Chemical warfare: chemical warfare agents of the First World War

Faced with a stalemate as a result of the “trench” tactics of warfare on both sides, the armies of the First World War period moved on to a new strategy - the mass use of toxic substances that could kill or disfigure a person for life.

During the First World War, both sides of the conflict chose a tactical position war. The fighting was conducted on solid and relatively stable fronts with deeply echeloned defense. Such a passive defense strategy was a necessary measure: neither the armed detachments nor the military equipment could break through the opponent’s defense, so that the army ended up in a stalemate. An attempt to correct this circumstance and reverse the course of the battle in their favor was the use of a new type of weapon - the chemical one.

Poisonous gases - and it was this type of poisonous substance that was most prevalent - became a major military innovation. Experts are still arguing over who was the first to use chemical weapons: according to some sources, these were the French who used tear gas grenades in August 1914; according to others, the Germans, in October of the same year, used projectiles with dianisine sulphate in the attack of Neuchâtel. However, in both cases it is worth noting that we are not talking about deadly poisonous, but only about irritating substances that do not have a lethal effect on humans.

Chlorine: "green death"

But history remembers very well the first mass use of combat poisonous gases of a lethal effect. Chlorine was the first such substance - in normal conditions a yellowish-green gas is heavier than air, has a strong odor and leaves a sweetish taste in the mouth, giving away metal. By 1914, the production of chlorine in Germany was established: it was a by-product in the production of dyes produced by three large chemical companies - Hoechst, Bayer and BASF. An important role in the creation of chemical weapons was played by Fritz Haber, the head of the Kaiser-Wilhelm Institute of Physical Chemistry in Berlin - he was the one who initiated the initiative and developed tactics for the use of chlorine in battle.

On April 22, 1915, German troops launched the first massive chemical attack near the Belgian city of Ypres. At the front, whose length was almost 6 km, the Germans sprayed 168 tons of chlorine from 5730 cylinders in just a few minutes. As a result, 15,000 soldiers were poisoned and received lesions of varying degrees of severity, with 5,000 killed.

On August 6, a similar tactic was used against the Russian army. However, in this case, it was ineffective: the troops, though suffering heavy losses, threw off the German attack from the Osovets fortress as a result of the so-called “march of the living dead”: the soldiers, disfigured by chemical attack, went on the offensive, plunging into panic and demoralizing the enemy army

Phosgene

The relatively low toxicity of chlorine and its color unmasking became the reason for the creation of phosgene. It was developed by a group of French chemists (by that time, the troops of the Entente also switched to the use of chemical weapons, discarding ethical contradictions in wartime conditions), and this gas differed from its predecessor by splicing several important indicators. Firstly, it was colorless, so it was much more difficult to find it. Secondly, phosgene is superior to chlorine in toxic effects on the body. Finally, thirdly, the symptoms of poisoning occur only a day after the poisoning. The soldier could fight all day, and in the morning his comrades found him dead or in critical condition.

Cons of gas attack

Chlorine and phosgene are heavier than air, and therefore these gases were concentrated in the trenches and spread along the ground. The soldiers quickly found out that if, instead of a trench, to occupy a height, albeit a small one, then significant damage from gas can be avoided - you just have to take care of the wounded who lie on the ground. The gas was unreliable, because its speed and direction depended on the wind — often the wind changed right during the attack, blowing off a cloud of toxic fumes at the attacking positions.

In addition, chlorine reacts with water, so that a piece of ordinary wet tissue that closes the airways also prevents the toxin from entering the body. Often, urine was used instead of water - but the reaction of ammonia and chlorine produced toxic substances, which were not yet known at that time.

Mustard: mustard gas

Mortar designed for firing mines with a "poisonous" filling

By 1917, the "gas war" entered a new stage. The widespread use of gas jetters (ancestors of mortars) has made the use of gases much more efficient. Mines containing up to 26–28 kg of poisonous substances created a high concentration of chemical agents in the area of

entry, which gas masks often did not save from.

On the night of July 12/13, 1917, the German troops for the first time used mustard gas, a liquid poisonous substance of a skin-blistering action, against the advancing Anglo-French army. Almost 2500 people received injuries of varying severity. This substance affects the mucous membranes, respiratory organs and the gastrointestinal tract, as well as the skin integument. Getting into the blood, mustard gas also has a general toxic effect on the body. Clothing does not save from this colorless, slightly oily liquid (slightly castor oil). The affected skin is first itchy and inflamed, and then becomes blistered with yellowish liquor. Often this leads to suppurations, after which the scars remain.