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281 Results

Survey Articles (Regional)

Regional
France
By Nicolas Beaupré
To study France during the “Great War” – as it was called as early as 1914 – inv…
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Regional Thematic Articles

Regional Thematic
Bereavement and Mourning, Commemoration and Cult of the Fallen (France)
By Rémi Dalisson, Elise Julien
War victims left a huge vacuum both for their kin and society, which showed sign…
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Regional Thematic
Centenary (France)
By Benjamin Gilles
The centenary of the Great War was, in France, a unique commemorative phenomenon…
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Regional Thematic
Children and Childhood (France)
By Manon Pignot
The Great War was unique in that it provoked an immediate, massive effort to mob…
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Regional Thematic
Civilian and Military Power (France)
By Michaël Bourlet
The responsibilities of politicians and military leaders are defined in times of…
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Regional Thematic
Film/Cinema (France)
By Michael Paris
This article offers a survey of how French filmmakers covered the Great War. Beg…
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Regional Thematic
Food and Nutrition (France)
By Stéphane Le Bras, Emmanuelle Cronier
In times of war, food becomes a major concern in military and civilian matters. …
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Regional Thematic
Governments, Parliaments and Parties (France)
By Fabienne Bock
Despite its weaknesses, the French parliamentary republic survived the First Wor…
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Regional Thematic
Historiography 1918-Today (France)
By Stéphane Tison
The history of the Great War has always been written by an array of actors, incl…
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Regional Thematic
Labour (France)
By Pierre Chancerel
French mobilization during the First World War created new industrial needs and …
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Regional Thematic
Labour Movements and Strikes, Social Conflict and Control, Protest and Repression (France)
By Galit Haddad
This article examines the institutional shake-up of the French labour movement d…
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Regional Thematic
Literature (France)
By Nicolas Beaupré
Behind the lines, writers largely supported the war effort in their countries. A…
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Regional Thematic
Making Sense of the War (France)
By Juliette Courmont
To support the war, people needed to be able to make sense of it, and the French…
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Regional Thematic
Mutilation and Disfiguration (France)
By Sophie Delaporte
This article explores the issue of suffering through two distinct categories of …
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Regional Thematic
Occupation after the War (Belgium and France)
By Anne Godfroid
The Armistice agreement foresaw the occupation of the left bank of the Rhine, th…
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Regional Thematic
Occupation during the War (Belgium and France)
By Larissa Wegner
This article examines the German occupation of Belgium and Northern France in 19…
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Regional Thematic
Organization of War Economies (France)
By Jean-Luc Mastin
In France, a mixed economy was gradually set up during the war due to multiple f…
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Regional Thematic
Post-war Economies (France)
By Stéphane Le Bras
At the end of the war, all the belligerent countries had to face the dramatic co…
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Regional Thematic
Post-war Societies (France)
By Victor Demiaux
French post-war society had to face the consequences of a mass death experienced…
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Regional Thematic
Press/Journalism (France)
By Joëlle Beurier
This article addresses the notions of propaganda and censorship between 1914 and…
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Regional Thematic
Pre-war Military Planning (France)
By Olivier Cosson
This article focuses on the military anticipation and preparation for war in Fra…
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Regional Thematic
Prisoners of War (Belgium and France)
By Heather Jones
During the First World War, France was faced with creating a system of mass capt…
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Regional Thematic
Private Life (France)
By Clémentine Vidal-Naquet
The war radically disrupted the private lives of French families who were practi…
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Regional Thematic
Propaganda at Home (France)
By Charles Ridel
A conflict that was industrial and technological, the Great War was also a war o…
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Regional Thematic
War Aims and War Aims Discussions (France)
By Stéphane Tison
On 4 August 1914, in his first speech after the declaration of war, Raymond Poin…
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Regional Thematic
War Finance (France)
By Patrice Baubeau
Though it entered war with an already important public debt, France managed its …
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Regional Thematic
War Losses (France)
By Alexandre Lafon
When the fighting came to an end in late 1918, military losses for France were i…
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Regional Thematic
Women's Mobilization for War (France)
By Peggy Bette
In France, the mobilisation of women followed two parallel movements. One of the…
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Encyclopedic Entries

Entry
Aircraft, Fighter and Pursuit
By Mark Wells
The general trend in aircraft development during World War I was towards better-…
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Entry
Aircraft, Reconnaissance and Bomber
By Craig Morris
Much like fighter aircraft, World War I reconnaissance and bomber technology adv…
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Entry
Alain-Fournier, Henri
By Laurence Campa
Reported missing in action in September 1914, Alain-Fournier is not officially c…
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Entry
Alsace-Lorraine
By Elizabeth Vlossak
Alsace-Lorraine was a border region located between the Rhine River and the Vosg…
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Entry
Amiens, Battle of
By Stephen Badsey
The Battle of Amiens, 8-12 August 1918, was a decisive British-led victory that …
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Entry
Apollinaire, Guillaume
By Annette Becker
Although he actually died of Spanish influenza, the trepanned avant-garde poet w…
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Entry
Army of the Orient
By Yohann Chanoir
The French Army of the Orient is a military unit, which was created after the di…
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Entry
Artillery
By Dieter Storz
Artillery consisted of the military’s heavy firearms. As a branch of the armed f…
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Entry
Attrition Warfare
By Nicholas Murray
Attrition warfare is the term used to describe the sustained process of wearing …
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Barbed Wire
By Alan Krell
Invented in France in 1860, barbed wire was further developed in the United Stat…
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Barbusse, Henri
By Laurence Campa
Fulfilling the archetype of the war writer, Henri Barbusse is the embodiment of …
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Entry
Barthas, Louis
By Rémy Cazals
A barrelmaker in a French village and corporal at war in an infantry regiment, L…
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Entry
Bergson, Henri
By Stanley E. Gontarski
Widely known as a philosopher in France from the publication of his first book i…
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Entry
Bernhardt, Sarah
By Emmanuelle Loubat
Sarah Bernhardt was a French actress. During the war, she showed great commitmen…
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Entry
Camouflage
By Cécile Coutin
A technique of concealment and protection, a means to deceive but not kill, camo…
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Entry
Cavalry
By Douglas Kennedy
By the beginning of the 20th century, field armies had integrated the combat arm…
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Entry
Cendrars, Blaise
By Laurence Campa
The life and works of the poet Blaise Cendrars testify to a disturbing paradox: …
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Entry
Champagne Offensives
By Sebastian Lukasik
In 1915, France’s Champagne region was the setting for two large-scale French of…
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Entry
Charost, Alexis-Armand
By James E. Connolly
Alexis-Armand Charost was bishop of Lille and a key notable during the occupatio…
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Entry
Children's Literature
By Berenice Zunino
Extracurricular mobilization of children through literature took place between 1…
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Entry
Christmas Truce
By Alexandre Lafon
In December 1914, there were several truces between enemy soldiers along one par…
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Entry
Clemenceau, Georges
By Vincent Laniol
During the war, Georges Clemenceau fought for a more efficient war effort and fo…
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Entry
Collaboration (Belgium and France)
By James E. Connolly
Collaboration is often associated with the military occupations of the Second Wo…
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Entry
Communication Technology
By Elizabeth Bruton
A selection of communication technologies, ancient and modern, was available at …
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Entry
Comradeship (France)
By Alexandre Lafon
“United as we were on the battle front,” the rallying cry popularized by one of …
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Entry
Croix de Feu
By Victor Demiaux
An extreme-right movement, the Croix de Feu was a prominent political phenomenon…
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Entry
Cru, Jean Norton
By Rémy Cazals
Jean Norton Cru did not consider himself a historian. Yet his life’s work, Témoi…
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Entry
Dada
By Josepha Laroche
Dada, a transnational movement of artists, was founded in Zurich in 1916. It dis…
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Entry
Delesalle, Charles
By James E. Connolly
A local notable and mayor of Lille during the occupation, Charles Delesalle was …
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Entry
Delvert, Charles
By Michaël Bourlet
Charles Delvert was one of the witnesses of the Great War. A graduate of the Éco…
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Entry
Dorgelès, Roland
By Laurence Campa
Roland Dorgelès is the author of the pacifist novel Wooden Crosses (1919), a gre…
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Entry
Empire
By Erez Manela
World War I was not simply a conflict among European states but a global war of …
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Entry
Expanding Bullets
By Paul Cornish
During the First World War both sides accused each other of employing illegal sm…
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Fayolle, Émile
By William Philpott
Marie-Émile Fayolle commanded French forces on the Western Front throughout the …
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Entry
Fear
By Jan Plamper
Of the two world wars, the First World War was special in that fear figured prom…
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Feminist Pacifism
By Annika Wilmers
A minority section of the women’s movements opposed World War I and organized th…
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Entry
Ferry, Abel
By André Loez
Abel Ferry was a French politician and minister as well as an infantry combatant…
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Entry
Feuillade, Louis
By Manon Billaut
Louis Feuillade was a popular filmmaker in France in the years leading up to and…
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Entry
Flamethrower
By Paul Cornish
The use of portable flamethrowers in combat was a First World War innovation. Th…
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Entry
Foch, Ferdinand
By Elizabeth Greenhalgh
Ferdinand Foch was a French general who commanded a corps and an army (1914), an…
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Entry
Forain, Jean-Louis
By Brett M. Van Hoesen
Jean-Louis Forain was a French artist, who specialized in painting, print making…
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Entry
Forts
By Miguel A. Lopez
European militaries considered fortifications before the First World War as vita…
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Franchet d'Espèrey, Louis Félix Marie François
By Gwendal Piégais
Louis Franchet d'Espèrey was a French general who took command of the Fifth Army…
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Entry
Gallieni, Joseph-Simon
By Julie d'Andurain
General Joseph-Simon Gallieni was a colonial officer who became the Governor of …
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Entry
Garros, Roland
By Eric Mahieu
Roland Garros was a well-known French aviation pioneer before the war and succes…
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Entry
Gaulle, Charles de
By Jason Musteen
Charles de Gaulle’s service during World War I and his experiences as a prisoner…
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Entry
Genevoix, Maurice
By Laurence Campa
The war turned Maurice Genevoix into a writer. He embodied soldier loyalty and w…
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Entry
German Spring Offensives 1918
By Alexander Watson
The Spring Offensives of 1918 were Germany’s last attempt to defeat the British …
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Entry
Gouraud, Henri
By Julie d'Andurain
Henri Gouraud was one of the most important French generals during the First Wor…
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Entry
Graffiti
By Julian Walker
Graffiti expressed both subversion and enthusiasm for the war. It was used by of…
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Entry
Guynemer, Georges
By Eric Mahieu
Georges Guynemer was a French fighter pilot. During World War I, he was known fo…
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Entry
Halbwachs, Maurice
By Annette Becker
Declared unfit for military service, sociologist Maurice Halbwachs worked under …
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Entry
Hand Grenade
By Nathan Watanabe
The hand grenade is a small hand-thrown bomb dating back to antiquity. Advances …
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Entry
Hervé, Gustave
By Elisa Marcobelli
Gustave Hervé’s dates of birth and death (1871-1944) correspond broadly to those…
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Entry
Ideologies of Sport
By Ansgar Molzberger, Stephan Wassong
At the beginning of the 20th century, two different systems of exercise and trai…
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Entry
Infantry
By Jeffrey LaMonica
The First World War precipitated a revolution in infantry tactics that changed t…
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Entry
Inter-Allied Games
By Sabine Chavinier-Réla
The Inter-Allied Games were held at the Pershing Stadium in Paris, France from 2…
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Entry
Intimate Relations between Occupiers and Occupied (Belgium and France)
By Emmanuel Debruyne
During the invasion and occupation of 1914-1918, German soldiers had sexual rela…
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Entry
Jaurès, Jean
By Rémy Cazals
A philosopher, historian, and journalist (creator of L’Humanité), Jean Jaurès de…
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Entry
Joffre, Joseph Jacques Césaire
By Mathieu Panoryia
Joseph Joffre was commander-in-chief of the French army at the beginning of the …
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Entry
La Courtine, Mutiny of
By Jamie H. Cockfield
This article details the mutiny of two Russian brigades sent to France in World …
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Entry
Lafayette Escadrille
By Edward A. Gutiérrez
The Lafayette Escadrille was a French Air Service fighter squadron formed of Ame…
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Entry
La Madelon (song)
By Charles Rearick
The music hall song “La Madelon” was first performed in Paris café concerts befo…
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Entry
Lanrezac, Charles Louis Marie
By Michaël Bourlet
Considered one of the best generals in the French armed forces, Charles Lanzerac…
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Entry
Le Feu (novel)
By Olaf Müller
Henri Barbusse published the emblematic French war novel Le Feu in 1916. Given t…
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Entry
Léger, Fernand
By Annette Becker
Léger was fascinated by the front, but barely ever depicted what he saw in his w…
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Entry
Légion étrangère
By Christian Koller
The French Foreign Legion of the colonial era was mainly deployed in extra-Europ…
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Entry
Le Poilu
By Chris Kempshall
Le Poilu translates literally as “the hairy one” and was a collective identity …
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Entry
Loucheur, Louis
By Daniel Mollenhauer
Louis Loucheur was a French industrialist and politician. From December 1916 unt…
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Entry
Lyautey, Louis Hubert Gonzalve
By Julie d'Andurain
During World War One, Hubert Lyautey was the French Resident-General in Morocco …
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Entry
Machine Gun
By Paul Cornish
Between 1914 and 1918, the machine gun played an ever-increasing role on the bat…
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Entry
Malvy, Louis-Jean
By Jean-Yves Le Naour
French Interior Minister when the war was declared, Louis Malvy embodied the Uni…
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Entry
Mangin, Charles
By Julie d'Andurain
Charles Mangin was a very important French general during the First World War. W…
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Entry
Mare, André
By Laurence Graffin
André Mare was an artist close to the avant-garde movement and was called to ser…
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Entry
Marne, Battles of the
By Erwan Le Gall
The battles of the Marne were two battles during the First World War. The first …
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Entry
Marraines de Guerre
By Clémentine Vidal-Naquet
The institution of wartime pen pals to assist isolated soldiers who were unable …
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Entry
Masculinities
By Sonja Levsen
The First World War represents the apex of the ideal of the male warrior hero. B…
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Entry
Medals and Decorations
By Sofya Anisimova
The Great War unfolded on multiple fronts and saw millions of men and women call…
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Entry
Mediterranean Theater, Naval Operations
By Paul G. Halpern
The real naval war in the Mediterranean turned out to be a struggle against Germ…
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Entry
Mémorial de Verdun
By Gerd Krumeich
The Mémorial de Verdun is a museum built in the centre of the 1916 battlefield, …
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Entry
Military Board of Allied Supply
By Ian M. Brown
The Military Board of Allied Supply, formed in mid-1918, attempted to centralize…
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Entry
Millerand, Alexandre
By Daniel Mollenhauer
Between 1890 and 1925, Alexandre Millerand was one of France’s leading politicia…
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Entry
Moroccan Crises 1905-1911
By Jean-Marc Delaunay
The two Moroccan crises represent the product of “rapacious joint imperialism.” …
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Entry
Music
By Akeo Okada
The First World War fundamentally changed the course of 20th century music. The …
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Entry
Nivelle, Robert Georges
By Denis Rolland
Born in a Protestant family with an English mother, Robert Nivelle studied at th…
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Entry
Painlevé, Paul
By Anne-Laure Anizan
Paul Painlevé was a prominent French political leader from 1914-1917. He was the…
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Entry
Paris Guns
By Christophe Dutrône
Paris Guns refer to the German long-range guns that fired intermittently on Pari…
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Entry
Pétain, Philippe
By Olivier Cosson
A theorist of infantry tactics in 1914, the First World War offered Colonel Péta…
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Entry
Poincaré, Raymond
By Anne-Laure Anizan
Raymond Poincaré, the president of the French Republic, asserted his authority a…
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Entry
Post-war Repression
By Xavier Rousseaux
After fifty months of German occupation, a minority of French, and the majority …
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Entry
Pre-war Socialist Pacifism
By Elisa Marcobelli
The Socialists’ opposition to war in France, Germany and Italy during the period…
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Entry
Prostitution
By Journey Steward
Prostitution was considered among the most important societal problems facing ci…
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Entry
Rape
By Antoine Rivière
Although rape was not usually systematic, it occurred frequently on all fronts d…
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Entry
Rear Area on the Western Front
By Larissa Wegner
The rear area was the space behind the front, linking the operational zone with …
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Entry
Reconnaissance and Observation
By Charles Dusch
Reconnaissance was aviation’s most important mission in the Great War. When war …
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Entry
Refugees (France)
By Philippe Nivet
During World War I, about 2 million French citizens had to leave their homes, du…
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Entry
Remembrance day: 11 November 1922-Today (France)
By Rémi Dalisson
As early as 1915, France considered celebrating those who died for the nation. A…
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Entry
Resistance (Belgium and France)
By Emmanuel Debruyne
In occupied Belgium and France, citizens opposed the German army with organized …
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Entry
Ribot, Alexandre Félix Joseph
By Daniel Mollenhauer
Alexandre Ribot belonged to the French political elite for more than forty years…
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Entry
Rifles
By Dieter Storz
The rifle was by far the most common weapon used in the world war. When the majo…
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Entry
Rolland, Romain
By Josepha Laroche
A pacifist writer, Romain Rolland was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1…
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Entry
Ruhr Occupation
By Conan Fischer
The 1923-1925 Ruhr occupation by France and Belgium was triggered when Germany d…
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Entry
Russian Expeditionary Force
By Sofya Anisimova, Gwendal Piégais
The Russian Expeditionary Force in France and in Macedonia (“Brigades russes en …
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Entry
Sembat, Marcel
By Daniel Mollenhauer
Marcel Sembat was one of the leading French socialists of the pre-war years. As …
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Entry
Shell
By Harold Allen Skinner Jr.
A shell is a streamlined steel metal projectile, filled with a variety of explos…
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Entry
Shells Crisis of 1915
By Hew Strachan
In 1914, quick-firing field artillery could fire more shells than domestic indus…
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Entry
Smoking and Cigarette Consumption
By Michael Reeve
During the First World War, governments, civilians and soldiers alike prized smo…
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Entry
Soldiers' Humour
By Alexander Watson
Soldier’s humour, as expressed in jokes, songs and slang, reflected a dark, iron…
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Entry
Soldiers on Leave
By Emmanuelle Cronier
Starting in 1915, periods of leave known as "permissionnaires" played a vital ro…
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Entry
Somme, Battles of
By William Philpott
There was fighting in the Picardy region of France throughout the war. The 1916 …
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Entry
Spy Fever 1914
By Sebastian Bischoff
Spy Fever describes an anxiety or paranoia that enemy spies might be active with…
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Entry
Steel Helmet
By Nathan Watanabe
The steel helmet was invented and fielded in response to increased lethality on …
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Entry
Stereotypes
By Vanessa Ther
This article summarises the main wartime stereotypes that defined war propaganda…
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Entry
Stormtrooper
By Ralf Raths
Storm troopers were soldiers in specialized assault units, which emerged in the …
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Entry
Supreme War Council
By Elizabeth Greenhalgh
The Supreme War Council was an Allied administrative organisation, created by th…
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Entry
Tamagnini de Abreu e Silva, Fernando
By José Luís Assis
Fernando Tamagnini de Abreu e Silva was a Portuguese general during World War I.…
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Entry
Tanks and Tank Warfare
By Michael David Kennedy
World War I introduced new technologies and doctrine in a quest to overcome the …
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Entry
Theater at the Front
By Emmanuelle Loubat
Whether on the Western or Eastern Front, by German, French, British, Canadian, A…
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Entry
The Song of Craonne
By Guy Marival
The song now known as the "Chanson de Craonne" ("Song of Craonne") remains one o…
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Entry
Thiepval Memorial
By Glyn Prysor
The Thiepval Memorial commemorates “the Missing of the Somme”: more than 72,000 …
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Entry
Thomas, Albert
By Daniel Mollenhauer
Albert Thomas was a French socialist who served as minister of armaments in the …
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Entry
Tirailleurs Sénégalais
By Richard Fogarty
The tirailleurs sénégalais (Senegalese riflemen) figured prominently among the m…
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Entry
Trench Art
By Paul Cornish
"Trench Art" is a genre of folk art comprised of items created in wartime, or fr…
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Entry
Trépont, Félix
By James E. Connolly
As prefect of the département of the Nord at the outbreak of war, Félix Trépont …
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Entry
Union fédérale (UF)
By Chris Millington
Founded in Lyon in February 1918, the Union fédérale was the largest veterans’ a…
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Entry
Union nationale des Combattants (UNC)
By Chris Millington
Founded on 11 November 1918 with the support of French Prime Minister Georges Cl…
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Entry
Verdun, site of memory
By Elise Julien
The Franco-German battle of 1916 quickly became emblematic of the entire war to …
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Entry
Viviani, René
By Daniel Mollenhauer
René Viviani was a leading French politician in the early 20th century. When the…
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Entry
War Bonds
By Steffen Bruendel
The governments of all belligerent countries issued special loans to finance the…
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Entry
War Poetry
By Jane Potter
This article examines the concept of war poetry and considers the range of poeti…
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Entry
War Profiteers
By François Bouloc
As a long-lasting industrial war, the Great War led to the realization of consid…
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Entry
War Toys
By Sonja Levsen
In the First World War, war toys were regarded as a means to strengthen children…
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Entry
War Widows
By Peggy Bette
One third of the 9.7 million soldiers killed or declared missing during the Grea…
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Entry
Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA)
By Emma Hanna
The YMCA was a Christian charitable organization that provided a range of rest a…
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See Also

Thematic
Air Warfare
By Ross Mahoney, James Pugh
This article considers the use and evolution of air power during the First World…
Read more
Thematic
Alliance System 1914
By Günther Kronenbitter
Alliances were an important feature of the international system on the eve of Wo…
Read more
Thematic
Animals
By Lucy Betteridge-Dyson
During the First World War millions of animals were utilised for war work, and c…
Read more
Thematic
Antisemitism
By Werner Bergmann, Ulrich Wyrwa
The First World War and its direct repercussions in the postwar period (revoluti…
Read more
Thematic
Arms Race prior to 1914, Armament Policy
By Eric Brose
New weapons produced during the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800s heighten…
Read more
Thematic
Art
By Sue Malvern
The nature of the First World War put an end to traditions for battle painting. …
Read more
Thematic
Atrocities
By Alan Kramer
The term "atrocity" describes an act of violence condemned by contemporaries as …
Read more
Thematic
Between Acceptance and Refusal - Soldiers' Attitudes Towards War
By André Loez
Soldiers’ attitudes towards the Great War are a controversial issue, as they pro…
Read more
Thematic
Burgfrieden/Union sacrée
By Gerd Krumeich
France and Germany remained principal protagonists of the First World War. This …
Read more
Thematic
Caricatures
By Eberhard Demm
This article presents cartoonists as patriotic propagandists mobilizing their pe…
Read more
Thematic
Censorship
By Eberhard Demm
Censorship was an indispensable war weapon: its task was to keep the people in a…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Battlefield Tourism)
By Romain Fathi
The centenary of the First World War has been a catalyst for battlefield tourism…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Computer Games)
By Chris Kempshall
The First World War centenary saw an emergence of new portrayals of the conflict…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Education, Pedagogy, Youth Programs)
By Catriona Pennell
The centenary of the First World War revealed palpable anxieties around a loss o…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Historiography)
By Jost Dülffer
Innovative historical scholarship played an important role in the shaping of mem…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Internet)
By Lorna M. Hughes, Ian G. Anderson
The centenary events surrounding the First World War have produced a significant…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Libraries)
By Matthew Shaw
Libraries (local, specialist, and national) contributed in numerous and importan…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Museums)
By Andrea Brait
This article discusses how European museums – in particular, national war museum…
Read more
Thematic
Centenary (Visual Arts)
By Paul Gough
The commemorative period between 2014 and 2018 was marked globally by numerous e…
Read more
Thematic
Children and Youth
By Andrew Donson
Mass conscription recast relationships in families, raised minors’ potential as …
Read more
Thematic
Civilian and Military Power
By Lawrence Sondhaus
By 1914 the leading states had succumbed to varying degrees of militarism, subor…
Read more
Thematic
Civilian Morale
By Matteo Ermacora
This article deals with civilian morale during the First World War. Between 1915…
Read more
Thematic
Colonial Empires after the War/Decolonization
By James E. Kitchen
The First World War saw the colonial empires of France and Britain mobilised to …
Read more
Thematic
Commemoration, Cult of the Fallen
By Stéphane Tison
The First World War ushered in an unprecedented wave of commemorations. Mass dea…
Read more
Thematic
Controversy: The Media's Responsibility for Crises and Conflicts in the Age of Imperialism
By Peter Geiss
The article discusses the role of the media in the complex international process…
Read more
Thematic
Controversy: Total War
By Daniel Marc Segesser
Total war is a controversial term used in the past by politicians, publicists an…
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Thematic
Controversy: War Culture
By Pierre Purseigle
Cultural approaches to the Great War have played a key part in the renewal of Fi…
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Thematic
Demobilization
By Gearóid Barry
The end of fighting in 1918 raised hopes for swift and equitable military demobi…
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Thematic
Destruction of the Ecosystem
By Tait Keller
This article examines the First World War’s ecological impact and shows that pro…
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Thematic
Drugs
By Łukasz Kamieński
Throughout history, intoxicants were an important part of the war experience. Th…
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Thematic
Economic Planning before 1914
By Martin Horn
This article surveys the financial and economic planning for war before 1914 in …
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Thematic
Espionage
By Emmanuel Debruyne
During the entire war, warring powers used the “secret war” to try to break the …
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Thematic
Extra-European Theatres of War
By Michelle Moyd
The extra-European theatres of World War I have received far less scholarly atte…
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Thematic
Film/Cinema
By Roger Smither
The First World War played a significant role in the evolution of film both as a…
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Thematic
Food and Nutrition
By Emmanuelle Cronier
During the First World War, food became a major issue for military and civilian …
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Thematic
Forced Labour
By Jens Thiel, Christian Westerhoff
This article examines the conditions, forms and consequences of forced labor and…
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Thematic
Governments, Parliaments and Parties
By Torsten Oppelland
One sees a wide range of political regimes from a democratic republic with unive…
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Thematic
Graphic Arts and Advertising as War Propaganda
By James Aulich
This article discusses the close relationships between national governments, adv…
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Thematic
Health, Disease, Mortality; Demographic Effects
By Doina Anca Cretu
The rapid spread of epidemics ravaged military personnel and civilians in and ou…
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Thematic
Historiography 1918-Today
By Jay Winter
There have been four generations of historical writing about the 1914-1918 war. …
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Thematic
Hospitals
By Alina Enzensberger
Hospitals framed and configured the convalescence of wounded and sick soldiers d…
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Thematic
Imperialism
By Boris Barth
This article focuses on the extent to which imperialism contributed to the outbr…
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Thematic
International Labour Organization
By Anita Ziegerhofer
The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919, establishing both the Leagu…
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Thematic
International Law and the Laws of War
By Jean H. Quataert
The article examines international efforts to curb states’ war-making prerogativ…
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Thematic
July Crisis 1914
By Annika Mombauer
The international crisis that began with the assassination of Archduke Franz Fer…
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Thematic
Labor
By Steven E. Rowe
Across the major belligerent powers, industrial production and the mobilization …
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Thematic
Labour Movements, Trade Unions and Strikes
By James Thompson
This article compares the history of labour movements during the war across a ra…
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Thematic
League of Nations
By Anita Ziegerhofer
The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919, the same day on which the L…
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Thematic
Life and Death of Soldiers
By Jessica Meyer, Chris Kempshall, Markus Pöhlmann
While public memory of the First World War in Europe often focusses on the death…
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Thematic
Literature
By David Budgen
This article seeks to present an overview of First World War literature across m…
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Thematic
Making Sense of the War
By Jo Fox
Claims to “just war” formed the basis for the propaganda campaigns of the First …
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Thematic
Maps, Geography and the Representation of Space
By Ute Schneider
After the First World War, the general staffs and military geographers of all th…
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Thematic
Media Discourse after the War
By André Keil
The discourse about the Great War during the interwar period was shaped by numer…
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Thematic
Medicine and Medical Service
By Leo van Bergen
It is impossible to talk about “the” medical care or “the” medical service of Wo…
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Thematic
Memory of the War: Popular Memory 1918-1945, 1945 to the Present
By Susanne Brandt
What role do representations of the First World War play in media that reach a w…
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Thematic
Military Developments of World War I
By David T. Zabecki
Despite World War I’s reputation as a senseless bloodbath whose military operati…
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Thematic
Military Justice
By Steven R. Welch
This essay offers a comparative survey of the practice of military justice among…
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Thematic
Military Lessons of the First World War
By Nikolas Gardner
This article examines the lessons derived by the military organizations that par…
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Thematic
Moral Norms and Values
By Gearóid Barry
Change and continuity marked belligerent societies’ norms and values during the …
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Thematic
Museums
By Jennifer Wellington, Aaron Cohen, Anne Hertzog, Susanne Brandt
This article describes the lives and afterlives of the First World War museums i…
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Thematic
Mutilation and Disfiguration
By Julie Anderson
The First World War created disfigured and mutilated bodies on a grand scale. Ne…
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Thematic
Nationalism
By John Paul Newman
This article offers an overview of the progress of nationalism and the national …
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Thematic
Negotiating and Mediating Conduct of War
By Matthew Stibbe
Many issues surrounding the conduct of war in the years 1914-1918 were imperviou…
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Thematic
Non-European Soldiers
By Richard Fogarty, Andrew Tait Jarboe
This article examines the use by Great Britain and France of colonial subjects f…
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Thematic
On the Road to Modern War
By Dennis Showalter
The Great War was never considered the “war to end all wars” by the states and a…
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Thematic
Organization of War Economies
By Matthias Blum, Jari Eloranta, Pavel Osinsky
The First World War was a global conflict that caught most of the participants i…
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Thematic
Othering/Atrocity Propaganda
By Steffen Bruendel
In August 1914, a targeted and systematic manipulation of opinion by the media, …
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Thematic
Pacifism
By David S. Patterson
The idea of peace in total war may seem irrelevant, but pacifism, or peace activ…
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Thematic
Peace Initiatives
By Ross Kennedy
This paper examines major peace initiatives during World War I. It describes eff…
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Thematic
Photography
By Hilary Roberts
The First World War represents a watershed in the history of war photography. It…
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Thematic
Post-war Economies
By Dietmar Rothermund
Post-war economies were beset with problems, ultimately leading to the Great Dep…
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Thematic
Post-war Societies
By Richard Bessel
The First World War caused unprecedented disruption to societies across the glob…
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Thematic
Post-war Welfare Policies
By Pierluigi Pironti
The Great War gave new impulses to the further development of public welfare sys…
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Thematic
Press/Journalism
By Florian Keisinger
Word War I had a significant impact on the evolution of the European media scene…
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Thematic
Pre-war Military Planning
By Matthew S. Seligmann
German and British war planning has attracted a great deal of attention, but als…
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Thematic
Prisoners of War
By Heather Jones
The First World War marked the shift from a 19th century, relatively ad hoc mana…
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Thematic
Propaganda at home and abroad
By Eberhard Demm
This article summarizes and compares the principal arguments and strategies of p…
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Thematic
Propaganda: Media in War Politics
By Stephen Badsey
Propaganda played an important part in the politics of the war, but was only suc…
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Thematic
Property Rights and Economic Nationalism
By Daniela L. Caglioti
This article explores the policies adopted and implemented against enemy propert…
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Thematic
Raw Materials
By Pierre Chancerel
Raw materials were vital during the First World War. Due to the armaments produc…
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Thematic
Red Cross
By Cédric Cotter
National Red Cross societies played a very important role in the First World War…
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Thematic
Refugees
By Peter Gatrell
This article addresses the scale of wartime population displacement in continent…
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Thematic
Religious Mobilization and Popular Belief
By Patrick J. Houlihan
From the cradle to the grave, popular religion formed a necessary and vital, if …
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Thematic
Resettlement
By Peter Gatrell
The conduct of warfare in 1914-1918 included extensive population resettlement i…
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Thematic
Revolutions
By Chad R. Fulwider
This article surveys the various movements toward social, national, and politica…
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Thematic
Rural Society
By Matteo Ermacora
The paper describes the impact of war on peasantry and its mobilisation in the w…
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Thematic
Schools and Universities
By Andrew Donson
The military service of teachers and the mobilization of schoolchildren for volu…
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Thematic
Science and Technology
By Jeffrey Johnson
Wartime science and technology developed in the context of the Second Industrial…
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Thematic
Sea Transport and Supply
By Michael B. Miller
Allied capacity at sea to sustain global transport and supply determined their a…
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Thematic
Sexuality, Sexual Relations, Homosexuality
By Jason Crouthamel
This article provides an international overview of the history of sexuality in t…
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Thematic
Social Conflict
By Claire Morelon
This article deals with the nature of social conflict during the war. The length…
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Thematic
Social Costs of War
By Kimberly A. Redding
This article explores how the anticipation, reality, and memory of sacrifice inf…
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Thematic
Soldier Newspapers
By Robert L. Nelson
Soldier newspapers are a massive, yet little used primary source of the First Wo…
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Thematic
Staging War. Theatre 1914-1918
By Eva Krivanec
From 1914 to 1918, theatres in all major European cities staged plays – comedies…
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Thematic
State, Civil Society and Relief Organizations for War
By Branden Little
A vast array of initiatives designed to counteract the destructiveness of the Fi…
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Thematic
The Churches
By Patrick J. Houlihan
Reflecting current historiography, this article focuses primarily on Christian c…
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Thematic
The Historiography of the Origins of the First World War
By William Mulligan
The debate about the origins of the war remains a vibrant area of historical res…
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Thematic
The Military at Home
By Odile Roynette
Regardless of whether it was based on volunteer enlistment or conscription, mass…
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Thematic
The Paris Peace Conference and its Consequences
By Alan Sharp
This article offers an overview of peacemaking after the First World War from th…
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Thematic
The Way to War
By Samuel R. Williamson, Jr.
Imperialism shaped almost every facet of international politics from 1898 to 191…
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Thematic
Transportation and Logistics
By Ian M. Brown
The Great War witnessed mass armies battling with modern, quick-firing weapons s…
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Thematic
Urban Societies and Cities
By Andrew Lees
Cities — with their comparatively large and dense but also vulnerable population…
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Thematic
Venereal Diseases
By Journey Steward, Nancy M. Wingfield
This essay traces belligerent policies toward venereal disease (VD) on the fight…
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Thematic
Veterans' Associations
By Julia Eichenberg
Veterans’ associations formed an influential social movement during the interwar…
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Thematic
Visualization of Violence
By Mark Connelly
This piece explores the visualisation of violence for home front audiences and s…
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Thematic
War Aims and War Aims Discussions
By Georges-Henri Soutou
Despite what some believe, there is still a lot to say and learn about the First…
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Thematic
War Correspondents
By Tim Luckhurst
At its outbreak, newspapers in the Allied and neutral democracies hoped to prese…
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Thematic
Warfare 1914-1918
By William Philpott
Static “trench warfare” belied a dynamic transformation in warfare between 1914 …
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Thematic
War Finance
By Nicholas Mulder
The Great War required war-making states to mobilize and sustain the financial r…
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Thematic
War Letters: Communication between Front and Home Front
By Martha Hanna
In nations where literacy was well-established by 1914, letter-writing was criti…
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Thematic
War Losses
By Antoine Prost
Military sources provide the primary statistics of war losses and casualties dur…
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Thematic
War Psychiatry and Shell Shock
By Fiona Reid
During the First World War soldiers from all combatant nations suffered from a w…
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Thematic
Wartime Emotions: Honour, Shame, and the Ecstasy of Sacrifice
By Ute Frevert
Through investigating the pivotal role of honour in private and public matters, …
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Thematic
Weapons
By Stéphane Audoin-Rouzeau
To understand the Great War, one has to understand weapons. Weapons are linked t…
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Thematic
Western Front
By Jonathan Krause
The Western Front, a 400-plus mile stretch of land weaving through France and Be…
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Thematic
Willingly to War. Public Response to the Outbreak of War
By Jean-Jacques Becker
It may surprise us to learn that some sectors of the European public were in fav…
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Thematic
Women’s Mobilization for War
By Susan R. Grayzel
This article explores women’s economic, social, and political responses to the F…
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Thematic
Women War Reporters
By Stephanie Seul
Female war reporters from belligerent and neutral countries were present in the …
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