How come we don't learn more about WWI?

60 years ago kids had to memorize the names of all the battles. But even then things were slanted to American involvement. Little was mentioned about 1914-1916. Verdun and Somme was were the book started.

WW2 was America's war. We ran things. But you don't hear much about what happened in Russia. To most Americans WW1 was over before it barely began. Most of the doughboys never made it to France. 18 months and it was over. WW2 lasted four solid years for the US. Long enough for the experience to be burned into our minds. After WW1 we tried to go back to what it was before. After WW2 the world changed and us with it.

There is so much to learn about the Liars War.

Because WWI was largely a bloody mess. Once the front was established across France in the Fall of 1914 it changed very little for four years. There were a series of battles throughout the war and largely all they did was get more men killled. Very little land changed hands until the Spring of 1918. WWII was dynamic. It spread over several conitnents. The Axis Powers took a whole bunch of territory. Then the Allies took it all back. Part of the problem is that Wilson had to sweet talk Congress into giving him a Declaration of War, the people really weren't behind him. In WWII the Japanese did Roosevelt a favor and made a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, a US Installation. Americans were ready to string up every Japanese they could get their hands on. The Declaration of war was guaranteed, an almost unanimous vote. Finally the enemy involved were seen as truly evil. Hitler wasn't an errant king or emperor but an evil genius, the living epitomy of Neitzches Book "The Will to Power" he rose to power buy sheer force of will. The Japanese were seen as little yellow devils bent on world domination, they were all easy to hate.

I would tend to agree, World War I was just as important as it was one of the reasons for World War II. It was the first time that airplanes were used in warfare, tanks became widely used, zeppelins were widely used, trench warfare, etc.

But just remember, that was 100 years ago. Just about everyone who was alive during the First World War is dead now. Whereas there are more than a few WWII vets still alive today.

Also, the United States didn't join WWI until 1917, one year before it ended. And, despite the 4.7 million American soldiers drafted (American Expeditionary Forces), only about 2 million really fought in France and only 116,000 of them actually died in battle. Germany was already weakening at this time. American involvement just helped give an extra push to end the war more quickly. We were in World War II for much longer than that.

World War II was much more devastating and widespread and caused more than twice as many deaths as World War I; caused many more American deaths; so I guess that would be another reason. Some of the worst crimes in human history were committed in WWII; by people like Josef Mengele.

World War II was much more recent. 100 years from now, WWII will probably be discussed just as much as WWI.

I think it is just a relevant thing now and it is only covered now to show how the outcome of the Great War impacted on the build up to WW II

When I was at school we spent a lot of time studying the Unification of Germany, the Franko-Prussian war, all of the Alliances in far greater detail

Chetak