Ed Krayewski on 5 Lessons from World War I

One hundred years ago today a shot fired across
the bow of the SS Pfalz from the Point Nepean fort in Victoria,
Australia, became the first Allied shot of World War I.
It was a warning shot—news of the state of war between the British
Empire and Germany had just made its way down to Australia, and the
SS Pfalz wasn’t going to get away. The fate of the Pfalz, used by
the Australians throughout the war and then sold for a profit,
illustrates what happens in war—things get seized, even when
they’re only tangentially related to the war, and life becomes
subordinated to war and the war effort. As we enter the centennial
of the “war to end all wars,” writes Ed Krayewski, here are five
lessons that still remain relevant today.

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