Measures of local anti-aircraft defense in Odessa military district in First World War

Started in 1914 the First World War became the first “total war” of the human history. It was characterized by unprecedented causalities not only among the soldiers but also among civilians. One of its distinctive features was the inhuman attitude to the civilians, which was contributed to breaking the boundaries between armies and civilian society, between front and rear. One of the most effective combat actions against the population became the aviation. The strategic bombardments of the enemy’s rear objects and cities have been widely carried out during the First World War. These circumstances demanded from the authorities of Russian Empire to immediate development and realization of the defensive measures of the population from the air attacks. In the future these measures were united in the system of the Local Anti-aircraft Defense. In this article the author considers the experience of the protection of the population from bombardments in the Odessa Military District. He presents the common protection measures, which were carried out in the different cities of the district, and the conditions of their realization. He shows the activities of the different authorities and organizations in the development of the methods and means of protection of the population. The article discusses the competence of the military and civilian authorities in dealing the protection of the population from air attacks.