The M.A.I.N. Causes of WWI

1. MILITARISM

“I and the army were born for one another.”

-Kaiser Wilhelm

Militarism- policy of glorifying ones armies

MILITARISM• What is it?

– Policy of glorifying military power and keeping a standing army always prepared for war

– Armed forces as tool of diplomacy

• Which European country is strongest?– From mid-15th century to start of 20th

century, Great Britain because of navy– BUT by 1890, Germany has largest

army reserve and has begun building navy to rival that of Great Britain

2. ALLIANCES

ALLIANCES• What is it?

– European nations signed that committed them to support one another if attacked

• Why did nations agree to this?– Security through balance of power with

peacetime alliances• Triple Entente (Great Britain, France, Russia)• Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary,

Ottoman Empire)– BUT alliances are like “dominos” – once one

country becomes involved, their allies have no choice but to fight!

TRIPLE ALLIANCE

TRIPLE ALLIANCE

TRIPLE ENTENTE

The Triple Entente will become the Allies and the Triple Alliance will become

the Central Powers!

3. IMPERIALISM

• The battle over land and resources in Africa led to a bitter rivalry among European nations.

• Possessions of colonies displayed nationalism, militarism, and prestige.

IMPERIALISM• What is it?

– Policy of extending a nation’s authority over other countries by social, economic, political, or military means

• Why is this significant?– European nations were competing for raw materials

and new markets in Africa and Asia• EX: Great Britain vs. Germany vs. France

How is Imperialism related to Militarism?

4. NATIONALISM

There were several reasons for the growing nationalism in Europe. There was increased competition between nations for materials and markets, the

glory of having the best military and also having colonial assets.

NATIONALISM• What is it?

– Belief that people should be loyal mainly to their nation

• National interests and national unity should be placed ahead of global cooperation

• Foreign affairs should be guided by self-interest• Impact?

– France and Germany are competitors – won’t become Allies!

– Russia’s role as protector leads them into the war– Ethnic groups want their own nations

M.A.I.N.

Not sure how you’ll remember all of this? Just remember that these are the MAIN

causes of WWI!

M – Militarism

A – Alliances

I – Imperialism

N – Nationalism

The Spark: An Assassination

The Balkan region was considered “the powder keg of Europe”

• Lots of nationalists feelings and ethnic uprisings

• Russia: access to the Mediterranean Sea

• Germany: a rail link to the Ottoman Empire

• Austria-Hungary: accused Serbia of undermining its rule over Bosnia

• June of 1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, gunned down by a Serbian radical

The Archduke is assassinated in Sarajevo in June 1914

The Alliances Fall

1. Austria-Hungary (with prodding from Germany) declares war on Serbia

2. As a Serbian ally, Russia declares war on Austria-Hungary

3. Germany declares war on Russia

4. France declares war on Austria-Hungary and Germany

5. Germany invades Belgium to knock France out of the War

6. Great Britain declare wars on Austria-Hungary and Germany

History Channel Video Clip!

The Fighting BeginsThe Alliance system pulled one

nation after another into the conflict – The Great War had

begun

• August 3, 1914: Germany invaded Belgium

• Plan called for a quick strike through Belgium to Paris, France

• Next, Germany would attack Russia

• Designed to prevent a two-front war for Germany

• However - Great Britain declares war on Germany upon the Belgian invasion and France does not easily fall

The Schlieffen Plan

The War Becomes A Stalemate

• Unable to save Belgium, the Allies retreated • halted the German advance in

September of 1914

• By spring 1915, two systems of trenches crossed France from Belgium to Switzerland

• 3 types of trenches: front line, support, and reserve

• Between enemy trenches was “no man’s land” – barren expanse of mud and barbed wire

• Armies fought to gain only yards of ground in trench warfare

British soldiers standing in mud

History Channel Video Clip!

The conditions in these trenches were horrific; aside from the fear of bombardment, soldiers also had to contend with the mud, flooding and

disease associated with living in such a harsh environment.

Fighting in 1914

The World War I Battlefield

New Weapons

• Neither side able to make significant advances • Each side turned to new weapons like poison gas• Value limited, both sides developed gas masks• Rapid-fire machine guns in wide use • Artillery and high-explosive shells, enormous destructive

power

History Channel Video Clip!

New Problems of War

• Troops amidst filth, pests, polluted water, poison gas, dead bodies

• Physical problems include dysentery, trench foot, trench mouth

• New weapons and tactics lead to horrific injuries

• Constant bombardment, battle fatigue produce “shell shock”

AMERICA QUESTIONS NEUTRALITY

Section 2

Prelude to War – Election of 1912

1. William Taft - incumbent, Republican• laissez-faire, Gilded Age politics

2. Woodrow Wilson - surprise candidate, Democrat• progressivist, pro-small business and competition

3. Teddy Roosevelt - progressive “Bull Moose” party, best showing ever by 3rd party

• militant anti-trust politics

4. Eugene Debs - socialist, won 6% of the vote - the most votes won by a socialist candidate in US history

• peaceful overthrow of capitalism

Divided Loyalties

1. Socialists (overthrow capitalism), pacifists, many ordinary people against the U.S. entering war

2. Naturalized citizens concerned about the war’s effect on their country of birth

3. Anglophiliacs: people with a strong admiration or enthusiasm for England, its people, and all things English

The Economics of War

• U.S. had loaned extensive $$ to Western Europe• U.S. has stronger economic ties with Allies than with

Central Powers• Even though U.S. was officially neutral:

– U.S. traded heavily with Britain and France – Complied with a British embargo on trading with Germany

United States Neutrality• Germany using “unrestricted submarine warfare”

– Any ship traveling in waters around Great Britain was subject to attack by U-boats

– Initially U-boats attacked only military and merchant ships

• May 7, 1915: Passenger ship Lusitania struck by German torpedo and sinks in 18 minutes

– 1,198 of the 1,959 passengers go down with the ship, including 120 Americans

• Germany agreed to stop attacking passenger ships if U.S. stopped trading with Britain

History Channel Video Clip!

The Zimmerman Note• February 1917 - discovery of Zimmermann Note

• Secret message from German diplomat Arthur Zimmerman to the Mexican government

• Germany proposed Mexico attack the U.S.

• Promised the Mexican government control of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, territory that had once belonged to Mexico

• Germans hoped that a war with Mexico would keep U.S. out of war in Europe

• American public called for war against Germany

A Declaration of War

• Germany asks U.S. to get Britain to end food blockade– otherwise will renew unrestricted

submarine war– Britain declines

• Kaiser announces U-boats will sink all ships in British waters

• Four unarmed American merchant ships sunk

• April 2, 1917: U.S. declares war

AMERICAN POWER TIPS THE BALANCE

The United States mobilizes a large army and navy to help the Allies achieve victory.

Mobilizing An Army

• Selective Service Act - men register and are randomly chosen for service

• African Americans are put in segregated units; excluded from navy, marines

• Women in put into Army, Navy, and Marines as nurses, secretaries, and phone operators

U.S. Naval Contributions

• Convoy system—destroyers escort merchant ships across Atlantic– losses from U-boat attacks drop dramatically

• Navy helps lay mines across North Sea, keeps U-boats out of Atlantic

• By 1918: Germans have difficulty replacing boats and trained submariners

The “Doughboys”

• After 2.5 years of fighting, Allied forces are exhausted and demoralized

• U.S. troops bring numbers, enthusiasm, and supplies

• “Doughboys” greatly impressed by European cities, especially Paris, but horrified by the battle conditions

Allies Stop German Advance

Russian Revolution and overthrow of the Tsar results in major changes

• Russia pulls out of war 1917• Germans shift entire focus to Western

Front–come within 50 miles of Paris

• Americans help stop German advance, turn tide against Central Powers

THE WAR AT HOMEWWI spurs social, political, and economic changes in the U.S.

Changing the Economy

• Economy shifts from producing consumer goods to war supplies– Congress gives Wilson direct

control of much of the economy

• War Industries Board is main regulatory body– mass-production,

standardization of products

• Conservation measures adopted by public in every aspect of life

A New War Economy

• Industrial wages rise but so do costs of food and housing

• Large corporations make enormous profits• Unions boom from dangerous conditions,

child labor, unfair pay• Wilson creates National War Labor Board

to settle disputes

War Financing

• U.S. spends $35.5 billion on war effort

• 1/3 paid through taxes, 2/3 borrowed through sale of war bonds

The Committee on Public Information

• Propaganda—biased communication designed to influence people

• Former muckraker heads Committee on Public Information

• Visual works and printed matter to promote war

• Get volunteers to speak about war, distribute materials

Women in the War

• Many women take jobs in heavy industry previously held by men

• Many do volunteer work for war effort

• Some active in peace movement

• Women’s effort bolsters support for suffrage - 19th Amendment finally passes

Anti-Immigrant Hysteria

• Attacks on immigrants increase, especially those from Germany, Austria-Hungary

• Espionage and Sedition Acts passed –person can be fined, imprisoned for interfering

with war effort, speaking against government

• Violates 1st Amendment; used to prosecute loosely defined antiwar activities

THE WAR ENDSWith the fall of Germany, the Allies must decide on peace terms

The Collapse of Germany - 1918

The End of WWI• Nov 3, 1918: Austria-Hungary surrenders• German soldiers and sailors rebel, socialists establish a

new German Republic• November 11, 1918: Germany signs armistice (truce)

The Final Toll

• World War I bloodiest war in history to date• More than half of the 22 million deaths are civilians• 20 million more are wounded • 10 million people become refugees

Wilson’s Fourteen Points

President Woodrow Wilson presents a plan for peace:

• 1-5: why countries could declare war• 6-13: new boundary changes

o Self-determination - ethnic groups, not the winning countries, would decide what nation to belong to

• 14: creates the League of Nationso International organization for nations to discuss and

settle their problems without going to war o “Collective Security”

An Uneasy PeaceLeaders of four major Allied countries all had

different ideas of peace treaty

1. France: punish Germany; reparations

2. British: punish Germany, but not weaken it

3. Italy: gain territory (mostly ignored during peace talks)

4. US: Wilson’s 14 Points

The Treaty of Versailles - 1919

Several issues that needed to be dealt with:1. Debt

2. Military Threats

3. Territorial Disputes

4. Blame

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Issue #1: DEBT

• Britain and France heavily in debt • Did not want to pay– felt they weren’t responsible

Treaty Solution: Reparations • Germany and Central Powers held responsible

for ALL financial losses• Germany ordered to pay reparations in excess of

6.6 Billion!!

$

Issue #2: MILITARY THREATS

Many feared another Great War

Treaty Solution:• Rhineland (German industrial center) demilitarized• German army capped at 100,000 men

– Volunteers only• German Navy destroyed• Germany use of tanks and heavy artillery FORBIDDEN• League of Nations created

What country ISN’T in the League of Nations?

Issue #3: TERRITORIAL DISPUTES

Many areas of Europe were in political turmoil and some empires no longer existed

Treaty Solutions:• Germany lost 13.5% of its total land • France gains back Alsace-Lorraine• 15 new nations are created

Issue #4: BLAME

People wanted to be able to put the blame somewhere.

Treaty Solution:• The War-Guilt Clause

– Germany had to accept the blame for the entire war

– Had to admit that they were solely responsible for atrocities committed during the war

Signing of the Treaty

Weaknesses of Treaty

• Germany couldn‘t pay back reparations• Germany hated the war guilt clause• Russia felt ignored

– Not invited to meeting; had suffered the highest number of causalities

– Lost more territory than Germany and was determined to get it back

• U.S. Senate voted down membership in the League of Nations– Most Americans wanted nothing to do with Europe’s

problems