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Chapter 26.4
THE WAR ENDS
The United States
 American Neutrality
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American stayed neutral in the early years of the war
Many people openly supported the allies
President Woodrow Wilson did not want to get involved in a conflict across the Atlantic
 Trouble on the Seas
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Germany had a policy called unrestricted submarine warfare
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Germany attack a civilian ship The Lusitania and killed 1,200 people and 120 US citizens
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they sunk 2 more ships killing more US citizens
America was angry and Germany agreed to end their policy of unrestricted submarine
warfare
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Germany would attack any ship leaving or coming to a British port
 even civilian boats because GB would use civilian boats to transport supplies to the troops
Germany would attack with submarines or “U-boats”
Useful war tactic because GB was an island
They feared the US would enter the war
By 1917 Germany realized they had to defeat the British Navy to win the war so they went
back on their agreement with the US and began firing at civilian ships
The US Enters the War
 The Zimmermann Notes
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The Zimmermann Notes provided the last push the US needed to
enter the war
The note was between German diplomat Arthur Zimmermann and
Mexico officials in which Germany proposed Mexico attack the US
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In return Mexico would gain the US states of TX, AZ, and NM
 Which once belonged to them
Germans hoped that an American war with Mexico would keep the
US out of the war in Europe
The note was discovered and the American people were angered and
calling for war
The America’s not only sympathized with the Allied powers cause but
they benefited financially from them by selling millions of dollars of
war goods to the Allies.
April 1917 the US entered the war on the side of the Allied Powers
The End of Fighting
 A New German Offensive
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Germany knew that the US entering the war would drastically change
the chances of the Allies winning so they needed to weaken the Allies
before US had time to send troops over
With Russia out of the war Germany focused on the west with France
and GB
In March 1918 Germany sent all of their troops to the Western Front
Germany made great advances on this campaign and came within 40
miles of the capital of France, Paris.
By the end of June Germany lost 800,000 men in this campaign
American arrived in France by the end of June 1918 and discouraged
the Germans from advancing further
The End of Fighting
 German Collapse
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In reality the American intervention during WWI had mostly a psychological impact on the
Germans, not a military one.
In the 2nd Battle of Marne the Allied powers stopped the German defenses
Once the Americans entered the Allies began winning and making great advances pushing
Germany out of France
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In October 1918 the Allies broke through the heavily fortified Hindenburg Line
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Three well developed and defended systems of trenches
From Arras to Laffaux, near Soissons on the Aisne River
After this break through the German leaders approached the Allies seeking an armistice- a
truce
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The Allied powers went on the offensive
With the combined effect of aircrafts, tanks, and new soldiers
Many Germans gave up without a fight knowing that they were now fighting a loosing battle
By this time the other Central Powers had admitted defeat
 Turkey October 20th 1918
 Austria-Hungary Nov 3rd 1918
November 11th 1918 peace terms were agreed upon and the War ended
Eyewitness account
A Difficult Peace
 Differing Allied Goals
 Even though war was easily stopped on the battle fields the countries leaders still
had to come to a formal peace agreement
 Before the war ended Woodrow Wilson proposed his 14 Points for world peace
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Most of the Allie countries disagreed with Wilson and all had different plans
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Reduction of weapons
The rights of all people to choose their own gov’t
Creating an organization in which the world’s nations would join together to
protect each other aggressors- League of Nations
French leader, Clemenceau, wanted to punish Germany and make them pay for the
damage they caused
GB leader, Lolyd, wanted to punish Germany but he didn’t want to weaken them
so much that they couldn’t help stop Russia from spreading communism
Italian leader, Orlando, wanted to gain more land for his nations but was very
much ignored by the other leaders
A Difficult Peace
 The Treaty of Versailles
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Germany was humiliated at the terms of the treaty but had no other choice to sign
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Germany was forced to pay an enormous amount of money to the war’s victims
Germany was forced to take full responsibility for the war
Germany had to limit the size of it’s military
Germany had to return conquered land to France and Russia
German land was taken to form the new nation of Poland
Germany’s colonies around the world were given to various countries around the world
They signed on June 28th 1919
The Treaty crushed the German economy and created bitterness that would effect German
politics and WWII
The Treaty created Wilson’s League of Nations
LN main goals were to encourage international cooperation and to keep and maintain peace
between nations
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LN excluded Germany
However, the US gov’t did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles so they did not enter into the
League of Nations
 Largely weakened the LN in years to come
A Difficult Peace
 Other Treaties
 Separate Treaties were made with other Central Power countries and made
important changes to Europe.
 Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire was spilt up forming the independent
nations of Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and Turkey.
 German territories in Africa and the Pacific Ocean were given to other countries
to control
 In the Middle East former Ottoman lands were turned into mandates- territories
to be ruled by European powers. They were suppose to rule them until they could
rule themselves but really they just became colonies
 Syria and Lebanon became French mandates
 Palestine and Iraq became British mandates
 1917 Britain issued the Balfour Declaration which favored the establishment a
Jewish state in Palestine
 British created Transjordan from the Palestine Mandate and named Abdullah the
first ruler
The Cost of the War
 Human Cost
 WWI was one of the most devastating conflicts the world had
ever seen
 9 million soldiers died and 7 million civilians
 Almost entire generation of men died or were wounded in war
 In the spring of 1918 influenza swept across the entire globe
 It was able to spread because of the crowded military
conditions and the men returning home
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50 million died worldwide
The Cost of War
 Economic Costs
 Most of the fighting happened in France, Belgium, and Russia
and it ruined farmland and their economies
 The war cost Europe it’s place as a dominate power
 US and Japan prospered in Europe's decline
 Political Changes
 WWI caused widespread political upheaval
 Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, and Ottoman Empire were
overthrown
 This would change the world in the years to come
The Cost of War
 Unrest in Colonies
 The colonist who helped fight in the war heard the Allied
leaders speak of democracy and freedom and believed they
would get their freedom as well
 They soon found out that they would not get their freedom and
that the Allies just spilt up the Central Powers colonies
amongst themselves
WWI Cause and Effect