1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:04,080 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:14,000 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot Com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: I'm Tracy V. Wilson and I'm Hony Fry. We are 4 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:21,520 Speaker 1: coming up on the hundredth anniversary of the Battle of Amian, 5 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:24,360 Speaker 1: which started what came to be known as the Hundred 6 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:27,600 Speaker 1: Days Offensive. That was the Allies final push to win 7 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:31,680 Speaker 1: World War One, and this particular battle and the Hundred 8 00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:34,879 Speaker 1: Days Offensive aren't really talked about as frequently as some 9 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:37,720 Speaker 1: of the other big moments in World War One. All 10 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:41,040 Speaker 1: of our other World War One related episodes are from 11 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:43,520 Speaker 1: much earlier in the war a lot of the time 12 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:46,960 Speaker 1: because it was the hundredth anniversary of that thing. So 13 00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:49,120 Speaker 1: we're gonna set the stage a little bit in this 14 00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:52,279 Speaker 1: episode before we get to the battle itself, especially with 15 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:55,440 Speaker 1: how events that played out in nineteen seventeen led to 16 00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 1: all of this and how the Battle of Aman ultimately 17 00:00:59,240 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 1: led to the end of the war. Also, World War 18 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:06,200 Speaker 1: One was massive, there was a lot going on in 19 00:01:06,319 --> 00:01:08,760 Speaker 1: other parts of the world during the time period that 20 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:12,039 Speaker 1: we're talking about, so we are really just focused on 21 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: Europe here, particularly the Western Front, with the key players 22 00:01:16,319 --> 00:01:19,640 Speaker 1: being the British Empire, France, the United States, and Germany. 23 00:01:20,480 --> 00:01:23,920 Speaker 1: It is much too large to also talk about all 24 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:25,920 Speaker 1: of the other battles going on in all of the 25 00:01:25,959 --> 00:01:29,360 Speaker 1: other places with all of the other countries in nineteen 26 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: seventeen and nineteen eighteen. So World War One started, of course, 27 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: in nineteen fourteen. Although international tensions had been rising in 28 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:40,399 Speaker 1: Europe for years before this point, things shifted with the 29 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:44,600 Speaker 1: assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie. They 30 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:47,800 Speaker 1: were shot to death in Sara Jevo on June nineteen 31 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:52,480 Speaker 1: fourteen by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. The art Duke had 32 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: been the heir to the throne of the Austro Hungarian Empire. 33 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 1: The Empire suspected that the Serbian government was involved in 34 00:01:58,840 --> 00:02:03,640 Speaker 1: the assassination, so Austria Hungary declared war on Serbia, and 35 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: soon much of Europe was involved in this conflict. Within 36 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:11,880 Speaker 1: two weeks, the allies of Russia, Belgium, France, and Great 37 00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 1: Britain had all sided with Serbia. Germany had sided with 38 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:18,920 Speaker 1: the Austro Hungarian Empire as part of what would be 39 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:23,200 Speaker 1: called the Central Powers, and more declarations of war followed 40 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:26,760 Speaker 1: from there. This quickly became a war of attrition, with 41 00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: the war on land in Europe being fought primarily along 42 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 1: the Eastern and Western fronts. Battles went on for months, 43 00:02:33,639 --> 00:02:37,840 Speaker 1: with millions of casualties and catastrophic effects for the civilian population, 44 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:42,320 Speaker 1: including famines and food shortages all over Europe. For most 45 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:45,000 Speaker 1: of it, the situation between the Allies and the Central 46 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:49,200 Speaker 1: Powers was essentially a stalemate. This was especially true along 47 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:52,760 Speaker 1: the Western Front, which ran from the English Channel to Switzerland, 48 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:57,000 Speaker 1: primarily through France. Something started to shift at the end 49 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:01,359 Speaker 1: of nineteen seventeen, though Russian involvement in the war had 50 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:05,000 Speaker 1: never been popular there and the war had compounded ongoing 51 00:03:05,080 --> 00:03:10,400 Speaker 1: economic problems and food shortages In Russia. The February Revolution 52 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:13,720 Speaker 1: started on March eighth of nineteen seventeen. It's called the 53 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:17,120 Speaker 1: February Revolution because Russia was still on the Julian calendar, 54 00:03:17,240 --> 00:03:20,280 Speaker 1: so from the Russian point of view, that was February. 55 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: The February Revolution started with strikes and riots, and it 56 00:03:24,080 --> 00:03:27,519 Speaker 1: led to the abdication of Czar Nicholas. The Second Unrest 57 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:32,280 Speaker 1: continued after the February Revolution. The Bolshevik Revolution followed in 58 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:35,400 Speaker 1: November of nineteen seventeen, and that was followed by the 59 00:03:35,480 --> 00:03:39,000 Speaker 1: Russian Civil War. With all of this going on, Russian 60 00:03:39,040 --> 00:03:42,680 Speaker 1: involvement in World War One effectively ended, and Russia signed 61 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:46,760 Speaker 1: an armistice with the Central Powers in December of nineteen seventeen. 62 00:03:47,640 --> 00:03:50,240 Speaker 1: A lot of the fighting along the Eastern Front at 63 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:53,360 Speaker 1: this point had been between Russia and Germany, so with 64 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:57,000 Speaker 1: Russia out of the picture, German forces were freed up 65 00:03:57,040 --> 00:04:00,720 Speaker 1: to move to the Western Front instead, more and forty 66 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: divisions of German troops prepared to do exactly that. After 67 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 1: Russia withdrew from the war, the United States had also 68 00:04:08,120 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 1: declared war on Germany in April of nineteen seventeen. Although 69 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:14,960 Speaker 1: the US had avoided becoming directly involved in the war 70 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:18,360 Speaker 1: until that point, it had been providing supplies and other 71 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:21,600 Speaker 1: aid to the Allies for quite some time, so at 72 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:24,920 Speaker 1: first the United States declaration of war didn't do much 73 00:04:24,960 --> 00:04:28,160 Speaker 1: to shift the balance of power, But the US committed 74 00:04:28,200 --> 00:04:30,920 Speaker 1: troops to the war effort as well, and those troops 75 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:34,840 Speaker 1: started arriving in June of nineteen seventeen and entered combat 76 00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:38,799 Speaker 1: that October. In terms of actual troops, the American presence 77 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:41,560 Speaker 1: in the war was pretty small in nineteen seventeen, that 78 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:45,800 Speaker 1: first arrival of troops was only fourteen thousand men. By 79 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:49,040 Speaker 1: July of nineteen eighteen, though, there would be more than 80 00:04:49,080 --> 00:04:53,280 Speaker 1: a million American troops in France alone, and unlike their 81 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 1: counterparts who were already there, these American troops weren't necessarily experienced, 82 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:00,920 Speaker 1: but they were fresh. Most of the Allied troops who 83 00:05:00,920 --> 00:05:04,560 Speaker 1: are already in Europe were exhausted after months or years 84 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:08,240 Speaker 1: of fighting. So in late nineteen seventeen, with Russia out 85 00:05:08,279 --> 00:05:10,440 Speaker 1: of the war and the United States ramping up to 86 00:05:10,560 --> 00:05:14,120 Speaker 1: join it, Germany recognized that it had a limited window 87 00:05:14,279 --> 00:05:18,480 Speaker 1: of opportunity. The German military was running out of everything, 88 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:22,440 Speaker 1: including people, but with a quick decisive action, it might 89 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:25,080 Speaker 1: be able to force the Allies to negotiate for peace 90 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:31,080 Speaker 1: before so many American reinforcements arrived, or failing that, Germany 91 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:33,560 Speaker 1: might be able to level the playing field, putting it 92 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:37,200 Speaker 1: on more equal footing with the Allies during negotiations later on, 93 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:41,880 Speaker 1: rather than being at a clear disadvantage. The Allies also 94 00:05:42,120 --> 00:05:46,080 Speaker 1: recognized that Germany had this one last opportunity to try 95 00:05:46,120 --> 00:05:48,479 Speaker 1: to break out of the stalemates, so at the start 96 00:05:48,480 --> 00:05:52,000 Speaker 1: of nineteen eighteen. Allied leaders were confident that a major 97 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:55,120 Speaker 1: German attack was on the way and soon, but they 98 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:58,760 Speaker 1: weren't really sure exactly when or where it came. On 99 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:01,200 Speaker 1: the first day of Spring, that was March twenty one, 100 00:06:01,560 --> 00:06:05,679 Speaker 1: nineteen eighteen, German forces attacked a stretch of the Western 101 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:09,200 Speaker 1: Front south of the French city of ARUs. This was 102 00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 1: at a point where French and British forces met on 103 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 1: the Western Front, and it was the weakest point along 104 00:06:14,440 --> 00:06:17,839 Speaker 1: that line. Part of the German objective was to cut 105 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:20,920 Speaker 1: these two forces off from one another and then at 106 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:25,080 Speaker 1: least in theory, Germany could fight French and British forces separately, 107 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:29,480 Speaker 1: overcoming both of them. The German attack incorporated air strikes, 108 00:06:29,520 --> 00:06:33,599 Speaker 1: a massive artillery of bombardment and gas, including tear gas, 109 00:06:33,720 --> 00:06:36,719 Speaker 1: chlorine and fostergene, and this attempt to break through the 110 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:41,320 Speaker 1: Allied line, and they were immediately successful. The morning they 111 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,359 Speaker 1: attacked was foggy and the Allies were caught by surprise. 112 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:47,679 Speaker 1: The British third and fifth Armies were forced to retreat, 113 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 1: and on March one alone, the British military saw thirty 114 00:06:51,839 --> 00:06:56,159 Speaker 1: eight thousand, five hundred casualties that included twenty one thousand 115 00:06:56,160 --> 00:07:00,520 Speaker 1: soldiers taken prisoner. Germany was able to ad it's about 116 00:07:00,520 --> 00:07:03,960 Speaker 1: four miles or six and a half kilometers, reclaiming in 117 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:07,200 Speaker 1: one day all the ground that they had lost over 118 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:11,120 Speaker 1: the previous two years. This March twenty one assault was 119 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:12,760 Speaker 1: the start of what came to be known as the 120 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:16,440 Speaker 1: Spring Offensive or the Ludendorff Offensive that was named after 121 00:07:16,520 --> 00:07:20,400 Speaker 1: Quartermaster General Eric Ludendorff, who was leading the German military 122 00:07:20,440 --> 00:07:24,080 Speaker 1: with Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg. In Germany, it was 123 00:07:24,120 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: called Kaiserschlacht or Kaiser's Battle, and the first phase was 124 00:07:27,720 --> 00:07:31,360 Speaker 1: codenamed Operation Michael because it covered some of the same 125 00:07:31,440 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: territory as the Battle of the Sum in nineteen sixteen. 126 00:07:34,680 --> 00:07:38,320 Speaker 1: Sometimes it is also called the second Battle of the Sum. 127 00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:41,920 Speaker 1: Operation Michael ended on April five, and by that point 128 00:07:41,960 --> 00:07:45,520 Speaker 1: the German army had captured about twelve thousand square miles 129 00:07:45,520 --> 00:07:49,280 Speaker 1: of territory it's about thirty one thousand square kilometers. This 130 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:52,240 Speaker 1: had come at a great cost, though, with about two 131 00:07:52,560 --> 00:07:55,840 Speaker 1: and forty thousand casualties that the German Army just had 132 00:07:55,880 --> 00:07:59,600 Speaker 1: no good way to replace. Together. French and British forces 133 00:07:59,640 --> 00:08:02,400 Speaker 1: includeing those from Canada, Australia, and other parts of the 134 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:07,000 Speaker 1: British Empire had suffered nearly two fifty thousand casualties. Just 135 00:08:07,080 --> 00:08:11,280 Speaker 1: to be clear, casualty numbers include everyone killed, wounded, or captured. 136 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:15,040 Speaker 1: That initial goal of splitting the British and French troops 137 00:08:15,320 --> 00:08:19,280 Speaker 1: didn't ultimately work out because Germany didn't have the manpower 138 00:08:19,360 --> 00:08:23,680 Speaker 1: to really divide and fight against both armies. The Allies 139 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:27,600 Speaker 1: also quickly realized the threat and united the Allied troops 140 00:08:27,680 --> 00:08:30,920 Speaker 1: under the command of French General Ferdinand Foch to better 141 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:34,440 Speaker 1: coordinate their efforts. So, rather than facing an army that 142 00:08:34,520 --> 00:08:38,120 Speaker 1: was divided and left in chaos, Germany instead faced a 143 00:08:38,200 --> 00:08:42,200 Speaker 1: force that was united under one command. The overall Spring 144 00:08:42,280 --> 00:08:46,680 Speaker 1: Offensive ended on July with the second Battle of the Marne. 145 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:50,680 Speaker 1: General Ludendorff tried to capture the city of Rem, hoping 146 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:53,079 Speaker 1: to divide the French forces and set a stage for 147 00:08:53,120 --> 00:08:57,160 Speaker 1: an assault on Flanders, but unlike on March one, General 148 00:08:57,200 --> 00:09:01,160 Speaker 1: Foch anticipated this attack. He in the Allies mounted a 149 00:09:01,200 --> 00:09:05,079 Speaker 1: counter attack, and by July eighteenth German forces were retreating. 150 00:09:05,760 --> 00:09:10,320 Speaker 1: Germany could not afford this loss, especially since American troops 151 00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:12,680 Speaker 1: were now arriving in France at a rate of about 152 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:16,800 Speaker 1: three hundred thousand per month. The nineteen eighteen flu pandemic 153 00:09:16,880 --> 00:09:20,280 Speaker 1: was also sweeping across the globe at this point, including 154 00:09:20,320 --> 00:09:23,320 Speaker 1: through all of the armies involved in the war. But 155 00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:26,280 Speaker 1: the war was not over yet, which brings us to Amia, 156 00:09:26,760 --> 00:09:28,800 Speaker 1: and we're first going to pause and have a sponsor 157 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:39,120 Speaker 1: break before we dig into that. The Spring Offensive and 158 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:41,400 Speaker 1: the Allied counter attacks at the Second Battle of the 159 00:09:41,400 --> 00:09:44,120 Speaker 1: Marne were a shift in how the war was being 160 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:47,760 Speaker 1: fought on the Western Front for years that had been 161 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:51,440 Speaker 1: defined by the trenches. Trenches had been used during battles 162 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:54,479 Speaker 1: in one way or another for centuries, and they continued 163 00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:57,240 Speaker 1: to be a part of warfare after this point, but 164 00:09:57,400 --> 00:10:00,080 Speaker 1: in World War One they were a side effect of 165 00:10:00,120 --> 00:10:06,040 Speaker 1: evolving military technologies, specifically machine guns and artillery. Trenches were 166 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:09,719 Speaker 1: away for troops to gain some measure of protection from 167 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:12,920 Speaker 1: these devastating weapons, even though it meant that they couldn't 168 00:10:12,960 --> 00:10:16,280 Speaker 1: really move once they were dug in. During those years 169 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:19,640 Speaker 1: of stalemate, an attack on the enemy's trench had usually 170 00:10:19,640 --> 00:10:23,400 Speaker 1: combined a preliminary bombardment called a creeping barrage with an 171 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:27,679 Speaker 1: advancing infantry. The barrage was supposed to lay down artillery 172 00:10:27,720 --> 00:10:31,600 Speaker 1: just ahead of the soldiers advance, providing cover and clearing 173 00:10:31,600 --> 00:10:34,360 Speaker 1: out the opposition. But a lot of the time this 174 00:10:34,520 --> 00:10:38,040 Speaker 1: didn't work. Barrages got too far ahead of the troops, 175 00:10:38,160 --> 00:10:41,520 Speaker 1: effectively serving as an advanced warning for the opposite side, 176 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:44,760 Speaker 1: or they tore up the terrain so much that the 177 00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:48,000 Speaker 1: soldiers had trouble crossing to get to the enemy, or 178 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:51,800 Speaker 1: barrages might move too slowly or fall short, and the 179 00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:56,880 Speaker 1: advancing infantry were killed as a result. Regardless, though, armies 180 00:10:56,880 --> 00:11:00,800 Speaker 1: wound up facing huge casualties in exchange for a few 181 00:11:00,920 --> 00:11:04,480 Speaker 1: yards of territory or none at all. By the spring 182 00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:07,960 Speaker 1: and summer of nineteen eighteen, though, World War one's opposing 183 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:10,520 Speaker 1: armies were starting to make better use of all the 184 00:11:10,559 --> 00:11:14,880 Speaker 1: available military technology to effectively assault the other side's trenches, 185 00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:18,560 Speaker 1: and the allies first truly effective use of all that 186 00:11:18,600 --> 00:11:21,839 Speaker 1: technology was at the Battle of Hamel, led by Australian 187 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:26,959 Speaker 1: Core commander Lieutenant General John Monash. Monash planned the early 188 00:11:27,000 --> 00:11:31,160 Speaker 1: morning attack in absolute secrecy. He added smoke shells to 189 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:35,320 Speaker 1: the creeping barrage to obscure the battlefield. He also used tanks, 190 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:38,679 Speaker 1: which had been introduced in nineteen sixteen, to plow through 191 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:43,000 Speaker 1: the Germans barbed wire and fortifications, and to deliver supplies 192 00:11:43,160 --> 00:11:47,720 Speaker 1: from behind the infantry advance. Eighteen aircraft were involved as well, 193 00:11:47,760 --> 00:11:51,679 Speaker 1: including some older ones specifically chosen because their engines were 194 00:11:51,679 --> 00:11:53,680 Speaker 1: loud enough to cover up the sound of the tanks. 195 00:11:54,440 --> 00:11:58,160 Speaker 1: The planes dropped bombs and flares, providing covering fire, and 196 00:11:58,200 --> 00:12:02,360 Speaker 1: reported back with information about the Germans positions. The plan 197 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:06,560 Speaker 1: also included faking troop movements in using dummy installations to 198 00:12:06,640 --> 00:12:09,960 Speaker 1: further disguise what they were doing, and sending messages back 199 00:12:09,960 --> 00:12:14,000 Speaker 1: and forth by pigeon. This battle was an enormous success 200 00:12:14,040 --> 00:12:18,360 Speaker 1: for the Allies. The Allied troops, including American and Australian forces, 201 00:12:18,440 --> 00:12:22,560 Speaker 1: attacked early in the morning on July four. Within two hours, 202 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:26,040 Speaker 1: they had obtained all of their objectives. This was really 203 00:12:26,080 --> 00:12:29,679 Speaker 1: the first time that all of the available military technology 204 00:12:29,720 --> 00:12:32,640 Speaker 1: had been put into use at once in such a 205 00:12:32,640 --> 00:12:36,640 Speaker 1: coordinated way. It was so effective that all of the 206 00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:40,080 Speaker 1: commanders of the British Expeditionary Force got a report about it, 207 00:12:40,360 --> 00:12:43,480 Speaker 1: detailing what had gone so well after the battle was over. 208 00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:47,200 Speaker 1: The Battle of Ammia built off these same strategies that 209 00:12:47,280 --> 00:12:50,160 Speaker 1: Monash had put into place at Hamel. The city of 210 00:12:50,160 --> 00:12:54,360 Speaker 1: Amia was a major junction for railroads and communications, and 211 00:12:54,400 --> 00:12:57,840 Speaker 1: Germany had repeatedly tried to take it during the Spring offensive. 212 00:12:58,520 --> 00:13:01,559 Speaker 1: Germany had not succeeded, but it had stretched out its 213 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:04,679 Speaker 1: line in the attempt, creating a bulge that it didn't 214 00:13:04,720 --> 00:13:08,920 Speaker 1: have the manpower to thoroughly defend. The Allies attack on 215 00:13:08,960 --> 00:13:14,200 Speaker 1: the salient was as before planned, in total secrecy. Before 216 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:18,280 Speaker 1: it started, they used fake radio transmissions and phony troop 217 00:13:18,320 --> 00:13:21,880 Speaker 1: movements to disguise Theirst activity during the day, while putting 218 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:25,280 Speaker 1: the men into their real positions at night. The assault 219 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:29,960 Speaker 1: combined air support, artillery, tanks, and infantry. In terms of numbers, 220 00:13:30,000 --> 00:13:33,240 Speaker 1: the Allies had seventy five thousand men, more than five 221 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:38,400 Speaker 1: hundred tanks, and nearly two thousand aircraft that troops included British, Canadian, 222 00:13:38,440 --> 00:13:43,040 Speaker 1: Australian and French infantry, tank brigades, British cavalry divisions, the 223 00:13:43,160 --> 00:13:46,400 Speaker 1: Royal Air Force, and American troops that were held in reserve. 224 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:50,720 Speaker 1: Australian and Canadian troops formed the spearhead of the infantry 225 00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:55,040 Speaker 1: attack at Ammiam. By this point, Australia's military had distinguished 226 00:13:55,080 --> 00:13:57,840 Speaker 1: itself as part of the Australian and New Zealand Army 227 00:13:57,840 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 1: Corps that's ANZAC in the Globe League campaign, and the 228 00:14:01,120 --> 00:14:04,800 Speaker 1: Canadian units had developed a reputation as the British Empires 229 00:14:04,880 --> 00:14:10,080 Speaker 1: shock troops. Germany was out everything in this battle. Exact 230 00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:13,440 Speaker 1: numbers are in dispute. It is difficult to track down 231 00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:16,600 Speaker 1: precise numbers and a conflict like this, but they had 232 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:19,760 Speaker 1: a much smaller fighting force, with only about five hundred 233 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:23,320 Speaker 1: thirty guns and three hundred seventy aircraft. They had three 234 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:26,680 Speaker 1: lines of trenches, but these trenches weren't well fortified and 235 00:14:26,720 --> 00:14:30,400 Speaker 1: the communication networks among them were really spotty. When the 236 00:14:30,400 --> 00:14:34,360 Speaker 1: attacks started at four twenty in the morning on August eight, eighteen, 237 00:14:34,440 --> 00:14:37,480 Speaker 1: it came as a total surprise. Fighting at the Battle 238 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:40,600 Speaker 1: of Amien went on for three days. By that point, 239 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:44,720 Speaker 1: the Allies had advanced eight miles it's about thirteen kilometers. 240 00:14:44,920 --> 00:14:47,680 Speaker 1: They had liberated more than one hundred towns and villages 241 00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:51,160 Speaker 1: from the Germans. They had also captured a two hundred 242 00:14:51,240 --> 00:14:54,240 Speaker 1: eighty millimeter or eleven inch Krup naval gun that had 243 00:14:54,240 --> 00:14:57,560 Speaker 1: been used to shell Amien from about twenty five kilometers 244 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:01,200 Speaker 1: or that's sixteen miles away. This gun had been mounted 245 00:15:01,240 --> 00:15:04,440 Speaker 1: on a railway carriage, and the Australian thirty first Battalion, 246 00:15:04,560 --> 00:15:08,520 Speaker 1: fifth Division captured it by commandeering the carriage and driving 247 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:12,200 Speaker 1: it back into Allied territory. They're very proud of capturing 248 00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:15,760 Speaker 1: this gun. I mean, it's not surprising that they were, 249 00:15:17,120 --> 00:15:20,320 Speaker 1: but it comes up a lot in accounts of this day. 250 00:15:20,480 --> 00:15:24,800 Speaker 1: After this hugely effective first day, the Allied advance slowed 251 00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:28,400 Speaker 1: over August night through eleventh. The German forces started to 252 00:15:28,480 --> 00:15:31,880 Speaker 1: regroup and offer a stronger resistance, and on the eleventh 253 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:35,800 Speaker 1: Sir Arthur Curry of the Canadian Corps convinced General Sir 254 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:38,360 Speaker 1: Henley Rawlinson of the British fourth Army that they should 255 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:41,600 Speaker 1: consolidate their gains instead of continuing to try to push 256 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:46,840 Speaker 1: ahead against increasingly tougher resistance. But before that decision, the 257 00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:51,160 Speaker 1: battle had devastated the German army. Ludendorff called August eight 258 00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:53,960 Speaker 1: the black day of the German Army in the history 259 00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:56,720 Speaker 1: of the war. He also said that it quote put 260 00:15:56,800 --> 00:15:59,640 Speaker 1: the decline of that fighting power beyond all doubt and 261 00:15:59,640 --> 00:16:03,440 Speaker 1: inside just situation as regards reserves, I had no hope 262 00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:07,000 Speaker 1: of finding a strategic expedient whereby to turn the situation 263 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:11,320 Speaker 1: to our advantage. This wasn't just because of the tens 264 00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:15,080 Speaker 1: of thousands of casualties that the German army saw that day. 265 00:16:15,280 --> 00:16:19,000 Speaker 1: It was also that it revealed the terrifically terrible morale 266 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:22,600 Speaker 1: among the German troops. At least twelve thousand of them 267 00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:26,800 Speaker 1: were taken prisoner, with huge numbers of soldiers surrendering it once. 268 00:16:27,440 --> 00:16:30,760 Speaker 1: There were even stories of whole groups of Germans surrendering 269 00:16:30,760 --> 00:16:34,760 Speaker 1: to a single Allied soldier, or surrendering even when they 270 00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:39,680 Speaker 1: had the Allies in that particular spot vastly outnumbered. Altogether. 271 00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:42,600 Speaker 1: This was the worst German defeat since the start of 272 00:16:42,640 --> 00:16:46,000 Speaker 1: the war. Until this point, Allied leaders had thought the 273 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:49,560 Speaker 1: war would last at least until nineteen nine, but this 274 00:16:49,640 --> 00:16:52,360 Speaker 1: was the start of the final one days offensive that 275 00:16:52,520 --> 00:16:54,880 Speaker 1: finally ended it. And we're going to talk more about 276 00:16:54,920 --> 00:17:05,160 Speaker 1: that after we pause for a little sponsor break. After 277 00:17:05,200 --> 00:17:08,720 Speaker 1: the Battle of Ammon, both General Eric Ludendorff and kaiserville 278 00:17:08,760 --> 00:17:11,640 Speaker 1: He the Second, the Emperor of Germany, agreed that there 279 00:17:11,680 --> 00:17:14,760 Speaker 1: was no way for the German army to recover. Their 280 00:17:14,840 --> 00:17:18,480 Speaker 1: goal became to avoid an outright surrender, and the German 281 00:17:18,600 --> 00:17:22,040 Speaker 1: army continued to fight even as it fell back towards Germany. 282 00:17:22,560 --> 00:17:25,760 Speaker 1: The Allied forces continued to press ahead in this final 283 00:17:25,840 --> 00:17:28,639 Speaker 1: push to bring the war to an end. The last 284 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:32,240 Speaker 1: major objective to this end was the Hindenburg Line, which 285 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:36,800 Speaker 1: was Germany's last large scale fortification. The Hindenburg Line was 286 00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:39,840 Speaker 1: a set of three well defended trenches that had been 287 00:17:39,960 --> 00:17:44,119 Speaker 1: established in nineteen seventeen. The Allies planned their assault on 288 00:17:44,119 --> 00:17:47,280 Speaker 1: the Hindenburg Line for a full month before actually attacking 289 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:51,160 Speaker 1: its forward outposts near f A, France, on September eighth. 290 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:56,520 Speaker 1: The Allied forces finally breached the Hendenburg Line on September 291 00:17:56,560 --> 00:18:00,600 Speaker 1: twenty nine, after four days of heavy fighting, include firing 292 00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:04,720 Speaker 1: nearly a million artillery shells, and at that point, Paul 293 00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:08,320 Speaker 1: von Hennenberg and Eric Ludendorff told Kaiservillehelm that the war 294 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:12,200 Speaker 1: was lost. On October one, at a meeting of representatives 295 00:18:12,200 --> 00:18:16,080 Speaker 1: of all the major German political parties, Ludendorf and Hennenberg 296 00:18:16,200 --> 00:18:19,399 Speaker 1: told the assembled group the reality of the situation. A 297 00:18:19,440 --> 00:18:22,120 Speaker 1: lot of them were shocked to learn that things were 298 00:18:22,119 --> 00:18:26,919 Speaker 1: going so badly for Germany. Germany requested peace negotiations on 299 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 1: October three. Ludendorf revised his opinion a little later in October, 300 00:18:32,359 --> 00:18:35,359 Speaker 1: as Allied attacks slowed down to allow the supply lines 301 00:18:35,400 --> 00:18:38,320 Speaker 1: to catch up to the troops advance. But by that 302 00:18:38,400 --> 00:18:41,800 Speaker 1: point word of the dire condition of the German military 303 00:18:42,119 --> 00:18:45,840 Speaker 1: had spread through its civilian population. Like much of the 304 00:18:45,880 --> 00:18:49,880 Speaker 1: rest of Europe, German civilians had faced extreme hardship during 305 00:18:49,920 --> 00:18:54,400 Speaker 1: the war, including near starvation conditions thanks to an Allied blockade. 306 00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:58,600 Speaker 1: In the face of such grim news, the war just 307 00:18:58,760 --> 00:19:02,439 Speaker 1: no longer had the support of the German people, especially 308 00:19:02,560 --> 00:19:06,240 Speaker 1: once he heard the terms of the armistice, which involved 309 00:19:06,280 --> 00:19:11,159 Speaker 1: making Germany completely unable to renew hostilities. Ludendorff wanted to 310 00:19:11,200 --> 00:19:14,800 Speaker 1: renew the fight, but on October six he was forced 311 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:18,840 Speaker 1: to resign. By this point there were rampant desertions going 312 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:22,960 Speaker 1: on all over the German military. A massive mutiny also 313 00:19:23,119 --> 00:19:26,800 Speaker 1: swept through the Navy in late October and early November 314 00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:29,200 Speaker 1: over orders that they stayed an attack on the Royal 315 00:19:29,280 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: Navy and an attempt to derail the armistice negotiations. The 316 00:19:33,240 --> 00:19:38,159 Speaker 1: armistice was finally signed on November eleventh night at five am, 317 00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:41,440 Speaker 1: and the war ended at eleven am that same day. 318 00:19:41,720 --> 00:19:44,960 Speaker 1: The Canadian Corps also liberated the city of mont France 319 00:19:45,040 --> 00:19:47,240 Speaker 1: that day, which was where the last shot of the 320 00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:50,000 Speaker 1: war was fired. It was also the site of one 321 00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:52,640 Speaker 1: of the war's earliest battles, and there's actually an episode 322 00:19:52,640 --> 00:19:56,159 Speaker 1: about that battle in our archive. By this point, Kaiser 323 00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:58,800 Speaker 1: Vilhelm the Second had been forced to abdicate and had 324 00:19:58,800 --> 00:20:02,879 Speaker 1: gone into exile, and German Chancellor Friedrich Ebert had started 325 00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:06,960 Speaker 1: to form a provisional government. During the last hundred days 326 00:20:07,040 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: of the war, French forces saw five hundred and thirty 327 00:20:10,680 --> 00:20:14,720 Speaker 1: thousand casualties. There were more than four hundred thousand casualties 328 00:20:14,760 --> 00:20:17,360 Speaker 1: among the British troops, including the troops from the rest 329 00:20:17,359 --> 00:20:20,240 Speaker 1: of the British Empire, that's not just from the UK. 330 00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:24,920 Speaker 1: American forces saw a hundred and twenty seven thousand casualties, 331 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:28,920 Speaker 1: and there were seven hundred and eighty five thousand casualties 332 00:20:29,080 --> 00:20:31,919 Speaker 1: just among the Germans, with three hundred and sixty eight 333 00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:37,480 Speaker 1: thousand taken prisoner. The German army was also very clearly defeated. 334 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:40,520 Speaker 1: After that initial rally in the Spring Offensive, the tide 335 00:20:40,560 --> 00:20:43,600 Speaker 1: of the war had turned hard against it, and with 336 00:20:43,680 --> 00:20:46,879 Speaker 1: millions of American troops on the ground in Europe, dramatically 337 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:50,000 Speaker 1: increasing the Allies numbers. There was just no way that 338 00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:53,800 Speaker 1: Germany could have turned that around. But the false idea 339 00:20:54,200 --> 00:20:58,959 Speaker 1: spread through the German military that Germany had not been defeated. Instead, 340 00:20:59,040 --> 00:21:02,080 Speaker 1: this idea took route, didn't take root, as though it 341 00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:05,560 Speaker 1: came out of nowhere, like it was intentionally spread that 342 00:21:05,680 --> 00:21:08,000 Speaker 1: the German army had been stabbed in the back by 343 00:21:08,040 --> 00:21:12,040 Speaker 1: civilian leaders who negotiated and signed the armistice. According to 344 00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:15,360 Speaker 1: this mindset, which was spread by Ludendorf and other high 345 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:20,439 Speaker 1: ranking officers intentionally, the officials who signed the armistice were traders. 346 00:21:21,000 --> 00:21:25,080 Speaker 1: Adolf Hitler would later brand them the November criminals. This 347 00:21:25,280 --> 00:21:28,560 Speaker 1: led to a whole conspiracy theory about a betrayal of 348 00:21:28,600 --> 00:21:31,560 Speaker 1: the German military at the hands of Jews, which became 349 00:21:31,640 --> 00:21:34,520 Speaker 1: part of Nazi propaganda in the years after the war. 350 00:21:35,160 --> 00:21:37,760 Speaker 1: The terms of the armistice and the Treaty of Versailles 351 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:40,720 Speaker 1: that ended the war also contributed to the run up 352 00:21:40,720 --> 00:21:44,240 Speaker 1: to World War Two. Under that armistice, Germany had to 353 00:21:44,280 --> 00:21:48,159 Speaker 1: surrender territory and war materials, including thousands of pieces of 354 00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:55,119 Speaker 1: artillery guns, trains, aircraft, battleships, submarines, destroyers, and other naval vessels. 355 00:21:55,720 --> 00:21:59,200 Speaker 1: Germany was also to surrender its prisoners of war immediately, 356 00:21:59,400 --> 00:22:02,320 Speaker 1: but there were no reciprocal terms for the other nations 357 00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:06,760 Speaker 1: to return German prisoners. Under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany 358 00:22:06,840 --> 00:22:11,240 Speaker 1: was prohibited from joining the League of Nations until The 359 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:15,600 Speaker 1: treaty also drew new borders that gave territory to Germany's neighbors, 360 00:22:16,040 --> 00:22:19,920 Speaker 1: stripped Germany of its colonies, and required Germany to pay 361 00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:25,240 Speaker 1: reparations that were economically disastrous. All of this ultimately contributed 362 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:28,359 Speaker 1: to Hitler's rise of power, which we talked about in 363 00:22:28,400 --> 00:22:31,680 Speaker 1: our episode on the Night of the Long Knives. There's 364 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:35,800 Speaker 1: a really bummer place to end an episode. So, uh, 365 00:22:35,840 --> 00:22:37,679 Speaker 1: if you were listening to this and you were like, 366 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:50,200 Speaker 1: this reminds me of Wonder Woman, Yes, obviously Ludendorff in 367 00:22:50,359 --> 00:22:54,639 Speaker 1: Wonder Woman is a fictionalized version of this guy, Uh, 368 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:58,199 Speaker 1: who we talked about in this show. Uh. Do you 369 00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:01,639 Speaker 1: also have nonfictional listener may? No, Actually, I have listener 370 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:05,639 Speaker 1: mail that's also related to popular culture. This is from Ryan. 371 00:23:05,840 --> 00:23:10,200 Speaker 1: And Ryan wrote about our recent episode on Libertalia, which 372 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:12,359 Speaker 1: Holly actually did all the research and writing for. And 373 00:23:12,440 --> 00:23:16,040 Speaker 1: Ryan says, hey, y'all. I love y'all's podcast. I'm just 374 00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:18,240 Speaker 1: gonna take a moment to say I love the word y'all. 375 00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:22,040 Speaker 1: I've been listening for years and every time podcast suggestion 376 00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:24,480 Speaker 1: time comes up, and believe me, I make sure it does. 377 00:23:24,760 --> 00:23:26,680 Speaker 1: I make sure to recommend stuff you miss in history. 378 00:23:26,720 --> 00:23:30,320 Speaker 1: I listened to the episode about the pirate utopia Libertalia today, 379 00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:32,760 Speaker 1: and you mentioned how it is referenced with a location 380 00:23:32,840 --> 00:23:35,680 Speaker 1: area of the same name and Fallout four. I just 381 00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:38,240 Speaker 1: so happened to be playing through it recently, but I 382 00:23:38,280 --> 00:23:41,600 Speaker 1: got home kind of forgot about it, and lo and behold, 383 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:44,480 Speaker 1: guess what I stumbled onto while roaming the waste land 384 00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:49,240 Speaker 1: Libertalia out of the blue. Immediately I remembered and proclaimed 385 00:23:49,320 --> 00:23:53,080 Speaker 1: to my cats, Libertalia. I had to let y'all know, 386 00:23:53,280 --> 00:23:56,440 Speaker 1: thanks so much for your hard work. Have a wonderful day, sincerely, Ryan. 387 00:23:57,480 --> 00:24:00,760 Speaker 1: Ryan then also sends some compliments to Holly for her show, 388 00:24:00,840 --> 00:24:05,080 Speaker 1: which is rapping as we record this. It will all 389 00:24:05,080 --> 00:24:06,920 Speaker 1: be out in the world by the time this episode 390 00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:11,480 Speaker 1: comes out, right. That show is drawn story of animation. Um, 391 00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:14,959 Speaker 1: we will publish the last bonus episode today while we record, 392 00:24:15,080 --> 00:24:16,880 Speaker 1: which means by the time you hear this, it will 393 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:18,679 Speaker 1: have been in the world for a couple of weeks 394 00:24:19,080 --> 00:24:23,040 Speaker 1: at least. We're running ahead of schedule in our production. So, uh, 395 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:25,679 Speaker 1: Ryan says, I've been listening to Drawn and I've been 396 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:27,439 Speaker 1: so giddy about the show. I'm glad there is such 397 00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:29,960 Speaker 1: a mutual connection around the medium for those that enjoy it. 398 00:24:30,040 --> 00:24:32,360 Speaker 1: Animation is such a joy. It truly is magic. Thank 399 00:24:32,400 --> 00:24:35,359 Speaker 1: you again for all you do. I'm sad that season 400 00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:37,320 Speaker 1: is ending. I'm hoping there will be more in the future. 401 00:24:37,359 --> 00:24:39,320 Speaker 1: I don't want to pressure, just want to let you know, 402 00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:44,000 Speaker 1: be incredibly appreciated. Take care. Thank you, Ryan. I wanted 403 00:24:44,040 --> 00:24:46,640 Speaker 1: to read this email for a couple of reasons. One, 404 00:24:46,880 --> 00:24:50,280 Speaker 1: it's always fun to get an email about somebody yelling 405 00:24:50,400 --> 00:24:53,280 Speaker 1: Libertalia to their cats. I mean, I just do that 406 00:24:53,520 --> 00:24:57,760 Speaker 1: casually around the house. I look at them ago Libertalia 407 00:24:57,880 --> 00:24:59,760 Speaker 1: and hope that they'll set up some sort of feline 408 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:02,119 Speaker 1: you to opia where everyone gets a vote, but they 409 00:25:02,160 --> 00:25:06,480 Speaker 1: never do. They're so lazy. Yeah, yeah, yeah, there's cats. 410 00:25:06,520 --> 00:25:09,680 Speaker 1: So the the other reason is that, Uh, it's come 411 00:25:09,760 --> 00:25:11,439 Speaker 1: up a couple of times on the show before that 412 00:25:11,480 --> 00:25:13,640 Speaker 1: I've played Fallout for I had to put that game 413 00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:16,040 Speaker 1: down for about eighteen months because I was just like, 414 00:25:16,119 --> 00:25:19,080 Speaker 1: I can't spend my free time wandering around a post 415 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:21,640 Speaker 1: nuclear waste land for right now. But I got back 416 00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:25,879 Speaker 1: to it just over the last couple of weeks, and 417 00:25:25,920 --> 00:25:29,600 Speaker 1: I just wanted to share that I stumbled over a 418 00:25:29,640 --> 00:25:33,680 Speaker 1: weird tourist attraction in that world that is a combination 419 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:37,439 Speaker 1: of the Winchester Mystery House and the Lizzie Borden House, 420 00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:43,000 Speaker 1: and it's amazing. If you're playing through some fallout for 421 00:25:43,359 --> 00:25:47,520 Speaker 1: specifically some fallout for DLC beyond the lookout for that, 422 00:25:48,119 --> 00:25:49,920 Speaker 1: and if you would like to write to us about 423 00:25:49,920 --> 00:25:52,439 Speaker 1: this or any other podcast where a history podcast at 424 00:25:52,440 --> 00:25:55,480 Speaker 1: how stuff works dot com. We're also all over social 425 00:25:55,480 --> 00:25:57,880 Speaker 1: media at the user name missed in History. That's where 426 00:25:57,880 --> 00:26:01,680 Speaker 1: we're on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and Pinterest. If 427 00:26:01,680 --> 00:26:04,400 Speaker 1: you come to our website, which is missed in History 428 00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:08,879 Speaker 1: dot com, you can find a un searchable archive of 429 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:10,840 Speaker 1: all the episodes that we have ever done on the 430 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:13,399 Speaker 1: show before. You can find the show notes to all 431 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:16,400 Speaker 1: the episodes that Holly and I have done together, and 432 00:26:16,680 --> 00:26:20,000 Speaker 1: you can find and subscribe to our podcast on Apple 433 00:26:20,080 --> 00:26:23,600 Speaker 1: podcasts and Google podcasts and really anywhere else you want 434 00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:31,000 Speaker 1: to get a podcast. For more on this and thousands 435 00:26:31,040 --> 00:26:39,360 Speaker 1: of other topics, visit how staff works dot com.