Download World War One Chapter Two

The First World War:
The industrial Powers Collide: Why were the Balkan
States important?
• The “spark” that ignited WWI was the assassination of the
arch duke of Austria-Hungary,
• The underling causes are, as we have discussed more
complex.
• The importance of the Balkan states, of which Serbia was a
member, lay in their geographic location.
• They were positioned adjacent to the straits that link the
Black Sea to the Med.
• Therefore all trade from Austria-Hungary travelling down
the Danube, from Southern Russia had to pass through
Turkish controlled waters to reach global markets.
• Threats to this region therefore were taken very seriously
by the major imperial powers involved.
The Balkan States
• The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire had destabilized the Balkan
region.
• • As a result of the shift in the balance of power in the region,
strong feelings of nationalism had developed among the Balkan
States.
• •The regular ethnic uprisings and the wars of independence against
Turkey following the collapse of the Ottoman empire had left the
region deeply unstable, this was compounded by the development
of ultranationalist movements inside the Balkan states.
• •The competing interests of the involved nation states culminated
with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne
which Austria used as a pretext to invade Serbia.
• •The Austro-Hungarians thought that the danger of Russia entering
the conflict to protect Serbia would be balanced by Germany’s
promise to support Austria-Hungary if Russia interfered.
• This proved to be a gross miscalculation
The German Question
• The formation of Germany the upset the balance of power between
the major European nations.
• The unification of the German states brought more than 60 million
people together presenting the industrial potential to dominate the
rest of the European continent, with the right resources.
• By 1900 Germany had developed into an industrial giant. When
territorial expansion became essential to sustain industrialization and
economic growth, Germany began to come into conflict with the other
nation states of Europe.
• German expansion into Turkey and the Middle East was blocked by
Britain and France.
• German interest in S. America and the Philippines conflicted with the
USA.
• German interest in China and the acquisition of some Pacific islands
and some old colonial holdings in Africa did not give the German
people the position of global power or “a place in the sun” which the
Germans thought they deserved.
Realpolitik
• Realpolitik, from German: real “realistic”, “practical” or
“actual”; and Politik “politics”, refers to politics or
diplomacy based on practical considerations, rather than
ideological notions or moralistic premises.
• The term realpolitik is often used pejoratively to imply
politics that are coercive, amoral, or Machiavellian
• . Realpolitik is a theory of politics that focuses on
considerations of power, not ideals, morals, or principles.
• The term was coined by a German writer and politician in
the 19th century
• It has been defined as the principle on which nations act, in
their foreign policies, driven by their own interests and not
by altruism, friendship, idealism or solidarity
considerations.
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Weltpolitik
The "Weltpolitik" (world policy) strategy was adopted by Germany in the late 19th century,
replacing the earlier "Realpolitik" approach.
A German politician said "[i]n one word: we do not want to place anyone into the shadow,
but we also claim our place in the sun”
This was a more aggressive foreign policy which resulted in conflict between Germany and
foreign nations
The policy sought Germany's "place in the sun" commensurate with its rising industrial
strength, primarily by the creation of a colonial empire to rival those of other powers.
The most dramatic element in the policy was the construction of the High Seas Fleet, a navy
which sought to rival, or even exceed, the United Kingdom's Royal Navy in strength.
This led to an Anglo-German naval race where each sought to out-build the other in
Dreadnoughts.
Weltpolitik is a natural development springing from the nationalism that had influenced
Germany Whereas before nationalism had focused on attaining the unification of Germany,
when that was achieved German nationalists sought to increase Germany's international
power, and a colonial empire was thought to be an essential part of this.
Social Darwinism was popular at the time, and it stated that the idea of the survival of the
fittest applied to states as well as individuals. If a state did not strive to expand, it would
itself be weakened or destroyed.
This fed into the nationalism that already existed in Germany and prompted the greater
expansionism that Weltpolitik represented.
Think/Pair/Share: What are the positive and negative attributes of Realpolitik and
Weltpolitik? Do you see these government policies as over or do they still play a part on the
world stage? (T: 2 min, P: 3 min S: 5 min)
The Great War: Mobilization
• Initially the outbreak of war in 1914 was greeted on all sides with
enthusiasm and eager cheering mobs.
• People of this time had a tendency to romanticize the war. Most
people in all of the involved countries thought the war would be
over by Christmas of 1914.
• Unfortunately WWI would prove to be significantly different from
the wars of the past.
• It was the first modern industrial war where technology and newly
developed machinery would be systematically applied to the
destruction of human life.
• This resulted in loss of life and economic devastation on an
unprecedented scale.
• Within weeks of the declaration of war. Approximately 6 million
men were ready to fight.
• The creation of a military of the size necessary to compete in battle,
at this level, could only be sustained by the highly industrial nations.
• Nations that tried to compete on this level but had not first become
adequately industrialized suffered badly during WWI, this included;
Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Italy
The Western Front: Stalemate 1914
• The Germans attempt to a quick victory by following the
“Schlieffen Plan”
• German armies pushed through Belgium and attacked N.
France. This brought Britain into the war,
• Britain protests the violation of Belgian neutrality,
guaranteed by treaty
• The German Chancellor replied that the treaty is just a
chiffon de papier (a scrap of paper).
• How does this relate to Weltpolitik and/or Realpolitik?
• •The United Kingdom declares war on Germany in protest
to the invasion of Belgium.
• Germany anticipated this, however they believed that
French resistance would be wiped out before British Troops
could cross the English Channel.
• That did not happen.
Stalemate on the Western Front:
Failure of the Schlieffen Plan
• The French responded with an assault on the Germans in Alsace and
Lorraine.
• This attack was driven back with heavy losses to the French Army. the
German First and Second Armies were ordered to swing away from Paris
and surround the French armies caught between Paris and Verdun.
• •The Germans began to swerve to the southeast away from Paris, exposing
their right flank to the allies.
• •French Commander-In-Chief Joseph Joffre recognized the German armies’
error, and stopped the French and British withdrawal and attack the
Germans all along the front. Allied planes discovered the gap and reported
it to commanders on the ground.
• •The Allies exploited the break in the German lines, dispatching troops from
the BEF to join the French Army in pouring through the gap between the
two German armies,
• •Nevertheless, the German forces were close to achieving a breakthrough.
In one of the famous events of WWI the Sixth Army was assisted by 6,000
French reserve infantry troops ferried from Paris in around 600 taxi cabs.
Schlieffen Plan
Stalemate on the Western Front Continued: The end of the
Schlieffen Plan
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The following night the French launched a surprise attack against the Germans Second Army,
serving to further widen the gap between the German First and Second Armies. it looked as
though the German First and Second Armies would be totally encircled and destroyed.
General von Moltke suffered a nervous breakdown upon hearing of the danger. His
subordinates took over and ordered a general retreat to the Aisne River to regroup.
he German armies ceased their retreat after 65 km (40 miles), at a point north of the Aisne
River, where they dug in, preparing trenches that were to last for several years.
•The German retreat marked the abandonment of the Schlieffen Plan. Moltke is said to have
reported to the Kaiser: “Your Majesty, we have lost the war.”
• The Schlieffen Plan had failed.
•The line of battle moved north and west until it reached the sea.
•Armies dug in for the winter.
•By the Spring the Western Front had become a long series of entrenchments stretching
from the English Channel to Switzerland.
•This 400Km line remained relatively unchanged for the next three years. Though attempts
to break through would cost millions of lives.
•Despite the failure of the Schlieffen Plan the German position in the west was still strong.
•German forces occupied the industrial regions of Belgium and France. Initial attempts by
the French and British to throw the Germans back failed.
•The Germans decided to adopt a defensive strategy in the west and turned their attention
to the Russians in the East.
Stalemate on the Western Front: Battles of Attrition
• In 1916 both sides tried to seize control by massing men and equipment
against the narrow sections of the front .
• These attempts proved to be horrific in cost of lives.
• Infantry troops were slaughtered by artillery and machine-guns.
• These attacks went on and on sometimes for months, until shortages of
men created pauses, until more troops could be sent to the front.
• The first major battle of this type was Verdun.
• During 5 months of battle, over 600,000 men were killed. Nearly ½ of the
dead were German and Verdun remained in French hands.
• The Russians were involved in similar confrontations. the Bursilov offensive
though initially highly effective coast a million men and was the beginning
of the demoralization of the Russian army that eventually helped contribute
to the Russian Revolution.
• The next allied campaign was in the Somme . The British lost 50% of their
soldiers on the first day of what would be a 6 month battle. 57,470
casualties, including 19,240 dead—the bloodiest day in the history of the
British Army.
• The allies gained only 10 km failed to break the German lines, and paid for it
with the lives of 100’s of thousands of men, many of them Canadian.
The Eastern Front 1914-1918
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The length of the front in the East was much longer than in the West.
The theatre of war roughly extended to the Baltic Sea in the West and Moscow in the East, a
distance of 1,200 kms, and Saint Petersburg in the North and the Black Sea in the South, a
distance of more than 1,600 km.
This had an effect on the nature of the warfare. While World War I on the Western Front
developed into trench warfare, the battle lines on the Eastern Front were more fluid and
trenches never truly developed.
The greater length of the front ensured that the density of soldiers in the line was lower so
the line was easier to break.
Once broken, the sparse communication networks made it difficult for the defender to rush
reinforcements to the rupture in the line to mount a counteroffensive and seal off a
breakthrough.
There was also the terrain in the Eastern European often making it near impossible to
construct anything like the trench systems on the Western Front
On the Eastern front the side defending did not have the overwhelming advantages it had on
the Western front.
The war in the East began with the Russian invasion of East Prussia and the AustroHungarian province of Galicia. This turned into a disaster following the Battle of Tannenberg
in August 1914.
The second incursion was successful, with the Russians controlling almost all of Galicia by
the end of 1914. the Russians began to push toward the Austro-Hungarian border.
This Russian success in 1914 on the Austro-Russian border caused concern to the Central
Powers considerable German forces were moved East to take pressure off the Austrians.
At the end of 1914 the main focus of the fighting shifted to central part of Russian Poland.
The Eastern Front: 1915
• The Russian and Austro-Hungarian armies continued to fight in and near
the Carpathian Mountains throughout the winter of 1914–1915.
• •The Russian forces made some progress, crossing the Carpathians in
1915, but then the Germans sent relief and stopped further Russian
advance.
• •In 1915 the German command decided to make its main effort on the
Eastern Front, and transferred considerable forces there.
• •To eliminate the Russian threat the Central Powers began a successful
campaign in Galicia.
• After the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, the German and AustroHungarian troops in the Eastern Front functioned under a unified
command.
• •The offensive soon turned into a general advance and then a strategic
retreat by the Russian army.
• •By mid-1915, the Russians had been expelled from Russian Poland and
pushed hundreds of kms away from the borders of the Central Powers,
• This removed the threat of a Russian invasion of Germany or AustriaHungary.
• At the end of 1915 the main part of the front reached a line which in
general outline did not change until the Russian collapse in 1917.
The Eastern Front:1916-17
• In 1916 the Russians attempted a large counteroffensive under
the leadership of General Aleksey Brusilov (the Brusilov
Offensive).
• •The attack, aimed against the part of the front held by AustroHungarians, was initially a spectacular success largely because of
its use of storm troopers.
• A successful counterattack by German units halted the Russian
assault.
• • By 1917, the Russian economy finally neared collapse under
the strain of the war effort.
• •While the equipment of the Russian armies actually improved
due to the expansion of the war industry, the food shortages in
the major urban centres brought about civil unrest which led to
the abdication of the Tsar and the February Revolution.
The Eastern Front:1917-18
Russia exits the war, becomes the Soviet Union and signs the
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
• In addition to food shortages the poor leadership on the part of
some Russian military leaders compounded with the large war
casualties created disaffection and mutinous attitudes in the
army.
• •This anger was fuelled by Bolshevik (communist) agitators
• The very last offensive undertaken by the Russian Army in the
war was the brief and unsuccessful Kerensky Offensive in July
1917.
• •On November 29, 1917, the Communist Bolsheviks took power
under their leader Vladimir Lenin.
• Lenin’s new Bolshevik government tried to end the war but the
Germans demanded enormous concessions.
• •Finally, in March, 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed
and the Eastern Front ceased to be a war zone.
• The Germans were able to transfer some of their divisions to the
West, in order to mount an offensive in France in 1918.
Russia: Exit Stage Left
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Russia stayed in the war despite greater losses than any other power
By 1917 its industrial and agricultural resources could no longer sustain its armies.
•German victories had destroyed the Russian army even before the overthrow of the
Tsar in the spring of 1917.
•Over 3.6 million Russian soldiers had been killed, 2.1 million were captured and an
additional 2 million + had deserted.
•The tsarist government was replaced by two provisional governments. One led by
Prince Georgi Lvov and the other by Aleksandr Kerensky.
•Inflation reached 700% and a series of strikes broke out in June, that ended supplies
going to the front.
Food shortages became widespread.
•The inability of the provisional government to supply the people and the army led to
its overthrow
The October Revolution brought Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and the Bolsheviks to power.
Lenin’s promise of “Peace, land and bread” won the hearts of the Russian people .
•Lenin immediately pulled Russia out of the war signing the “Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on
3 March 1918.
In all, the treaty took away a third of Russia's population, half of her industry and ninetenths of her coal mines.
Total War: costs and consequences
• When World War One began all sides had counted on an
short and victorious war. This obviously was not the case.
• •In order to fund a protracted war effort, governments
began to take direct control of their domestic resources.
• •National employment agencies directed labour forces.
• •Women of all economic groups began to work outside the
home in real numbers for the first time.
• •Countries introduced conscription.
• •Laws were passed banning strikes and lockouts.
• •Governments passed laws rationing the use of food and
consumer goods.
• •Every aspect of the combatant countries social and
economic efforts were controlled by the government and
directed at the war effort.
• •This total devotion to victory is known as total war.
• Do you believe war justifies this level of Government
control?
World War I: The Middle East
• The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I was fought between primarily
the British and the Russians on the Allied side, and the Ottoman Empire and
Germans, on the other.
• •The Allied side also included the Arabs, and the Democratic Republic of
Armenia after the Russian Revolution of 1917.
• •Fighting began in1914; hostilities ended in1918 and a peace treaty was
signed in1920.
• •This theatre encompassed the largest territory of all the theatres of WWI.
• •It comprised four main campaigns:
• the Sinai and Palestine Campaign,
• the Mesopotamian Campaign,
• the Caucasus Campaign,
• the Dardanelles Campaign.
• •The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers due to a secret OttomanGerman Alliance .
• •This alliance threatened Russia's Caucasian territories and Britain's
communications with India and the East via the Suez Canal.
World War I: The Middle East, the
battles
• 1914 Mesopotamian Campaign: The campaign was fought
mainly in the Tigris River valley region of what is now Iraq
• •Caucasus Campaign: The Russian and Ottoman armies
fought in the Caucasus and eastern Anatolia (north-eastern
Turkey), with the Ottoman Empire suffering a crushing
defeat 1915 .
• The Ottoman forces were ultimately able to drive them
back.
• Ottoman repression of the Armenian population in
Anatolia, who had evinced pro-Russian sentiments, grew
into what is now called the Armenian Genocide.
• •The fighting was largely inconclusive as the focus of the
Ottoman and Russian war effort shifted to the Dardanelle
Campaign (Gallipoli) and the Eastern Front respectively.
World War I: The Middle East "Gallipoli".
• Dardanelles Campaign: the campaign took place on the Gallipoli
Peninsula on the European side of the Dardanelles and is commonly
referred to in Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland simply as
"Gallipoli".
• • The British and French mounted a combined operation with the
goal of capturing the Ottoman capital at Constantinople (now
Istanbul).
• •The campaign started with a Naval attempt to force the
Dardanelles.
• •This failed so the Allies decided to seize the European side of the
Dardanelles with an amphibious assault.
• •The troops were able to land but could not dislodge the Ottoman
forces
• After months of battle that caused the deaths of an estimated
131,000 soldiers, and 262,000 wounded the Allied forces withdrew.
• •The campaigning represented something of a coming of age for
Australia and New Zealand they view Gallipoli much the same way
Canadians look at Vimy Ridge.
World War I: The Middle East Continued
• Arab Revolt: The British, based in Egypt, began to incite the Arabs
living near the Red Sea and inland to revolt to expel the Ottoman
forces from what is the modern-day Saudi Arabian peninsula.
• •Sinai and Palestine Campaign: The Ottomans launched an
unsuccessful attack across the Sinai with the objective of destroying
or capturing the Suez Canal.
• •Arab Revolt: 1916, The planning and direction for this war was
largely the work of Lawrence of Arabia (a British Military agent).
The revolts success was aided by General Allenby's conquest of
Palestine in 1917
• •Sinai and Palestine Campaign: The Ottoman forces launched a
second attack across the Sinai with the objective of destroying or
capturing the Suez Canal, they failed in this objective
• •The British then went on the offensive, attacking east into
Palestine. Mesopotamian Campaign: British Empire forces
reorganized and captured Baghdad in March 1917.
• •Caucasus Campaign: Russia effectively withdrew from the war in
1917; the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk of 1918 eventually restored to
Ottoman Empire the territories it had lost to Russia
The US Enters the War
• The United States originally pursued a policy of isolationism in WWI, (avoiding
conflict).
• •This resulted in increased tensions with Berlin and London.
• •When a German U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania in 1915, with 128
Americans aboard, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson demanded an end to attacks on
passenger ships.
• •. Wilson repeatedly warned the U.S. would not tolerate unrestricted submarine
warfare, in violation of international law and U.S. ideas of human rights..
• • Other factors contributing to the U.S. entry into the war include suspected
German sabotage.
• •the Zimmermann Telegram intercepted by Britain and shown to the US was an illconceived plan for Mexico to join the war as Germany's ally against the United
States, should the U.S. join.
• •The proposal suggested, if the U.S. were to enter the war, Mexico should declare
war against the United States and enlist Japan as an ally.
• This would prevent the United States from joining the Allies and deploying troops
to Europe, and would give Germany more time for their unrestricted submarine
warfare program to strangle Britain's vital war supplies. In return, the Germans
would promise Mexico support in reclaiming Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.
Final Days: Cost of the War
• The final German attack an the Western Front began in the spring of 1918.
The came within 40 km of Paris before they ran out of resources.
• •That August the allies started to push the Germans back.
• •In retreat German and Austrian forces disintegrated, causing political
upheaval in Germany and Austria-Hungary.
• •The Austro-Hungarian empire dissolved into a number of successor states.
In total, it lost land to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Poland, Romania, and
Italy.
• •The Ottoman Empire disintegrated.
• • Germany was swept into chaos culminating with the Kaiser abdicating and
going into exile in Holland.
• •The Weimar Republic was proclaimed in Germany and Armistice terms
were signed on 11 of November 1918.
• •The War cost 10 million dead and 21 million wounded. It effectively
exterminated a significant portion of a generation of youth. Financial costs
were estimated at $330 billion.
• •The Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and Russian empires were gone and
German imperial holdings were placed under control of the League of
Nations.
The Ottoman Empire
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The Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire was the distribution of the huge
conglomeration of territories and peoples formerly ruled by the Sultan of the
Ottoman Empire
The partitioning was planned from the early days of the war, the Allies,
disagreed over their post-war aims and made several dual and triple
agreements.
After the occupation of Istanbul by British and French troops in November,
1918, the Ottoman government collapsed completely
However, the Turkish War of Independence forced the former Allies to return
to the negotiations.
The Allies and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey signed and ratified the
Treaty of Lausannein 1923, superseding the Treaty of Sèvres (1920) and
solidifying most territorial issues.
The partitioning created the modern Arab world including the Republic of
Turkey.
The League of Nations granted France mandates over Syria and Lebanon
It granted the UK: Palestine and Transjordan
. Parts of the Ottoman Empire on the Arabian Peninsula became parts of what
are today Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Brief history of British in Palistine
World War I: Post War
• In Jan. of 1919 the allied powers met in Paris.
• •The Major decisions that ultimately led to the Treaty of
Versailles were made by the “Big Three”: Great Britain (led
by David Lloyd George) France ( Georges Clemenceau) and
The USA (Woodrow Wilson) •Together they redrew the
political map of Europe.
• •They declared the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk void.
• •Germany went back to its 1914 borders
• •Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France.
• •Danzig was made a free city
• •The Polish corridor was created to give Poland access to
the sea through Prussia.
• •Wilson’s proposal to end the war and avoid future
conflicts consisted of 14 points. •
World War I: Post War (cont.)
• Economic reconstruction proved to be a complex task
• • Both the victors (excluding the US) and the vanquished faced economic
difficulties
• •Russia and France were the hardest hit
• Russia suffering in a civil war
• France being the victim of the Germans scorched-earth policy which
destroyed crops, burned houses, flooded mines, slaughtered livestock,
and left transportation routes sabotaged
• •Reparation coasts, demanded in the War Guilt clause of the Treaty of
Versailles, totalled $330 billion dollars.
• Germany could only pay if it was admitted to world markets but Britain
and France did not want a revived German industry
• •Germany was required to pay an initial 5 billion with a final total of 33
billion.
• Germans were in a state of shock and disbelief. People were led to believe
that the Treaty of Versailles was punitive and unjust. Germany didn’t even
participate in the negotiations, just told to sign the finished draft.
Major players WWI The Allies: Russia
• Russia
• Nicholas II- Tsar of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland.
• Nicholas II was the last Tsar of Russia from 1894 to 1917. Nicholas was
unable to manage a country in political turmoil and command its army in
World War I. While the war was still going on, because of the failure of
government to produce supplies, Russia was facing hardship, which create
massive riots and rebellions. People start to go on strikes in Petrograd. His
rule ended with the Russian Revolution.
• Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich - Commander-in-chief and viceroy in the
Caucasus
• Alexander Samsonov - Commander of the Russian Second Army for the
invasion of East Prussia
• Paul von Rennenkampf - Commander of the Russian First Army for the
invasion of East Prussia
• Nikolai Ivanov - Commander of the Russian army on the Southwestern
Front, responsible for much of the action in Galicia
• Aleksei Brusilov - Commander of the South-West Front, then provisional
Commander-in-Chief after the Tsar's abdication
Major Players WWI The Allies: France
• France
• Raymond Poincaré - President of France
• Georges Clemenceau- Prime Minister of France. At the end of the
war he largely represented the people of France in that he wanted
revenge upon the German nation.
• Clemenceau wanted to impose policies deliberately meant to cripple
Germany militarily, politically, and economically.
• Clemenceau's intentions were to weaken Germany’s military to be not
only for the time being, but permanently so that they would not be able to
invade France again.
• Joseph Joffre- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal of
France
• Ferdinand Foch- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal of
France
• Robert Nivelle- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army
• Philippe Pétain - Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal
of France
Major Players WWI The Allies: The UK
• United Kingdom
• George V- King of the United Kingdom and the other
Commonwealth Realms, Emperor of India
• H. H. Asquith - Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
• David Lloyd George- Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
• Lloyd George wanted the Germans to pay for causing the war.
• Douglas Haig - Commander-in-Chief of the BEF
• John Jellicoe- First Sea Lord
• Horatio Herbert Kitchener - Secretary of State for War
And their friends
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Serbia
Peter I - King of Serbia
Belgium
Albert I of Belgium - King of Belgium
Italy
Victor Emmanuel III - King of Italy (April 1915 Italy joined the Entente and on 3 May 1915 officially
rejected the Triple Alliance.)
Luigi Cadorna - Commander-in-Chief of the Italian army
Armando Diaz - Chief of General Staff of the Italian army
Lugi Amedeo- Commander-in-Chief of the Adriatic Fleet of Italy
Romania
Constantin Prezan - Chief of the General Staff of Romania
Alexandru Averescu - Commander of the Romanian 2nd Army, 3rd Army, then Army Group South
United States of America
Woodrow Wilson - President of the United States
Wilson believed that the Europeans must learn to live peacefully with one another. He proposed the
League of Nations.
John J. Pershing - Commander of the American Expeditionary Force
Japan
Emperor Taishō - Emperor of Japan
Ōkuma Shigenobu - Prime Minister of Japan
Major Players WWI the other side (
central powers):
• Franz Josef I - Emperor of Austria-Hungary (died
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Karl I - Emperor of Austria-Hungary
Conrad von Hötzendorf - Chief of the Austro-Hungarian
General Staff
Arthur Arz von Straussenburg- Chief of the AustroHungarian General Staff
Anton Haus- Commander-in-Chief of the AustroHungarian Navy
Maximilian Njegovan - Commander-in-Chief of the
Austro-Hungarian Navy
Major Players WWII: the other side
(central powers) Germany
• German Empire Wilhelm II - German Emperor
• Erich von Falkenhayn - Chief of the German General Staff
• Paul von Hindenburg - Chief of the German General Staff
• Reinhard Scheer - Commander of the Imperial High Seas Fleet
• Erich Ludendorff - Deputy Chief of Staff of the German Army
• Wilhelm Souchon - German Naval Advisor to the Ottoman Empire
• Otto Liman von Sanders - German Army Advisor to the Ottoman
Empire
• Paul Erich von Lettow-Vorbeck German Army Commander of East
Africa Campaign
• Hermann von François Germany Army General
Major Players WWII: the other side
(central powers) The Ottoman Empire
and Bulgaria
• Ottoman Empire
• Mehmed V - Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
• İsmail Enver - Commander-in-Chief of the Ottoman Army
• Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - Commander of the Second Army
• Bulgaria
• Ferdinand I - Czar of Bulgaria
• Nikola Zhekov - Commander-in-Chief of the Bulgarian Army
• Georgi Todorov - commander of the 2nd Army, deputy Commander-inChief
• Konstantin Zhostov - Chief of the Bulgarian General Staff
• Vladimir Vazov - Bulgarian Lieutenant General
1. Norway
2. Sweden
3. Denmark
4. Netherlands
5. Belgium
6. Portugal
7. Switzerland
8. Estonia
9. Latvia
10. Lithuania
11. Germany-East
Prussia
12. Czechoslovakia
13. Austria
14. Hungary
15. Yugoslavia
16. Albania
17. Greece
18. Bulgaria