Preparations for War, 1905-14

World War I – The Military Strategies of the Great Powers, 1914-18

In this course, Dr Rob Johnson (University of Oxford) looks at the First World War from the point of view of the military strategies of each side. The course begins by considering the preparations for war, particularly those of Germany, before moving on to consider the reasons for the stalemate on the Western front in 1914. After that, we consider the various attempts to break the deadlock—the expansion into new theatres of war (particularly in the Middle East) and the development and use of new technologies (including tanks and poison gas). In the final module, we explore how the war finally came to an end.

Preparations for War, 1905-14

In this module, we think about how the Great Powers positioned themselves for war in Europe in the period 1905-1914. We focus particularly on Germany, but also consider the relationship between Britain, France and Russia, the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires and events in the Balkans, and the willingness of each of the major powers in Europe to fight.