In 1918, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the guns across the continent fell silent. The Great War came to an end leaving in its wake a death toll of approximately 8.5 million soldiers and 13 million civilians. An additional 21 million people were wounded. The mass movement of troops after the war led to a devastating influenza pandemic which claimed as many as 50 million lives.
The centenary commemorations are a reminder of the fragility of peace and the long-lasting effects of the failure to maintain it. Pacifists would argue that war is a futile exercise. The latter argument can oversimplify facts while divesting historical events from their original context. One of the most outstanding contemporary historians, Andrew Roberts, argues that the Great War was about the fundamental questions in politics: who should rule?
He writes: “No-one would seek to doubt or deny the horrors of the Great War, with its gas, mud, machine-guns and mass slaughter, but questioning the merits of the manner in which a war was fought is quite different from questioning its motive. Its tactics might be doubted; its necessity cannot.”
“For Britain and her Empire to have stood aside in 1914, looking only to her defences and colonies while Europe was ravaged, would only have postponed the day of reckoning whilst divesting her of her Russian, French, Belgian, Italian, Japanese and ultimately American allies.”
Britain rightly believed that peace in the European continent was best secured through a balance of powers where no single nation dominates the continent. The atmosphere in 1914 was one where the slightest possible motive could lead to all-out war.
Germany and Austria-Hungary needed to assert themselves as European hegemons. In many ways, the war was inevitable partly because Imperial Germany was itching to start a fight to assert its power and dominion.
The invasion of Belgium with the intention to incorporate it into the German Empire would have been in direct breach of the 1839 Treaty of London, which guaranteed Belgian neutrality. It would also be an immediate security threat to Britain.
Roberts argues that “Belgium was a British creation intended to ensure the Channel ports stayed out of the hands of an hegemonic power, and the threat to incorporate Belgium into Germany was a direct threat to Britain.”
The aftermath of a conflict is often more significant than the war itself for the cessation of combat does not necessarily lead to an end of hostility or resentment
Britain, its empire and its dominions were, thus, at war. Although Malta was not a main theatre of war, the local population saw its share of combat. A total 592 Maltese men lost their lives during the Great War. Approximately nine per cent of the population was under arms. In March 1918, the figure totalled 20,000 men out of a population of roughly 220,000.
Malta also fulfilled its role as “nurse of the Mediterranean”. Approximately 67,100 military personnel were evacuated and treated in Malta during this period. The principal military hospitals at Bighi, Mtarfa and Valletta were supplemented by ad hoc convalescent camps in various localities including Pembroke, Vittoriosa, Ħamrun, Sliema, St Julian’s, Tignè, Għajn Tuffieħa and other locations in Valletta. The convalescent camps in Pembroke are particularly noteworthy for the medical treatment given to soldiers wounded in the Dardanelles campaign.
The Dockyard would also prove to be a valuable asset for the repair of damaged naval warships. Approximately 10,000 labourers were engaged in such employment. This is consistent with trends in other small ‘fortress islands’ whose fortunes fluctuated according to the role they played in the provision of security and defence.
As the war drew to a close, change could be acutely felt. The Allied powers emerged victoriously, but the world would be irrevocably changed.
The British Empire was at its peak and it still counted among its possessions significant strategic territories like Singapore, the West Indies, and the Suez Canal. India was the jewel in the crown.
Nonetheless, Britain’s debts were equivalent to 136 per cent of its GNP. It became increasingly evident that the way colonies were administered would need to change due to economic, social and political pressures.
The domestic scenario in Malta provides one example of such pressures. In 1917 the first industrial strike was organised by Dockyard workers. During the war years, the price of bread increased three-fold amid fears over inflation. Others feared the possible rise in unemployment after the war. Demands for self-government intensified.
The United States emerged as the strongest military and economic power at the expense of the British Empire. It took a significant role in shaping the post-war scenario and has kept a leading role in world affairs ever since.
The imperial dynasties in Austria-Hungary and Germany collapsed. The Ottoman Empire and its territories were divided among the victorious Allied powers at the conference of San Remo. The aftermath of such random divisions remains a source of instability and insecurity.
The disgruntlement with the Weimar Republic in Germany proved to be fertile ground for the horrors of the second great conflict of the 20th century.
The attempt to create an international organisation such as the League of Nations was hampered by the lack of political will to strengthen its mandate and the refusal of the United States to participate in its structures.
The recollection of such events is not merely historical. In the field of political science, we can observe both the necessity of maintaining the balance of power and the difficulty of doing so. The aftermath of a conflict is often more significant than the war itself for the cessation of combat does not necessarily lead to an end of hostility or resentment.
What was true before 1914 – maintaining the balance of powers, protecting the territorial integrity of nation-states, and keeping over-ambitious powers in check – remains valid today.
The aftermath of the events which ended a century ago reminds us of the catastrophic results of the failure to maintain them.
André DeBattista is an independent researcher in politics and international relations.
This is a Times of Malta print opinion piece