Technology in WW1/WW2

Focus of the topic

ミリオタ的な細かい知識よりも、significance to outcomeの理由をちゃんと書くことが大事

Background Info

Body

Air

WW1 Europe

Drastically developped during the war

Zeppelin airship

only Germany

not effective:

big and slow, easy target

Hydrogen baloon, flammable

Aircrafts

First military use

First for reconnaissance missions, then dog fight

However, most still in dev phase

Ex of development: propellers blocked bullets fired from machineguns

Not really used effectively

Slow, easy target from the ground

WW2 Pacific

Strategic bombing

Aerial bombardments were usually done by America to Japan.

Significant Ex: Doolittle raid

bombing to the city of Tokyo

Fire bombs were used

Many buildings were wooden, so vulnerable to wood

More than 600000 houses were burnt down, along with 220000 victims of the attack.

Those bombing to the Japan mainland affected the industrial production, so it affected the outcome to a large extent.

Atomic bombs

developped on Manhattan Project by America, to develop massive destruction weapons.

It was used in the final phase of the war on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and it is known as the direct factor of the surrender of Japan.

Debatable, but atleast clearly one of direct cause of surrendar

Summary: WW1 still in dev phase & cancelled out / WW2: Only US could attack mainland, so affected significantly

Land

WW1

Chemical Gas

Chroline yelloiwsh gas was used

Damages respiratory system

Ineffective, because

Attack wasn’t stable, damages themselves by wind

Gas masks were soon invented

Was easy to notice, by color and smell

Machine Gun

First version has many limitations

Needed 4+ people to fire because it was heavy, also produced heat

Improvements w ere made, less recoil and easier transportation

Both nations effectively used it, cancelles out, did not

Tanks

Ineffective, because:

Slow to cross the trench

Stuck in the mud, fields were muddy

Easy target for enemy

WW2

Bazookas

used by the US army

Short range, but could destroy light tanks

Cheaper than tank, so effective to some extent

Summary:

WW1, not significant

most were still ineffective (big and slow, easy target)

countertechnologis invented

cancelled out by technology

WW2 had some more effect, but not deciding factor

Sea

WW1

Sea technology was important for Britain and Germany.

Ex: U-boat, Blockade

U-boats

Ineffective

Coutermeasures created

Depth Charge to attack

Hydrophone (primitive sonar) to detect

Once detected, hard for slow U-boat to run away

Dreadnaught

Never really used, stayed at the port

Too expensive to lose

WW2

Ex: Aircraft carriers, Submarines

Submarines

Used by both forces to attack enemy fleets and merchant ships

The US successfully sunk 1.5M tons of Japanese merchant shipping

it was crucial to weaken the Japanese industry and economy.

Naval Codes & Code breaking

Both nations used naval codes on communication, to protect their information from others.

US cracked most of them until the end of the war.

The US knew the attack on the Battle of Midway, and was able to counter the attack.

Codebreaking helped the victory on Midway which was one of the most important battles.

Therefore codebreaking technology affected the outcome of the war

However Paragraph

WW1

Weak allies of Germany

Blockade

Developed navy technologies used for Blockade

Britain blocked trade with Germany 1914-19

Patroled northern sea, intercepted merchant ships

Germany heavily relied on import

Shortage of fuel, food

700000+ Germans died by starvation or disease

led to riots

Heavy damage to civilians affected the German surrender

Not only resources, but communications

Cutted underwater communication cables of Germany

Amerieca entry

Manpower

Allies (British Empire etc) supplies from colonies

WW2

Banzai charge

suicidal last attack

when Japan was losing the war

ex: 4000 Japanese died in Saipan

Not so effective to produce casualities, but feared

Island Hopping

Skipping heavily protected islands, and taking other islands

heavily protected islands will lose logistics, so they eventually starved

Outproduced Japan

Total War in the US, Industry for military production

20x more production of tanks 1939-45

Kamikaze

US AF 1999: Kamikaze same as anti-ship missiles

However, ut became ineffective because:

US Anti-Kamikaze technology

Reinforced hull of aircraft carriers during the war

Later time period, Kamikaze became ineffective

Difficult to aim specific part that could sink warships

Soviet invasion of Manchuria

Summary: Inequality of technology significantly affected the war in Ww2

Possible Essay Questions

Resources

Hodder book with planes on frontpage 187-202

Notes

WW1はeurope、WW2はpacificにするべき

diffferent regionと聞かれるかもしれないから

However、忘れずに！

tech not big impactと言うなら尚更