ASSESS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF NAVAL WARFARE IN DETERMINING THE OUTCOME OF WWI
Naval warfare played a pivotal role in deciding the outcome of WWI as it includes the British naval blockade, a tactic that left the German population frequently starving, and forced Germany into drastic and ‘all or nothing’ tactics like those show in the German Spring Offensive. Naval warfare also helped bring other powers such as the US into the war, a nation with vast capital and resources on the Allied side, thus having a large influence in the Entente Power’s victory. However, the significance can be limited because of the factors that have no direct link to naval warfare, yet played a role in deciding the victors of WWI, technology, Germany’s weak Allies and poor management.
Germany were fighting numerous battles on their own streets, such as the ‘Butter riots’ in 1915, the government was put under pressure by the Socialist Democratic Party and the general public to pull out of the war, this lack of support for the war effort filtered through to the front line with mutinies in the navy and indiscipline in the army. Cites also revolted because of the lack of food, especially in the cities, strikes rose from 1,000 a month to 100,000 in 1918 and the cost of living rose 200% - both because of the public wanting out of the war, government reform and food. This shortage of food and war supplies, together with defeats destroyed morale in the military and within the general public, this left the majority with little reason to support the war, so the German war effort suffered. The lack of food derived from the British naval blockade, a naval warfare tactic, therefore suggesting that naval warfare had numerous knock on effects on the war, so a say in the resentment of the German people, eventually leaving the war effort unsustainable, and Germany conceding defeat.
Germany had to