vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
World War I
The effect of poison gas was not limited to combatants . Civilians were at risk from the gases as winds blew the poison gases through their towns , and rarely received warnings or alerts of potential danger . In addition to absent warning systems , civilians often did not have access to effective gas masks . An estimated 100,000 -- 260,000 civilian casualties were caused by chemical weapons during the conflict and tens of thousands more ( along with military personnel ) died from scarring of the lungs , skin damage , and cerebral damage in the years after the conflict ended . Many commanders on both sides knew such weapons would cause major harm to civilians but nonetheless continued to use them . British Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig wrote in his diary , `` My officers and I were aware that such weapons would cause harm to women and children living in nearby towns , as strong winds were common in the battlefront . However , because the weapon was to be directed against the enemy , none of us were overly concerned at all . ''
World War I
In February 1916 the Germans attacked the French defensive positions at Verdun . Lasting until December 1916 , the battle saw initial German gains , before French counter-attacks returned matters to near their starting point . Casualties were greater for the French , but the Germans bled heavily as well , with anywhere from 700,000 to 975,000 casualties suffered between the two combatants . Verdun became a symbol of French determination and self - sacrifice .
World War I
Bulgaria declared war on Serbia , 12 October and joined in the attack by the Austro - Hungarian army under Mackensen 's army of 250,000 that was already underway . Serbia was conquered in a little more than a month , as the Central Powers , now including Bulgaria , sent in 600,000 troops total . The Serbian army , fighting on two fronts and facing certain defeat , retreated into northern Albania . The Serbs suffered defeat in the Battle of Kosovo . Montenegro covered the Serbian retreat towards the Adriatic coast in the Battle of Mojkovac in 6 -- 7 January 1916 , but ultimately the Austrians also conquered Montenegro . The surviving Serbian soldiers were evacuated by ship to Greece . After conquest , Serbia was divided between Austro - Hungary and Bulgaria .
Casualties of the Iraq War
That imbalance between seeing the price of war up close and yet not feeling able to do much about it , the survey suggests , contributes to feelings of `` intense fear , helplessness or horror '' that plant the seeds of mental distress . `` A friend was liquefied in the driver 's position on a tank , and I saw everything '' , was a typical comment . Another : `` A huge f______ bomb blew my friend 's head off like 50 meters from me . '' Such indelible scenes -- and wondering when and where the next one will happen -- are driving thousands of soldiers to take antidepressants , military psychiatrists say . It 's not hard to imagine why .
Afghanistan
Due to the sudden initiation of the war , working government departments , police units , and a system of justice and accountability for the newly created Islamic State of Afghanistan did not have time to form . Atrocities were committed by individuals of the different armed factions while Kabul descended into lawlessness and chaos . Because of the chaos , some leaders increasingly had only nominal control over their ( sub - ) commanders . For civilians there was little security from murder , rape , and extortion . An estimated 25,000 people died during the most intense period of bombardment by Hekmatyar 's Hezb - i Islami and the Junbish - i Milli forces of Abdul Rashid Dostum , who had created an alliance with Hekmatyar in 1994 . Half a million people fled Afghanistan .
Harry Patch
We came across a lad from A company . He was ripped open from his shoulder to his waist by shrapnel and lying in a pool of blood . When we got to him , he said : ' Shoot me ' . He was beyond human help and , before we could draw a revolver , he was dead . And the final word he uttered was ' Mother . ' I remember that lad in particular . It 's an image that has haunted me all my life , seared into my mind . -- An extract from Patch 's book The Last Fighting Tommy which was read out at his funeral by Marie - France André , the chargé d'affaires of the Belgian embassy , August 2009 .
World War I
Neither side proved able to deliver a decisive blow for the next two years . Throughout 1915 -- 17 , the British Empire and France suffered more casualties than Germany , because of both the strategic and tactical stances chosen by the sides . Strategically , while the Germans only mounted one major offensive , the Allies made several attempts to break through the German lines .
World War I
These years of trench warfare in the West saw no major exchanges of territory and , as a result , are often thought of as static and unchanging . However , throughout this period , British , French , and German tactics constantly evolved to meet new battlefield challenges .
Red River War
`` The warriors held their ground for a time , fighting desperately to cover the exit of their squaws and pack animals , but under the persistent fire of the troops , they soon began falling back . ''
World War I
The first tentative efforts to comprehend the meaning and consequences of modern warfare began during the initial phases of the war , and this process continued throughout and after the end of hostilities , and is still underway , more than a century later .
Second Sino-Japanese War
Although Private Shimura returned to his unit , by this point both sides were mobilising , with the Japanese deploying reinforcements and surrounding Wanping . The conflict then escalated further into a full - scale war .
First Battle of the Marne
Whether General von Moltke actually said to the Emperor , `` Majesty , we have lost the war , '' we do not know . We know anyhow that with a prescience greater in political than in military affairs , he wrote to his wife on the night of the 9th , `` Things have not gone well . The fighting east of Paris has not gone in our favour , and we shall have to pay for the damage we have done '' .
Allies of World War II
The human beings who constitute these nations are for him only cattle . He orders their massacre or migration . He compels them to make room for their conquerors . He does not even take the trouble to impose any war tribute on them . He just takes all their wealth and , to prevent any revolt , he scientifically seeks the physical and moral degradation of those whose independence he has taken away .
World War I
In 1917 , on 27 June the Germans used their biggest gun of the world Batterie Pommern , nicknamed `` Lange Max '' . This gun from Krupp was able to shoot 750 kg shells from Koekelare to Dunkirk , which is about 50 km away .
Surrender of Japan
I was told that the iron from bomb fragments dropped by the enemy was being used to make shovels . This confirmed my opinion that we were no longer in a position to continue the war .
World War I
The last large - scale offensive of this period was a British attack ( with French support ) at Passchendaele ( July -- November 1917 ) . This offensive opened with great promise for the Allies , before bogging down in the October mud . Casualties , though disputed , were roughly equal , at some 200,000 -- 400,000 per side .
Korean War
In early February , the South Korean 11th Division ran the operation to destroy the guerrillas and their sympathizer citizens in Southern Korea . During the operation , the division and police conducted the Geochang massacre and Sancheong - Hamyang massacre . In mid-February , the PVA counterattacked with the Fourth Phase Offensive and achieved initial victory at Hoengseong . But the offensive was soon blunted by the IX Corps positions at Chipyong - ni in the center . The U.S. 2nd Infantry `` Warrior '' Division 's 23rd Regimental Combat Team and the French Battalion fought a short but desperate battle that broke the attack 's momentum . The battle is sometimes known as the `` Gettysburg of the Korean War '' . 5,600 South Korean , U.S. , and French troops were surrounded on all sides by 25,000 Chinese . United Nations forces had previously retreated in the face of large Communist forces instead of getting cut off , but this time they stood and fought , and won . U.S.
World War I
Faced with Russia , Austria - Hungary could spare only one - third of its army to attack Serbia . After suffering heavy losses , the Austrians briefly occupied the Serbian capital , Belgrade . A Serbian counter-attack in the Battle of Kolubara succeeded in driving them from the country by the end of 1914 . For the first ten months of 1915 , Austria - Hungary used most of its military reserves to fight Italy . German and Austro - Hungarian diplomats , however , scored a coup by persuading Bulgaria to join the attack on Serbia . The Austro - Hungarian provinces of Slovenia , Croatia and Bosnia provided troops for Austria - Hungary , in the fight with Serbia , Russia and Italy . Montenegro allied itself with Serbia .
World War I
In September 1917 , Russian soldiers in France began questioning why they were fighting for the French at all and mutinied . In Russia , opposition to the war led to soldiers also establishing their own revolutionary committees , which helped foment the October Revolution of 1917 , with the call going up for `` bread , land , and peace '' . The Bolsheviks agreed to a peace treaty with Germany , the peace of Brest - Litovsk , despite its harsh conditions .
World War I
( more ... ) Belligerents Allied Powers France British Empire Russia ( until 1917 ) Serbia Belgium Montenegro Japan Italy ( 1915 -- 18 ) Romania ( 1916 -- 18 ) Portugal ( 1916 -- 18 ) Hejaz ( 1916 -- 18 ) United States ( 1917 -- 18 ) Greece ( 1917 -- 18 ) Siam ( 1917 -- 18 ) ... and others Central Powers German Empire Austria - Hungary Ottoman Empire Bulgaria ( 1915 -- 18 ) ... and co-belligerents Commanders and leaders Allied leaders Raymond Poincaré Georges Clemenceau H.H. Asquith David Lloyd George Nicholas II Victor Emmanuel III Vittorio Orlando Woodrow Wilson Yoshihito Peter I Ferdinand I ... and others Central Powers leaders Wilhelm II Franz Joseph I † Karl I Mehmed V † Three Pashas Ferdinand I ... and others Strength 12,000,000 8,841,541 8,660,000 5,615,140 4,743,826 1,234,000 800,000 707,343 380,000 250,000 50,000 Total : 42,959,850 13,250,000 7,800,000 2,998,321 1,200,000 Total : 25,248,321 Casualties and losses Military dead : 5,525,000 Military wounded : 12,831,500 Military missing : 4,121,000 Total : 22,477,500 KIA , WIA or MIA ... further details . Military dead : 4,386,000 Military wounded : 8,388,000 Military missing : 3,629,000 Total : 16,403,000 KIA , WIA or MIA ... further details . Theatres of World War I European Western Front Eastern Front Italian Front Balkans Middle Eastern Caucasus Persia Gallipoli Mesopotamia Sinai and Palestine Arab Revolt South Arabia African South - West Africa Togoland Cameroon East Africa North Africa Asian and Pacific theatre Naval theaters U-boat Atlantic Ocean Mediterranean
United Kingdom
Britain fought alongside France , Russia and ( after 1917 ) the United States , against Germany and its allies in the First World War ( 1914 -- 1918 ) . British armed forces were engaged across much of the British Empire and in several regions of Europe , particularly on the Western front . The high fatalities of trench warfare caused the loss of much of a generation of men , with lasting social effects in the nation and a great disruption in the social order .
Korean War
In a postwar analysis of the unpreparedness of U.S. Army forces deployed to Korea during the summer and fall of 1950 , Army Major General Floyd L. Parks stated that `` Many who never lived to tell the tale had to fight the full range of ground warfare from offensive to delaying action , unit by unit , man by man ... ( T ) hat we were able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat ... does not relieve us from the blame of having placed our own flesh and blood in such a predicament . ''
Surrender of Japan
But now the war has lasted for nearly four years . Despite the best that has been done by everyone -- the gallant fighting of the military and naval forces , the diligence and assiduity of Our servants of the State , and the devoted service of Our one hundred million people -- the war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan 's advantage , while the general trends of the world have all turned against her interest .
World War I
Military and civilian observers from every major power closely followed the course of the war . Many were able to report on events from a perspective somewhat akin to modern `` embedded '' positions within the opposing land and naval forces .
Siege of Sarajevo
It is plain that Sarajevo has suffered badly at the hands of its attackers . Apart from the obvious human cost in the continued suffering and difficulties of day to day living , there has been serious damage to the urban fabric . The infrastructure ( drainage , electricity , telephone services , etc . ) is badly damaged . Most buildings are damaged significantly and probably all buildings are damaged to a greater or lesser degree ( broken glass etc . ) . Some buildings have been completely destroyed including ancient monuments ( such as the Library ) and including a number of modern steel framed buildings ( such as the Unis Building ) which in some cases have simply collapsed . 35,000 dwellings are also assessed to have been destroyed during the past year .
Korean War
In addition to conventional military operations , North Korean soldiers fought the UN forces by infiltrating guerrillas among refugees . These soldiers disguised as refugees would approach UN forces asking for food and help , then open fire and attack . U.S. troops acted under a `` shoot - first - ask - questions - later '' policy against any civilian refugee approaching U.S. battlefield positions , a policy that led U.S. soldiers to kill an estimated 400 civilians at No Gun Ri ( 26 -- 29 July 1950 ) in central Korea because they believed some of the refugees to be North Korean soldiers in disguise . The South Korean Truth and Reconciliation Commission defended this policy as a `` military necessity '' .
Korean War
The Chinese and North Koreans estimated that about 390,000 soldiers from the United States , 660,000 soldiers from South Korea and 29,000 other UN soldiers were `` eliminated '' from the battlefield .
World War I
The Ottoman Empire often treated POWs poorly . Some 11,800 British Empire soldiers , most of them Indians , became prisoners after the Siege of Kut in Mesopotamia in April 1916 ; 4,250 died in captivity . Although many were in a poor condition when captured , Ottoman officers forced them to march 1,100 kilometres ( 684 mi ) to Anatolia . A survivor said : `` We were driven along like beasts ; to drop out was to die . '' The survivors were then forced to build a railway through the Taurus Mountains .
World War I
Rather than continuing the Amiens battle past the point of initial success , as had been done so many times in the past , the Allies shifted their attention elsewhere . Allied leaders had now realised that to continue an attack after resistance had hardened was a waste of lives , and it was better to turn a line than to try to roll over it . They began to undertake attacks in quick order to take advantage of successful advances on the flanks , then broke them off when each attack lost its initial impetus . Canadian
Korean War
On 5 November 1950 , General Stratemeyer gave the following order to the commanding general of the Fifth Air Force : `` Aircraft under Fifth Air Force control will destroy all other targets including all buildings capable of affording shelter . '' The same day , twenty - two B - 29s attacked Kanggye , destroying 75 % of the city .
Siege of Sarajevo
The siege of Sarajevo , as it came to be popularly known , was an episode of such notoriety in the conflict in the former Yugoslavia that one must go back to World War II to find a parallel in European history . Not since then had a professional army conducted a campaign of unrelenting violence against the inhabitants of a European city so as to reduce them to a state of medieval deprivation in which they were in constant fear of death . In the period covered in this Indictment , there was nowhere safe for a Sarajevan , not at home , at school , in a hospital , from deliberate attack . --
Second Sino-Japanese War
Chinese sources list the total number of military and non-military casualties , both dead and wounded , at 35 million . Dr Duncan Anderson , Head of the Department of War Studies at the Royal Military Academy , UK , writing for BBC states that the total number of casualties was around 20 million . The official PRC statistics for China 's civilian and military casualties in the Second Sino - Japanese War from 1937 to 1945 are 20 million dead and 15 million wounded . The figures for total military casualties , killed and wounded are : NRA 3.2 million ; Communist 500,000 . The official account of the war published in Taiwan reported that the Nationalist Chinese Army lost 3,238,000 men ( 1,797,000 wounded , 1,320,000 killed , and 120,000 missing ) and 5,787,352 civilians casualties putting the total number of casualties at 9,025,352 . The Nationalists fought in 22 major engagements , most of which involved more than 100,000 troops on both sides , 1,171 minor engagements most of which involved more than 50,000 troops on both sides , and 38,931 skirmishes . An academic study published in the United States estimates military casualties : 1.5 million killed in battle , 750,000 missing in action , 1.5 million deaths due to disease and 3 million wounded ; civilian casualties : due to military activity , killed 1,073,496 and 237,319 wounded ; 335,934 killed and 426,249 wounded in Japanese air attacks . According to historian Mitsuyoshi Himeta , at least 2.7 million civilians died during the `` kill all , loot all , burn all '' operation ( Three Alls Policy , or sanko sakusen ) implemented in May 1942 in north China by general Yasuji Okamura and authorized on December 3 , 1941 , by Imperial Headquarter Order number 575 . The property loss suffered by the Chinese was valued at 383 billion US dollars according to the currency exchange rate in July 1937 , roughly 50 times the gross domestic product of Japan at that time ( US $7.7 billion ) . In addition , the war created 95 million refugees .
Siege of Sarajevo
The shelling took a heavy toll on residents . Mass killings of civilians , primarily by mortar attacks , made headline news in the West . On 1 June 1993 , 11 people were killed and 133 were wounded in an attack on a football game . On 12 July , twelve people were killed while waiting in line for water .
World War II
Although the Red Army was preparing for strategic counter-offensives before the war , Barbarossa forced the Soviet supreme command to adopt a strategic defence . During the summer , the Axis made significant gains into Soviet territory , inflicting immense losses in both personnel and materiel . By the middle of August , however , the German Army High Command decided to suspend the offensive of a considerably depleted Army Group Centre , and to divert the 2nd Panzer Group to reinforce troops advancing towards central Ukraine and Leningrad . The Kiev offensive was overwhelmingly successful , resulting in encirclement and elimination of four Soviet armies , and made possible further advance into Crimea and industrially developed Eastern Ukraine ( the First Battle of Kharkov ) . Soviet
World War I
With the adoption of the Treaty of Brest - Litovsk , the Entente no longer existed . The Allied powers led a small - scale invasion of Russia , partly to stop Germany from exploiting Russian resources , and to a lesser extent , to support the `` Whites '' ( as opposed to the `` Reds '' ) in the Russian Civil War . Allied troops landed in Arkhangelsk and in Vladivostok as part of the North Russia Intervention . Czechoslovak
Economic history of World War I
The Western Front quickly stabilized , with almost no movement of more than a few hundred yards . The greatest single expenditure on both sides was for artillery shells , the chief weapon in the war . Since the front was highly stable , both sides built elaborate railway networks that brought supplies within a mile or two of the front lines , with horse - drawn wagons used for the final deliveries . In the ten - month battle at Verdun , the French and Germans fired some 10 million shells in all , weighing 1.4 million tons of steel .
Siege
The largest sieges of the war , however , took place in Europe . The initial German advance into Belgium produced four major sieges : the Battle of Liège , the Battle of Namur , the Siege of Maubeuge , and the Siege of Antwerp . All three would prove crushing German victories , at Liège and Namur against the Belgians , at Maubeuge against the French and at Antwerp against a combined Anglo - Belgian force . The weapon that made these victories possible were the German Big Berthas and the Skoda 305 mm Model 1911 siege mortars , one of the best siege mortars of the war , on loan from Austria - Hungary . These huge guns were the decisive weapon of siege warfare in the 20th century , taking part at Przemyśl , the Belgian sieges , on the Italian Front and Serbian Front , and even being reused in World War II . Siege
World War I
Austria invaded and fought the Serbian army at the Battle of Cer and Battle of Kolubara beginning on 12 August . Over the next two weeks , Austrian attacks were thrown back with heavy losses , which marked the first major Allied victories of the war and dashed Austro - Hungarian hopes of a swift victory . As a result , Austria had to keep sizable forces on the Serbian front , weakening its efforts against Russia . Serbia 's defeat of the Austro - Hungarian invasion of 1914 has been called one of the major upset victories of the twentieth century . German
Central Powers
Military statistics of the Central Powers Mobilized Killed in action Wounded Missing in action Total casualties Percentage casualties of total force mobilized German Empire 13,250,000 1,808,546 ( 13.65 % ) 4,247,143 1,152,800 7,208,489 66 % Austria -- Hungary 7,800,000 922,500 ( 11.82 % ) 3,620,000 2,200,000 6,742,500 86 % Ottoman Empire 2,998,321 325,000 ( 10.84 % ) 400,000 250,000 975,000 34 % Kingdom of Bulgaria 1,200,000 75,844 ( 6.32 % ) 153,390 27,029 255,263 21 % Total 25,257,321 3,131,890 8,419,533 3,629,829 15,181,252 66 %
World War I
Some of the first clashes of the war involved British , French , and German colonial forces in Africa . On 6 -- 7 August , French and British troops invaded the German protectorate of Togoland and Kamerun . On 10 August , German forces in South - West Africa attacked South Africa ; sporadic and fierce fighting continued for the rest of the war . The German colonial forces in German East Africa , led by Colonel Paul von Lettow - Vorbeck , fought a guerrilla warfare campaign during World War I and only surrendered two weeks after the armistice took effect in Europe . Indian
World War I
Faced with these advances , on 2 September the German Supreme Army Command issued orders to withdraw to the Hindenburg Line in the south . This ceded without a fight the salient seized the previous April . According to Ludendorff `` We had to admit the necessity ... to withdraw the entire front from the Scarpe to the Vesle .
World War I
Many pogroms accompanied the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the ensuing Russian Civil War . 60,000 -- 200,000 civilian Jews were killed in the atrocities throughout the former Russian Empire ( mostly within the Pale of Settlement in present - day Ukraine ) .
World War I
On the Trentino front , the Austro - Hungarians took advantage of the mountainous terrain , which favoured the defender . After an initial strategic retreat , the front remained largely unchanged , while Austrian Kaiserschützen and Standschützen engaged Italian Alpini in bitter hand - to - hand combat throughout the summer . The Austro - Hungarians counterattacked in the Altopiano of Asiago , towards Verona and Padua , in the spring of 1916 ( Strafexpedition ) , but made little progress .