List of German sponsored acts of terrorism during WWI

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B&W cartoon of a tentacled Kaiser
1915, Burwell Cartoon on German spies in America

During World War I Imperial Germany funded or inspired a number of terrorist acts in America and abroad. It was hoped that these attacks would harm the war efforts of the Allies or Entente Powers. Spy heads like the American-based German Military Attaché Franz von Papen received money to fund these terrorist activities and distributed them to local actors or German agents. In 1917 the New York Times reported that there were 10,000 German, Austro-Hungarian, Bulgarian, and Ottoman agents in America.[1] While most of the terrorist attacks were amateurish and foiled by local law enforcement, some like the Black Tom explosion caused immense devastation.

List of state-sponsored terrorist attacks[]

State-sponsored terrorism is government support of violent non-state actors engaged in terrorism. States can sponsor terrorist groups in several ways, including but not limited to funding terrorist organizations, providing training, supplying weapons, and hosting groups within their borders. During WWI, Imperial Germany sponsored multiple terrorist attacks.

Date Name Location Status Notes References
September 1914 Welland Canal Plot Welland Canal, Canada Attack was abandoned when its main plotter saw Canadian defences. [2]
1914-1917 Pencil bomb attacks Allied shipping The incendiary device ignited cargos when ships were far at sea. It was estimated that the pencil bombs destroyed $10 million (US$ 172 million in 2022) worth of cargo on 36 ships. [2]
April 29 1915 1915 Vancouver bridge arson attack Granville Street Bridge, Vancouver Bridge is set on fire, with zero fatalities. [3]
April-October of 1915 Fay Bombing Plot New York City Spy ring arrested before implementation [2]
February 2, 1915 Vanceboro international bridge bombing Saint Croix-Vanceboro Railway Bridge Railway officials inspected the bridge following the bombing and discovered the damage was relatively minor, resulting in the bridge being out of service for only several days. [4]
WWI until arrest July 3, 1915 Muenter attacks
  • Senate reception room in the United States Capitol, Washington, D.C.
  • J. P. Morgan's house at East Island, Glen Cove, New York
 In 1915, he planted a bomb that exploded in the US Capitol, shot Jack Morgan, and predicted the bombing of a steamship bound for England before committing suicide while in police custody. [5]
May 30, 1915 Harbor Island Bombing Harbor Island, Seattle, Washington Imperial German agents blew up a barge carrying 15 tons of refined gunpowder just off of Harbor Island, Seattle, Washington. [6]
April-October of 1915 German biological warfare sabotage program American cattle industry While the program was successful unknown if any cattle were harmed. [7]
July 30, 1916 Black Tom explosion New York City Killed 4 people and destroyed some $20,000,000 ($480 million in 2022) worth of military goods. [8]
January 11, 1917 Kingsland explosion Lyndhurst, New Jersey In 4 hours, probably 500,000 pieces of 76 mm (3") high explosive shells were discharged. [9]

Lone Wolf attacks[]

A lone wolf attack is a particular kind of terrorist attack, committed in a public setting by an individual or group who plans and commits an act of terrorism inspired by another organization or state, in this case, Imperial Germany. However, instead of being directed to or paid to carry out the attack the planning and the implementation for it is independent of the German Empire.

Date Name Location Status Notes References
December 28, 1914 Rochambeau bomb plot SS Rochambeau Spy ring arrested before implementation [10]

See also[]

B&W cartoon of a net scoping up "spies" in the water
1915 Robert Moore Brinkerhoff cartoon showing US secret service rounding up German spies

Bibliography[]

Notes

  1. ^ The New York Times 1917, p. 7.
  2. ^ a b c MacDonnell 1995.
  3. ^ Honolulu Star-Bulletin, April 29, 1915, p. 1.
  4. ^ von Feilitzsch 2015, p. 221.
  5. ^ Blum 2014.
  6. ^ Gilman 2020, p. 141.
  7. ^ Wheelis 1998.
  8. ^ King 2011.
  9. ^ Maag 2017.
  10. ^ The Birmingham Age-Herald 1914, p. 1.

References

  • "Police Frustrate German Attempt To Blow Up Ship". The Birmingham Age-Herald. Birmingham, AL. December 23, 1914. pp. 1–12. ISSN 2692-6318. OCLC 12607279. Retrieved December 23, 2021 – via Library of Congress.
  • Blum, Howard (2014). Dark Invasion 1915: Germany's Secret War and the Hunt for the First Terrorist Cell in America. Harper. ISBN 9780062307590.
  • King, Gilbert (November 1, 2011). "Sabotage in New York Harbor". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  • Gilman, William (January 23, 2020). The Spy Trap. Wildside Press LLC. ISBN 9781479447725.
  • "Flames Break Out On Two Bridges; Four Germans Are Arrested; War Reports Vary". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Honolulu, Hawaii: P.T. Gialanella. April 29, 1915. pp. 1–16. ISSN 2326-1137. OCLC 8807359. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  • MacDonnell, Francis (September 19, 1995). Insidious Foes: The Axis Fifth Column and the American Home Front. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199879915.
  • Maag, Christopher (January 10, 2017). "Lyndhurst marks 100th anniversary of Kingsland explosion". The Record. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  • "German Spies Active Here For Months". The New York Times. February 4, 1917. ISSN 1553-8095. OCLC 1645522. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  • Wheelis, Mark (17 September 1998). "First shots fired in biological warfare". Correspondence. Nature. 395 (6699): 213. Bibcode:1998Natur.395..213W. doi:10.1038/26089. PMID 9751039.
  • von Feilitzsch, Heribert (2015). The Secret War on the United States in 1915. Henselstone Verlag LLC. ISBN 9780985031763.
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