Weaponry

Question 1

what has always been true about weaponry and war

Answer 1

• that the side who advances its technology has the edge in war

Question 2

give an example of where technological superiority was not enough

Answer 2

• Pen Wars

- despite superior weaponry, the French could do little to subjugate the elusive Spanish guerrillas

Question 3

what were Britain the first country to go through

Answer 3

• industrial revolution

Question 4

what did the Industrial revolution mean for the British armed forces

Answer 4

• possibility of keeping an edge over enemy improved
• Royal Navy had the latest steam engines and development of screw propeller kept British warships in the lead during the mid 19th-century
• improvements in steel production meant Britain had an adequate supply to keep its shipyards busy during the naval arms race of the first decade of the 20th century

Question 5

discuss reforming the Royal Navy in the late 1780s after the poor performance in the American War of Independence

Answer 5

• shipbuilding/repair maintained during the peacetime that ensued
• Middleton’s coppering initiative

Question 6

discuss the maxim machine gun of the Boer war

Answer 6

• not significant in the Boer war
• new weapon so was gonna be issues
• mobile but requires 8 people to operate/move

Question 7

why was artillery not of as much use in the Boer war as previous wars (though it was still used lots)

Answer 7

• because it was a war of movement