Biological Warfare isn't a new concept it has been around ever since the Romans existed way back in the fifth century. Even thought what they did was not as serious as what we have to deal with in todays world the concept was still there. Now 17 countries have weapons that are capable of Biological Warfare.
5th
Century - As stated earlier the Romans where some of the first
documented people to use Biological Warfare on other people. Though
their technique of putting animal carcasses in other people's water
supply was primitive it still was effective. Another case of early
biological warfare was when Scythian Archers dipped their arrowheads in
feces and cadavers before they shot at their enemy. The idea was
if they hit someone and it wasn't a kill shot that before they could
pull the arrow out it would infect them. So if the person hit
made it back to camp for medical treatment they might end up infecting
the entire army. The famous Hannibal even had his own fair share
of Biological Warfare when he used to hurl pots full of poisonous
snakes at enemy ships.
1754- The first use of Biological Warfare on American soil was during the French and Indian war which lasted from 1754 to1767. Some of the British soldiers took blankets that had been exposed to smallpox and gave them to the Indians saying they were gifts. The idea was to have the people who used them contract the disease but it didn't work because they only way you contract the disease is from direct contact or breathing in the smallpox agent.
Many people credit Germany for being the first country to really start using Biological Warfare in the Modern era. During the first World War they opened up a Biological Warfare program with the idea of furthering their research in the field. They set up a mission to go into Romania to poison some sheep that were going to be sent over to Russian troops. They used Anthrax to infect the sheep before they were shipped.
As much as we would all like for Biological Weapons to disappear they won't becasue they
In between the first world war the and second there was an attempt to regulate the use of Biological Warfare. This attempt happened in 1925 and it was called, "The Geneva Protocol for the Prohibition of the use in war of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or other Gases and Bacteriological Methods of Warfare". That may of been a good idea but little was done to make sure counties followed the rules. Know where in it did it say that countries had to stop researching into Biological Warfare or to even stop making the weapons. The United States didn't even sign the treaty until 1975.
Little was known at the time but Japan had a very serious program put in place that lasted from 1932 until the end of the war. The base was located in a town called Manchuria under the direction of Dr. Shiro Ishii. The program was secretly called, "Unit 731". The base tested the weapons that they were making on prisoners at it has been said that they killed upwards of 10,000 people. Even if they didn't die from the biological agent they were executed so their bodies could be autopsied to find out what the agent did to the humen body.
Little did anyone know but that was only the tip of the iceberg and that biological weapons would get much more deadly and destructive. With advances in missiles and weapons countries could now inflict damage on others with out even crossing over there borders.
1754- The first use of Biological Warfare on American soil was during the French and Indian war which lasted from 1754 to1767. Some of the British soldiers took blankets that had been exposed to smallpox and gave them to the Indians saying they were gifts. The idea was to have the people who used them contract the disease but it didn't work because they only way you contract the disease is from direct contact or breathing in the smallpox agent.
Many people credit Germany for being the first country to really start using Biological Warfare in the Modern era. During the first World War they opened up a Biological Warfare program with the idea of furthering their research in the field. They set up a mission to go into Romania to poison some sheep that were going to be sent over to Russian troops. They used Anthrax to infect the sheep before they were shipped.
As much as we would all like for Biological Weapons to disappear they won't becasue they
In between the first world war the and second there was an attempt to regulate the use of Biological Warfare. This attempt happened in 1925 and it was called, "The Geneva Protocol for the Prohibition of the use in war of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or other Gases and Bacteriological Methods of Warfare". That may of been a good idea but little was done to make sure counties followed the rules. Know where in it did it say that countries had to stop researching into Biological Warfare or to even stop making the weapons. The United States didn't even sign the treaty until 1975.
Little was known at the time but Japan had a very serious program put in place that lasted from 1932 until the end of the war. The base was located in a town called Manchuria under the direction of Dr. Shiro Ishii. The program was secretly called, "Unit 731". The base tested the weapons that they were making on prisoners at it has been said that they killed upwards of 10,000 people. Even if they didn't die from the biological agent they were executed so their bodies could be autopsied to find out what the agent did to the humen body.
Little did anyone know but that was only the tip of the iceberg and that biological weapons would get much more deadly and destructive. With advances in missiles and weapons countries could now inflict damage on others with out even crossing over there borders.