World War 1
Chapter 21
SHORT & LONG Term Causes
M A N I A
Militarism Alliances Nationalism Imperialism Assassination
Archduke Francis Ferdinand
June 28, 1914, Ferdinand travels to Bosnia First attempt on his life fails and the conspirators
flee Later in the day a lone assassin stumbles across
the Archduke and his wife Gavrilo Princip, 19 year old Serbian shoots and kills
the Archduke and his wife Princip was a member of a Serbian Nationalist
group called “The Black Hand” Austria-Hungary didn’t know if Serbia was involved
and didn’t care
Outbreak of War
Austria-Hungary demands that Serbia halt all military action!
Serbia (knowing that Russia was an ally) says no way…
Austria-Hungary tells Germany it needs there help Germany and Russia are now in a standoff over
something that doesn’t involve them Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and Czar Nicholas of
Russia are cousins and try to talk the problem down but it is too late, the war machine is in motion
Outbreak of War
Germany quickly declared war on its neighbor France
Great Britain in defense of France declared war on Germany
All of Europe was at war within a month of a seemingly minor assassination: The Great War had begun
Allied Powers Central Powers
France (FR) Great Britain (GB) Russia (RU) US (much later) Italy (IT) (after they
betray A-H)
Germany (DE) Austria-Hungary
(AH) Bulgaria (BG) Ottoman Empire
(OE)
Page 629-630
1. What was the German war plan?
2. What was the first major battle on the Western Front?
3. What realization did both sides come to very quickly once the war began?
4. What was no-mans land?
5. Explain trench warfare.
German War Plan
Schlieffen Plan Called for Germany to fight a two front
war so that its borders were both protected
German War Plan
Battle of the Marne
DE had invaded FR through BE (much tougher than expected)
As DE pushed into FR they were fought back 40 miles
All sides expected a quick end, they immediately knew they were wrong.
Trench Warfare
Each side would dig out long ditches where soldiers would stay for protection. Every so often the enemy would charge through no-mans land to attack. They would be fought off with machine gun fire. Made for very long and drawn out battles. Each side was simply trying to outlast the other.
No-Mans Land
Area of land between enemy trenches that had been blown up and destroyed. Usually was full of barbed-wire and land mines.
If you survived…
Trench conditions were horrendous Rats Disease Flood waters Bodies of fallen soldiers remained for
days until fighting slowed
New Weapons of War
Machine Guns Tanks Poison Gas Submarines Airplanes
Machine Guns
Tanks
Poison Gas
Submarines
Airplanes
Zeppelin
Battles of Somme
DE 5th Army had 1 mill troops in FR fighting about 200,000 FR
60,000 GB died in 1 day Nearly 1 mill die over 4 mo. At Verdun, longest battle of the war,
500,000 dead and another 500,000 wounded
SAT Sentence Completion:Although President Wilson wanted the
American people to remain neutral in heart and mind, their ______________ soon became ____________ when the US rallied for war against the Central Powers.a. ambivalence…clearb. bias…evidentc. apathy…obscuredd. indifference… axiomatice. penchant… vague
Wilson’s Policy
Wilson wanted the US to remain neutral campaign promise
we continued to trade w/ countries on both sides
Why was it difficult for many Americans to remain neutral?
30% of the pop - immigrants or kids of immigrants still cared about their heritage.
Most sided with the Allies, mostly bc of GB. shared a culture / language.
Germany’s War Plan
DE had built a “war zone” around GB warning that if you sailed into it you were subject to be attacked by their U-Boats.
Wilson was not happy with DE & warned them not to sink US liners.
05/07/15
DE U-boats sink the Lusitania, a passenger ship carrying civilians (& supplies)
128 Ams on board die Wilson demanded DE not sink civilian
ships
William Jennings Bryan
Sec of State Argued that Wilson making demands
or ultimatums to countries @ war voided US neutrality.
Resigned due to his disagreement w/ Wilson.
Sussex Pledge
After the sinking of the Lusitania, Wilson threatened to cut ties w/ DE
DE wanted to keep the US out of the war so they agreed to not sink civilian ships Sussex Pledge
Truly, the US was not neutral…we sold $500 million worth of arms to the Allies
Nat’l Defense Act (1916)
Increased troops to 175,000 w/ a goal of 223,000 (Army)
Nat’l Guard was set at 450,000 $313 million to build up the Navy Wilson offered a “peace without
victory” but both sides refused
US enters the Great War page 635-636
1. What did Wilson do in response to Germany resuming Unrestricted Submarine Warfare?
2. What was the Zimmerman Note?3. What argument did Wilson make to
Congress to persuade them to declare war?
4. What was the Selective Service Act?
Decoding a Message
February 22, 1917To: von EckhardtMexico City
British crack top secret code. U.S. press may leak German plot with Mexico. Prepare to leave embassy on short notice.
DE resume sub warfare
Wilson armed merchant ships in the war zone
Cut diplomatic ties w/ DE 5 ships were sunk
Zimmerman Note
An intercepted message from DE to MX
asking for MX assistance offering NM, TX, & AZ in return
Wilson goes to Congress
Wilson asked Congress to declare war, not bc of sub warfare & Zimmerman Note BUT for the betterment of the world.
Selective Service Act
Men 21-30 had to register for the draft, later changed to 18-45
2.8 million men were drafted 4.8 million served 370,000 Afr Ams served 10,000 Nat Ams
US arrives
Training took time, 1st US troops arrive in FR, 06/1917 under Gen. Pershing
As US troop level rose they built docks, RR’s, & phone lines to help troops communicate
Am. women worked hospitals US ships used a convoy system to
cross the Atlantic & not 1 life was lost
RU Rev
RU had been badly beaten by GER on the E. Front
Workers in Petrograd protested the excessive waste being used for war
Workers couldn’t afford food & demanded the war end
Czar is overthrown, a provisional gov’t is established
The new Provisional Gov’t makes the mistake of continuing the war, angering the ppl of RU
RU Rev
The Bolsheviks (Communists) led by V. Lenin seized power in RU from Provisional Gov’t
Treaty was signed GER & RU - out of the war by 03/1918
(Treaty of Brest-Litovsk) RU is out of the WWI but would remain in Civil War
for 4 yrs White Army (supported by the allies) wants to
restore the Czar v. Red Army (supported by GER) wants Communism to succeed
Communists take over RU and control all major industry from banks, mines, RR’s, & farms.
V. Lenin
The Bolsheviks
The War at Home
Cost of War… $35 bill
Beating the Central Powers… Priceless Liberty & Victory bonds
Posters, parades, rallies Taxes Fed war bd’s
Conserving Resources
Food Administration & Fuel Administration Regulating production and supply of
these resources 1 - to increase production 2 - to conserve existing food supplies
Ex. guaranteed farmers high prices
War Industries Board
Gov’ts central war agency Allocating scarce materials,
establishing production priorities, & setting prices
Some were critical of Wilson’s programs Damage free enterprise?
Mobilizing Workers
Took advantage of depleted work force to get higher wages & other benefits
Nat’l War Labor Board Arbitrated disputes btwn workers & employees
Women’s work force up by 6% 19th Amendment
The Great Migration Racial violence still serious problem
Influencing Attitudes
Committee on Public Info Propaganda campaign to encourage Ams to support
WWI Fact-based material at 1st then propaganda
GER = evil monsters Look out for spies!
“patriotic organizations” spied, phone tapped, & opened other ppl’s mail
Anti-GER sentiment Sauerkraut = liberty cabbage; Dachshunds = liberty pups;
Hamburger = Salisbury steak
US Congress opts for "freedom fries” March 2003
Republican representative Bob Ney, whose committee is in charge of the eateries, said the action was "a small but symbolic effort to show the strong displeasure of many on Capitol Hill with the actions of our so-called ally, France".
The move - following the lead of a North Carolina restaurant - reflects the anti-French sentiment among some lawmakers who feel President Jacques Chirac is betraying the US by opposing its policy on disarming Iraq.France has said it will use its veto to block a second UN resolution to allow war to commence with Iraq.
“Freedom Fries”, “Freedom Toast”
Suppressing Opposition
Espionage Act & Sedition Act Outlawed acts of treason and made it a
crime to criticize the gov’t Eugene Debs (Socialists) - sentenced
to 10 yrs in prison for making an anti-war speech
Violation of the 1st Amendment? Not according to Schenck v. United
States (1919)
The Last GER Offensive
With RU done the GER’s focused on the W. Front
03/21/1918 - 1 million GER troops launched a major offensive 6,000 artillery pieces
“Big Bertha” - heavy gun - 2,100 lbs shell - 9 mi
Late May - GER had pushed the Allies back to the Marne River just 50 mi from Paris
The Last GER Offensive
The intro of US troops was the difference
Led by Marshal Ferdinand Foch US & FR troops stopped the GER at Chateau-Thierry on June 3-4 3 other villages recaptured
GER advance halted. Paris SAVED!
The Last GER Offensive
July 15 - GER threw everything into a final assault around Reims
Allied lines held 3 days later - the charge pushed GER
back Tide turned in favor of Allies http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/ma
ps_western.html
Allied Victory
Am troops had given much needed boost to the Allied forces
By late 1918 they began to push the GER back
GER was losing its occupied terr in FR & the GER Army and Navy could see that defeat was close
Armistice!
By October 1918 GER had broken into riots and troops were refusing to listen to orders
The Kaiser fled GER to the NL Armistice Day: November 11, 1918
the cease fire goes into effect…(on the 11th hour the 11th day of the 11th month the war was over!)
London, England
Points 1-5 Int’l Concerns 1.Open covenants of peace 2.Freedom of the seas 3.The removal of all economic barriers
4. national armament reduction
5.Adjustment of colonial claims
Points 6-13 Specifics
6. RU should be evacuated 7. BE should be evacuated 8. FR freed and restored 9. IT borders redrawn 10. Division of AH – self determination
11. Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro should be evacuated and restored
12. Limitations on Turkey 13. Polish independence
14th -League of Nations
A general assoc of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of pol independence and terr integrity to great & small states alike.
Precursor to the UNITED NATIONS!
Treaty Of Versailles
Officially ends WW1 Divides GER colonies and Ottoman Empire
colonies among Allies GER loses Alsace-Lorraine to FR (and Saar,
major industrial center) GER had to disarm, no military GER had to pay war reparations to
victorious countries and take fault for causing the war
Paris Peace Conference“The Big Four”
(L - R) PM David Lloyd George, Premier Vittorio Orlando, FR Premier Georges Clemenceau, Pres Woodrow Wilson
The US after the War
Wilson came home to resistance to the Treaty (thought it was far too harsh)
Wilson went out on a speaking tour to promote the L of N & his plans, on his journey he became sick & returned to DC & had a stroke
Following his stroke he was not an effective Pres
The Treaty of Versailles was never ratified by the US, the L of N was established w/o the US as a member
League of Nations
Lasting Effect of the Great War
Up to 10 million dead, 21+ million wounded Most of EU was in ruins Food Shortages plagued war torn countries Middle East was divided between FR and GB
mandates GB declared its support for a Jewish homeland
in Palestine (problems to come) Balfour Declaration
US - postwar recession race riots
Ruins of Chateau Thierry
Damaged mill at Courcelles, France
Verdun, France
Paris, France