The topic is world war 1 a. what event can be said to have “lit the fuse” in 1914? b. what made the area involved so important?

A. Both the French and Germans used and iron ball grenade about the same size as a common 6lb cannon ball.. Friction primed and sealed to protect it from the weather, they had a timed burn delay fuse which activated the charge of mostly black powder to rupture the cast iron shell. Often grenades were covered with warty lumps, nasty looking but relatively ineffective. This was the basic "state of the art" at the outbreak of hostilities in 1914...

b. As the battle lines became fixed and the armies faced off in a stalemate often within yards of each other, the pressure for improved hand grenades grew. The Grenade was the ideal weapon for the close up, confined combat conditions of the trench. It was extremely effective for cleaning out a dugout, silencing a machine gun nest, or repelling an enemy assault when it was slowed by a wire entanglement. The period of 1914-1916 saw dozens of innovations on both sides of the front in attempt to gain the advantage...

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