The Century of Wars

Weapons in World War I

The First World War brought fundamental changes in the evolution of weapons. From the beginning of the war fighting forces of every country used machine guns of large firepower, and breech-loading artillery guns, firing high-explosive shells. For the first time in the history of warfare toxic gases were used with devastating effect. In addition, new types of weapons appeared as well. For example, trench mortars, flamethrowers and modern hand grenades, which were developed for use in trench warfare. The first tanks were built for the same purpose.

In the oceans submarines became much feared weapons, while in the air the first fighter airplanes appeared.

German flamethrower

The development of the flamethrower was the result of the trench warfare. It was first used by the Germans in WWI, attacking mainly smaller fortifications and machine gun posts. It took courageous soldiers to use them, since its short range (15–20 m) meant that they had to get very close to the target. Also, the fuel tanks were prone to explode during battle.

Austro-Hungarian howitzer

The 305 mm siege howitzer was developed to attack fortresses. Firing shells of nearly 400 kg, they were capable of piercing 2 metres thick concrete walls. Due to its over 20 tonne mass, it could only be transported in two parts.

Gas mask

At the beginning of the war surprise poison gas attacks caused large numbers of casualties among unprepared soldiers. Many died, others were blinded or suffered various debilitating injuries. Often the attackers themselves became victims of their own actions, due to the changing wind direction. Consequently all fighting units involved in the war started using gas masks to filter and eliminate poisonous sub­stances from the air soldiers breathed in.

Chauchat light machine gun

This French weapon was one of the first machine guns light enough for a single soldier to carry and use. It could be fired from the hip while charging the enemy. However, it was prone to jamming, due to the open magazine
letting in lot of dirt.

hydraulic recoil mechanism

This weapon was the first field gun that did not roll backwards after firing, thanks to the innovative hydraulic recoil mechanism. This and the easy operation of the breech mechanism enabled a well-trained crew to fire 15–20 shells in one minute.