The Global Nature of World War I: China & Africa in the War

Here are several resources that remind us of the global nature of World War I. 

The first resources explain the role of China in the war.  

Eileen Cheng-yin Chow,  Director of the Shewo Institute of Chinese Journalism, notes in this Twitter thread that China contributed much to the war effort and outlines the untold story of over 140,000 Chinese laborers who fought on the European frontlines beside French, Russian, and British troops. The thread includes interesting links and a trailer for a movie from Yellow Earth Productions called "Forgotten" about China during the war.

 The urgent need for manpower in the war led the French to begin negotiations with the Chinese government for Chinese laborers as this essay from the Guardian notes.

The most interesting resource comes from the South China Morning Post. The story is divided into chapters and includes charts, graphs, maps, and a timeline.  

Here is a chart that shows the number of Chinese workers imported by France, Britain, and Russia.

The second resource is a podcast that reviews the participation of African colonial troops in the war and comes from historian Michelle Moyd, Associate Professor of History at Indiana University Bloomington, USA. She is also the author of Violent Intermediaries: African Soldiers, Conquest, and Everyday Colonialism in German East Africa.

Moyd discusses African participation in the war and answers these questions:  "What motivated Africans to fight in the armies of their colonial power? How did the war change the relationships between the empires and their colonies? "

Both of these resources are excellent and some of the links should be useful in the classroom.