Germany and its abuse of chemi
Germany and its abuse of chemiWhen Germany launched its chlorine attack at Ypres on 22 April 1915, it caught the world by surprise. It aroused world public opinion, which blamed Germany for breaching The Hague Conventions. Germany justified its actions. They stated that The Hague Conventions only discussed projectiles whose sole purpose was the diffusion of asphyxiating or deleterious gases and did not cover gases released by cylinders. The Germans also stated that France broke the conventions first.
Throughout the rest of the war, Germany used chemical warfare agents in many of its� military operations. Chemical warfare agents are chemical substances designed to kill, seriously injure, or incapacitate humans and animals. Chemical agents can also deny or hinder the use of areas, facilities, and materials.
Chemical agents are grouped into categories based on their physiological effects. Lachrymators are primarily designed to affect the eyes, but also cause respiratory problems when soldiers are exposed to a large quantity of the chemical. Asphyxiators cause fluid to enter the lungs and prevent oxygen from reaching the blood. Toxic gases pass through the lungs and into the blood and prevent the circulation and release of oxygen in the body. Sternutators caused respiratory irritation, sneezing, nausea, and vomiting. Blister agents initially cause pain in the eyes, throats, and lungs, but later cause blisters on exposed skin. Germany used various chemical agents during the war, depending on the desired effect they wished to inflict on the Allies.
The primary gases used in the Great War were chlorine, phosgene, a mix of chlorine and phosgene, and mustard. Chlorine is an asphyxiating gas that causes acute bronchitis with gradual suffocation and, "those who initially survived a considerable dose generally died from pneumonia." Phosgene, another asphyxiating gas, was deadlier than chlorine because it incapacitated a solder in less than one-fourth of the time of chlorine (41 seconds vs. 240 seconds) and it required a much lower concentration to cause death. A combination of chlorine and phosgene also caused severe injuries, depending on how much of the gas a soldier breathed. People seldom died when the asphyxiating gas passed over them if they masked quickly enough and those who breathed in small amounts of the gas usually recovered quickly. However, those that were badly gassed soon suffered severe inflammation of the lungs. The critical stage for these men usually occurred within three to four hours after initially being gassed. At this point, either the soldier would recover after sleeping, or his health would deteriorate further with death occurring within the next twenty-four hours. Mustard gas produces a large amount of casualties that require extensive medical treatment. Initially some soldiers did not realize that they had been gassed with mustard because the effects were not apparent for up to twelve hours after exposure. An unidentified Allied nurse stated:
"I wish those people who write so glibly about this being a holy war and the orators who talk so much about going on no matter how...
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