01. 10. - 5. 12. 2020.

The Fritzi Palace 

Mali Lošinj

The First World War began on July 28, 1914, with the declaration of war by the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy on Serbia a month after the assassination of the Austro Hungarian heir to the throne Franjo ferdinand  and his wife Sofia. This started a chain of declarations of war war by other European countries (and their colonies), their allies. In 1914, Germany and the Ottoman Empire entered the conflict on the side of Austro- Hungary, and the Triple Entente powers , France, Great Britain and Russia on the side of Serbia. In 1915, Italy entered the war on the side of the Entente, and the United States in 1917. In that war, new weapons and technical innovations were used for the first time, such as airplanes, tanks and poison gas, while many of them upgraded their destructive power. A new military tactic was introduced - trench, i.e. positional warfare, which slowed downmilitary operations. According to the plan of Austria - Hungary and Germany, what was to be a short-lived military campaign, turned into long and exhausting war for which no country was ready. 

Immediately after the start of the war, a war economy was introduced, which means that the economy was redirected to production for military needs. International trade with enemy states was disrupted, and general mobilization caused labour shortages. In addition,property was confiscated from the population for the needs of the army, such as foodstuffs, draft cattle, carriages and various products and materials that could be used for military, such as barbed wire and car tires. All this, already at the beginning of the war, led to a disruption in the supply of the civilian population, by the end of the war, people were exhausted and at the edge of their existence.