Tanks, Flamethrowers & Gas (Weapons of World War 1)

Summary

World War I marked a dark turning point in history, where modern science and industry unleashed devastating weapons on the battlefield. This script delves into the three deadliest weapons of the war: tanks, flamethrowers, and poison gas. It explores the development and impact of these weapons, highlighting the terrifying experiences of soldiers who faced them. From the introduction of tanks as armored landships to the horrors of flamethrowers and the lethal effects of poison gas, the script captures the brutality and innovation that defined the conflict.

Takeaways

• 💣 World War I was the first global conflict where modern science and industry were used on the battlefield, resulting in mass destruction.
• 🚜 Tanks were introduced as a major weapon during WWI, with the British Mark I being the first effective model, designed to cross trenches and support infantry.
• 🔧 Early tanks faced numerous challenges, such as mechanical failures and vulnerability due to inadequate armor, but these issues were gradually addressed.
• 🇬🇧 The British developed both male and female versions of tanks, with the male being equipped with cannons and the female with machine guns for support.
• 🇫🇷 The French Renault FT-17 tank was more maneuverable and became the most widely produced tank of the war, proving highly effective on the battlefield.
• 🔥 The flamethrower, developed by the Germans, was another deadly weapon of WWI, used to scare enemies out of trenches and cause chaos.
• 💨 Poison gas was the deadliest weapon of WWI, with the Germans initially using chlorine gas and later developing more lethal gases like phosgene and mustard gas.
• 😨 Mustard gas, introduced in 1917 by the Germans, caused immediate and severe injuries, making it one of the most feared weapons of the war.
• 🧪 The use of poison gas marked a turning point in warfare, prompting future international bans due to its horrifying effects.
• 🕊 Despite their effectiveness, chemical weapons like mustard gas were rarely deadly if medical treatment was administered quickly, but their psychological impact was profound.

Q & A

What was the significance of tanks in World War I?

Tanks were significant in World War I as they represented the first serious use of armored vehicles in warfare, changing battlefield tactics and laying the foundation for future tank design and tactics.

Why were early versions of tanks called 'landships'?

Early versions of tanks were called 'landships' because they were envisioned as the equivalent of battleships on land, designed to support infantry and spearhead attacks.

What were the main differences between the British Mark I 'male' and 'female' tanks?

The 'male' version of the British Mark I tank was equipped with a six-pounder cannon and machine guns, while the 'female' version was armed only with machine guns. The female tank supported the male tank by pinning down infantry and machine gun nests.

How did the French Renault FT-17 differ from British tanks?

The French Renault FT-17 was smaller, faster, and more maneuverable than British tanks, with a crew of just two men. Its speed and smaller size made it more effective on the battlefield.

Why did the Germans produce so few A7V Heavy tanks during World War I?

The Germans produced few A7V Heavy tanks due to a lack of industry and raw materials, exacerbated by the British blockade, and a strategic focus on using existing resources more effectively.

What was the primary tactical advantage of flamethrowers in World War I?

The primary tactical advantage of flamethrowers was their ability to incite fear and force enemy soldiers out of their trenches, where they could be more easily targeted by other weapons.

Why did the Entente powers not fully develop their own flamethrower programs?

The Entente powers did not fully develop flamethrower programs due to the high risk involved for the operators and the relatively limited tactical advantages compared to the dangers faced by the users.

What was the first poison gas used in World War I and by which country?

The first poison gas used in World War I was tear gas, deployed by the French in August 1914.

Why was phosgene gas considered deadlier than chlorine gas?

Phosgene gas was considered deadlier than chlorine gas because it required far less to be fatal and was almost odorless, making it harder for troops to detect before it took effect.

What made mustard gas particularly feared during World War I?

Mustard gas was particularly feared because it caused immediate and severe effects upon contact, such as chemical burns and respiratory damage, making it a highly effective and terrifying weapon.

Outlines

00:00

🐾 The Emergence of Tanks in World War I

The first paragraph delves into the introduction of tanks as a game-changing weapon during World War I. Initially developed by Winston Churchill's Landship Committee in 1915, tanks were initially called 'landships' and faced numerous design and mechanical challenges. The British Mark I, with its rhombus shape, was designed for crossing trenches and supporting infantry, with male and female versions differing in armament. As the war progressed, the British improved their tank designs, culminating in the widely produced Mark IV. The Germans countered with larger trenches, minefields, and anti-tank measures, prompting the French to develop the more agile Renault FT-17. The French also fielded the Sain-Chramond heavy tank, which, despite its top-heavy design, served as a mobile assault gun. The paragraph highlights the evolution of tank warfare and its significant impact on the battlefield tactics of the time.

05:00

🔥 The Horror of Flamethrowers in the Great War

The second paragraph discusses the development and use of flamethrowers during World War I, primarily by the Germans. Richard Fiedler's early designs were large and impractical, but by 1912, the more manageable Kleif model was adopted by the German army. Flamethrowers were used to instill fear and force enemies out of their trenches, though they were more about creating fires than direct burns. The Germans used flamethrowers extensively and effectively, leading to the British and French developing their own versions, despite the British abandoning the idea by 1916. The French, however, continued to use flamethrowers based on captured German models. By the end of the war, flamethrowers had been used in over 650 recorded attacks, showcasing their effectiveness and the strategic role they played in warfare.

10:04

💀 The Lethal Legacy of Poison Gas in World War I

The third paragraph outlines the use of poison gas as a weapon of mass destruction in World War I. Initially, tear gas was used by the French in 1914, followed by the Germans who experimented with various gases. The first large-scale use of lethal gas was by the Germans in 1915 with chlorine gas, which, while not immediately deadly, caused severe respiratory distress and panic among the enemy. The development of phosgene gas and mustard gas further escalated the chemical warfare, with the latter causing immediate and severe burns upon contact. The paragraph emphasizes the strategic and horrifying use of chemical weapons, their development, and the impact they had on the war, leading to the eventual banning of such weapons in future conflicts.

15:07

🤒 The Immediate and Devastating Effects of Mustard Gas

The fourth paragraph focuses on the introduction and effects of mustard gas, the most prolific chemical weapon used in World War I. Mustard gas was first deployed by the Germans in 1917 and was known for its immediate impact on soldiers. Exposure to mustard gas resulted in severe chemical burns and respiratory issues, causing victims to cough up blood and foam. Although not always fatal if treated promptly, the gas's immediate effects made it a favored weapon by the Germans and a despised tool by the Entente powers. The paragraph highlights the swift and gruesome consequences of mustard gas, marking it as one of the most feared weapons of the Great War.

Keywords

💡World War I

World War I, also known as the Great War, was a global conflict that lasted from 1914 to 1918. It was the first war to be fought on an industrial scale, with the use of advanced military technologies such as tanks, flamethrowers, and poison gas. The video discusses how these deadly weapons were introduced and their impact on the battlefield.

💡Tanks

Tanks were a revolutionary weapon introduced during World War I, first developed by the British in 1916. The video describes their evolution from the early 'landship' designs to the more effective Mark I and Renault FT-17 models. Tanks were designed to cross trenches and provide support to infantry, but they faced challenges such as mechanical failures, limited armor, and adaptations by the enemy.

💡Mark I

The Mark I was the first tank used in battle, debuting during World War I. Designed by the British, it featured a distinctive rhombus shape and was intended to support infantry by crossing trenches. The video explains how the Mark I laid the foundation for future tank designs and tactics, despite its limitations in speed, armor, and mechanical reliability.

💡Renault FT-17

The Renault FT-17 was a French tank introduced in 1917, known for its smaller size, speed, and maneuverability compared to British tanks like the Mark I. The video highlights how the FT-17's design made it a more effective battlefield weapon, influencing future tank development and becoming the most widely produced tank of the war.

💡Flamethrowers

Flamethrowers were a terrifying weapon developed by the Germans and used extensively during World War I. These weapons projected a stream of fire, causing chaos and fear among enemy troops. The video discusses the evolution of flamethrower designs, their tactical use, and the psychological impact they had on soldiers during the war.

💡Poison Gas

Poison gas was one of the most feared weapons of World War I, first used by the Germans in 1915. Gases like chlorine, phosgene, and mustard gas caused severe injuries and deaths, often without warning. The video explains how poison gas was deployed, its deadly effects, and its significant psychological impact on soldiers, leading to its eventual ban in warfare.

💡Chlorine Gas

Chlorine gas was the first lethal chemical weapon used on a large scale during World War I by the Germans in 1915. The video describes how chlorine gas, while not always fatal, caused severe respiratory distress and panic among troops, marking a new and horrifying chapter in warfare.

💡Phosgene Gas

Phosgene gas was a more lethal chemical weapon than chlorine, responsible for the majority of chemical weapon deaths during World War I. The video details how phosgene was nearly odorless and could incapacitate soldiers long after exposure, making it a particularly insidious and feared weapon on the battlefield.

💡Mustard Gas

Mustard gas was a chemical weapon used extensively during World War I, known for its blistering effects on the skin and lungs. The video discusses how mustard gas was more immediately harmful than other gases, causing severe injuries and long-lasting psychological trauma, though it was rarely fatal if treated promptly.

💡Anti-Tank Rifle

The anti-tank rifle was developed by the Germans in response to the growing threat of tanks on the battlefield during World War I. The video explains how this weapon was designed to penetrate tank armor, providing infantry with a means to counter the new armored vehicles and diminishing the effectiveness of tanks.

Highlights

World War I marked the first use of modern science and industry in warfare on an industrial scale.

Tanks were first tested during World War I, laying the foundation for future tank design and tactics.

The term 'tank' originated as a code word for the project; early designs were called 'landships'.

The British Mark I tank was designed to cross trenches and support infantry advances.

The French Renault FT-17 was smaller, faster, and more effective on the battlefield than British tanks.

Flamethrowers were first spearheaded by the Germans, with Richard Fiedler's design in 1901.

The German Kleif model flamethrower required two men to operate and had a range of about 60 feet.

Flamethrowers were used to scare enemies into the open, drawing them out with intense heat and suffocation.

The German Wechselapparat allowed a single soldier to carry and operate a flamethrower.

Poison gas was first used by the French in August 1914 with tear gas.

The Germans were the first to use deadly chlorine gas in a large-scale attack on April 22, 1915.

Phosgene gas was deadlier than chlorine due to its potency and odorless nature.

Mustard gas was the most prolific and fastest-acting poison gas, causing immediate chemical burns.

Pigeons were used as an early warning system for the presence of deadly phosgene gas.

The German A7V Heavy tank was a late-war response to the thousands of enemy tanks faced on the Western Front.

Captured tanks were often pressed into service by the Germans, despite their mechanical issues.

The use of poison gas prompted its banning in future wars by civilized nations due to its inhumane effects.

Transcripts

War

on

an industrial scale.

The first truly global conflict.

World War I was a dark turning point for humanity, and unleashed the full might of modern science

and industry on the battlefield for the first time in history with these 3 deadliest weapons

of World War I. Number Three: Tanks

German infantry hunkers in a trench, awaiting an enemy attack they know is coming.

It’s hard to see past the mists of steam and gunpowder that swathe no-man’s land

after the last enemy bombardment, but machine gunners train their weapons on the fog knowing

that sooner or later, the attack will come.

Suddenly, there’s an odd, mechanical rumbling sound.

German infantrymen look to each other in confusion.

The sound grows in intensity, becoming a dull roar, and then- something in the fog.

Something big, a mass of metal, black smoke, and gun barrels lumbering down on the German

position.

There are few weapons as synonymous with World War One as the tank.

These armored beasts received their first serious testing during this conflict, and

the challenges they faced would lay the foundation for tank design and tactics for generations

to come.

However, these fascinating weapons are shrouded in mystique and there are a lot of rumors

to dispel not only about their creation but their use or disuse by each side in the war.

Though it is commonly stated that the impetus for tanks came about in 1916, the idea came

from Winston Churchill’s appointed Landship Committee in February of 1915.

In fact, the word ‘tank’ was not even part of the vocabulary back then for these

weapons since this was the code word used to describe the project, instead early designs

were called landships, and were supposed to be the equivalent of a battleship on land.

However, early versions of the landship were less than stellar.

The first prototype, Little Willie, was prone to mechanical failure and was painfully slow,

with infantrymen easily able to outpace it.

Additionally, this prototype and later models had little armor, which would prove to be

a death sentence for many crews.

Once the British figured out the engine and mobility problems, they designed a tank with

the now well-known rhombus shape that became known as the Mark I.

The Mark I was designed to cross trenches and spearhead the advance of infantry waves.

However, the tanks were designed to work with other tanks to support one another.

British designers made two versions: a male and female version.

The male version was equipped with a six pounder cannon and several machine guns while the

female version was equipped with five machine guns only.

The goal of the two tanks was the female tank would support the male tank’s advance by

pinning down attacking infantry, machine gun nests, and artillery observers.

As the war dragged on, the British would expand on their initial Mark I design with the Mark

II through V tanks with the Mark IV model being the most widely produced British tank

of the war.

The tanks definitely served a great tactical advantage in its early uses starting at the

Somme Offensive in 1916, but the Germans quickly designed ways to defeat them.

The Germans built larger trenches, funneled tanks with minefields, created armor piercing

artillery rounds, and built the world’s first anti-tank rifle.

All of these weapons and tactics degraded the effectiveness of the tank and it was the

French that would step in to save the idea with their own design.

The French, inspired by British successes in 1916, started designing their own tank

in 1917 called the Renault FT-17.

The FT tank was much smaller than the Mark series tanks, sporting a crew of just two

men and a single cannon or two machine guns, but it was much faster.

It was also much smaller than the British tanks and for these reasons it was a much

more effective weapon on the battlefield.

Since both the British and French tanks lacked effective armor, a direct artillery round

and even machine gun bullets could penetrate the skin of the tank.

Combine that with rough terrain and one could see how speed and maneuverability were what

was going to make a tank survive.

The FT-17 quickly became the most widely produced and popular tank of the war.

Debuting in May of 1918, it was a battlefield success instantly and was used not only by

the French but by the Americans and British as well.

The FT-17 was not the only tank that saw widespread combat on the Western front.

The Sain-Chramond heavy tank was the rarely seen duckboat model produced by the French

with a heavy 75mm gun protruding from the front.

This tank had a production run of several hundred models by the summer of 1918 and was

used extensively from the spring of 1917 onwards.

The main problem with this tank was the difficulty it had in traversing trenches since it was

quite top heavy.

As a result, it went from a direct attack kind of vehicle to a mobile assault gun role

which it served quite well, being able to reposition itself quickly on the battlefield

to engage new targets and evade German counter fire.

We have talked a lot about the French and British tanks but what about the famous German

A7V Heavy tank?

This tank was Germany’s response to the thousands of enemy tanks they faced on the

Western Front.

Debuting in 1918, only about 20 of these vehicles entered service and had limited use on the

battlefield due to their low numbers.

The Germans produced so few due to a variety of factors, the main reason being a lack of

industry and raw materials, since by this stage in the war the British blockade of Germany

had done a number on German capacity to produce war material.

Additionally, by this late in the war, German leadership was less focused on wonder weapons

then on ways to realistically win the war with what they had.

Despite these views, that did not stop the Germans from employing at least several dozen

if not several hundred captured British and French tanks on the battlefield.

It was quite common for these tanks to become bogged down in the mud or be broken down and

abandoned after a battle.

The Germans took advantage of this and pressed an untold number into service.

Though little concrete information exists on how extensive this practice was, the photographic

evidence suggests it was actually fairly common.

However, while a lumbering landship may have been a terrifying sight to behold, nothing

struck fear in the heart of an infantryman more than the thought of being incinerated

alive.

Number Two: Flamethrowers The enemy attack comes as expected, but as

the infantrymen scramble to their firing positions they’re met by walls of flame.

Men are consumed alive by sheets of fire as the trenches fill with red-hot death.

The defender’s nerve is broken, and men scramble out of their trenches- better to

meet death with a bullet than be incinerated alive.

Unlike the landships, the flamethrowers of World War One were spearheaded by the Germans

in both development and application.

Being first designed in 1901 by German engineer Richard Fiedler, the early prototypes of the

Flamenwerfer were large and unwieldy.

Despite this, the German army accepted his first design into regular service by 1906,

though Fiedler did not stop working to produce a smaller and more practicable model.

He did this by shrinking the overall size of the flamethrower but still kept the same

two canister and rubber hose design.

This model, known as the Kleif model, could shoot flames only about half as long as its

previous counterpart, with a range of about 60 feet.

Nonetheless, this model was soon adopted by the German army as well in 1912 into the special

pioneer regiments but would take several years before seeing active service.

When deployed, the German Kleif flamethrower was operated by two men.

One man would carry the unwieldy apparatus itself, weighing in at about 70 pounds before

firing, and the other would direct the flow of fire from the weapon at the end of the

nozzle.

These men obviously faced a very dangerous existence on the battlefield, which is why

they never travelled alone and usually had at least two soldiers as bodyguards to accompany

them.

The flamethrower teams were designed to be employed in groups of four to six teams in

cases of major offensives, whereby their goal would be to push ahead of the first wave of

infantry to scare the enemy into the open with shock and awe.

The reason why this is was because the flamethrowers of World War One did not have the binding

agent inside the propellant like the flamethrowers of World War Two and beyond would have.

Rather, the flames produced by these weapons were more similar to starting an actual fire

and would be effective for drawing enemies into the open to escape the intense heat and

suffocation from lack of oxygen rather than direct injuries from being burned alive.

This tactic was employed to a tee by the Germans for the first time in a major combat operation

against British troops on the Western front in July of 1915 but had been used intermittently

in the Vosges mountains of the Alsace-Lorraine region of France since 1914.

When employed en masse against British positions, the weapon absolutely frightened the bewildered

and unprepared defenders.

The attack was a roaring success and over 700 British troops died in this assault that

took control of several trench lines.

However, British medical data from autopsies of recovered British soldiers in this attack

found that true to German military planning, the vast majority of the British casualties

did not die as a direct result of burns, but had instead been pushed out into the open

from the security of their trenches and shot to pieces.

As the war progressed, both the British and French decided they too wanted to develop

their own models of man-portable flamethrowers.

The British were quick to abandon the idea all together by 1916 with only four prototypes

produced and two of these being destroyed in combat test trials.

The French were much more successful and developed their own similar flamethrowers based off

of captured German models.

However, data for their use is quite limited and though they were certainly used frequently

by the end of the war it is unknown to what extent.

The Germans on the other hand were undeterred to produce better and better flamethrowers.

In 1917, they came out with their latest version, the Wechselapparat or Wex for short.

This made the Kleif model even smaller and enabled a single man to carry and fire the

weapon.

Data for this weapon too is sparse but it certainly was popular with the Entente forces

since the British based their post war models off captured versions of this flamethrower.

By the end of the war, the Germans had used flamethrowers in at least 650 recorded attacks.

Despite this rather large number, this does not take into account attacks conducted by

the Germans on the eastern front against the Russians or attacks by their Austro-Hungarian

allies who used the weapon extensively on both the Italian and Eastern fronts.

It was undoubtedly a popular weapon by Central Powers forces and was used to great effect

by them.

Why the Entente powers failed to fully appreciate a flamethrower program similar to the German

one has begged the questions of historians for many years, but the consensus is that

the weapon yielded too much risk for its users with little tactical advantage.

The fact that the German army had already been practicing with flamethrowers for years

before World War One also gave them more confidence and experienced personnel that could use it

better than their enemy counterparts.

Our deadliest weapon of World War I would go on into global infamy, prompting the banning

of its use in any future war by civilized nations.

Number One: Poison Gas It’s a quiet night on the western front.

The enemy hasn’t attacked in days- not even a customary bombardment to keep the men pinned

down in their filthy trenches and demoralized, killing the unwary.

It’s been a welcome break in the fighting.

Across hundreds of meters of no-man’s land however, the enemy prepares a brand new kind

of attack.

Large metal canisters are pushed into position outside of friendly lines, and with the wind

finally just right, knobs are turned and the canisters unleash their deadly cargo.

It’ll float invisibly on the air, pushed along by the brisk breeze before settling

into the opposing side’s trenches.

The only clue the defenders will have they are under attack is a light fog creeping across

no-man’s land and washing over their positions.

Many will die never knowing what killed them.

Most of the poison gases were already known substances to mankind long before the war

started, such as chlorine which was discovered in the late 1700s, and whose harmful effects

to humans were already well documented.

However, weaponizing these kinds of chemicals for military use had not been thought of before.

Though poisons had been used on battlefields throughout ancient history, militaries around

the world were hesitant to use them in the modern era such as during the US Civil War

and Crimean War where these proposals were immediately shut down.

However, World War One was different.

Both sides used the logic that even if the weapons were absolutely horrible, if they

could be used to achieve a decisive military victory sooner, then more lives would be saved

in the long run.

However, contrary to popular belief, the French were the first to use chemical weapons in

August of 1914.

These first attacks did not use the deadly gases created later in the war but rather

used tear gas which had already been in service with police forces several years earlier.

The Germans would be the next belligerent to use gases but on a much larger scale.

In October of 1914, they fired several thousand shells of a non-deadly irritant gas similar

to tear gas against the British.

However, the British did not even know that they were being attacked with chemical weapons

since the explosive charges inside the artillery shells destroyed the gas before it could deploy.

The next time the Germans tried to use gas on a large scale was in Poland in January

of 1915.

While the shells were able to deploy the gas this time, they were not effective due to

the extreme cold preventing the gas from vaporizing..

Delivering the gas required the creation of special artillery shells that had enough explosive

in them to spread the gas but would not destroy it.

Additionally, they would need to account for factors such as temperature, rain, and, most

importantly, wind direction.

If any of these conditions were not favorable, then the gas could not be fired since it would

not work- or worse, blow back onto their own lines.

After some more experimenting, the Germans decided to use a deadlier gas called chlorine

gas.

This was a dramatic step forward; even though chlorine gas was only fatal in extreme doses,

it was the first time that true poison gas would be used.

That day was April 22, 1915 on the Ypres (pronounced ee-pruh) battlefield against French and colonial

Algerian troops.

The gas attack came as a surprise since the soldiers had never once before seen or experienced

such a horrifying weapon.

The men also did not know what to do when they saw the clouds of noxious gases coming

towards them.

Thinking that this gas was simply an irritant like tear gas, the men opted to stand their

ground and fight.

However, that would prove to be a fatal error... before long hundreds of men were wheezing

and coughing blood and fluids before losing consciousness.

Thousands of French soldiers retreated in panic and caused an almost eight mile sector

of their line to open up.

The Germans, though, did not exploit this resounding success because their troops were

also afraid of the effects of poison gas on themselves.

Despite their success, both sides wanted to create a deadlier and more potent gas.

That led to the development of the deadliest gas of World War I: phosgene gas, which caused

about 85% of the 90,000 chemical weapon deaths incurred during the war.

Phosgene gas was deadlier than chlorine gas not only because it required far less to kill

a man but because it was almost odorless.

Unsuspecting troops could be hit by this deadly gas during an artillery barrage and not even

realize it.

That is why some countries, like Britain, resorted to keeping pigeons in the trenches

not only as a source of communications, but as an early warning for this deadly gas since

they would die much quicker and at lower doses than people.

Despite being much deadlier, phosgene gas had a major problem: it took a long time to

kill someone.

There were numerous reports from the battlefield where men exposed to fatal doses of phosgene

gas would fight for up to a day before succumbing to its deadly effects.

A new, faster acting gas would have to be used and this was the iconic mustard gas.

Mustard gas was created and first used by the Germans starting in 1917 and became the

most prolific gas of the war.

Why it was so effective was despite its ominous yellow clouds that could be easily seen, once

it made contact with your skin or was inhaled, its effects were immediate.

Soldiers exposed to this gas would immediately develop grotesque chemical burns and instantly

start coughing blood and foam as their lungs were burned and blackened.

Though rarely deadly if medical treatment was sought soon after, it was these instantaneous

effects that made it a favorite of the Germans and a disdain of the Entente powers.