Preview

How Did World War One Effect Chemical Warfare

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
647 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Did World War One Effect Chemical Warfare
Analyze the effect chemical warfare in WW1 had on the soldier.

In World War 1, the development and use of poison gases were created mainly to end the stalemate risen by the unexpected trench warfare . These poisonous gases, such as mustard gas, were close to impossible to avoid in or out of a trench because they were denser near the ground when released, causing greater suffering to those ducking for cover. It wasn't until World War 1 that chemical warfare was given a definition, the use of chemical munitions designed to incapacitate. But as the use of gases increased, the overall effectiveness decreased due to developments in protection. Nevertheless, these gases took serious tolls on the victims both physically as well as mentally. …show more content…
One of the earliest military uses of chemicals were by the French in 1914. These chemicals were first used as an irritating substance rather than a fatal or disabling poison, until the Germans began experimenting with chemicals. The Germans began the large-scale use of the killing agent chlorine, which was more of a psychological weapon. It was easily avoidable due to its easy visibility. The ineffectiveness led to the creation of mustard gas. The skin of victims of mustard gas blistered, their eyes became very sore and they began to vomit. Mustard gas caused internal and external bleeding and attacked the bronchial tubes, stripping off the mucous membrane. Fatally injured victims sometimes took four or five weeks to die of mustard gas exposure. The effects of these weapons had horrific
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Weapons Used In Ww1 Research Paper
    • 77 Words
    • 1 Page

    Weapons Used In Ww1 Research Paper

    Another weapon used was poison gas. Chlorine gas was first used by the Germans at the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915. It was used to kill hundreds of French troops. The British also used chlorine gas. Later in the war there were developments and more deadly types were used. Mustard gas would blind and burn whatever it came in contact with. Poison gas killed an estimated one million people on all sides throughout the war.…

    • 77 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Morro Bay Rock Research Paper
    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Morro Bay Rock Research Paper

    The Germans used it first on April 22, 1915 by opening 168 tons of chlorine gas. This gas was heavier than air which meant it stayed near the ground and anyone who would breathe is suffocated immediately (Wikipedia). Another type was mustard gas and this was the most deadly kind because gas masks could not stop it. It penetrated the clothing and burned the skin. During the whole war, gas killed more than 700,000 troops on both sides. Eventually, they stopped the use of gas in 1925 and it was not used in World War II because Hitler got temporarily blinded by it…

    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Analysis: Poison Gas Used In World War I
    • 291 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Analysis: Poison Gas Used In World War I

    I learned a lot about World War I and a lot about poison gas during this assignment. First I learned that poison gas was used as an accessory that killed a lot of people. I learned that the use of poison gas was started by France. They used poison gas against Germans in the war. Then Germans started using poison gas against most of the other country and their allies. The poison gas used was phosgene gas, mustard gas, chlorine, Asphyxiate, and Lachrymator (tearing agent). Most of these gases contain toxic and a harmful bacterium that can cause damage to humans immediately. Secondly I learned that for first time in the war; poison gas was like a weapon but only used to frighten…

    • 291 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Bioterrorism In World War I
    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Bioterrorism In World War I

    Most common gases used in the war were phosgene, chlorine, and mustard gas. Chlorine is often used in biology the first being in emergent properties. Pure chlorine is a poisonous gas; used in emergent properties of a compound, when chemically combined with sodium it forms sodium chlorine also known as table salt. Out of the several elements in the human body, one of them being chlorine makes up 0.2% of our body mass. Lastly, we see Chlorine in electron transfer and ionic bonding: “When an atom of sodium (11Na) encounters an atom of chlorine (17Cl) a sodium atom has a total of 11 electrons, with its single valence electron in the third electron shell.…

    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    A Look at Ernest Hemingway’s “Soldier’s Home” Compared to WWI and Shell Shock
    • 1806 Words
    • 5 Pages

    A Look at Ernest Hemingway’s “Soldier’s Home” Compared to WWI and Shell Shock

    Soldiers were exposed too much during the war, but chemical weapons were most likely the most horrifying and remembered. Despite the Hague Convention of 1907, which forbade the use of "poison or poisonous weapons", the French were the first to violate this Convention with the wide spread use of tear gas to soften up enemy defenses (Wilmot 35). However, this process often left French troops feeling the effects because they were ordered to charge to quickly for the tear gas to dissipate. The Germans responded with full-scale deployment of chemical warfare agents in the Second Battle of Ypres, April 22, 1915; here the Germans attacked French, Canadian and Algerian troops with chlorine gas. However, both sides experienced difficulty when deciding how to use chemical agents and often gassed an enemy position without an advance to exploit weakness for fear of poisoning their own men. This massive use of chemical…

    • 1806 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Poisonous Gases Dbq
    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Poisonous Gases Dbq

    Poisonous gases changed the experiences of the people in the war for the worse. Breaking on impact, the canisters released yellowish green fumes that wafted slowly toward the French and African troops near the Belgian town of Ypres. As the fumes reached the Allied forces, soldiers realized the cloud was poisonous chlorine gas. Quoted in Dooly's Great Weapons of World War I, one French doctor at Ypres expressed his horror: “I had the impression that was looking through green glasses. At the same time, I felt the action of the gas upon my respiratory system; it burned in my throat, caused pains in my chest, and made breathing all but impossible. I spat blood and suffered from dizziness. We all thought we were lost.” ("Technology.") Canisters…

    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Trench Warfare In World War One
    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Trench Warfare In World War One

    The most used was the bolt action rifle, it fired 15 rounds a minute at a person 1,400 meters away. The second new weapon was the machine gun. Machine guns needed 4-6 men to work them and it had to be on a flat surface. They had the fire power of 100 guns. There was also large field guns that had a long range and could drive devastating blows to the enemy but they needed up to 12 men to work them. They fired shells that exploded on impact. Next there was gas. The German army were the first to use chlorine gas at the battle of Ypres in 1915. Chlorine gas causes a burning feeling in the throat and you got chest pains. Death is painful, you would suffocate. The problem with chlorine gas is that the weather must be right. If the wind is in the wrong direction it could end up killing your own troops rather than the enemy. Mustard gas was the most deadly weapon used. It was fired into the trenches in shells. It is colorless and takes 12 hours to take effect. The effects were: blistering skin, vomiting, sore eyes, internal and external bleeding. Death can take up to 5 weeks. In Document Four Henry says “ on top of this, I encountered mustered gas for the first time last week. Fortunately, I had my gas mask ready. The same could not be said for my friend, Heinrich. To see someone die such a death is a horror I will never forget,” Henry saw his friend die from mustered gas. It was a horrible…

    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    World War I: Chemical Warfare
    • 156 Words
    • 1 Page

    World War I: Chemical Warfare

    In the beginning of time men fought with sticks and stones. World War I brought a step change in technology with the occurrence of poison gas, machine guns, and armored tanks. Previous to World War I foot soldiers and horses were used to advance on the enemy. Chemical warfare had never been used before World War I. With this deadly and often inhuman use of chemical warfare, those exposed died painful and excruciating deaths. The machine gun was invented in 1884 but wasn't used in warfare until World War I. This invention allowed for rapid firing and therefore was able to kill or injure many more enemies during a single battle. The armored tank led to the advancement of heavy gun fire while protecting the gunman. Poison gas, machine guns, and…

    • 156 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Living downstream essay
    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Living downstream essay

    Sandra Steingraber wrote the book living downstream about her experiences with cancer and chemicals. In it she details the wars in playing an active role in the toxic century and in her words” changed chemistry and physics forever.” After each world war the need for each country trying to rapidly industrialize in order to beat other countries was so important that common sense was not present. Countries decided to forgo safety checks in order to make sure their products were more effective. As a result, many chemicals such as chorine, DDT (used as an insect repellant in the war) and PCB’s were released in society for commercial use. DDT in particular was linked to cancer and hurt wildlife in the…

    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    World War I: Poison Gas
    • 1774 Words
    • 8 Pages

    World War I: Poison Gas

    There were many small things that eventually caused World War I. The spark that started the First World War was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 (Duffy). The killing was blamed on the Serbians, making the Austrian-Hungarians declare war on them. Russia was bound to a treaty with Serbia so it made Russia have to step in. Because Russia stepped in, more and more countries had to get involved due to being allies or having a treaty with one of the involved countries. Some of the big powers that fought each other were Austria-Hungary, Russia, Serbia, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada, United States, Bulgaria, The Ottoman Empire, and Japan. Several other smaller powers were also included in this disastrous event. The Central Powers were made up Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. The Allies included the United States, Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, Serbia, France, Canada, and many others. The war officially started on July 28th, 1914 (Duffy).…

    • 1774 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Ddt Essay
    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Ddt Essay

    DDT was also used in the second half of the World War 2, because it was against the mosquito that spread malaria and lice that carry typhus.…

    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Battle of Verdun
    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Battle of Verdun

    In the battle field, trenches were made to help avoid the bombardment from both sides. Bombardment was the main weapon used in this battle and millions of shells from both sides were shot, which made this battle very chaotic. Gases were used too to blind the enemy, also known as chemical warfare. This battle has arisen never before seen weapons in wars at that time, and one of them is the gas. After the battle, there were hardly any trenches left because of the explosions from the bombardment and more than over three-hundred thousand soldiers at both sides have died, and over seven-hundred thousand were wounded.…

    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    World War 1 Turning Points
    • 787 Words
    • 4 Pages

    World War 1 Turning Points

    In World War 1 the main “poison” was chlorine gas. “Chlorine gas, produces a greenish-yellow cloud that smells of bleach and immediately irritates the eyes, nose, lungs, and throat of those exposed to it. At high enough doses, it kills by asphyxiation (Everts)”. Militaries would fire shells full of the gas into trenches. “On the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 Fritz Haber, the talented chemist, offered his services to the German Army.…

    • 787 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    World War I: Chemical Warfare
    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages

    World War I: Chemical Warfare

    On April the 22, 1915 at the start of the Second Battle of the Ypres, the first poison gas attack and the first use of chlorine gas in a battlefield started, even though the Hague declaration and Convention forbade the use of poison weapons in the warfare. The Germans attacked France with the chlorine gas, but the French were not prepared at all for this attack. The effects of the chlorine gas to the soldiers was very severe; within seconds it destroyed their respiratory organs and it gave them choking attacks.…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Best Essays

    The Psychological Roots of Racial Tensions
    • 2132 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The Psychological Roots of Racial Tensions

    Smith, Susan L. "Mustard Gas and American Race-Based Human Experimentation in World War II." Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics 36.3 (2008): 517-21. Http://web.ebscohost.com. Blackwell Publishing. Web. .…

    • 2132 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Best Essays
    Read More