To be precise America has never had a large empire other than the mainland and a couple islands in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, which were most or all gained from the Spanish American war. The British on the other hand, have had a huge empire which contained around 25% of the world's total landmass. They ruled such places such as India, North America, Australia, and large sections of Africa. The time of British imperialism was soon coming to an end with a new war in Europe, the First World War. The old and the new were clashing head on, monarchies that have ruled for thousands of year were giving way to new ways of government, which ranged from Communism to Democracy, and included many other types of government. .
The war started plain and simple with the assassination of Arch Duke Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This was pure and simple a direct hit at the monarchy and the empire; soon after most of the countries of Europe were entrenched in a massive four year war. To enhance the war yet more the Americans allowed volunteers to go to the front lines of Europe, to help the ailing Allies. But with the Americans came new ideas, such as Democracy and anti-imperialism. .
Lieutenant Henry a young American ambulance driver finds himself entangled in the war around him, he lives day by day and night by night, aside him the bombs and batteries explode at all times of day "The battery in the next garden woke me in the morning and I saw the sun coming through the window and got out of the bed" (p 15). Guns seemed to be fired at his direction constantly, almost as if they were trying to stop him from imposing the new American ways "I could not see the guns but they were evidently firing directly over us" (p 15). In response to be fired upon they changed to a more offensive strategy, which Henry used to try to push ideas back upon the enemy "The offensive was going to start again I heard" (p 17).
