In what ways was World War I unlike any of the wars which preceded it?
370806
I don't need 3 or 4 pages. What distinguishes World War One from all previous conflicts was that it was what we call a "Total War". That meant that not only were ALL citizens from the belligerent countries fair game for destruction, but all citizens were expected to contribute to the way effort in any way they could. There were no rules of gentlemanly conduct and no limits to what either side could do. It was a contest between the maximum force of one side, and the maximum force of the other side, hence, Total War.
274267
No.  WWI was long over by the 30's.\n\nWWII? Maybe.  Very difficult to say.  I think that delayed is more likely.
675813
A dream that has already happened.  Prior to 1914 and the first world war, there were no weapons of Mass Dist ruction.  War still occurred and countries invaded each other.  Countries were threatened all of the time.  \n\nBesides, the genie is out of the bottle and can't be put back into the bottle.  If such weapons were done away with do you really think that some nation wouldn't develop them in secret?  Of course they would and then they would rule the world.\n\nA nice dream, but not reflective of reality.
722396
Similarities:\n1. Germany vs Britain, France and United States\n2. Huge numerous of casualties and destruction\n\nDifferences\n1. Italians were with allies in WWI, Axis in WW2\n2. Genocide during World War II\n3. War extended to Middle East during WW I\n4. HItler played a bigger role in WW 2
654469
Just read this:  http://www.firstworldwar.com/origins/causes.htm\n\nThe war started out as a dispute between Austria-Hungary and Serbia over the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, but escalated as other countries entered the melee.\n\nHistory can fault Germany because they lost.
258078
After the "great war", the war to end all wars (WWI), no one wanted to get drawn into another big conflict. They thought the best way to stay out of a war was to avoid confrontation and let Germany do what it wants to.\n\nAccording to the treaty of Versailles, a whole host of restrictions were placed on Germany,.... they couldnt have an airforce, they couldnt have a very big navy, they couldnt put troops in a certain area near France, they couldnt build U-boats, ....\nWhen Hitler came to power, one by one, Germany broke pretty much every single stipulation of the treaty (and wasnt even very secretive about it).  Other countries didnt want to get into a war, so they looked the other way while all this was happening.  Germany decided that it wanted to annex the sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, so they did and other countries let them (Czechoslovakia wasnt too pleased though).\nGermany's invasion of Poland was the last straw and is commonly used to mark the start of WWII in Europe.\n\nEngland's prime minister, Neville Chamberlain, is known for his policy of appeasment.  Other countries looked on while Germany was doing all this, hoping to avoid another war when in reality it let Germany get away with way too much.
559927
Well a "war" is defined by an "open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations" it generally includes armed assault.  That said, WWII was a "war" b/c nations declared there be a state of hostility among themselves...the countries approached an impasse and used political pressures and militant power to try and resolve it.  \n\n\nSo, a list??  Let me try and generalize "war" in bullet-form.\n\n- Disagreement b/w one or more nations \n- Governments DECLARED OPENLY that there be a dynamic b/w the nations which includes forcefully trying to "get what they want."\n- Force in WWII included blockades, the killing of both soldiers and civilians, invading foreign territories to reach strategic targets to be destroyed, looting, raping, torture, etc. (no country is exempt from this laundry list of behaviors, some countries more guilty of certain ones than others, I won't name names).  \n\nHope my answer helped - if you need more let me know and I'll see what I can do.
106566
I’m getting too old, I can’t believe anyone would need to ask such a question.\nWorld War I, 1914–18, also known as the Great War, conflict, chiefly in Europe, among most of the great Western powers. It was the largest war the world had yet seen.Causes \nWorld War I was immediately precipitated by the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by a Serbian nationalist in 1914. There were, however, many factors that had led toward war. Prominent causes were the imperialistic, territorial, and economic rivalries that had been intensifying from the late 19th cent., particularly among Germany, France, Great Britain, Russia, and Austria-Hungary.\nOf equal importance was the rampant spirit of nationalism, especially unsettling in the empire of Austria-Hungary and perhaps also in France. Nationalism had brought the unification of Germany by blood and iron, and France, deprived of Alsace and Lorraine by the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, had been left with its own nationalistic cult seeking revenge against Germany. While French nationalists were hostile to Germany, which sought to maintain its gains by militarism and alliances, nationalism was creating violent tensions in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy; there the large Slavic national groups had grown increasingly restive, and Serbia as well as Russia fanned Slavic hopes for freedom and Pan-Slavism.\nImperialist rivalry had grown more intense with the new imperialism of the late 19th and early 20th cent. The great powers had come into conflict over spheres of influence in China and over territories in Africa, and the Eastern Question, created by the decline of the Ottoman Empire, had produced several disturbing controversies. Particularly unsettling was the policy of Germany. It embarked late but aggressively on colonial expansion under Emperor William II, came into conflict with France over Morocco, and seemed to threaten Great Britain by its rapid naval expansion.\nThese issues, imperialist and nationalist, resulted in a hardening of alliance systems in the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente and in a general armaments race. Nonetheless, a false optimism regarding peace prevailed almost until the onset of the war, an optimism stimulated by the long period during which major wars had been avoided, by the close dynastic ties and cultural intercourse in Europe, and by the advance of industrialization and economic prosperity. Many Europeans counted on the deterrent of war's destructiveness to preserve the peace.\nWar's Outbreak \nThe Austrian annexation (1908) of Bosnia and Hercegovina created an international crisis, but war was avoided. The Balkan Wars (1912–13) remained localized but increased Austria's concern for its territorial integrity, while the solidification of the Triple Alliance made Germany more yielding to the demands of Austria, now its one close ally. The assassination (June 28, 1914) of Archduke Francis Ferdinand at Sarajevo set in motion the diplomatic maneuvers that ended in war.\nThe Austrian military party, headed by Count Berchtold, won over the government to a punitive policy toward Serbia. On July 23, Serbia was given a nearly unacceptable ultimatum. With Russian support assured by Sergei Sazonov, Serbia accepted some of the terms but hedged on others and rejected those infringing upon its sovereignty. Austria-Hungary, supported by Germany, rejected the British proposal of Sir Edward Grey (later Lord Grey of Fallodon) and declared war (July 28) on Serbia.\nRussian mobilization precipitated a German ultimatum (July 31) that, when unanswered, was followed by a German declaration of war on Russia (Aug. 1). Convinced that France was about to attack its western frontier, Germany declared war (Aug. 3) on France and sent troops against France through Belgium and Luxembourg. Germany had hoped for British neutrality, but German violation of Belgian neutrality gave the British government the pretext and popular support necessary fo
547633
You can post this question as many times as you want, you're still wrong.  Wrong on so many levels;\n\nWilson did not "force" the US into WW1.  War was declared as set out in the Constitution.  Wilson was elected President and given authority to take exactly those decisions.  Given the behaviour of German submarines while the US was still neutral the general view is that he behaved with remarkable restraint. Certainly the idea that he wanted a war is BS.\n\nIf the US had not declared war the most likely outcome would have been for the Germans to over run northern France and then the Allies would have sued for peace.  If you remember the Russians had recently signed their own peace treaty with Germany following the revolution.  Several million German troops were heading for the western front at the point the US entered the war.\n\nSuggesting that the Nazi Party just wanted "Redemption of Germany" is a particularly revolting smear on the memory of all the people murdered by Hitler's regime.  What the Nazi Party wanted is set out in black and white in Mein Kampf, published before Hitler came to power.  It's all there if you bother to read it.  How you can possibly equate the murder of 6 million plus innocents and the invasion of a dozen European countries with payback for the WW1 peace treaty is beyond me.\n\nThe Serbian state did not assassinate anyone.  It was the work of an extremist political group.  And the idea that the assassination "forced" Germany to invade Belgium is truly pathetic.
505108
Essentially, WW2 was a result of this and other factors, including unrealistic expectations and unresolved conflicts from WW1. Millions were killed in Europe, Russia, Asia Minor, Asia, China, the Pacific Island nations, the US troops fighting in those theaters of war, and involved virtually the entire world. The United States emerged as the leading powerhouse and the Soviet Union a major nemesis until its collapse in 1989-1990.
440322
Was there a WW1? Did WW2 follow? Think about it
198167
That's easy. The aftermath was world war 2.\n\nWell, economic depression, the rise of Adolf Hitler, the extermination camps, etc..\n\nSome historians say that actually world war one and two are just an expanded period of great changes.
773866
The first world war was referred to both as \n' The Great War ' in old English referrence to large or of  moment, also, misleadingly, ' The War To End All Wars ' as the second world war disproved so effectively. It was called The Second World War from the start, I think. I prefer Archie Bunker's call on it:\n\n" Da big one. Douba - ya douba - ya two. "\n\nNo. I doubt there's going to be a WWIII. We all know it doesn't go out that way.
121703
There weren't just three - there were dozens of factors that contributed to "The Great War".  Three of the main ones that I can think of are:\n\nColonialism - the Germans wanted to build a colonial empire to match the British.  This required military buildup threatening it's neighbors.\n\nMilitary Alliances - Because of all the complex alliances among the European powers, the Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand triggered a series of declarations of war, starting with Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia.\n\nFranco-German tension - France and Germany had hotly contested the Alsace-Lorraine region bordering the two countries, and had fought several wars over it's occupation for many years.  The region exchanged hands several times but was considered part of France at the outbreak of WWI fueling more of Germany's hatred for France.
638352
The event that triggered the start of World War I (called at the time "The Great War") was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, when he visited Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia on June 28, 1914 by  19-year old Gavrilo Princip. Princip appeared to be a member of a Serbian nationalist group. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia and declared war. Russians supported the Serbians, and drew in their French allies. Germany was a close ally of Austria and declared war on France and Russia. To get past French defenses, Germany invaded Belgium and Luxeumbourg. This action caused the British to declare war on Germany.\n\nWhile the assassination was seen as the pretext that turned the struggle into all-out war, conflict at this level was seeded through the ongoing arms races between the European countries, and development of diplomatic alliances, and rise of European nationalism.
286988
there were a lot of contributions to the defeat of germany in WWI. a lot was more internal, like the German Revolution. the website talks about this and other events.
481189
WWI had the introduction of machine guns and flame throwers.  they also used "trench warfare."  soldiers would dig long, deep trenches in the ground for protection, and would keep digging layers of trenches to get closer to the enemy lines.  some slow planes were used in WWI, but it wasn't until WWII that had actual dogfights.  WWII also had nuclear bombs (the US dropping them on Hiroshima and Nagasaki), and pipe bombs (used when storming the beaches of Normandy, like in Saving Private Ryan).  The Korean War was a transitional period to guerilla warfare that was featured in the Vietnam Conflict.  In Vietnam they also used Napalm (bombs that would burst into flames and burn the jungles, along with its victims) by dropping these bombs from airplanes, along with agent orange.  The Cold War was basically espionage and an arms race.  It started around the time of JFK (1960-63) with the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis (if you like movies, check out Thirteen Days, an HBO movie with Kevin Costner).  Basically between the 1960s and 1989, the US and former Soviet Union tried to see who can make the biggest arsenal of nuclear warheads.  You can look any of this information up at wikipedia.  they have a lot of good information, but make sure you try and check it with something else because they do have a lot of misleading stuff, especially in history.