TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES OF WWI

By: Grace Ordonez

The Tank The invention of the tank in World

War I was the answer to the difficulties of trench warfare in the western front.

On the 8th September in 1915, the first tank prototype, the Mark I tank, was tested for the British Army.

At first they were called "land ships" and then called “tanks” to keep secrecy.

Britain took the lead in tank development but the French did not stray behind, utilizing tanks in 1917.

The Germans, concentrating on anti-tank weapons, were slower to develop tanks.

Chemical Warfare Chemical Warfare uses the

toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons to kill, injure or incapacitate an enemy.

During WWI, The French were the first to use chemical weapons with the utilization of tear gas.

By the end of WWI, more than 124,000 tons of gas were produced.

About 1,176,500 non-fatal casualties and 85,000 fatalities were directly caused by chemical warfare agents during the course of the war.

The Use of Aircrafts The 1st airplanes were actually not

viewed as weapons or dangerous in fact, but simply as “scouts”.

Even fighter type planes were considered scouts.

Although horses were used to scout, they had huge limitations.

The scout planes had larger freedom of movement and could get these missions done with more speed.

Undisturbed by the enemy on the ground, the aircraft could observe the enemy and its movement and positions from up above.

Aerial photos were a crucial element on both sides of the war.