World War I casualties - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The total number of military and civilian casualties in World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

were over 35 million. There were over 15 million deaths and 20 million wounded ranking it among the deadliest conflicts in human history.

The total number of deaths includes about 10 million military personnel and about 7 million civilians. The Entente Powers

Allies of World War I

The Entente Powers were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. The members of the Triple Entente were the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire; Italy entered the war on their side in 1915...

(also known as the Allies) lost about 6.0 million soldiers while the Central Powers

Central Powers

The Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...

lost about 4.0 million.

About two-thirds of military deaths in World War I were in battle, unlike the conflicts that took place in the 19th century when the majority of deaths were due to disease. Improvements in medicine as well as the increased lethality of military weaponry were both factors in this development. Nevertheless disease, including the Spanish flu

Spanish flu

The 1918 flu pandemic was an influenza pandemic, and the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus . It was an unusually severe and deadly pandemic that spread across the world. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin...

, still caused about one third of total military deaths for all belligerents.

Classification of casualty statistics

Estimates of casualty numbers for World War I vary to a great extent; estimates of total deaths range from 9 million to over 15 million The figures listed here are from official secondary sources, whenever available. These sources are cited below. Military casualty statistics listed here include 6.8 million combat related deaths as well as 3 million military deaths caused by accidents, disease and deaths while prisoners of war. First World War civilian deaths are 'hazardous to estimate" according to Michael Clodfelter who maintains that “The generally accepted figure of noncombatant deaths is 6.5 million” The figures listed below include about 6 million excess civilian deaths due to war related malnutrition and disease that are often omitted from other compilations of World War I casualties. The war brought about malnutrition and disease caused by a disruption of trade resulting in shortages of food; the mobilization for the war took away millions of men from the agricultural labor force cutting food production. The civilian deaths listed below also include the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...

. Civilian deaths due to the Spanish flu

Spanish flu

have been excluded from these figures, whenever possible. Furthermore, the figures do not include deaths during the Turkish War of Independence

Turkish War of Independence

The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...

and the Russian Civil War

Russian Civil War

The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...

Casualties by 1914 borders

Allies of World War I Allies of World War I The Entente Powers were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. The members of the Triple Entente were the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire; Italy entered the war on their side in 1915...	Population (millions)	Military deaths	Direct Civilian deaths(Due to military action)	Excess Civilian deaths(Due to famine & Disease)	Total deaths	Deaths as % of population	Military wounded
Australia	4.5	61,966			61,966	%	152,171
Canada	7.2	64,976	2,000		66,976	%	149,732
	315.1	74,187			74,187	%	69,214
New Zealand	1.1	18,052			18,052	%	41,317
	0.2	(1,204), included with UK				%	2,314
Union of South Africa	6.0	9,477			9,477	%	12,029
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	45.4	886,939	2,000	107,000	995,939	%	1,663,435
Sub-total for British Empire	-	1,115,597	4,000	107,000	1,226,597	-	2,090,212
East Africa East African Campaign (World War I) The East African Campaign was a series of battles and guerrilla actions which started in German East Africa and ultimately affected portions of Mozambique, Northern Rhodesia, British East Africa, Uganda, and the Belgian Congo. The campaign was effectively ended in November 1917...				See footnote
Belgium	7.4	58,637	7,000	55,000	120,637	%	44,686
France French Third Republic The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...	39.6	1,397,800	40,000	260,000	1,697,800	%	4,266,000
Kingdom of Greece	4.8	26,000		150,000	176,000	%	21,000
Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)	35.6	651,000	4,000	585,000	1,240,000	%	953,886
Empire of Japan	53.6	415			415	%	907
Luxembourg	0.3				See footnote
Kingdom of Montenegro	0.5	3,000			3,000	%	10,000
Portugal	6.0	7,222		82,000	89,222	%	13,751
Kingdom of Romania	7.5	250,000	120,000	330,000	680,000	%	120,000
Russian Empire	175.1	1,811,000	500,000	1,000,000	3,311,000	%	4,950,000
Kingdom of Serbia	4.5	275,000	150,000	300,000	725,000	%	133,148
United States	92.0	116,708	757		117,465	%	205,690
Total (Entente Powers)	806.0	5,712,379	821,757	2,853,000	9,387,136	%	12,809,280
Central Powers Central Powers The Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...	Population (millions)	Military deaths	Direct Civilian deaths(Due to military action)	Excess Civilian deaths(Due to famine & Disease)	Total deaths	Deaths as % of population	Military wounded
	51.4	1,100,000	120,000	347,000	1,567,000	%	3,620,000
Kingdom of Bulgaria	5.5	87,500		100,000	187,500	%	152,390
German Empire	64.9	2,050,897	1,000	425,000	2,476,897	%	4,247,143
Ottoman Empire	21.3	771,844		2,150,000	2,921,844	%	400,000
Total (Central Powers)	143.1	4,010,241	121,000	3,022,000	7,153,241	%	8,419,533
Neutral nations
Denmark	2.7		722		722	%	_
Norway	2.4		1,892		1,892	%	_
Sweden	5.6		877		877	%	_
Grand total	960.0	9,722,620	946,248	5,875,000	16,543,868	%	21,228,813

Casualties by modern borders

The war involved multi-ethnic empires such as Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Austro-Hungary and Turkey. The diverse ethnic groups in these multi-ethnic empires were conscripted for military service. The casualities listed by modern borders are also included in the above table of figures for the countires that existed in 1914.

Austria

The following estimates of Austrian deaths, within contemporary borders, were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 175,000: including military losses 120,000 with the Austo-Hungarian forces and POW deaths in captivity of 30,000. Civilian dead due to famine and disease were 25,000

Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...

The Belgian Congo was part of the Kingdom of Belgium during the war. Following estimates of casualties were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century.

(1914 known as the Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...

): 5,000 in military and 150,000 civilians.

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia was part of Austro-Hungary during the war. The following estimates of Czechoslovak deaths within 1991 borders were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 185,000: including military losses 110,000 with the Austro-Hungarian forces and POW deaths in captivity of 45,000. Civilian dead due to famine and disease were 30,000. The Czechoslovak Legions

Czechoslovak Legions

The Czechoslovak Legions were volunteer armed forces composed predominantly of Czechs and Slovaks fighting together with the Entente powers during World War I...

fought with the armies of the Allies during the war.

Estonia

Estonia was part of Russian Empire during the war and about 100,000 Estonians served in the Russian Army. Of them about 10,000 were killed.

French colonies
French colonial empire
The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire...

The following estimates of French colonial military deaths, within contemporary borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total military dead in French Army 81,000.

(1914 known as French Algeria
French Algeria
French Algeria lasted from 1830 to 1962, under a variety of governmental systems. From 1848 until independence, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France, much like Corsica and Réunion are to this day. The vast arid interior of Algeria, like the rest...

): 26,000

(1914 known as French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....

): 12,000

(1914 part of French West Africa
French West Africa
French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Upper Volta , Dahomey and Niger...

): 10,000

(1914 known as the French protectorate of Morocco): 8,000

: 2,500

(1914 part of French Equatorial Africa
French Equatorial Africa
French Equatorial Africa or the AEF was the federation of French colonial possessions in Middle Africa, extending northwards from the Congo River to the Sahara Desert.-History:...

):2,000

(1914 known as French Tunisia
French occupation of Tunisia
The French conquest of Tunisia occurred in two phases in 1881: the first consisting of the invasion and securing of the country before the signing of a treaty of protection, and the second consisting in the suppression of a rebellion...

): 2,000

(1914 known as French Ubangi-Shari): 1,000

German colonies

The following estimates of German Colonial military deaths, within contemporary borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total military dead 17,000.

(1914 known as German South-West Africa
German South-West Africa
German South West Africa was a colony of Germany from 1884 until 1915, when it was taken over by South Africa and administered as South West Africa, finally becoming Namibia in 1990...

): 10,000

(1914 known as Kamerun
Kamerun
German Cameroon was a West African colony of the German Empire from 1884 to 1916 in the region of today's Republic of Cameroon.-History:-1800s:...

): 5,000

Togo (1914 known as German Togoland
Togoland
Togoland was a German protectorate in West Africa from 1884 to 1914, encompassing what is now the nation of Togo and most of what is now the Volta Region of Ghana. The colony was established during the period generally known as the "Scramble for Africa"...

): 2,000

Hungary

The following estimates of Hungarian deaths, within contemporary borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 385,000: including military losses 270,000 with the Austro-Hungarian forces and POW deaths in captivity of 70,000. Civilian dead due to famine and disease were 45,000

Republic of Ireland

Ireland was a part of the UK during World War I. The following estimates of Irish deaths, within contemporary borders, during the war were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 51,000: including military losses 50,000 with the British forces. POW deaths in captivity of 1,000.

Poland

Poland was occupied by Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia from 1795–1914. By late 1915 Germany had complete control over modern day Poland. A 2005 Polish study estimated 3.4 million Poles served in the Armed Forces of the occupying powers during World War I. Total deaths from 1914–18, military and civilian, within the 1919–1939 borders, were estimated at 1,130,000. The following estimates of Polish deaths, within contemporary (post 1945) borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 640,000: including military losses of 250,000 Poles conscripted into the following armies listed below. POW deaths in captivity of 20,000. Civilian losses due to the war included 120,000 due to military operations and 250,000 caused by famine and disease.

The ethnic Polish Blue Army served with the French Army. The ethnic Polish Legions

Polish Legions in World War I

Polish Legions was the name of Polish armed forces created in August 1914 in Galicia. Thanks to the efforts of KSSN and the Polish members of the Austrian parliament, the unit became an independent formation of the Austro-Hungarian Army...

fought as part of the Austro-Hungarian Army on the Eastern Front.

(Polish Legions
Polish Legions in World War I
Polish Legions was the name of Polish armed forces created in August 1914 in Galicia. Thanks to the efforts of KSSN and the Polish members of the Austrian parliament, the unit became an independent formation of the Austro-Hungarian Army...

): 67,000

German Empire: 87,000

Russian Empire: 96,000

Kingdom of Romania

The territory of Transylvania

Transylvania

Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...

was part of Austria-Hungary during World War I. The following estimates of Romanian deaths, within contemporary borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 748,000: including military losses 220,000 with the Romanian forces and 150,000 with the Austro-Hungarian forces and POW deaths in captivity of 48,000. Civilian dead were as follows due to famine and disease 200,000, killed in military operations 120,000 and 10,000 dead in Austrian prisons.

Romanian Forces: 220,000 military and 330,000 civilians

Austro-Hungarian Forces: 150,000

British colonies
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

The following estimates of British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

colonial military deaths, within contemporary borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total military dead 35,700. Britain recruited Indian, Chinese, native South African, Egyptian and other overseas labour to provide logistical support in the combat theaters. Included with British casualties in East Africa are the deaths of 44,911 recruited labourers. The CWGC reports that nearly 2,000 workers from the Chinese Labour Corps

Chinese Labour Corps

The Chinese Labour Corps was a force of workers recruited by the British government in World War I to support the troops by performing support work and manual labor.-History:...

are buried with British war dead in France.

(1914 part of German East Africa
German East Africa
German East Africa was a German colony in East Africa, which included what are now :Burundi, :Rwanda and Tanganyika . Its area was , nearly three times the size of Germany today....

): 20,000

(1914 known as the Gold Coast
Gold Coast (British colony)
The Gold Coast was a British colony on the Gulf of Guinea in west Africa that became the independent nation of Ghana in 1957.-Overview:The first Europeans to arrive at the coast were the Portuguese in 1471. They encountered a variety of African kingdoms, some of which controlled substantial...

): 1,200

(1914 known as British East Africa): 2,000

(1914 known as Nyasaland
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....

): 3,000

(1914 part of British West Africa
British West Africa
British West Africa was the collective name for British colonies in West Africa during the colonial period, either in the general geographical sense or more specifically those comprised in a formal colonial administrative entity...

): 5,000

(1914 known as the Uganda Protectorate): 1,500

(1914 known as Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...

): 3,000

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Slovenia

Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

, Croatia

Croatia

Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

and Bosnia were part of Austria-Hungary during World War I

World War I

. Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

(including Macedonia

Republic of Macedonia

Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...

) and Montenegro

Montenegro

Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...

were independent nations. The following estimates of Yugoslav deaths, within 1991 borders, during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century. Total dead 996,000: including military losses 260,000 with the Serbian forces, 80,000 with the Austro-Hungarian forces 13,000 with Montenegro forces and POW deaths in captivity of 93,000. Civilian dead were as follows due to famine and disease 400,000, killed in military operations 120,000 and 30,000 dead in Austrian prisons or executed.

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

-During World War I (1914–18), the Nepalese army was expanded and six new regiments, totaling more than 20,000 troops—all volunteers—were sent to India, most of them to the North-West Frontier Province, to release British and Indian troops for service overseas. Simultaneously, the Nepalese government agreed to maintain recruitment at a level that both would sustain the existing British Gurkha units and allow the establishment of additional ones. The battalions were increased to thirty-three with the addition of 55,000 new recruits, and Gurkha units were placed at the disposal of the British high command for service on all fronts. Many volunteers were assigned to noncombat units, such as the Army Bearer Corps and the labor battalions, but they also were in combat in France, Turkey, Palestine, and Mesopotamia. The Rana prime ministers urged Nepalese males to fight in the war. Of the more than 200,000 Nepalese who served in the British Army, there were some 20,000 Gurkha casualties included above with the British Indian Army

British Indian Army

The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...

Footnotes

The conflict in East Africa

East African Campaign (World War I)

The East African Campaign was a series of battles and guerrilla actions which started in German East Africa and ultimately affected portions of Mozambique, Northern Rhodesia, British East Africa, Uganda, and the Belgian Congo. The campaign was effectively ended in November 1917...

caused enormous civilian casualties. The Oxford History of World War One notes that "In east and central Africa the harshness of the war resulted in acute shortages of food with famine in some areas, a weakening of populations, and epidemic diseases which killed hundreds of thousands of people and also cattle." The following estimates of civilian deaths during World War I were made by a Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century: Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

30,000; Tanzania

Tanzania

The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

100,000; Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

50,000; Rwanda

Rwanda

Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

15,000; Burundi

Burundi

Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...

20,000; and the Belgian Congo

Belgian Congo

The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...

150,000.

The reported military casualties of the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, and Portugal include Africans who served with their armed forces. The details are noted in the footnotes of the various nations.

Australia Included in total military deaths are 54,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves, and places of commemoration, of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars...

Annual Report 2009-2010 is the source of the total 61,966 military dead.
The 'Debt of Honour Register' lists the 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars. The 1922 War Office

War Office

The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...

report listed 59,330 Army war dead.

Belgium: The total Includes 35,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds Official Belgian government figures for military losses in Europe were 26,338 killed, died of wounds or accidents and 14,029 died of disease or missing. The total in Europe is 40,367. In Africa: 2,620 soldiers killed and 15,560 porter deaths, for a total in the African campaign of 18,270. The combined total for Europe and Africa is 58,637 Another estimate (by the UK War Office in 1922) was 13,716 killed and 24,456 missing up until November 11, 1918. "These figures are approximate only, the records being incomplete." The U.S. War Department in 1924 estimated 13,716 killed and died US War Dept 1924
Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 92,000. 62,000 were caused by food shortages and German reprisals

Rape of Belgium

The Rape of Belgium is a wartime propaganda term describing the 1914 German invasion of Belgium. The term initially had a figurative meaning, referring to the violation of Belgian neutrality, but embellished reports of German atrocities soon gave it a literal significance...

, and 30,000 by the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Prof. John Horne estimated that 6,500 Belgian and French civilians were killed in German reprisals.

Canada The total military deaths includes 53,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Annual Report 2009-2010 gives a total of 64,976 military dead.
The Canadian Virtual War Memorial contains a registry of information about the graves and memorials of Canadians and Newfoundlanders who served valiantly and gave their lives for their country. The losses for Newfoundland are listed separately on this table because it was not part of Canada at that time, but are included in the CVWM registry. The 1922 War Office

War Office

report listed 56,639 Army war dead Civilian deaths were due to the Halifax Explosion

Halifax Explosion

The Halifax Explosion occurred on Thursday, December 6, 1917, when the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, was devastated by the huge detonation of the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship, fully loaded with wartime explosives, which accidentally collided with the Norwegian SS Imo in "The Narrows"...

France The total includes 1,186,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The figure for total military dead of 1,397,800 is from a study published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1931 The total includes 71,100 French Colonial Forces

French Colonial Forces

The French Colonial Forces , commonly called La Coloniale, was a general designation for the military forces that garrisoned in the French colonial empire from the late 17th century until 1960. They were recruited from mainland France or from the French settler and indigenous populations of the...

, 4,600 foreign nationals, and 28,600 war-related military deaths occurring from 11/11/18 to 6/1/1919 The UK War Office

War Office

in 1922 estimated French losses as 1,385,300 dead and missing, including 58,000 colonial soldiers The U.S. War Department in 1924 estimated 1,357,800 killed and died The names of the soldiers who died for France during World War I are listed on-line by the French government. The French encyclopedia Quid

Quid (encyclopedia)

Quid is a French encyclopedia, established in 1963 by Dominique Frémy. It was published annually between 1963 and 2007, first by Plon and later by Éditions Robert Laffont , and was the most popular encyclopedic reference work in France.The presentation is very compressed, and abbreviations are...

reports that 30-40,000 foreign volunteers from about 40 nationalities served in the French army. At the end of the war 12,000 were in the Czechoslovak Legions

Czechoslovak Legions

The Czechoslovak Legions were volunteer armed forces composed predominantly of Czechs and Slovaks fighting together with the Entente powers during World War I...

and the ethnic Polish Blue Army

Blue Army

The Blue Army, or Haller's Army, are informal names given to the Polish Army units formed in France during the later stages of World War I. The army was created in June 1917 as part of the Polish units allied to the Entente. After the Great War ended, the units were transferred to Poland, where...

. 5,000 Italians served in a "Legion" commanded by Colonel Garibaldi. There were also 1,000 Spaniards and 1,500 Swiss in French service. 200 American volunteers served with the French from 1914–16, including the Lafayette Escadrille

Lafayette Escadrille

The Lafayette Escadrille , was an escadrille of the French Air Service, the Aéronautique militaire, during World War I composed largely of American volunteer pilots flying fighters.-History:Dr. Edmund L...

Luxembourg was occupied by Germany during the war. 3,700 Luxembourg citizens served in the French armed forces. 2,800 gave their lives in the war. They are commemorated at the Gëlle Fra

Gëlle Fra

The Monument of Remembrance , usually known by the nickname of the Gëlle Fra , is a war memorial in Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg...

in Luxembourg. The French Armenian Legion

French Armenian Legion

The Armenian Legion, established with the French-Armenian Agreement , was a foreign legion unit within French Army. The Armenian legion was established under the goals of the Armenian national liberation movement and was an armed unit besides the Armenian volunteer units and Armenian militia during...

served as part of the French Armed forces during the war.

Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 500,000. 300,000 were caused by military operations and food shortages, and 200,000 by the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Another estimate of the demographic loss of the civilian population in the France during the war put total excess deaths at 264,000 to 284,000 not including an additional 100,000 to 120,000 Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

deaths. Civilian dead include 1,509 merchant sailors and 3,357 killed in air attacks and long range artillery bombardments

Paris Gun

The Paris Gun was a German long-range siege gun used to bombard Paris during World War I. It was in service from March-August 1918. When it was first employed, Parisians believed they'd been bombed by a new type of high-altitude zeppelin, as neither the sound of an airplane nor a gun could be heard...

The French government did not provide an estimate of civilian deaths in the war zone, however tertiary source

Tertiary source

In scholarship, a tertiary source is a term used to describe a work which is chiefly a selection or compilation of other primary and secondary sources. The distinction between a secondary and tertiary source is relative, whereas the difference between primary and secondary sources is more absolute...

s have estimated civilian war dead at 40,000.

Greece Included in total are 11,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The Soviet demographer Boris Urlanis estimated total military dead of 26,000 including 15,000 deaths due to disease Jean Bujac in a campaign history of the Greek Army in World War I listed 8,365 combat related deaths and 3,255 missing Other estimates of Greek casualties are as follows: By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Killed/died wounds 5,000; prisoners and missing 1,000. By US War Dept in 1924: killed and died 5,000

Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 150,000, caused by food shortages and the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Indian Empire
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...

The Indian Empire included present day India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

and Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

. Included in total military deaths are 27,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Annual Report 2009-2010 is the source of the total 74,187 military dead.
The 'Debt of Honour Register' lists the 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars. The 1922 War Office

War Office

report listed 62,056 Indian Army war dead and 2,393 British serving in the Indian Army.

Italy Included in total are 433,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The figure 651,000 military dead is from a 1925 Italian demographic study of war deaths based on official government data published by Yale Univ. Press. The details are as follows, Killed in action or died of wounds 378,000; died of disease 186,000 and an additional 87,000 deaths of invalids from 12 Nov. 1918 until 30 April 1920 due to war related injuries. Other estimates of Italian casualties were: by UK War Office

War Office

in 1922, Dead 460,000 and by the US War Dept in 1924 650,000 killed and died Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 1,021,000. 589,000 caused by food shortages and 432,000 by the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Another estimate of the demographic loss of the civilian population in the Italy during the war put total excess deaths at 324,000 not including an additional 300,000 Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

deaths. Civilian deaths due to military action were about 3,400 including 2,293 by attacks on shipping, 958 during air raids and 142 by sea bombardment.

Japan War dead figure of 415 is from a 1991 history of the Japanese Army However, Michael Clodfelter reported the official toll was put at 300 KIA and noted that "A more reliable count of total Japanese military deaths from all causes lists 1,344 fatalities. Casualties reported by the US War Dept in 1924 were 300 killed and died

Luxembourg remained under German control

German occupation of Luxembourg in World War I

The German occupation of Luxembourg in World War I was the first of two military occupations of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg by Germany in the twentieth century. From August 1914 until the end of World War I in November 1918, Luxembourg was under full occupation by the German Empire...

during the war. Some citizens were conscripted into the German forces. Others escaped to volunteer for the Allies. 3,700 Luxembourgian nationals served in the French Army

French Army

The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...

, of whom 2,000 died. They are commemorated at the Gëlle Fra

Gëlle Fra

The Monument of Remembrance , usually known by the nickname of the Gëlle Fra , is a war memorial in Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg...

in Luxembourg.

Montenegro: Michael Clodfelter lists 3,000 battle deaths and 7,000 missing and POW. However, the Yugoslav government in 1924 listed 13,325 military war dead from Montenegro. Casualties Reported by the US War Dept in 1924 were 3,000 killed and died

New Zealand: Included in total military deaths are 14,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Annual Report 2009-2010 is the source of the total 18,052 military dead The 'Debt of Honour Register' lists the 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars. The 1922 War Office

War Office

report listed 16,711 Army war dead.

Newfoundland was a separate dominion

Dominion

A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, beginning in the latter part of the 19th century. They have included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland,...

at the time, and not part of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.The 1922 War Office

War Office

report listed 1,204 Army war dead

Portugal: Included in total are 6,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds Total war dead reported by British War Office were 7,022 including the following: killed and died of other causes up until January 1, 1920; 1,689 in France and 5,333 in Africa. Figures do not include an additional 12,318 listed as missing and POW. Africans are included in these figures
Another estimate of Portuguese casualties by the US War Dept in 1924 was 7,222 killed and died Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 220,000, 82,000 caused by food shortages and 138,000 by the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Romania: Included in total are 177,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The statistic of 250,000 military dead is "The figure reported by the Rumanian Government in reply to a questionnaire from the International Labour Office Other estimates of Romanian casualties are as follows: By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: 335,706 Killed and missing By US War Dept in 1924: 335,706 killed and died
Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 430,000, caused by military action,food shortages, epidemics and the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

A Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century estimated 120,000 Romanian civilian deaths due to military activity ,10,000 in Austro-Hungarian prisons and 200,000 caused by famine and disease

Russian Empire Included in total are 1,451,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The estimate of the 1,811,000 total Russian military and 1,500,00 civilian deaths was made by the Soviet demographer Boris Urlanis. Other estimates of Russian casualties are as follows: By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Killed 1,700,000 By the US War Dept in 1924 1,700,000 killed and died. A 2001 study by the Russian military historian G.F. Krivosheev provided these revised figures- Killed in action 1,200,000; missing in action 439,369; died of wounds 240,000, gassed 11,000., died from disease 155,000, POW deaths 190,000, deaths due to accidents and other causes.19,000. Total war dead 2,254,369. Wounded 3,749,000. POW 3,342,900.

Civilian deaths from 1914–1917 exceeded the prewar level by 1,500,000 due to famine and disease and military operations .

Kingdom of Serbia Included in total are 165,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The estimate of total combined Serbian and Montenegrin military losses of 278,000 was made by the Soviet demographer Boris Urlanis. Other estimates of Serbian casualties are as follows: By Yugoslav government in 1924: Killed 365,164 . By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Killed 45,000, missing . By US War Dept in 1924: 45,000 killed and died Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 450,000, due to military activity, food shortages, epidemics and the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

A Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century estimated 120,000 Serbian civilian deaths due to military activity and 30,000 in Austro-Hungarian prisons.

South Africa Included in military dead total are 5,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Annual Report 2009-2010 is the source of the 9,477 total military dead.

The 1922 War Office

War Office

report listed 7,121 Army war dead

UK and Colonies Included in total military dead are 624,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Annual Report 2009-2010 is the source of total 886,939 UK military dead(including Newfoundland) the 'Debt of Honour Register' lists the 1.7m men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars. The losses of Newfoundland are listed separately on this table.
The official "final and corrected" casualty figures for British Army,including the Territorial Force were issued on 10 March 1921. The losses were for the period 4 August 1914 until 30 September 1919, included 573,507 "killed in action, died from wounds and died of other causes"; 254,176 missing less 154,308 released prisoners; for a net total of 673,375 dead and missing. There were 1,643,469 wounded also listed in the report

The 1922 War Office

War Office

report detailed the casualties of "soldiers who lost their lives", "killed in action, died as prisoners, died of wounds and missing" from the Regular and Territorial Forces and Royal Naval Division: 702,410 from the UK, 507 from "other colonies" and 2,393 British serving in the Indian Empire Army. The figures include Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

war dead of 32,287 The Merchant Navy

Merchant Navy

The Merchant Navy is the maritime register of the United Kingdom, and describes the seagoing commercial interests of UK-registered ships and their crews. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and are regulated by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency...

war dead of 14,661 were listed separately Figures for total RAF are included in the totals of the War Office

War Office

report

Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 292,000. 109,000 due to food shortages and 183,577 by the Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

Another estimate of the demographic loss of the civilian population in the UK during the war put total excess deaths at 181,000 not including an additional 100,000 Spanish Flu

Spanish flu

deaths. The 1922 War Office report detailed the deaths of 1,260 civilians and 310 military personnel due to air and sea bombardment of the UK Losses at sea were 908 UK civilians and 63 fisherman killed by U-Boat attacks

United States The official figures of military war deaths listed by the US Dept. of Defense for the period ending Dec. 31, 1918 are 116,516; which includes 53,402 battle deaths and 63,114 non combat deaths., The US Coast Guard lost an additional 192 dead.."
United States estimated civilian losses include 128 killed on the RMS Lusitania

RMS Lusitania

RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland. The ship entered passenger service with the Cunard Line on 26 August 1907 and continued on the line's heavily-traveled passenger service between Liverpool, England and New...

as well as 629 Merchant Marine personnel

United States Merchant Marine

The United States Merchant Marine refers to the fleet of U.S. civilian-owned merchant vessels, operated by either the government or the private sector, that engage in commerce or transportation of goods and services in and out of the navigable waters of the United States. The Merchant Marine is...

killed on merchant ships,.

Austria-Hungary Included in total are 900,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds. The figure of total estimated 1,100,000 military dead is from a study published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1940, based on analysis of Austro-Hungarian War Dept. data. Other estimates of Austro-Hungarian casualties are as follows: By Austrian Ministry of Defense in 1938: Military dead 1,016,200 By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Dead 1,200,00 By US War Dept in 1924: 1,200,00 killed and died
A study published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1940 estimated civilian 467,000 deaths "attributable to war", the primary cause being famine.
A Russian journalist in a 2004 handbook of human losses in the 20th century estimated 120,000 civilian deaths due to military activity in Austro-Hungarian Galicia.

Bulgaria: Included in total are 62,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds. 87,500 total military war dead were reported by the Bulgarian War Office including 48,917 killed, 13,198 died of wounds, 888 accidentally killed, 24,497 died of disease, "losses during the retreat from sickness and privations were much greater than the figures they possess
The US War Dept in 1924 also listed 87,500 killed and died
Civilian deaths exceeded the prewar level by 100,000. due to food shortages.

German Empire Included in total are 1,796,000 killed or missing in action and died of wounds. The official German medical war history listed 2,036,897 military war dead. Including confirmed military dead from all causes: Army 1,900,876, Navy 34,836 ,Colonial troops 1,185 and an estimated 100,000 missing and presumed dead -To these figures we must add an additional 14,000 African conscript deaths during the war. Total dead 2,050,89 -Other estimates of German casualties are as follows: By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Killed 1,808,545 exclusive of 14,000 African conscript deaths during the war By US War Dept in 1924: 1,773,700 killed and died . 720 German civilians were killed by allied air raids
Civilian deaths caused by the Blockade of Germany

Blockade of Germany

The Blockade of Germany, or the Blockade of Europe, occurred from 1914-1919 and was a prolonged naval operation conducted by the Allied Powers during and after World War I in an effort to restrict the maritime supply of raw materials and foodstuffs to the Central Powers, which included Germany,...

German official statistics estimated 763,000 civilian malnutrition and disease deaths were caused by the blockade of Germany. This figure was disputed by a subsequent academic study that put the death toll at 424,000.,
In December 1918 the German government estimated that the blockade was responsible for the deaths of 762,796 civilians, this figure did not include deaths due to the Spanish flu

Spanish flu

epidemic in 1918. The figures for the last six months of 1918 were estimated. Maurice Parmelle maintained that "it is very far from accurate to attribute to the blockade all of the excess deaths above pre-war mortality", he believed that the German figures were "somewhat exaggerated". The German claims were made at the time when Germany was waging a propaganda campaign to end the Allied blockade of Germany after the armistice that lasted from November 1918 until June 1919. Also in 1919 Germany raised the issue of the Allied blockade to counter charges against the German use of submarine warfare.
In 1928 a German academic study sponsored by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is a foreign-policy think tank based in Washington, D.C. The organization describes itself as being dedicated to advancing cooperation between nations and promoting active international engagement by the United States...

provided a thorough analysis of the German civilian deaths during the war. The study estimated 424,000 war related deaths of civilians over age 1 in Germany, not including Alsace-Lorraine

Alsace-Lorraine

The Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine was a territory created by the German Empire in 1871 after it annexed most of Alsace and the Moselle region of Lorraine following its victory in the Franco-Prussian War. The Alsatian part lay in the Rhine Valley on the west bank of the Rhine River and east...

, the authors attributed these civilian deaths over the pre war level primarily to food and fuel shortages in 1917-1918. The study also estimated an additional 209,000 Spanish flu

Spanish flu

deaths in 1918 A study sponsored by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

in 1940 estimated the German civilian death toll at over 600,000. Based on the above mentioned German study of 1928 they maintained that “A thorough inquiry has led to the conclusion that the number of “civilian” deaths traceable to the war was 424,000, to which number must be added about 200,000 deaths caused by the influenza epidemic”
Not included in the figure of 763,000 famine deaths are additional civilian deaths during the blockade of Germany after the armistice from November 1918 until June 1919. Dr. Max Rubner

Max Rubner

Max Rubner [ru:bner] was a German physiologist and hygienist.He studied at the University of Munich under Adolf von Baeyer and Carl von Voit . Afterwards he taught as a professor at the University of Marburg and the Robert Koch Institute of Hygiene at the University of Berlin...

in an April 1919 article claimed that 100,000 German civilians had died due to the continuation blockade of Germany after the armistice. In the UK a Labour Party

Labour Party (UK)

The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...

anti-war activist Robert Smillie

Robert Smillie

Robert Smillie was a trade unionist and Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom.-Biography:Born into the city of Belfast, the second son of John Smillie a Scottish Crofter. Until into his adult years he spelt his name as Smellie; he spelt it like this even on his wedding certificate in 1878...

isuued a statement in June 1919 condeming the continuation blockade in which he also claimed that 100,000 German civilians had died.

Ottoman Empire: Ottoman military casualties listed here are from data derived from the Ottoman Archives which total 771,844 war dead including 243,598 killed in action, 61,487 missing action and 466,759 deaths due to disease. The number of wounded was 763,753 and POWs 145,104 Other estimates of Ottoman military casualties are as follows: By UK War Office

War Office

in 1922: Killed 50,000, died wounds 35,000, died of disease 240,000 By US War Dept in 1924: 325,000 killed and died.
Estimates of Ottoman civilian casualties range from 2,000,000 to 2,150,000. Civilian casualties include the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

, and it is debated if this event should be included with war losses. The total number of resulting Armenian deaths is generally held to have been between 1 million and 1.5 million. Other ethnic groups were similarly attacked by the Ottoman Empire during this period, including Assyrians

Assyrian genocide

The Assyrian Genocide refers to the mass slaughter of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac population of the Ottoman Empire during the 1890s, the First World War, and the period of 1922-1925...

and Greeks, and some scholars consider those events to be part of the same policy of extermination. Total Ottoman population losses from 1914–1922 were approximately 5 million including the Spanish flu

Spanish flu

deaths, the Turkish War of Independence

Turkish War of Independence

from 1919–1922 and the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey

Population exchange between Greece and Turkey

The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...

, these other population losses are not included with the casualties of World War I.

Denmark was neutral in the war. However, Germany at that time included part of Danish Schleswig. 30,000 men from this area served in German forces, and 3,900 were killed. These losses are included with German casualties. 722 Danish merchant sailors and fisherman died, mostly due to vessels torpedoed by German submarines

Norway and Sweden were both neutral in the war. They both lost ships and merchant sailors in trading through the war zones. Norway lost about 50% of its merchant fleet, percentage-wise the highest loss of any nation's merchant fleet in World War I. 1,892 Norwegian merchant sailors died, mostly due to vessels torpedoed by German submarines. 877 Swedish merchant sailors died, mostly due to vessels torpedoed or sunk by mines.

Sources

Bujac, Jean, Les campagnes de l'armèe Hellènique, 1918–1922, Paris, 1930
Erickson, Edward J., Ordered to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War
Ordered to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War
Ordered to die: a history of the Ottoman army in the First World War is an account of the Ottoman Empire's military engagements in World War I , fought between the Allies and the Central Powers. It was written by Edward J. Erickson...

, Greenwood 2001. ISBN 978-0-313-31516-9
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves, and places of commemoration, of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars...

Debt of Honour Register
Hersch, L., La mortalité causée par la guerre mondiale, Metron- The International Review of Statistics, 1927, Vol 7.
US War Dept 1924 data listed in the Encyclopædia Britannica
Horne, John and Kramer, Alan, German Atrocities, 1914 ISBN 978-0-300-08975-2

Classification of casualty statistics

Casualties by 1914 borders

Casualties by modern borders

Austria

Czechoslovakia

Estonia

German colonies

Hungary

Republic of Ireland

Poland

Kingdom of Romania

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Nepal

Footnotes

Sources

External links

See also