Language
Country/Area
No result found
In 1915, chemical weapons were used on a large scale for the first time: how did it change the history of warfare?
The use of chemical weapons dates back thousands of years, but the first large-scale use of these weapons during World War I changed the shape and trends of warfare. Chemical weapons are used as a means of destruction in warfare, with the main purpose of destroying the enemy's morale, injuring and killing troops defending in depth. Initially, the types of weapons ranged from tear gas that blinded opponents to lethal chemicals such as chlorine, phosphate esters, and mustard gas that caused death. The chemical warfare of this period profoundly changed the history of warfare in the 20th century.
The widespread use of chemical weapons and the development of high explosives made World War I regarded as the "chemist's war" and ushered in the era of weapons of mass destruction.
The chemical weapons of World War I made war no longer solely dependent on traditional soldiers and weapons. These chemicals cause psychological trauma that far outweighs their physical damage, killing an estimated 90,000 people and injuring 1.3 million. Although chemical weapons accounted for only 3-3.5% of all war casualties, their use ushered in a completely new way of warfare. In fact, these weapons also prompted militaries to develop protective measures, such as gas masks, which ultimately reduced the overall effectiveness of chemical weapons.
1914-1915: The Evolution of Chemical Weapons
The first large-scale use of chemical weapons can be traced back to January 31, 1915. On the Lova River in the Baltic Sea, the German army used 18,000 artillery shells containing tetrabromomethane to attack the Russian army for the first time. However, when these chemicals failed to work as expected, the German military turned to chlorine as a lethal weapon. This gas can not only cause damage to the eyes, nose and throat during attack, but can also cause death by suffocation at high concentrations.
"The use of chlorine gas violates the 1899 Hague Convention, but Germany's defense is that the Hague Convention only banned chemical shells, not the use of gas projectiles."
In the following weeks, the German army used chlorine gas in several attacks, especially during the Second Battle of Ypres, which is widely regarded as "the beginning of chemical weapons." Over time, the use of chemical weapons on the battlefield became more common, but as countermeasures were introduced, the effectiveness of these weapons gradually diminished. As chemical warfare technology advanced in 1915, other warring nations such as Britain and France also began to develop and use their own chemical weapons, particularly tear gas and chlorine.
The emergence of deadly chemical weapons
In 1917, Germany introduced a new type of chemical weapon-mustard gas. Although its name includes "gas", it is actually a volatile oily liquid that is dispersed on the battlefield in the form of mist-like droplets. Mustard gas is primarily used to damage and disrupt enemy troops, but in high doses it can cause death. The chemical is extremely harmful to the skin and respiratory tract, and victims of long-term exposure often die within weeks.
"Those who talk about continuing the war no matter the cost cannot imagine what the soldiers affected by mustard gas are going through."
The contaminating properties of mustard gas make it difficult to use in support of an attack, as attacking troops are often affected by the gas they are using. Despite this, Germany still decided to spray mustard gas on the British troops during Operation Michael in 1918 to send the enemy to retreat. Eventually, these new chemical weapons occupied an important position in the war and became one of the standard weapons in large-scale operations.
Ending and Reflection
After four years of fighting, chemical weapons have lost their original effectiveness in many cases. Although they ultimately resulted in approximately 1.3 million casualties, the use of chemical weapons in military operations declined significantly after World War II as protection technology improved and public anger against such weapons increased. The use of chemical weapons not only changed the practice of war, but the thinking behind it on human morality and the nature of war has also become the focus of future generations' research. After all, has the emergence of chemical weapons truly improved the efficiency of war, or has it deprived humans of their dignity?
