Initial Post

Having retired as an accounting professor after 38 years, I decided to pursue my other  interest which is military history.  My first year of retirement was spent studying military history in the United Kingdom.  Prior to retirement, I had traveled to these sites:  Somme Valley, Verdun, Meuse Argonne, Normandy, Berlin, and Iwo Jima.  The purpose of my blog is to assist travelers in trekking battlefields and understanding these past events.

My first focus will be on World War I.  There is a  recent resurgence of interest in the "War to end all wars".  After the Versailles treaty, it is generally understood that the treaty terms were a factor in causing World War II.  The large post-war reparation payments required of Germany made it difficult for the Weimar Republic to recover economically.  Coupled with the Great Depression, the Weimar Republic experiment ended when the Nazis took power in 1933. 

The impact of World War I on Russia was significant.  The Romanov family was removed from power and replaced by a communist party headed by Lenin.  This government structure lasted until 1989. 

At first glance, it would seem that the United Kingdom was a clear victor in World War I.  However, the cost of military operations in economic resources and human life would later influence the fighting in WW II.  Britain had partially financed the war with the sale of foreign investments.  One source had estimated that by 1918 foreign investments held by British citizens and institutions had been reduced by 20%.  More ominous for the future was the loss of an entire generation of young people by Great Britain and the Commonwealth.  The taking of casualties in World War II by the forces became an issue for senior British commanders harking back to the slaughter on the Western front.

My next blog will review the new World War I museum located east of Paris in  Meaux France.