World War 1: A History From Beginning to End by Freeman Henry

Author:Freeman, Henry [Freeman, Henry]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hourly History
Published: 2016-09-11T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Four

1917 - Revolution, Revelation and Catastrophe

By 1917, both sides appeared less committed to gaining the tactical advantage than they were to the mass slaughter of the other sides’ forces. The Central Powers were hemmed in between three fronts. They’d lost a great deal of power in Africa, the Western Front was in a perpetual stalemate and the Russians had stalled their advance on the Eastern Front. Fearing US involvement after she resumed her U-boat operations, Germany was feeling the pressure. Britain was Germany’s strongest obstacle; she knew that she had to strangle Britain into surrender to stand any chance of securing victory of The Great War.

In mid-January, British intelligence intercepted a communication from the German Foreign Office. The communication was decoded and revealed a telegram sent by the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Alfred Zimmermann, to the German embassy in Mexico. This infamous missive became known as the “Zimmerman Telegram”, revealing a proposition of alliance between Germany and Mexico; Germany would provide the necessary support for an attack on the southern states to reclaim historic land taken from Mexico by the United States. The telegram was quickly dispatched to the US government. The plan was announced to the US public and demand for US intervention increased pressure on Washington to re-evaluate its position of neutrality.

On February 1st , Germany resumed its U-boat blockade with the intention of crippling Britain by preventing food and resources from reaching its shores. German U-boats began indiscriminate attacks on merchant ships, including the US steamer S.S Housatonic. On February 3rd , the US finally ended diplomatic ties with Germany in response to the attack. Germany was playing a dangerous game, but it knew that in order to triumph over the Allied forces, Britain had to be heavily compromised.

In Mesopotamia, the British had regrouped after the fall of Kut al-Amara and the surrender of British troops to the Turks. It was yet another humiliating defeat for the British Army. In response, London prioritized a second siege to reclaim the city from the Ottomans.

On the 23rd , the fresh surge of British troops reclaimed the city in The Second Battle of Kut. The British drove out the Turkish forces while sustaining three times fewer casualties than their adversaries. On March 8th , the victorious British forces marched on to claim Baghdad within three days.

In Russia, mass demonstrations by civilians in St Petersburg, fuelled by anger over the incredible losses Russia had sustained on the Eastern Front, developed into a violent revolution against Tsar Nicholas II. In the days that followed, a mutiny by Russian forces strengthened the revolution; Tsar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate on March 15th and appoint a provisional government to run the war efforts. The new leadership was quickly established, and the Allies urged the new Russian government to maintain the Eastern Front against the Central Powers.

On the 26th of March, British forces advanced into southern Palestine from Egypt. Their goal was to capture the city of Gaza from Ottoman control. The British did well; they scored land and nearly captured the city.

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