Many consider Germany and her allies to have been unsuccessful in World War 1. Even if one doesn’t consider Germany to have lost the war, Germany certainly made some mistakes and had some disadvantages. Several factors put together lead to Germany’s downfall. These linked together to cause a loss of faith within Germany. Germany and her allies lost the war due to a cultural loss of faith because of political, military, and economic factors.
Germany’s weak political enforcements and structure contributed to its defeat. One example is the German propaganda campaign. The Germans presented the British as dumb fools, nothing to be intimidated by or afraid of. The British on the other hand, showed the Germans as cruel monsters, and where prepared for the worst. When Germany and Britain met on the battlefield, the Germans were extremely disheartened for they were surprised by the organization and power of the British. This lead them to lose faith in Germany. The German government wasn’t equipped to fight the war, the people weren’t even being taxed. Germany relied on the citizens nationalism to survive the war. When this failed because of the lack of faith, Germany began to weaken.
Besides, Germany’s political state, Germany and her allies military actions weren’t the most thought out. While the British and the French were working together the Haig and Foch, Germany has Ludendorf as a leader, who fails to communicate well with the Austrians. The lack of organization in comparison made Germany seem desperate, attempting to ally with Mexico which isn’t even a government yet at the time. When Austria is weakened after entering the war with optimism, faith in Germany’s power ensued further. Knowing that the United States were mobilizing while Germany had limited supplies and soldiers and cannot possibly keep up added to this lack of faith and discouragement.
Though Germany’s military actions turned out poor, it’s economic state wasn’t in a much better shape. While in the Battle Jutland Britain was gaining control of the seas, Germany’s mileage coast remained very limited, meaning that Germany is unable to import and export materials such as weapons and food, in contrast to Britain which has the largest coastline. The British also passed the Defense Of The Realm act, which ensured that everybody had food available to them. Meanwhile, Germany is experiencing the Turnip Winter of 1917, where people are starving and Germany is weakened further. All these disadvantages of Germany’s weak economy, too weak to support its own people, only made the Germans lose more faith in their motherland.
Due to the above reasons, Germany and her allies were unsuccessful in the war. Political, military, and economic factors added to the cultural shift within people which lead them to lose their faith in Germany. Lack of faith in one’s country, adds to a lack of hope for victory. This means that as soldiers where fighting to defend their homeland, their psychological state may have changed to a less caring one. It is logical that they would fight with less strength, courage and willingness, leading to the defeat of Germany.
