-
World War 1
On July 28th, 1914, Gavrilo Princip and his terrorist group, The Black Hand, who endorsed radical Serbian nationalism, assasinated the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand. This set in motion a series of events that started World War 1. The Germans came to the aid of their Austrian allies, which sprung the Russians to pledge their troops to the Serbian cause. The British and French followed suit soon after. This set the stage for the bloodiest conflict in human history. -
Period: to
World War 1
World War 1 was the first conflict that spanned the entire globe. Over 30 countries were involved and over 16.5 million died from 1914 to 1918. -
Battle of Tannenburg
The Battle of Tannenburg was one of the first major battles of World War 1. It took place in what is now Western Poland and Eastern Germany. The Germans were outnumbered by the Russians by almost 100,000. However the superior German tactics prevailed and the Russians lost the battle, losing over 170,000 men in the period of 7 days. Tannenburg set the tone for the continual slaughter that would go on to make up World War 1. -
Paul Arrives at The Front
Paul arrives at the front and settles in. He meets Kat and gets his first taste of horror from the front when Josef Behm is killed in a horrific manner. He also gets to see the insanity of the German Army when the cooks throw out extra food they made for dead men, this sets the tone for the confusion and chaos that makes up the book. -
First Battle of Ypres (Flanders)
The First Battle of Ypres took place on October 11th 1914. This battle was the first large engagement on the western front. This would most likely be the first battle Paul Baumer experienced. The battle lasted for a month, and both sides lost almost 200,000 men. -
Battle Of Neueve-Chappelle
In March of the 1915, British and French troops broke through the German line at Artois and Neuve-Chappelle. Paul Baumer also would've likely experienced this battle as he seems to be stationed in the Langemarck sector of France. -
Battle of Artois and Loos
The Battle of Loos saw the first use of poison gas. This event also happened in All Quiet, when the replacements come in and are decimated by the gas attack. Also, this is the time when the Germans retooled their army, replacing the spiked helmets with the modern ones you think of when german army helmets are mentioned. -
The Somme
The Somme was possibly the largest battle of the war. Over 1 million casualties were recorded, and most experts say there is probably another 500,000 that went unaccounted for. Over 7 million shells were fired in one month. This made for a continous shelling for almost two weeks. The battle took place right off the River Somme in France. -
The Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun took place on December 18th 1916, the Germans seeked to gain control of three French forts. The French high command ordered their army to defend the forts at all costs, one french officer put it that even though it was a mindless defense, in which the French would lose 400,000. it was the duty of the French soldiers to die for their country. The battle proved to be extremely bloody, although the French remained in control of 2 out of the 3 forts. -
Erich Remarque's Military Service.
Erich Maria Remarque, born June 22nd 1898 in Osnabruck, Prussia wrote All Quiet on the Western Front, the book reflects his military service in the Germany Army in World War One. During his service, he worked in a sapper brigade, responsible for destroying enemy infrastructure. On July 31st 1918, he was wounded by shrapnel and sent back to Germany. Many have said the AQWS is a parallel of his experience and curiously enough his middle name is Paul, the main character's name in All Quiet. -
Paul's Death
Paul's death likely occured during the British advance to the Sambre and Schledt rivers, cutting through the German lines. This was the end of the line for the Germans, althoughtthey had been beaten since 1917.
