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Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. - Education - Nairaland

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Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by africandictator(m): 8:53am On Dec 27, 2014
1. An explosion on the battlefield in France was
heard in London While the war raged on in the mud and trenches, a
very different war was taking place beneath the
soldiers' feet. A group of miners, operating in total
secrecy, dug tunnels up to 100ft underground, to plant
and detonate mines beneath the enemy's trenches.
Their biggest success was at Messines Ridge in Belgium where over 900,000lbs of explosives were
simultaneously detonated in 19 underground tunnels.
Much of the German front line was destroyed, and the
explosions were heard 140 miles away by the British
prime minister in Downing St. Was their job the most dangerous in the war? 2. Journalists faced execution A handful of journalists risked their lives to report on
the realities of war. As the Government sought to
control the flow of information from the frontline at
the start of the war, journalists were banned.
Reporting on the conflict was, in the opinion of the War
Office, helping the enemy. If caught, they faced the death penalty. Find out what life was like for these journalist
outlaws 3. 12 million letters were delivered to the
front every week Astonishingly, it only took two days for a letter from
Britain to reach the front in France. The journey began
at a purpose-built sorting depot in Regent's Park
before being shipped to the trenches. By the end of
the war, two billion letters and 114 million parcels had
had been delivered. Why were letters considered such a vital
weapon? 4. War work turned some women's skin
yellow When a generation of men went to fight the war,
more than a million women took their place in the
workforce. They worked long hours, often in poor
conditions and with dangerous chemicals. The so-
called 'canaries' were women who worked with TNT,
which gave them toxic jaundice and turned their skin yellow. What happened when the men returned home? 5. WW1 sparked the invention of plastic
surgery Shrapnel was the cause of many facial injuries in WW1
and unlike the straight-line wounds inflicted by bullets,
the twisted metal shards produced from a shrapnel
blast could easily rip a face off. Horrified by the
injuries he saw, surgeon Harold Gillies, took on the
task of helping victims and pioneered early techniques of facial reconstruction in the process. How do you fix a face that's been blown off by
shrapnel? 6. Wilfred Owen was unknown at the end of the
war Wilfred Owen is one of the best know poets of the
WW1, but when he died on the frontline, just a week
before the end of the war, he was relatively
unknown. At the time, his view of the war as one of
pity and horror was in the minority. It wasn't until the
1960s that a literary elite decided this was the most authentic view of the conflict because it chimed with
their own anti-war feelings. This resulted in the
publication of two key war poetry anthologies which
heavily featured Owen. Have we let Dulce et Decorum Est shape our
view of WW1? 7. The youngest British soldier was 12 years
old Sidney Lewis was just 12 years old when he lied about
his age and joined the army during World War One. He
was one of thousands of eager underage boys who
enlisted and ended up fighting alongside their adult
counterparts on the front. Some were motivated by
patriotism, but for others it was an escape from their dreary lives. Why did Britain let 250,000 underage soldiers
fight in WW1? 8. WW1 nearly caused a financial meltdown in
Britain At the turn of the 20th century, Britain was an
economic superpower, but the world's first global war
would cost more than any that had gone before. For
example, the cost of bullets fired in one 24 hour period
in September 1918 was nearly four million pounds. How did Britain avoid bankruptcy? 9. Blood banks were developed during WW1 The British Army began the routine use of blood
transfusion in treating wounded soldiers. Blood was
transferred directly from one person to another. A US
Army doctor, Captain Oswald Robertson, established
the first blood bank on the Western Front in 1917,
using sodium citrate to prevent the blood from coagulating and becoming unusable. Blood was kept
on ice for up to 28 days and then transported to
casualty clearing stations for use in life-saving
surgery where it was needed most. More medical innovations that saved lives
during WW1 10. Generals were banned from going over the
top The stereotype is that the ordinary soldiers of WW1
were lions led by donkeys - the donkeys being
incompetent generals who sat out the war in comfort
while thousands died unnecessary deaths. In fact, so
many of the generals wanted to be closer to the
fighting they had to be banned from going over the top because they kept getting killed. The experience
required to be a general was too significant to lose. Hero or incompetent? The verdict on WW1
commander Douglas Haig

2 Likes 1 Share

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by balash(m): 8:56am On Dec 27, 2014
Incase
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Beesluv: 8:56am On Dec 27, 2014
Good
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by borntosave: 9:01am On Dec 27, 2014
Nice
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by simba1: 9:06am On Dec 27, 2014
INCASE FP.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by laivwire(m): 9:34am On Dec 27, 2014
Kindly adjust your formatting to make your essay presentable and readable. Thanks

4 Likes

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 10:22am On Dec 27, 2014
I couldn't read it... the format is horrible! Please adjust. Thanks.

3 Likes

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by zicoy6k: 10:29am On Dec 27, 2014
front page smelling. Make i go read d WW1 story again.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 10:33am On Dec 27, 2014
tchidi:
I couldn't read it... the format is horrible! Please adjust. Thanks.
Seconded.

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Truckpusher(m): 10:35am On Dec 27, 2014
That number one on the list was a turning point in that war as every soldier and commanders as well as everyone else that died never knew what hit them.

And the effect of that explosion can still be seen today in that city as the areas damaged has formed some sort of lake.


Watch this youtube video to fully appreciate the historical importance of what the op is saying.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgknCbX3U4k

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by b3llo(m): 10:43am On Dec 27, 2014
11. The war was fought so that Military arsenal would be emptied and up graded with state of the art weapons.

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by jhidey08(m): 11:05am On Dec 27, 2014
.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Akshow: 11:06am On Dec 27, 2014
booked
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by GODWINGODSON(m): 11:13am On Dec 27, 2014
There shall be no wars again

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Sunymoore(m): 11:17am On Dec 27, 2014
Who teach you summary during ya high school?
TL;DR please
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by osamaBUSH(m): 11:22am On Dec 27, 2014
balash:
Incase
Of Incasity.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by africandictator(m): 11:23am On Dec 27, 2014
Sunymoore:
Who teach you summary during ya high school?
TL;DR please
hey I am not begging you to comment or view this thread.so Bleep off.or help modify it..brainy people still understood it..

2 Likes

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Les: 11:37am On Dec 27, 2014
Ask is fair in love and war.... cool
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 12:00pm On Dec 27, 2014
My great grandfather was a senior officer inn the American expeditionary force, he was a part of the legendary harlem fighters that made their mark at the french fronts.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 12:00pm On Dec 27, 2014
Nice piece bro. But to make ur piece more pleasurable to read next time,bold the sub-heads or separate it from the body with punctuation. Overall man,this was really superb info. 90% of those posting never new this,me inclusive.

2 Likes

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 12:03pm On Dec 27, 2014
Les:
All is fair in love and war.... cool
.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by kudoxs(m): 12:09pm On Dec 27, 2014
in case too
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Nobody: 12:09pm On Dec 27, 2014
tchidi:
I couldn't read it... the format is horrible! Please adjust. Thanks.
cheesy
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Exjoker(m): 12:15pm On Dec 27, 2014
Very interesting. It has been long since I read a post as long like this?
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Syphax(m): 12:17pm On Dec 27, 2014
balash:
Incase

Incase you run mad shey? undecided
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Syphax(m): 12:23pm On Dec 27, 2014
africandictator:
hey I am not begging you to comment or view this thread.so Bleep off.or help modify it..brainy people still understood it..


LMAO,dictator indeed,the name sure fits you.So who is your role model?Idi Amin?Abacha?or Gaddaffi?

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by africandictator(m): 12:24pm On Dec 27, 2014
No10:
Nice piece bro. But to make ur piece more pleasurable to read next time,bold the sub-heads or separate it from the body with punctuation. Overall man,this was really superb info. 90% of those posting never new this,me inclusive.
okay thanks I grab.
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by africandictator(m): 12:25pm On Dec 27, 2014
Syphax:



LMAO,dictator indeed,the name sure fits you.So who is your role model?Idi Amin?Abacha?or Gaddaffi?
adolf hitler
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Syphax(m): 12:39pm On Dec 27, 2014
africandictator:
adolf hitler

Hitler? grin

Such a man!Such a great name,dats my DOG'S NAME.

1 Like

Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by CrazyScientist: 12:45pm On Dec 27, 2014
grin cheesy
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by RotrEmmanuel: 1:13pm On Dec 27, 2014
okay! France
Re: Here Are 10 Surprising Facts About World War One That You Probably Didn't Know. by Sunymoore(m): 1:21pm On Dec 27, 2014
africandictator:
hey I am not begging you to comment or view this thread.so Bleep off.or help modify it..brainy people still understood it..
Sorry you failed to see the humor... I don't e-fight

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