WAR HORSE Production Notes

WAR HORSE (2011)PRODUCTION NOTESWORLD WAR I FACTSKnown as the Great War, WWI was fought between July 1914 and November 1918 asthe delicate balance of power between European empires fell apart.The Allies (Britain, France, Russia, Belgium, Serbia, Italy, Japan, Greece) fought theCentral Powers (Germany, Austrio-Hungary, The Ottoman Empire). The U.S. entered thewar in 1917 on the Allies' side.It was the first war in history to be fought on three continents.It was the first war to use automatic artillery, mustard gas and mechanized tanks.9.7 million soldiers and 6.7 million civilians were killed worldwide in four years of war.More than 200,000 men perished in the trenches of the Western Front.The war introduced unprecedented use of animals in warfare, including millions of horsesand hundreds of thousands of dogs.It was the last war to feature major cavalry charges, but with the arrival of automaticartillery and trench warfare, the use of cavalry became rare, and horses were used moreas "beasts of burden" in rough terrain.WWI was later called "the war to end all wars" because it seemed impossible that such adevastating event would ever be repeated.When war was declared in Britain in August of 1914, most of the populace believed itwould last a few weeks or months at most and all the men would be home by Christmas.Most soldiers who fought in the war were between ages 17 and 40, although many liedabout their ages to join up.The Western Front of the war was a line of trenches that crossed Europe, from theBelgian coast to the Swiss border, passing through much of France, where infamousbattles were fought at Ypres, Verdun and the Somme.After an armistice was signed in 1918, troops began to withdraw from the Western Front.Surviving soldiers and horses, like Albert and Joey, headed back to their villages and to aworld changed forever, carrying the hope for a lasting peace.© 2011 DreamWorks Pictures 24