More than one hundred battles were engaged during World War I. The four-year conflict lasted from July 28, 1914 to November 11, 1918. It commenced on that date. Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians participated in some capacity, either directly or indirectly.

Some of the bloodiest conflicts of World War I claimed the lives of more than 17 million people and injured over 20 million more. Additionally, cutting-edge weapons such as the Zeppelin and the Maxim MG 08 machine gun were introduced during the conflict.

The following are the ten most violent engagements of World War I:

10. Hundred Days Offensive (over seven million casualties)

The Hundred Days Offensive comprised a succession of Allie-led offensives. During their Spring Offensive in France from March to July 1918, the Germans made significant progress. Paris was only about 75 kilometres distant. Nevertheless, their rapid incursion had resulted in a scarcity of food and ammunition, as the Allies consolidated tens of thousands of soldiers and artillery in the urban centre of Amiens.

They successfully surprised the German forces and reclaimed thirteen kilometres of territory in a single day. Over time, the German forces were compelled to retreat behind the Hindenburg Line. After the Germans signed the Armistice on November 11, 1918, World War I came to an end.

Given that it concluded the Hundred Days Offensive, it is a pivotal conflict. But attaining victory was not an inexpensive endeavour. The outcome resulted in the deaths or injuries of over 1,800,000 individuals, with both parties suffering more than 7,000,000 casualties.

9. Spring Offensive (1,539,715+ Casualties)

The Germans were able to relocate their troops to the Western Front, where they launched a succession of offensives, after Russia signed an armistice. This was referred to as the Spring Offensive, or alternatively, the Ludendorff Offensive, after the supreme commander who strategized enormous and ostensibly decisive assaults against the Allies in order to prevent the United States from joining them. They made significant progress. Indeed, both sides had not made this extent of progress since 1914.

The Spring Offensive commenced with intense shelling and bombardment on March 21, 1918. Rapidly, the Germans launched their assault. However, food and ammunition supplies were unable to maintain pace with the speeding armies, and on July 18, 1918, the German offensives ceased, not before losing more than 230,000 of their own men. A cumulative sum of 1,539,715 casualties was incurred during this engagement.

8. The Somme Battle (over one million casualties)

The objective of the Battle of the Somme was to alleviate some of the strain on the French forces engaged in the Battle of Verdun. Blasts were directed at the German lines prior to the combat. This failed, and on July 1, 1916, as the British troops advanced, they became obvious targets for the Germans. Nonetheless, they persisted in their assault, and by the battle’s conclusion on November 18, 1916, they had advanced approximately 9.7 kilometres into German-occupied territory.

On the very first day, the British suffered more than 600,000 casualties, of which 20,000 were fatalities. The Germans, too, suffered in excess of 500,000 casualties. This conflict, which resulted in more than one million casualties, came to symbolise the utmost atrocity of warfare.

7. The Verdun Battle (over 800,000 casualties)

The Battle of Verdun was both the longest and most expensive engagement of World War I. From February 21 to December 19, 1916, it was in session. In this conflict, German general Erich von Falkenhayn intended to “bleed France white.”

The French held Verdun town in high regard, and he was certain they would engage in fierce combat to reclaim it. As a result of the French engagement at Verdun, the Western Front would be deserted by the British. The Germans made an initial strong advance, but the French were able to slow them down with the aid of reinforcements. The Germans could no longer afford to dispatch additional troops to Verdun when the Battle of the Somme commenced, and the offensive was halted.

Although France was not completely destroyed, both the French and the Germans suffered more than 400,000 casualties. A quarter-million individuals were either killed or wounded, and neither side made any progress.

6. Battle of Passchendaele

15,600 Canadian casualties 275,000 British casualties 220,000 Germans were slain or wounded.

The official designation for the Battle of Passchendaele is the Third Battle of Ypres. The event commenced on July 31 and persisted until November 6, 1917. With heavy casualties on both sides, the British captured Passchendaele, a village located a mere five miles from Ypres, following three months of brutal conflict.

General Douglas Haig held the belief that the German forces were on the verge of disintegration and that a decisive advance would lead to triumph. Haig was inspired by his success in seizing the Messines Ridge, and he proceeded to make additional preparations. The infantry assault commenced on July 31 with the British in a strong advancing position. However, the battle-ravaged terrain was transformed into a quagmire by the heaviest rainfall in thirty years; the situation was made worse by the destruction of the surrounding drainage systems.

Tanks were immobilised, rifles became obstructed, and the bogs grew to the point where horses and soldiers drowned within them.

The progress made during subsequent assaults in August, September, and October was minimal. Ultimately, upon reclaiming the remnants of the village of Passchendaele, the offensive was deemed a triumph.

5. Serbian Campaign (300,000 military and 800,000 civilian casualties)

The Serbian Campaign commenced with the Austro-Hungarian invasion of Serbia. The heir to the monarchy of Austria-Hungary, Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian national, murdered the archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914. As a result, numerous conflicts ensued, culminating in Serbia being issued the July Ultimatum, which comprised ten demands, of which only eight were deemed acceptable. Austria-Hungary consequently proclaimed war on Serbia on July 28 of the aforementioned year. Soon after the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and Germany joined the conflict, the front lines extended from the Danube to the southern and northern regions of Macedonia.

Throughout this, Serbia endured the most suffering. Approximately 800,000 Serbian civilians perished, in addition to the 300,000 Serbian combatants who perished. Their loss was approximately 25%, whereas France, Germany, Russia, and Italy lost 17.5%, 11.5%, and 10%, respectively. The vast majority were males. With Austria-Hungary’s agreement to an armistice on November 4, 1918, this atrocity came to an end.

4. The Initial Marne Battle Resulted in 483,000 casualties

September 1914 witnessed the First Battle of the Marne, which took place to the east and north of Paris. The Germans had previously invaded Belgium and were subsequently advancing swiftly through France, posing a threat to Paris.

British and French efforts to halt the German army had already resulted in significant casualties. It appeared inevitable that the collapse of Paris would occur. British and French forces, desperate to halt the German advance, merged on the Marne River, close to Paris. Collaboratively, one British field army and six French field armies thwarted the Germans’ advance into France. Due to their heavy casualties, the Germans were compelled to forsake the Schlieffen Plan and retreat. The occurrence in question earned the moniker “Miracle on the Marne.”

Notwithstanding the triumph of the Allies, a cumulative of 483,000 casualties were incurred in the conflict; the Allied forces endured 263,000 casualties, while the Germans suffered 220,000. In addition, the conflict prompted the Germans to withdraw, reorganise, and construct formidable defences in anticipation of an attack. In retaliation, the Allies engaged in violent trench warfare.

3. Gallipoli Battle (253,000 Turkish Losses to 220,000 Allied Losses)

By 1915, the western front had become entrenched. Strong defensive positions were being besieged by futile assaults that cost both parties personnel. Furthermore, Russia’s drastic loss at Tannenberg had positioned it in a precarious predicament, curtailing its capacity to take action.

Consequently, an invaluable contributor to the war effort was lost by its allies. The escalating loss of life prompted the Allies to establish a second front.

In order to menace Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, First Lord of the Admiralty Sir Winston Churchill resolved to launch an assault on the Dardanelles, which is now known as Turkey. Two factors prompted the establishment of a second front. The initial objective of the Allies was to facilitate the resolution of the impasse on the Western Front. Additionally, they sought to alleviate the plight of the beleaguered Russians by establishing a maritime pathway for resupply.

After initial naval assaults failed to defeat the Ottoman army, the Allies opted for an amphibious assault. The Allies anticipated the Turks’ demise due to their perception of them as feeble. Conversely, the exact opposite occurred.

The resistance and entrenchment of Turkish forces impeded the Allied landings. As a result, the Allies were unable to achieve their intended goal. British, Australian, and New Zealand forces engaged the Turks in trench warfare along the Gallipoli front, which ultimately degenerated into a stalemate similar to that on the Western Front. The Turks lost 253,000 soldiers while the Allies lost 220,000. The Ottoman Empire achieved an extraordinary triumph.

2. British Losses: 158,000; German Losses: 120,000; Battle of Arras

A impasse had plagued the Western Front for a period of two years prior to 1917. As a consequence of bloody engagements, including the slaughter at Verdun and the Somme, casualties were mounting. Both parties had lost millions of lives, and Europe was weary of the conflict.

It was necessary for the Allied high command to advance and breach the German lines. Due to the numerical disadvantage of the German army, the Allies could have secured an instantaneous victory by breaching their lines. As a result, a strategy was devised to storm the French lines in the south and the German trenches near the town of Arras. The Allies harboured optimism that they might ultimately prevail and break the impasse on the Western Front.

The commencement of the Battle of Arras occurred on April 9, 1917. At the outset, the focus of operations was on the strategic capture of Vimy Ridge by Canadian forces, while British forces endeavoured to achieve substantial gains in the central region. Nevertheless, by the conclusion of the conflict on May 16, 1917, the British progression had been impeded.

The Germans suffered 120,000 casualties and the British suffered 158,000. Although purportedly won by the British, the precise outcome of the battle is still uncertain.

1. Battle of Tannenberg (German losses of 12,000 and Russian losses of 170,000)

The Russian 2nd Army and the German 8th Army engaged in combat at Tannenberg from August 26 to August 30, 1914, in the initial month of World War I.

Following their disastrous invasion of East Prussia, the Russians achieved victory over the Germans at Gumbinnen. Russia intended to encircle and annihilate the German 8th Army. The 1st Army was advancing to the north, while the 2nd Army was striking from the southeast.

In contrast, the 1st Army came to a halt, prompting the Germans to launch an assault on the vulnerable 2nd Army. Notwithstanding their numerical disadvantage, the Germans prevail decisively over the Russians at Tannenberg.

The engagement resulted in the total annihilation of the Russian 2nd Army and its commander, Alexander Samsonov, committing suicide. The Russians suffered 170,000 casualties compared to 12,000 for the Germans.

To conclude

Although wars are generally regarded as catastrophic, each cloud has a silver lining. Irrespective of the devastation it caused, World War I facilitated significant transformations.

According to author, “World War I was the impetus, catalyst, cause, and accelerate of an unprecedented revolution.” However, people never learn. We were subsequently entangled in a greater conflict that endured for a period of six years.

Important Battles of World War I

Year/Month	Event
1915	British naval blockade of Germany leads to a German submarine blockade of Britain
1915 – April – May	Germany uses poison gas for the first time at the second battle of Ypres
1915 – May 22	Italy joins the Allies
1915 September	British and French Campaign at Loos fails
1916 – February	Start of the battle of Verdun, lasting for five months
1916 – March	Failure of the Gallipoli campaign by Australian, New Zealand and British forces to knock Ottoman Turkey out of the war
1916 – June	Russian offensive led by general Brusilov fails to defeat the Germans
1917 – April 6	The United States joins the war on the side of the allies
1917 – July	The third battle of the Ypres, Allied forces gain little in their offensive
1917 – October	Italians are defeated at the battle of the Caporetto by Germany and Austria-Hungary
1918 – March 3	Armistice signed between Russian and Germany
1918 – July	Germany launches the offensive on the western front. The offensive fails and the allies launched a counteroffensive in August of that year which is a success
1918 – November	Armistice is signed between Germany and the Allies in November !! at the 11th hour. End of World War I