The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel: Genius, Power, and Deception on the Eve of World War I

World War I (WWI) was fought on a scale previously considered unfathomable. Its scale—the number of countries involved and the mass casualties—earned it the name The Great War. The modern nature of WWI was the result of concurrent industrialization and scientific discoveries (Theo Emery, “How World War I Became the First Modern War of Science.” Politico Magazine, Nov. 12, 2018.) The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel discusses how scientific breakthroughs in the decades prior to the war changed how wars were fought, contextualizing the potential scenarios surrounding Diesel’s disappearance.

WWI was fought in ways marked by many technological developments. Weaponry, battle strategy, and even rules of combat were constantly changing, as new inventions pushed innovation in all aspects of the war. The battle arrays of long organized lines of men marching at each other, horses, single-shot rifles, and brilliantly colored uniforms became ineffective against modern weaponry and types of warfare (“How Modern Weapons Changed Combat in The First World War.” Imperial War Museum, 2014). WWI was the first war fought on land, sea, and in the air. Weapons of mass destruction were deployed for the first time. For example, during the Second Battle of Ypres of 1915, the German army released chlorine gas that spread across a four-mile stretch of Allied lines—the first time that chemical warfare was employed on such a large scale (“Firsts of the First World War.