The Battles Of WWI

December 25th, 1914

The Christmas Truce

 Alfred Self, sergeant of the English military, was concerned by the absence of the sounds of war he was so used to. “It was so quiet, it was uncanny, there were no planes overhead, no observation balloons, no bombs, no rifle fire, therefore no snipers, just an occasional lark…” On Christmas morning, the English soldiers held up a sign with the words, “MERRY CHRISTMAS” on it. The Germans replied via a sign that read, “YOU NO FIGHT, WE NO FIGHT.” They decided to form a day-long truce and celebrate the holiday together as one. There was no official declaration of the truce. Actually, commanders did anything in their power keep the fight going. But they were formed so quickly that the higher-ups couldn't avert the truce by the time they were informed.

February 21st, 1916

The Battle of Verdun

• On February 21, 1916, Germany attacked Verdun, a highly defended city.
• Close to the border, Verdun controlled entrance to eastern France after a huge gunfire. The Germans advanced.
• The french were caught by surprise, but still managed to push backs the the Germans.
• There were a lot of casualties mostly on the French side.

May 31st, 1916

The Battle Of Jutland

• First and only major sea battle of WWI began with the British found and read the codes for secret plans of the Germans
• The Germans plotted to send a huge fleet of ships into the Scapa Flow which is north of Scotland without the Royal Navy's knowledge
• The British scouting ships found the German's scouting ships and chased them back to the German's main fleet
• The Germans then followed the British ships with their Dreadnoughts (large and powerful battleships)
• The Germans ,with their lighter ships, covered the bigger battle ships as they retreated out of the area
• Germany lost "one battle cruiser, one pre-Dreadnought, four light cruisers, five destroyers" says John Rickard, author for firstworldwar.com
• Britain lost "three battle cruisers, four armoured cruisers, and eight destroyers" says John Rickard, author for firstworldwar.com
• Many German ships that survived had suffered immense amounts of damage

July 1st, 1916

The Battle Of Somme

• The Somme was a battle between the British and the German, so the Allies could achieve victory over the Germans on the Western Front.
• First the bombarded. They tried to cut the barbed wire and destroy enemy defenses at the border but the British had no luck.
• They fought brutally for months then the British brought out their new toy The Tank.
• Millions of lives were taken from both sides, but the battle ended without the goals achieved.

July 31st, 1917

The Battle of Passchendaele

• This battle occurred in Belgium, on the Western Front, is often called the third battle of Ypres, this battle between the British and the Germans is notable for the immense accumulation of mud on the battle field.
• The first infantry attack began on July 31, but however constant shelling on the clay soil in Passchendaele combined with the heaviest rain in 30 years quickly generated immense amounts of mud, deep enough for men and horses to drown in.
• Attacks from August through October had little effect, but finally, on November 6, British and Canadian forces managed to capture the remains of Passchendaele.