1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:06,000 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey y'all, it's eaves again and Welcome to 3 00:00:06,040 --> 00:00:09,160 Speaker 1: this Dame History Class, a show that proves every day 4 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:24,360 Speaker 1: in history is fascinating. Today it's a The day was 5 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:29,680 Speaker 1: April two, nineteen fifteen. The Germans released chlorine gas during 6 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:32,919 Speaker 1: the Second Battle of Ipra, marking the first effective use 7 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:36,800 Speaker 1: of poison gas on the Western Front. Chemical weapons have 8 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:40,440 Speaker 1: been used for hundreds of years. At the end of 9 00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:44,680 Speaker 1: the nineteenth century and into the twenty treaties and declarations 10 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:48,280 Speaker 1: began acknowledging the issue of poison gases by forbidding the 11 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:52,240 Speaker 1: use of poisons in warfare. The Hague Conventions of eighteen 12 00:00:52,320 --> 00:00:56,080 Speaker 1: nine and nineteen oh seven, for instance, forbade the use 13 00:00:56,120 --> 00:01:00,280 Speaker 1: of poison and poisoned weapons, but this rule was violented 14 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:04,240 Speaker 1: in the First World War. World War One is sometimes 15 00:01:04,280 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: referred to as the Chemist's War because of the role 16 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:12,160 Speaker 1: chemicals and technology played in the conflict. Chlorine, fosterene, and 17 00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:16,360 Speaker 1: mustard gas all caused many deaths and injuries during the war. 18 00:01:16,959 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 1: The production and deployment of these gases post a health 19 00:01:19,959 --> 00:01:25,640 Speaker 1: threat to combatants, civilians, and people involved in their manufacturing. Processes. 20 00:01:26,720 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 1: Once the war began, Germany put a lot of effort 21 00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:34,399 Speaker 1: into researching and producing these chemical agents. German chemistry Fritz 22 00:01:34,440 --> 00:01:38,520 Speaker 1: Haber helped develop Germany's poison gas program. Harbor headed the 23 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:43,200 Speaker 1: Kaiservillehelm Institute for Physical Chemistry and electro Chemistry. He was 24 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:46,760 Speaker 1: also given an Army captaincy and led the chemistry section 25 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:50,080 Speaker 1: at the Ministry of War in Berlin, helping coordinate the 26 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 1: production of ammonia needed in the war. Many people condemned 27 00:01:54,480 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: Harbor for his role in chemical warfare, though he won 28 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,880 Speaker 1: the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in nineteen eighteen for the 29 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:06,200 Speaker 1: synthesis of ammonia from its elements. Swedish pharmacist Carl Wilhelm 30 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:11,280 Speaker 1: Shula discovered chlorine back in the late seventeen hundreds. As 31 00:02:11,320 --> 00:02:14,640 Speaker 1: a gas, chlorine is a greenish yellow color, and it 32 00:02:14,760 --> 00:02:18,239 Speaker 1: is two and a half times heavier than air. Though 33 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:21,840 Speaker 1: chlorine is used in some household products and in drinking water, 34 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,440 Speaker 1: it can be used as a poisonous gas. Chlorine gas 35 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:28,040 Speaker 1: stays close to the ground in areas without wind and 36 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:33,240 Speaker 1: spreads rapidly. It is very toxic to humans. When a 37 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:36,560 Speaker 1: person breeds chlorine gas, it reacts with moist tissues like 38 00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:40,560 Speaker 1: the eyes, throat, and lungs to form acid inhaling. Low 39 00:02:40,639 --> 00:02:43,960 Speaker 1: levels can cause eye scan and airway irritation, as well 40 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:47,120 Speaker 1: as a sore throat and cough. Exposure to higher levels 41 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: of chlorine gas can cause chest tightness, wheezing, shortness of breath, 42 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: and bronco spasm. If a person is severely exposed, they 43 00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: could get pulmonary edema, a condition caused by excess fluid 44 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:03,520 Speaker 1: in the lungs. Chlorine gas is easy to produce and handle. 45 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:07,040 Speaker 1: Howber turned to chlorine gas for use in chemical warfare. 46 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: The French launched to your gas attacks against the Germans 47 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: early in World War One, and early in nineteen fifteen, 48 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:17,600 Speaker 1: the Germans fired thousands of shells filled with the irritant 49 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:22,000 Speaker 1: zielil bromide at Russian troops at Bolimof. In this case, 50 00:03:22,080 --> 00:03:25,600 Speaker 1: the weather was cold and the chemical could not vaporize 51 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:28,240 Speaker 1: to pose any threat to the Russians. But on the 52 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:32,400 Speaker 1: evening of April nineteen fifteen, during the Second Battle of Ipra, 53 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 1: the Germans released nearly two hundred tons of chlorine gas 54 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:40,240 Speaker 1: from cylinders buried along the front. The gas attack created 55 00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: a several mile gap in the Allied line defending the city. 56 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:47,560 Speaker 1: Though it poisoned many of the soldiers and caused panic, 57 00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:51,280 Speaker 1: the Germans failed to take effective action and its aftermath, 58 00:03:51,640 --> 00:03:55,960 Speaker 1: and the Allies held the Ebra position. Poison gas continued 59 00:03:56,000 --> 00:03:58,080 Speaker 1: to be a part of warfare in World War One. 60 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:02,400 Speaker 1: Technology and training continued to progress on both the offensive 61 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:07,360 Speaker 1: and defensive sides of gas warfare. The Allies developed gas 62 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:11,040 Speaker 1: masks and the Germans introduced mustard gas in nineteen seventeen. 63 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:15,840 Speaker 1: Somewhere between ninety thousand and one hundred thousand people died 64 00:04:16,000 --> 00:04:18,919 Speaker 1: due to chemical weapons in the war, with most of 65 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 1: those deaths caused by phosgene. During and after the First 66 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:27,159 Speaker 1: World War, nations like the US, Britain, Italy, Russia, Spain, 67 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:32,960 Speaker 1: and Japan used chemical weapons and conflicts. The Chemical Weapons Convention, 68 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:38,600 Speaker 1: which took effect in bands the development, production, stockpiling, and 69 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 1: use of chemical weapons, though it has been violated. I'm 70 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:46,080 Speaker 1: each Jeff Code and hopefully you know a little more 71 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 1: about history today than you did yesterday. And if you 72 00:04:49,760 --> 00:04:52,200 Speaker 1: have any comments or suggestions that you'd like to send 73 00:04:52,240 --> 00:04:55,279 Speaker 1: our way, you can do so on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 74 00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:58,680 Speaker 1: We're at T D I h C podcast. You can 75 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:02,080 Speaker 1: also send us an email at this day at iHeartMedia 76 00:05:02,240 --> 00:05:05,240 Speaker 1: dot com. Thanks again for listening to the show and 77 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:17,679 Speaker 1: we'll see you tomorrow. 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