World War I
It is important to acknowledge different issues that influenced the outcome of WW II. Participants adopted different strategies to try and influence the outcome in their favor. With its unprecedented intensity, scale, brutality, and psychological burden, WWI has remained fresh in the world. Historians and scholars have reflected on this war as they try to understand how it happened and the factors that influenced the outcome in the end. Drugs have been highlighted as a major factor that influenced the outcome of WWI, among other factors. For instance, looking at the battlefield in different areas, drugs were critical for soldiers to continue or manage some of the diseases. The soldiers were vulnerable to diseases in battlefield considering the
The drugs had a huge role to play and define the outcome of WWII on the ground the health science managed to develop different drugs aimed to cure some of the diseases experienced on the battlefield. For instance, some of the milestones realized in an attempt to control some of the battlefield conditions include anesthesia, disease prevention, and asepsis. The aseptic conscience was significantly stirred by the war with a battle in northern France and Belgium, heightening the spread of pathogens and bacteria loads. The battle was fought in an area that was heavily fertilized with manure, and the situation was conducive for bacteria multiplication increasing the issues of tetanus and gas gangrene. The people had to find the best options to limit would infections in an urgent manner. Antitoxin was also needed to control tetanus situations with many soldiers hurt at the battlefield, with an estimated eleven million anti-serum doses administered at the end of the war while also eliminating the infection. Invasive antiseptics were introduced during the war to oversee the chemical wound sterilization process. Carrel-Dakin irrigation method became popular during this period along the Western Front since the apparatus’s design allowed for continuous washing of wounds with an antiseptic solution that comprised of sodium hypochlorite and boric acid. Penicillin was also a critical factor that influenced the outcome of WWII, with some Nazis lacking this vital drug to cure some of their participants in the war. British and the U.S. managed to produce adequate drugs to cater to the required demand. With the U.S that had not entered the war having adequate pharmaceutical companies, Britain asked for assistance in producing penicillin and other drugs needed at war. In this consideration, drugs had a huge role to play in defining the outcome of the war on ground soldiers had to be treated different diseases such as wounds and fever they got for spending most of the time in the cold. It is important to highlight the role of Pervitin drug during World War II that was used to assist the soldiers in staying awake for days while marching without stopping. The crystal meth was critical for the Germans, and in 1940, more than 35 million 3 mg doses were shipped to Germany armies and Luftwaffe as they invaded France. The Nazi victory realized in the Battle of France has been attributed to the drug on ground Hitler was unprepared compared to the allies. Wehrmacht was less than allies who had four million soldiers but equipped with Pervitin; they managed to overcome the situation. The Germans had to advance through difficult terrain going without trips for almost 36 to 50hrs. When the Germans were losing, pharmacists Gerhard Orzechowski created a cocaine chewing gum that enabled the pilots of one-person U-boats to stay awake for days. However, many experienced mental breakdowns due to taking the drug while being isolated in the space for so long. The Nazis had managed to stay on the war for a long period than the allies expected due to Pervitin availability. However, the bombing of the Temmler factory that produced Pervitin and Eukodol marked the end of the Nazis and Hitler’s drug consumptions. The side effects of Pervitin included addiction, according to Ottheinz Schultestenberg, a medical doctor who trained at Military Academy between 1940 and 1942. Other side effects include psychoses, nervous excitement, and loss of strength. In Russia, the war was regarded as attrition and positional warfare, and in those circumstances, Pervitin was of no use, and it just exhausted the soldiers. It is argued a soldier had to catch up on the rest you had missed, and thus sleep deprivation did not bring any tactical advantage in Russia. In Berlin, they had realized these problems, and Leo Conti Reich Health Fuhrer and Reich Central Office for Combatting Drug Transgression were still trying to draw up a complete record for all addicted soldiers. It led to the issuance of a directive to the Wehrmacht and the S.S. regarding all the soldiers who had been discharged. They were graded according to their possible attraction for drugs before deciding whether they needed a compulsory therapy or identified as incurable. The directive sounded menacing and drastic, and Wehrmacht neglected to comply evidenced by rare reports on such cases. The intense military situation could not allow punishment for drug consumption, and it led to the recruitment of staff from the Conti office to fight from the front. The move hindered the anti-drug campaign halting the effectiveness of the army at the battlefield. In 1941, at Fuhrer headquarter, it was clear victory was not possible with the chief of staff Franz Halder summing up the situation by arguing German had reached the end of their strength. Blitzkrieg strategy tried to reverse existing power relations through surprises, but it failed together with Hitler’s concept of war built on speculation. The Germans could not manage lengthy attritional warfare against the Russians who were large and better equipped. Germany was exhausted by 1941, but still in denial and while fighting various fronts.
It is important to highlight the allies were also using drugs with their pilots taking amphetamines to remain awake and focused during long flights. Benzedrine was the drug of choice among the allies. Laurier Military History Archives in Ontario provides data about the amount of Benzedrine sulfate a soldier should consume. It archives asserts that an individual should ingest 5mg to 20mg of Benzedrine after every five to six hours, and it is estimated that the Allies consumed 72 million amphetamine tablets during WWII. It is alleged the Paratroopers used it during the D-Day landings while U.S. marines relied on it for the invasion of Tarawa in 1943. With this literature existing in archives, it demonstrates the significance of the drugs in influencing the war’s outcome.
Staying awake and focused during the war was a key factor in defining the outcome, and thus those involved resulted in ensuring their armies could go for days without tiring. It ensured they managed to provide substantial resistance and subject others to huge investments in different areas. For instance, those undertaking airstrike could manage to suppress the enemy for days continuously. It was a critical strategy to contain the enemies since they could not have adequate time to plan when they are continuously engaged without time out. The soldiers needed to enhance those operating on land to enable their effectiveness in fighting their enemies and focusing on victory at the end. With Germany relying on one company to supply the drug needed by the soldiers, its bombing facilitated Hitler’s heavy defeat by the Allies in the end.
Drugs defined the outcome of the war on grounds there were several diseases that soldiers experienced in the battlefield such as trench fever. It is a fever that broke in the First World War and WWII, and it heavily affected the Germans soldier on grounds; in some instances, it became chronic. Other diseases that affected the armies during WWII included gonorrhea and syphilis, which heavily affected their performance and needed treatment. With drugs, it was capable of war to continue with different people who had a critical role in managing to receive treatment. For Hitler, a major factor during WWII, he heavily relied on drugs after suffering from different diseases, as reflected by his doctor Morell. He reflects one time he was unfit for service after suffering dysentery. They had to rely on several injections that managed to heal him before returning to work. When he was sick, he had not managed to attend a Keitel’s military meeting at twelve O’clock. The meeting progressed without him and had crafted attacking Russia’s strategies with General Staff taking his absence to capitalize on an old conflict. The General Staff was concerned by the continued attacks, and unlike their leader, they saw Moscow as their main goal. They had planned to attack Moscow in a decisive battle and manage to win the war in that strategy. However, cured Hitler had different perceptions and strategies where he divided troops to conquer Leningrad in the North to cut the Soviet Union from the Baltic while the Army Group South was to advance via Ukraine to take oil resources critical to the war economy. It is important to acknowledge that drugs were critical for Hitler’s recovery and thus influenced the war’s outcome, considering he crafted the strategies adopted by the Germans during WWII as their leader. The doctor argues that Hitler never ended up in a sickbay again, but he opted to administer a harder course of prophylactic injections. He also prescribed more and more medications in different concentrations and barely made any diagnosis, but continued to supplement his basic medicinal treatment (P. 113). Some of the added medications included Tonophosphan, which as a metabolic stimulant from Hoechst company. It is a hormone-rich and immune system-system-boosting and used a bodybuilding supplement. In this consideration, drugs had a huge impact on determining the outcome of WWII on the ground; their availability enhanced the stakeholder (P.114). The soldiers were becoming sick, and it took the physicians and pharmaceutical companies’ intervention to produce adequate drugs that could be used on the battlefield.
Hitler was not dependent on a particular drug but used different drugs, and they gave him pleasant and artificial realities. He was a passionate user of cocaine but overcame the drug by mid-October 1944 and could rely on other stimulants. The effects of drug consumption by the leaders and other stakeholders influenced the outcome of the war with Hitler, citing heroin and cocaine’s impact on enhancing his strength and focus during WWII. The Luftwaffe adjutant Nicholaus von Below highlighted the role of drugs by arguing he was sustained only by strong cocaine and increased quantity of Eukodal. With these considerations, Hitler’s decisions were influenced by drugs, and thus they had a huge influence on the outcome witnessed at the end of WWII. The effects of cocaine consumption by Hitler at one time subjected him to unconsciousness and, for a short period, a danger of respiratory paralysis. With Hitler using drugs consistently, he was unable to focus on winning the war, with several occasions reported where he significantly suffered from either overdose (161). His passionate use of cocaine confused, such as on 1st September 1944, where he failed to attend a military meeting after Giesing refused to give him the drug. He moodily announced he was not interested in the East situation where the whole Front threatened to collapse.
It is important to acknowledge Nazi Germany upheld methamphetamine while others were condemned, and it was viewed as a miracle product when it arrived in the market. The drug was associated with confidence-boosting and energizing. It also played a huge role in the Third Riech’s obsession with both physical and mental superiority. When methamphetamine is compared with heroin and alcohol, it was taken for hyper-alertness and vigilance instead of escapist pleasure. According to Hitler, he never wanted weak people in his army, which resulted in advocating for methamphetamines. The drugs had a huge impact on the Nazis, posing a great threat to the enemy for a long time until Hitler started to adopted strategies that were questioned by his general staff. Some of these decisions were reached under the influence of drugs considering he was a passionate use. The drugs used by Nazi soldiers were prescribed by a group of medical officers to provide the soldiers with a positive mentality when on the battlefield. The Nazi army was aware they were less, and the first real military test of the drug was done when they invaded Poland in September 1939. By October, the Nazis managed to overrun eastern neighbors, with Poland losing over 100000 soldiers. The invasion led to introducing a newly industrialized warfare labeled Blitzkrieg, and it mainly upheld and emphasized speed and surprise. The enemies were caught unaware by the unprecedented quickness of the mechanized attack and advanced. The weak link in this strategy was the soldiers since they were humans rather than machines, and they suffered from fatigue. With much-needed strength for the strategy to work, Nazi leaders introduced drugs to overcome sleep and regular rest. The drug ensured the soldier fought with the same strength from start to end, a factor that subjected a huge threat to enemies. The Nazi’s use of drugs enabled them to succeed in different areas as they were pushing in both day and night. The strategy was very effective on the ground; the enemies did not have to reorganize or pose a huge threat when attacked. The whole team on the battlefield was expected to punch day and night, and it made Germany a huge threat to many European countries. They started by defeating Denmark and Norway in April 1940, and next month the troops overcame Netherlands, Belgium, and France. Within 11 days, German tanks managed to cover major terrain, including Ardennes Forest, which Britain and France had labeled impassable. They bypassed entrenched British, and French for holding Ardennes was impassable. The paratroopers sometimes managed to land before the advance, and it caused chaos behind the enemy line. The British described the Nazi soldier as heavily drugged, berserk, and fearless. For instance, under General Heinz Guderian, an expert in tank warfare and leader of the invasion, he authorized speed ahead of the French border. When they crossed the France border, the French forces had not reached on their border, subjecting their forces to be overwhelmed by the Nazis. In this consideration, it becomes clear drugs played a critical role in defining the outcome of WWII, with Germans managing to overcome many of Europe and posing a huge threat to others. It led to a combination of forces for it to be defeated by the allies. The allies opted to use drugs to enable their soldiers to manage to counter the vigilance of the Nazis on the battlefield. The Nazis dared every country in Europe, including Russia. It was about understanding the terrain and energizing the soldiers with drugs to remain focused on the war.
Conclusion
It is important to acknowledge drugs had a huge role to play in WWII, starting with the treatment the soldiers needed on the battlefield. The diseases outbreak required drugs that could contain the armies’ spread and treatment to enable them to continue with the war. Apart from the medical use of drugs, soldiers had to use enhancers to facilitate their functioning and put up with the war’s required standards. The Nazis and Allies soldiers used drugs to enable them to fight day and night and to have the required energy to remain strong for days. It is important to highlight the Nazis managed to threaten many countries due to their adequate supply of Pertin drugs, among other stimulants such as cocaine. With these stimulants, they could manage to keep up with speed needed to suppress the enemies. The Germans posed a threat despite the severe conditions outlined in the Versailles Treaty. The country had a small army compared to other countries, and thus it has to drug their army for the confidence and vigilance needed to overcome and progress in combating enemies.
https://www.wearethemighty.com/history/war-diseases-combat-ailments?rebelltitem=8#rebelltitem8