Other Theatres

Third Front - Italy and the Mediterranean

Many consider the war to have taken place on two fronts: West and East. But some people argue that there was a third front in Italy and the Mediterranean.

Italy's position

Although Italy was a member of the Triple Alliance, Italy tried to stay out of the First World War.
- It claimed that Austria-Hungary had not been attacked and so it did not need to help.
- Italy signed a secret agreement with the Allies. This agreement promised that Italy would gain territory from Austria-Hungary.
- The Allied Powers did this to weaken the Central Powers. They hoped that Germany would send troops to the Italian Front and weaken the Eastern Front.

Battles between Italy and Austria-Hungary

Between 1915 and 1916, Italy and Austria-Hungary fought various battles.
But these battles did not bring about any great success for either side.

Attack at Gallipoli

In 1915, Great Britain and troops from the Empire launched an attack on the Ottoman Empire, Germany’s ally. This attack was staged at Gallipoli.

Plan of attack

The purpose of this offensive was to open up a route to Russia and create a second front.
It was hoped this would overcome the stalemate on the Western Front.
Winston Churchill (First Lord of the Admiralty) and Lord Kitchener (Secretary of State for War) constructed the plan.
They planned the attack on Gallipoli to be led by the navy, so troops would not be sucked into attritional battles like on the Western Front.

Dardanelles attack

18 March 1915: Warships (many of which were old and outdated) bombarded Ottoman forts along the Dardanelles Strait.
But the Ottomans managed to sink three warships.
In response, the Allied Powers decided to stop the naval attack.
- Instead, they launched a land invasion and hoped this would allow them to eventually restart the naval plan.

Helles Beach attack

25 April 1915: French, British, Indian and ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand) troops attacked Helles Beach.
The Allied Powers did not realise how big the Ottoman army was.
The naval attack warned the Ottomans of the potential invasion and they prepared for the land attack by digging trenches.
Troops that landed at Helles beach (renamed Anzac Cove) hardly made it off the beaches. The Ottomans were on the cliffs above.
The Allied troops suffered a huge number of losses.

Battle of attrition

To combat this, the Allied powers dug trenches and used attrition tactics.
In August 1915, Allied submarines successfully attacked Constantinople’s harbour.
By November 1915, the Allied troops were struggling to survive in the cold winter with poor equipment.
In December 1915, the Allied troops retreated.

Aftermath

Around 44,000 British Empire and French forces died.
Around 85,000 Ottoman (Turkish) soldiers died.
The most successful part of the campaign was the evacuation. The Ottomans were on high ground. So, at night, troops took things to boats on shore. Afterwards, in just five days, 46,000 troops were evacuated out by sea.
Overall, Gallipoli was a disaster and a humiliating failure for the Allies.

1The Causes of the First World War

1.1The Alliance System

1.1.1The Threat of Germany & The Triple Alliance

1.1.2The Franco-Russian Alliance & the 'Entente'

1.1.3End of Topic Test - The Alliance System

1.2Crisis in Morocco and the Balkans

1.2.1The Crisis in Morocco

1.2.2The Crisis in the Balkans

1.2.3The Balkan Wars

1.2.4Impact on International Relations

1.2.5End of Topic Test - Morocco & the Balklans

1.3Anglo-German Rivalry

1.3.1Britain & Splendid Isolation

1.3.2Kaiser Wilhelm II's Foreign Policy

1.3.3European Rearmament

1.3.4End of Topic Test - Anglo-German Rivalry

1.4Outbreak of War

1.4.1Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

1.4.2The July Crisis

1.4.3The Schlieffen Plan and Belgium

1.4.4Reasons for the Outbreak of Hostilities

1.4.5End of Topic Test - Outbreak of War

2The First World War: Stalemate

2.1The Schlieffen Plan

2.1.1Reasons Behind the Schlieffen Plan & its Failure

2.1.2Stalemate

2.1.3End of Topic Test - The Schlieffen Plan

2.2The Western Front

2.2.1Technology

2.2.2Military Tactics

2.2.3The War of Attrition (1915-1916)

2.2.4The War of Attrition (1917)

2.2.5End of Topic Test - The Western Front

2.3The Wider War

2.3.1The War at Sea

2.3.2The War in the Air

2.3.3Other Theatres

2.3.4End of Topic Test - Wider War

3Ending the War

3.1Changes in the Allied Forces

3.1.1The Bolshevik Revolution

3.1.2Reasons for the Entry of the USA

3.1.3The Impact of US Entry on the War

3.1.4End of Topic Test - Changes in the Allied Forces

3.2Military Developments in 1918

3.2.1Tactics & Technology

3.2.2Ludendorff & the German Spring Offensive

3.2.3The Allied Advance During The Hundred Days

3.3Germany Surrenders

3.3.1The Impact of the Naval Blockade

3.3.2Abdication of the Kaiser

3.3.3Armistice

3.3.4The Contribution of Haig and Foch

3.3.5End of Topic Test - Developments & Surrender

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