![]() This was very different from German soldiers stationed in France or Russia who depended on military discipline to stay alive. Especially as food shortages got worse.Ī second important difference between sailors and soldiers is that the sailors (both the Russian Baltic fleet and the German fleet were largely in port throughout the war) were in frequent contact with workers who spoke the same language. The idea that there must be national unity to fight the war was always weaker among sailors for these reasons. Shore leave and entertaining visitors was always available to officers but denied to the sailors. The waiter service and fine dining enjoyed by officers was visible to the sailors, whereas soldiers in the trenches never saw their commanding officers except on parade. The crucial difference is that the naval officers were much closer physically to the sailors than was the case in the army, and class divisions were visible.įor example, the officers’ quarters on board ship were luxurious and spacious on the upper decks, while the ratings had to suffer the noise and tumult of the lower decks. ![]() The military discipline facing soldiers was no less harsh than that facing sailors. The navy is no more nor less hierarchical than the army. In Russia and Germany the sailors were the first section of the armed forces to revolt and join with workers to oppose the war. Why did sailors become revolutionary first? This article will focus mainly on the mutinies in the German fleet which led directly to ending the war. Nationalist hysteria in 1914 gave way to socialist internationalism in 1918. It ended because the working class in Russia and Germany stopped it – through strikes, demonstrations and revolution. It never ended because the ruling classes of Europe had suddenly become decent. The imperialist carnage ended with the signing of the Armistice on November 11, 1918. A war for profit and greed that killed millions is not only inglorious, it strips away nationalist mythology and exposes the rule of the capitalist class for what it is. That the First World War was an imperialist war is what Remembrance Days are designed to deny. The First World War was an imperialist war. Each country fought to defend and extend their empires. Why and how such a barbaric war could ever happen is the crucial question, and the answer is denied today just as it was then. It was a war on enemy nations of course, but it was also fought ruthlessly against the enemy on the home front. The First World War was a war on many fronts. The onset of war sees the ruling class glory in its role where victory on the battlefield is used to bolster national mythologies about character, race and leadership. In the build up to war humanitarian feelings are branded as treachery, weakness, and irresponsibility. War is the ultimate expression of nationalism. On this day, Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated the throne after a recent naval mutiny in Kiel inspired widespread revolution.As Remembrance Day approaches, John Westmoreland highlights the vital role played by revolutionary sailors The mutiny of German sailors in Kiel inspired a national revolution that ensured that the end of World War I also meant the end of the German Empire.Ī public demonstration is held on the Unter den Linden in Berlin on November 9, 1918. These revolts quickly spread throughout Germany, and self-governing councils of soldiers and workers formed. Soldiers sent to suppress the protests joined them instead. The sailors were joined by workers and civilians from Kiel who demanded an end to the war. On November 3, 1918, thousands protested the arrests in the streets. Many of the sailors involved in the mutiny were arrested and jailed in the German port city of Kiel. Unwilling to risk their lives for a lost cause, German sailors rose in revolt and prevented the attack from being carried out. The German Empire was facing a total military collapse, but the heavily overmatched German navy still planned one final large-scale battle against the British navy in the English Channel. By autumn 1918, German military leaders realized that the war was lost. A mutiny by German sailors at the end of World War I contributed to the end of the German Empire and the founding of the Weimar Republic.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |