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Imperialism and Colonial Conflicts Arms Race Between European Nations Militarism Nationalism The Alliance System The Assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand European countries conquered less developed nations in Asia and Africa. They competed for these colonies and sometimes fought over them which caused hatred between various nations. Britain & France almost went to war over African colonial disputes & Germany and France fought over the rights to colonize Asia and Africa. Russia was looking for a warm water port for their Navy but France, Germany and Britain always stood in they way. All the powers of Europe: Russia, France, Britain, and Germany were competing with each other over who had the largest and most modern military. Germany was competing with France over the largest army and with Britain over the largest navy. This caused tension between the three countries. Britain had defeated the French at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and since then had controlled the seas with the most powerful navy in the world. As long as Britain had the world’s strongest navy, it could make sure that none of the other Great Powers would try to seize parts of its empire or invade Britain itself. But what if another country wanted to challenge Britain’s naval superiority? In 1898, Kaiser Wilhelm announced that Germany was going to build 41 battleships and 61 cruisers. This was part of a plan to make sure that Germany could defend itself and protect its growing overseas trade. “In my view, Germany will, in the coming century, rapidly drop from her position as a great power unless we begin to develop our maritime interests energetically, systematically and without delay.” Admiral Tirpitz, 1895 Britain saw the German naval building program as part of a deliberate policy to challenge British naval supremacy. Germany was in central Europe and needed a large army to protect its borders, why did it need a navy? ‘There is no comparison between the importance of the German navy to Germany and the importance of our navy to us…it is not a matter of life and death to them as it is to us.’ (British Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, 1909) Britain saw Germany’s shipbuilding programme as a threat. Talks were held to try to limit the size of the British and German navies, but they broke down. Then in 1906, the game changed. Britain launched the first of a new type of battleship, HMS Dreadnought. This worried the Germans. The ship was so powerful that all previous battleships were immediately out of date and became known as ‘funf minuten’ (five minute ships). All ships of this new type became known as ‘Dreadnoughts’. The ship had thicker armour, more powerful guns with a bigger range and a faster speed. HMS Dreadnought: 17,900 tons; 526 feet in length; ten 12 inch guns, eighteen 4 inch guns, five torpedo tubes; maximum belt armour 11 inches; top speed 21.6 knots. What mattered now was not how many ships the Navy had, but how many dreadnoughts it had. So if Germany could build more of these ships than Britain did, it would have a more powerful navy. Kaiser, 1911 When countries build up their Army, Navy and weapons in order to attack others or defend themselves The Powers of Europe had all participated in some form of militarism in the decades prior to World War I This aggressive policy would eventually lead to military confrontations. Britain felt secure from having a strong Navy but other European powers gained security from having a large Army powerful enough to prevent an attack from another country. The Great Powers in Europe concentrated on building up their armed forces and ensuring their soldiers were well trained. All the Great Powers except Britain introduced conscription. (drafts) In France, soldiers had to serve for 3 years and in Russia, for 3 ½ years. By 1914, the armies of the Great Powers numbered more than 4 million men, with another 2 million reservists waiting to be called up. Such militarism could only lead to increased tensions in Europe, making war more likely. Country Army size in 1914 Britain 430,000 France 970,000 Russia 1,500,000 Germany 760,000 Austria-Hungary 480,000 On paper, which alliance had more soldiers? Each of the Great Powers became involved in an arms race to make sure they had enough forces to win a war. But this does not mean they intended to fight. Each country knew that it was important to make sure that its forces balanced those of any potential enemy, so that enemy would be less likely to attack. In this sense, building up armed forces was actually a way of preventing war! 1. Which country’s army increased the least during this Why?percentage 2. Which country hadperiod? the greatest increase in its army between 1900 & 1914? 1.6 1.4 1.2 1 1900 1910 0.8 1914 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 France Britain Russia Austria-Hungary Germany Italy When a government starts to promote that their nation is greater than those around it. Citizens began to hate other countries or looked down on them. The Dreyfus Affair: (1894-1906) Nationalism turned to racism when a French army officer named Alfred Dreyfus, was convicted of treason for allegedly selling military secrets to the Germans in 1894. At first the public supported the conviction; it was willing to believe in the guilt of Dreyfus, who was Jewish. After being sent to the horrible prison Devil’s island, supporters of his innocence eventually turned public opinion with evidence that he had not committed the crime. Dreyfus was freed and pardoned in 1906 but the incident showed how nationalism could turn on a certain group of people and create hatred. Secret alliances between countries caused suspicion and hatred between nations and forced Europe into a large scale war that cost millions of lives. The Central Powers were: Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. The Allies were: France, Britain, Russia, Italy and later on The United States. An alliance is an agreement between one or more states to work together. Alliances usually involve making promises to protect the other country against nations who are not in the alliance. These promises are usually made by the signing of treaties. The aim of forming alliances was to achieve collective security – having alliances with other powerful countries deterred your enemies from attacking you. If a country started a war with one nation it would have to fight all its allies as well. Alliances were often made in reaction to national rivalries – when one country felt threatened by another, it often looked to secure friendships with other nations. By 1900, Europe was full of national rivalries. The Dual Alliance was created in 1879, when Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire signed a treaty promising to help each other if either nation was attacked by Flag of Imperial Germany Russia. They also promised ‘benevolent neutrality’ if one of them was attacked by any other country. This meant that if, for example, France attacked Germany, the AustroFlag of Austria-Hungary Hungarian Empire would side with Germany, but would not actually fight. Both Germany and Austria-Hungary were worried about Russia but for different reasons. Look at this map showing threats to Germany and Austria. Why do you think the German and AustroHungarian Empires formed an alliance? In 1882, Italy joined the alliance, now making it the Triple Alliance. Italy was a new nation and was looking to take advantage of any European problems in the Mediterranean or in the Balkans to increase its territory. With powerful friends like Germany and Austria-Hungary, this would be much easier. However, despite joining the alliance, Italy was still anxious to maintain good relations with Britain and France. Why do you think Italy was likely to switch to other European alliances if the conditions were right? The other alliance that shaped European politics at the turn of the century was the alliance between Russia and France. France and Russia were not natural allies. Russia was ruled by an autocratic monarch (the Tsar) whilst France was a democratic republic. Flag of Imperial Russia They were also geographically distant, being at opposite ends of Europe. However, they were brought together by their mutual dislike of Germany and Austria-Hungary. Flag of France Russia and France first signed an entente in 1891 in which they promised to consult each other in the event of a crisis in Europe. In 1894, the French and Russians consolidated their relationship by signing an alliance (a stronger agreement). Each promised military assistance if the other was invaded. This was called the ‘Dual Entente’. The idea was to create a balance of power between the GermanAustrian-Italian alliance and the Russian-French alliance. Who do you think was in the stronger position: the French and Russians or the Germans, Austro-Hungarians and Italians? Where does Britain come in? Strangely, it didn’t at first. In the late 19th Century, Britain distanced itself from European issues. There were several reasons for this: Britain was an island and had the strongest navy in the world. There was little chance of being invaded. Britain was wealthy and highly industrialized. Its navy and empire gave it a strong global trading position. The British were mostly concerned with running their vast global empire. These factors meant that the British did not feel they needed allies. However, in the early years of the 20th Century, Britain ended its isolation from European events and became involved in the alliance system. This was largely because of the growing power of Germany: The Germans began trying to gain an empire of their own, which they felt was necessary if Germany was to become a great world power. Germany supported the Boers who were fighting the British in South Africa. Growing German militarism – Germany started expanding its armed forces, especially its navy. Britain felt its naval supremacy and global empire were being threatened. In 1904, Britain signed an agreement with France. This was called the Entente Cordiale. It was not a full alliance but it showed a warming of relations between France and Britain. In 1907 Britain signed another similar agreement with Russia. This was the English-Russian Entente. These agreements between Britain, France and Russia created the Triple Entente. The ententes did not have the same weight as the alliance between Germany and Austro-Hungary. Britain was not committed to giving military assistance to either France or Russia. He was a leader of AustriaHungary who was murdered by the Serbian terrorist group “The Black Hand. ” The assassination set off a chain of events that lead to World War I Mobilization of the Armies Early Strategies and Trench Warfare Modern Weapons vs. Old Tactics The Western Front The Eastern Front U.S. Involvement and the Final Year of the War All the armies in Europe started to move to the borders of enemy nations in order to prepare to fight. Alliances forced other countries to join in and the war became a large scale conflict that involved many nations. In 1914, Europe was primed for war. It was not only the politicians who were anticipating war – the arms race and frequent war scares had caused European society to become increasingly militaristic and nationalistic. Many people not only expected war, but welcomed it. Each side had long prepared for war. They had written plans, books and policies on what to do. These plans also played a part in the outbreak of large-scale war in 1914. The most influential plan was that of Germany – the Von Schlieffen Plan – drawn up in 1905 by General Alfred von Schlieffen. It was an ambitious plan designed to avoid Germany having to fight a two-front war against France and Russia. The plan was to invade France and capture Paris before the Russians could mobilize. It relied on three things: German speed slow Russian mobilization (6 weeks?) Britain staying out of the war. After losing the Battle of the Marne, German forces retreated and dug trenches for extra protection. From that point onwards, the two armies attempted to outflank (get a better position) each other by advancing to the North Sea. Eventually the two sides ran out of land and had created miles of frontline without a breakthrough. By the end of 1914, a front line had been established that was to remain largely in the same place until early 1918. As each side had built defenses sideways in order to try to outflank each other, a complex system of trenches – with connecting, reserve and communication trenches – soon extended for miles across Belgium and France. The war in the trenches was brutal both physically and mentally. Many soldiers died of diseases or suffered from “Shell shock”. World War I was the first Industrial age war, modern weapons caused heavy casualties on both sides. WWI was the first war where airplanes, submarines, machine guns, tanks, poison gas, flame throwers and heavy artillery were used. Modern weapons combined with old tactics like Calvary charges and mass assaults against machine guns caused millions of deaths in the trenches. Britain, France and Germany all experimented with armored vehicles during WWI. These became known as “Tanks” and were designed to break the stalemate of trench warfare. “The Paris Gun” was a super cannon used by Germany to fire shells into the city of Paris from 30 miles away. The shells actually went into the stratosphere and were the first man-made objects that were fired into outer space! The use of poison gas terrified troops on both sides, it could blind or kill a man in seconds. The famous “Red Baron” Manfred von Richthofen of Germany shot down 85 allied planes during WWI. The giant German Zeppelin air ships dropped bombs on Paris and London. The Battle of Marne - Germans attacked through Belgium and pushed the French to the Marne river. The French army holds out long enough for the British to reinforce them. The battle is a stalemate and turns into trench warfare. The Battle of the Somme – The British army attacks the German trenches with its entire force. In the first day the British lost 20,000 men. The Battle was a disaster. The Battle of Verdun - A six month long battle between France and Germany over the fortress of Verdun. The French would not give up the fort, the Germans attacked many times but couldn’t break through 500,000 men died and nobody gained ground. The Battle of Jutland – The British Navy tried to blockade the German navy from reaching the Atlantic Ocean. The two massive fleets faced off in the largest naval battle between modern battleships in history. 150 British ships held off the 120 German ships in a fierce battle. The German fleet retreated and the British navy had once again dominated the war at sea. Battle of the Somme Battle of Verdun Battle of Jutland The Russian army advanced successfully into German territory during the first year of the war only to be viciously counter-attacked and forced to retreat. The combined forces of Germany, AustriaHungary and the Ottoman empire caused heavy casualties to the ill-equipped Russian troops. By 1917 the situation in Russia was so bad that a communist revolution led by Vladimir Lenin overthrew Czar Nicholas II’s rule and forced the Russian army to surrender to Germany and sign The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The British effort to relieve the Russian forces by attacking the Ottomans at Gallipoli was a military disaster as hundreds of thousands troops were lost in the campaign. Tsar Nicholas II was forced out of power by the communist revolution and executed along with his entire family. Vladimir Lenin lead the Bolshevik party in a communist revolution against the Tsarist government. The sinking of the Allied ship the Lusitania by a German submarine caused outrage in the United States as 200 Americans died in the attack. The infamous Zimmerman telegram further angered the United States as it attempted to ally Germany with Mexican rebels in an attempted attack on the U.S. border. The United States declared war on Germany on April 6th, 1917. Soon after the first U.S. troops arrived in Britain and France under the command of General John J. Pershing. The Lusitania is sunk by a German U-boat The Zimmerman telegram U.S. troops marching to the Frontline In 1918 the Germans launched a massive attack on the western front in order to break the stalemate but with the fresh U.S. troops the allied frontline held out and pushed the German army back. Running out of supplies and men, the German high command decided to unconditionally surrender to the allied forces on November 11th 1918 which became known as Armistice day. The Germans were forced to sign the harsh Treaty of Versailles which made them responsible for the war damages, restricted them from having a strong military, gave Alsace and Lorraine to France and let the allied army occupy Germany. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson wanted to end the war in a way that would not cause future conflicts. He advised Britain and France not to be too harsh in the surrender terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Wilson created a plan called the Fourteen Points. Wilson addressed what he thought were the causes for the war by calling for the abolition of secret treaties, a reduction in armaments, an adjustment in colonial claims in the interests of both native peoples and colonists, and freedom of the seas. Wilson also made proposals that would ensure world peace in the future. Wilson proposed the removal of economic barriers between nations, the promise of “self-determination” for those oppressed minorities, and a world organization called The League of Nations that would provide a system of collective security for all nations. However, his advice was ignored and the Allies decided to punish Germany for the war. Even Wilson’s own congress voted against most of his fourteen points. The failure to come to an equal peace would destroy the German economy and build hatred for France and Britain. It would lead to a future war. France was devastated by the war both in property damage and loss of life. (the western front was fought mostly on French territory) Germany was blamed for the war and was forced to pay for most of the damages. This destroyed their economy and created hatred and a need for revenge. Many angry and desperate Germans began to listen to a new movement called “National Socialism” that blamed non-Germans for the loss. The Russian monarchy was overthrown by a communist revolution and a bloody civil war began between Bolsheviks and conservatives. The Ottoman Empire fell apart and became the nation of Turkey. The Austro-Hungarian Empire fell apart and became two separate nations: Austria and Hungary Italy was promised land by the Allies after the war. The nation never received a reward and many Italians were bitter towards Britain and France. This led many citizens to follow a new ideology called “Fascism”. The need for factory workers at home had given women more rights and opportunities. Many countries granted women the right to vote and permission to work in industries that were not open to them before the war. The United States became a world power and was no longer neutral in world affairs. What were the causes of World War I? What was Germany’s plan to win the war? How did the United States get involved? How did the war end? What was the Treaty of Versailles? What were some of the results of WWI?