Rapid industrialization not only allowed for the support of massive armies, it also introduced advanced technologies and weapons systems to the battlefield in numbers that would have been unfathomable to commanders in any previous war. Prior to Pickett's Charge, at the Battle of Gettysburg, Lee tried to break the Union line with a mere 170 guns. In contrast, during World War I, it was not uncommon for attacks to be supported by 5,000 artillery pieces. At Waterloo, Wellington had fired less than 10,000 rounds of artillery ammunition. At the Somme, Haig fired almost two million shells in preparatory fires alone. When the war began, Allied councils feared they could never match the $70 million in gold reserves Germany had set aside and kept in Spandau Castle specifically to finance any future war. By 1915, the Allies were spending that amount every twelve hours during a big push, and every two days when the front was quiet.
- From Pershing by Jim Lacey
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