Arms Race
By Anna
An arms race is a competition between two parties to have the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies and superior military technology.
The technology and weapons they used during World War I were rifles, poisonous gas, tanks, planes, torpedo's etc. . . The rifle was one of the main weapons that the soldiers used. The soldiers could shoot 15 rounds in under a minute. A person 1,400 meters away could be killed by the rifle.
The German army were the first to use chlorine gas at the battle of Ypres, in 1915 during World War I. The chlorine causes a burning sensation in the throat and gives you chest pains. Then they suffocate and die. The only problem with chlorine gas is that the weather must be right if you want to use it. If the wind is blowing in the wrong direction then it could end up killing your troops rather then killing your enemy.
Tanks were used for the first time in World War I at the battle of Somme. The fist tank was called ''Little Willie'' and needed a crew of 3. Its maximum speed was 3 mph and it couldn't cross the trenches. The tanks could carry 10 men.
Zeppelin also known as blimp, was an airship that used during the early part of the war in bombing raids by the Germans. They carried machine guns and poisonous bombs.
Planes were also used to deliver bombs. The first planes used for bombing could only carry small bombs and were vulnerable to attack from the ground. By the end of the World War I, faster larger-range bombers were built that could carry heavier bombs.
Torpedo's were used by submarines. The Germans used torpedo's to blow up ships carrying supplies from America to Britain.
Machine guns needed up to 4-6 men to work and also had to be set up on a flat surface to shoot. They had a fire power of 100 guns. Large field guns had a long range and could deliver devastating blows to the enemy.
Poison gas was first used in the World war I. The types of poison gas were tear gas, mustard gas, phosgene and chlorine gas.
Hand Grenades were used and improve thought-out World War I.
A bayonet is a spiked-shaped sword, that is designed to fit in the end of the rifle. When a soldier runs out of bullets.