First World War in the News -- WW1 History from causes to trenches

Main page -- Latest WW1 news and articles

Operation Kronstadt by Harry Ferguson - Mission of 2 Victoria Crosses
The mission began as the most hazardous rescue operation in the history of British Intelligence - and ended in a successful Royal Navy raid on the most heavily defended fortress in Western Europe. "Their cool, disciplined, daredevil gallantry turned what the outside world would have called a forlorn hope into a legitimate operation which met with far greater success than I had ever hoped," said Admiral Walter Cowan about the men of the Coastal Motor Boats who assaulted the Soviet Fleet in the Gulf of Finland on August 18, 1919 - two Victoria Crosses were granted for the action. [ dailymail :: 2008-05-11 :: Russian Empire ]

Multimillion dollar grant recognizes WWI internment of Ukrainian Canadians
Ukrainian Canadians closed a terrible chapter in their community's history as the federal government announced a $10 million grant to recognize the internment of Eastern European immigrants in Canadian work camps during WWI. The money is going into a fund that will allow the community to educate Canadians about the forced labour camps. "After more than 2 decades of community pressure and a string of broken political promises, the troubling issue of Ukrainian internment during World War One has finally been resolved," said Oleh Gerus, vice president of the Ukrainian Canadian Foundation of Taras Shevchenko. [ 940news :: 2008-05-11 :: Canada and Native Indians ]

First World War John Babcock vet regains Canadian citizenship
It all started with a hand-written note to the PM, wrote on a sheet of paper decorated with cartoon Teddy Bears and American flags. But recently Canada's last remaining World War I veteran John Babcock got a gift: the restoration of his Canadian citizenship. Until this week, he was only a Canuck by birth, because after the war he moved to the U.S., where he was naturalized as a U.S. citizen, and at the time the U.S. did not allow "dual citizens". In 1915 Babcock lied about his age to sign up with the 146th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. [ canada.com :: 2008-05-09 :: Canada and Native Indians ]

90 years ago the newly formed RAF paved the way for the modern fighting machine
One summer's afternoon in 1917, Grahame Donald tried a new manoeuvre in Sopwith Camel. He flew the machine up and over, and as he reached the top of his loop, hanging upside down 6,000ft above the ground, his safety belt broke and he fell out. He was not wearing a parachute; they were not issued to British pilots in the view that they would spoil fighting spirit. Hurtling to earth Donald's death was seconds away. "The first 2,000ft passed very quickly and terra firma looked damnably 'firma'. As I fell, I began to hear my faithful little Camel somewhere nearby. Suddenly I fell back on to her." [ telegraph :: 2008-05-07 :: Airforces & Aviation ]

Diary of First World War veteran Settimio Damiani translated into book
30 years after his death, and almost a century after the Great War, the translation into English of the diary of a WWI Italian soldier has both fascinated and terrified his daughter. "I never knew my father was a hero," said Lee Malizia, daughter of the late Settimio Damiani. The diary records the story of how Damiani fought on the Italian front lines against Austro-Hungarian and German forces in the Battle of Caporetto, where over 10,000 Italians perished and hundreds of thousands were taken POWs. He traded crackers for a pen so he could keep writing, even though he was on starving rations. [ southtownstar :: 2008-05-07 :: Documents, diaries, extracts ]

Nov. 5, 1915: USS North Carolina becames the first ship to launch a plane while under way
On November 5, 1915, the armored cruiser USS North Carolina (CA-12) became the first ship to launch a plane while under way. "U.S. Armored Cruisers: A Design and Operational History" by Ivan Musicant, says that the catapult bolted to the North Carolina's quarterdeck was made of narrow-gauge track, 50-feet long. It rose 4 feet above the deck. The plane was launched on this track using 300 psi compressed air from the ship's torpedo air service. Although its catapult was primitive, the AB-2 "flying boat" biplane zipped down the track and over the side of the ship at 50 mph. [ starnewsonline :: 2008-05-07 :: Airforces & Aviation ]

Borrowed Soldiers - 2 American units under British command in World War I
Historian Mitchell A. Yockelson's book details the experiences of two American units that were placed under British command in the First World War, in spite of opposition by the top American military officer, General John J. Pershing. Yockelson wrote in "Borrowed Soldiers" about the activation of National Guard units and their deployment as the 27th and 30th divisions. "Initially, it was a disappointment to these guys. But in the end, there was this pride that they were the two American divisions that helped break the Hindenburg Line. They took pride in doing something unique." [ hometownannapolis :: 2008-05-07 :: United States of America ]

First World War round blows up, injures man
A cannon round from the World War I era exploded while a man tried to disassemble the projectile to recycle the brass. Vernal Miller suffered serious injuries. Metro Explosives Disposal Unit personnel said that Miller was injured by a 37mm cannon round from the WWI era. These munitions were fired from single- and multiple-barreled mounted rifles - this piece was manufactured in Paris, France, in Sept. 1916. They were a very common WWI souvenir. The shell carried either a high explosive or black powder burst charge that was initiated by an impact fuse in the nose. [ katu :: 2008-05-03 :: Explosions ]

The First World War (August 1914 to November 1918) is also known as the Great War, The War to End All Wars, World War I and WW1.

Many of the bloodiest battles in military history occurred during the First World War. In trench warfare hundreds of soldiers died for each yard of land captured. Artillery with fragmentation shells caused the most casualties and made massed infantry attacks futile.

First World War in the News is an edited review of hand-picked World War I 1914-1918 articles.