defense. The fact that this would lead ...
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What is the significance of the term "never start changing the borders in Eastern Europe by force?" [closed]
I have read this was the cause of both World War 1 and World War 2. Russia has now seized the Crimea and followed that up with a War in Eastern Ukraine. What are some political theories behind such ...
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How, exactly, was 30% of Russia's industrial capacity distributed "in and around Moscow" in 1941?
Numerous source allege that the Germans would have crippled the Russian war effort if they had captured "Moscow" because 30% of Russia's industrial capacity was in that area.
Given this, ...
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What British WW1 uniform is depicted on this photo from Taunton?
I am trying to research my grandfather’s WW1 service record. All I have to go on is this photo, which has a Taunton photography studio on the back. I think it might be the Somerset Light Infantry, but ...
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Is the term Kaiser seen as offensive? [closed]
Is the term Kaiser seen as offensive? Because I know the term means German Emperor, but according to Wikipedia it says that "During the First World War, anti-German sentiment was at its zenith; ...
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Can anybody help identify this uniform ? Circa WW1
I presume this photo is circa WW1. Can anybody identify which unit, regiment and rank, this would be very helpful.
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Can anyone tell me what military uniform this is?
This is my great grandfather and on the back of the picture it states "France 1913", I am restoring the picture, adding color, and need help identifying the uniform so I can make add the ...
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Please help identity this Italian military uniform
All I know about the man in the photo is he was an Italian. Any help on the date/what the rank, etc. was would be appreciated.
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Did Shackleton's crew all "miss out" on WW1?
They've just found Shackleton's Endurance.
This has always been a fascinating story to me. 28 men lost for 2 years, Shackleton sails a rowboat to South Georgia in winter, crosses the mountains of ...
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How to decode / read US Veterans Bureau Form 7202?
In doing some family background research, I came across an old military service record which says it is a "Form 7202 - Rev. Sept., 1927". I would like to decipher the meanings of the various codes to ...
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Was it uncommon to see an Englishman with a cane or walking stick during WW1? Specifically, in Europe
Was it uncommon, during the WW1 era to see a man, with a cane or walking stick in Europe?
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