America Joins the Fight
World War I (1914-1918)
Chapter 24, Section 2
Essential Questions:
• Do governments have the right to draft its’ citizens? Why or Why Not?
• As a citizen, are YOU responsible to serve YOUR country?
The U.S. Army (1917)• When America
Entered WWI the US Army Had Less Than 200,000 Troops
• President Woodrow Wilson Wanted to Use Volunteer Troops
• Not Enough Troops Enlisted After U.S. Declared War in 1917
Which Poster is More Effective? Why?
Selective Service Act (1917)
• Required ALL Males Between the Ages of 21 and 30 to Join the U.S. Military
• The Draft!!!
• 3 Million Men Were Drafted by 1918
• Army Went from 200,000 to 3 Million Soldiers!
American Expeditionary Force (The AEF)
• AEF = U.S.Armed Forces Sent to Europe During WWI
• 2 Million AEF Troops Served Under General John J. Pershing in France
• Helped Win WWI!!!
John J. Pershing
• General of the AEF
• British and French Forces Asked the U.S. to Join their Armies
• Woodrow Wilson and Pershing REFUSED! WHY?
Woodrow Wilson• President Wilson Did
NOT Want the AEF to Fight With the Allied Forces
• Wanted U.S. Forces to Fight Separately
• Wilson Wanted U.S. to be the Hero and Play a Major Role at the Peace Table at the End of WWI
Women’s Roles During WWI
• Close to 50,000 Women Served in World War I:– American Red Cross– Clerical Workers in
the Navy– Marine Corps & Army– Nurses– Interpreters– Switchboard
Operators– Entertained Troops– Drove Ambulances
African Americans Serve• 400,000 African
American Men Served During WWI
• Faced Racial Discrimination from White American Soldiers (Not European Soldiers)
• U.S. Created Segregated Combat Units for African Americans (Plessy vs. Ferguson 1896)
The U.S. Convoy System• German U-Boats Were
Sinking Supply & Troop Ships Across the Atlantic Ocean!
• Convoy System:– A Heavy Guard of
Destroyers Escorted Merchant Ships Across the Atlantic in Groups
• Hut, Hut, Hike! Handoff the Football and Follow Your Blockers!
Other Military Tactics• To Protect From
German U-Boats, the U.S. Laid 70,000 Mines in the North Sea
• Minefield Was Over 180 Miles Long
• Used Magnetic and Contact Mines
• FINDING NEMO!!!
Finding Nemo Mine Scene!!!
By the Way….. Found Nemo!
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk• Ended War Between
Central Powers and Russia!
• When Russians Dropped Out of the War, Germany Sent Troops to Invade France in the West
• Wanted to Win the War Before U.S. Arrived!
The German Plan
Germans Push For France
• Germans Launch an Attack to End WWI Before American Troops Arrive
• Germany Gets to the Marne River (Again) (50 Miles Away from Paris)
• 1 Million American Troops Aid French and British Forces to STOP the German Advance!
America Arrives• May 28th, 1918 the AEF
Liberates the Town of Cantigny, France (Lifts Allies Morale!)
• AEF and French Forces STOP German Attack on the Town of Chateau-Thierry, France
• Battle of Belleau Wood:– American and French
Forces Go on the Attack!– Retake Land (Forest) in
France That Germany Had Taken
Battle of Belleau Wood
2nd Battle of the Marne River
• Germans Attacked for 3 Days Attempting to Take Paris
• The Allies & Americans STOPPED the Attack! Allies Started to Push the Germans Back!
• Why Was the 2nd Battle of the Marne the Turning Point of WWI?
The Meuse-Argonne Offensive
• The Final “Push” 1918
• Goal Was to Push German Forces BACK into Germany!
• 1.2 Million Allied Soldiers Fought
• After Months of Fighting, Germany Lost All Land it Had Gained!
Meuse Argonne Offensive
Meuse-Argonne Cemetery
26,000+ U.S. Soldiers Killed in the Meuse Argonne
Offensive
WWI American Heroes• Alvin York:
– Attempted to Avoid the Draft
– Refused to Bear Arms (Religion)
– Attacked and Killed 25 German Machine Gunners
– 132 Germans Surrendered to this 1 Man in the Trenches!
• Eddie Rickenbacker:– U.S. Pilot Who Shot
Down 26 Enemy Planes– Awarded the Medal of
Honor
Alvin York’s Grave
• 4 African American Combat Units Received Recognition:– 369th, 370th, 371st, 372nd
Regiments– Awarded France’s
Highest Honor: The Croix de Guerre
• 369th Regiment Spent More Time on the Front Lines Than ANY Other US Unit
• What Awards Did the U.S. Give Them???
African American Heroes
Reasons Why Germany Surrenders!
• Lost the Meuse Argonne Offensive (Didn’t Want the Allies to Keep Going & Take Over Germany!)
• Germany’s Navy Mutinied (Refused to Fight Any More)
• The Central Powers Dropped Out (Didn’t Want to Lose Land)
• Germany’s Kaiser (Leader) Resigned
Armistice• Comes From Latin:
– Arma = Weapons– Statium = Stopping
• Warring Countries Agreed to STOP Fighting
• Armistice Was Signed on November 11th, 1918 @ 11:00AM– 11th Hour– 11th Day– 11th Month– WWI Was OVER!
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
World War I Deaths• 8.5 Million People
Died During WWI (1914-1918)
• Approximately 21 Million Were Wounded
• Worst Death Totals/War in the History of the World (Until WW2)
World War I Casualties
WWI Casualties
• Most Casualties:– Germany
(1.8 Million)– Russia
(1.7 Million)
• Least Casualties:– US (116,000)– Why is That???
Essential Questions:
• Do governments have the right to draft its’ citizens? Why or Why Not?
• As a citizen, are YOU responsible to serve YOUR country?