Download Chapter 19: World War I

CHAPTER 19: WORLD WAR I
1914-1918
SECTION 19.1: WORLD WAR I BEGINS
LEARNING TARGET 1
Identify the long-term causes and the
immediate circumstances that led to
World War I.
FOUR FACTORS (CAUSES) OF WWI
 Militarism – development of armed forces and their use as a tool of diplomacy.
 Imperialism – extending a nation’s authority over other countries by economic,
political, or military means.
 Nationalism – devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation.
 Alliances – provided a degree of international security/protection; nations were
hesitant to disturb the balance of power.
 Balance of Power: kept one nation from assuming a predominating position so
as to threaten the general peace.
 What event sparks the beginning of WWI?
MILITARISM
 The growth of nationalism and imperialism leads to increased military spending.
 Nations wanted stronger armed forces than those of any potential enemy.
 1890 Germany is the strongest in Europe; reserve system.
 Britain had always relied on its geographic location for protection; navy was the
strongest in the world.
 Kaiser Wilhelm II pushes Germany to become a major sea power in order to
compete with Britain.
 France, Italy, Japan, and the U.S. join the naval arms race.
IMPERIALISM
 Nations build empires by establishing colonies around the world.
 These colonies supplied imperial powers with raw materials and markets for
manufactured goods.
 As Germany industrialized, it competed with France and Britain in the conquest for
colonies.
 Control of colonies lead to conflict:
 France and Britain in Africa.
 United States and Spain during Spanish-American War.
 Japan and Russia for control of Korean and Manchuria.
NATIONALISM
 Ethnic groups resented domination by others, wanted their nation to become independent.
 Case Study: The Balkans
 Region that is filled with never-ending ethnic, religious, and nationalist warfare dating back
centuries.
 Mixing ground of three different religions.
 Lay astride to trade routes, making it land occupied by empires.
 Field of the Blackbirds June 28, 1389, (Republic of Kosovo).
 Serbs lose this battle to the Ottoman Turks, but remained determined to get it back.
 The Ottoman Empire began to fall apart at the beginning of the 19th century.
 Ideas of revolution and independence filtered into Balkan cities; began lobbying and fighting for freedom.
 Treaty of Berlin allowed Austria-Hungary to occupy Bosnia-Herzegovina, keeping an aggressive Serbia in
check.
 Serbia achieved independence but they wanted what they lost during the Field of the Blackbirds—their
ancient lands that included: Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Slovenia, and Croatia.
FRANZ FERDINAND AND SOPHIE
 Heir to the Austrian throne at the end of the reign of Franz Joseph.
 June 28, visited Sarajevo, Bosnia, to observe military maneuvers… coincided with the
anniversary of the First Battle of Kosovo in 1389, in which medieval Serbia was defeated by
the Turks… and their wedding anniversary!
 Austria-Hungary annex Bosnia-Herzegovina. (Serbian nationalists believed they should
become part of the newly independent and Serbian nation.)
 Franz Ferdinand proposed to replace Austro-Hungarian dualism with trialism, (a triple
monarchy) giving the empire's Slavs an equal voice in government… along with the
Germans and Magyars.
 Austria-Hungary would be reorganized by combining the Slavic lands within the AustroHungarian empire into a third crown.
 If this were to take effect, the nationalist feared that their kinsman would remain content
under Austrian-Hungarian rule.
ASSASSINATION
 Six young men of the Black Hand opposition movement, who had been trained in bomb
throwing and marksmanship, were stationed along the route that Franz Ferdinand's car
would follow to the inspection.
 The first two terrorists were unable to throw their grenades because the streets were too
crowded and the car was travelling quite fast.
 The third terrorist threw a grenade which exploded under the car following that of the
Archduke.
 On their way to visit injured attendants from the car bombing, the driver took a wrong turn.
Realizing his mistake he stopped the car and began to reverse. Gavrilo Princip, stepped
forward and fired two shots. The first hit the pregnant Sophia in the stomach, she died
almost instantly. The second shot hit the Archduke in the neck. He died a short while later.
AUSTRIA’S REACTION
 Austrians were immediately convinced that the Serbian government was behind
the assassination.
 Austria waited for more than three weeks before acting on its suspicions and
seizing the opportunity to extract a high price from Serbia for its transgressions.
Reason for delays: 1. Austria’s inability to decide how to proceed
2. Unwillingness to mobilize its forces until after the
harvest.
 Austria-Hungary, acting on a well-founded but unproven suspicion of Serbian
complicity in the murder, saw an opportunity to crush Serbian and thereby solve
the south Slav problem once and for all.
AUSTRIA’S ULTIMATUM TO SERBIA
 July 1914 the Austrian government sent an ultimatum to the Serbians
consisting of 11 demands.
 Two days later the Serbian government replied; Of the 11 demands,
only one was refused and five were accepted without reservations.
 The Austrians pronounced the Serbian reply unsatisfactory, severed
diplomatic relations, and mobilized parts of their army.
 The Serbs were under no illusion about pleasing Austria, three hours
before transmitting their reply, they had issued an order to mobilize
their troops.
DEFENSE ALLIANCES 1907, 1915
 Triple Entente 1907
 Great Britain
 France
 Russia
Allies 1915
 Great Britain
 France
 Russia
 Italy
 Triple Alliance 1907
 Germany
 Austria-Hungary
 Italy
Central Powers 1915
 Germany
 Austria-Hungary
 Bulgaria
 Ottoman Empire
WHAT’S WITH ITALY?
 Technically a member of the Triple Alliance, proclaimed neutrality.
 Insisted that Germany was not fighting a defensive war, wasn’t bound to go to
their aid.
 Remained neutral until 1915, entered on the side of the Entente (Allies).
 Italy was bribed by the Allies with a promise of Austrian territories and a generous
slice of the eastern shore the Adriatic Sea.
ALLIANCES: RUSSIA AND THE SLAVIC STATES
 Pan-Slav Movement was based on the theory that all Slavs of Eastern Europe
made up one cultural nation.
 Russia, the most powerful Slavic state, acted as the protector of the smaller
nations in the Balkans.
 This official policy of the Russian government explains the aggressive stand in
every quarrel that arose between Serbia and Austria.
MAINTAINING A BALANCE OF POWER:
FRANCE, GERMANY, AND ITALY
 Franco-Prussian War (France, Germany)
 To ensure France would not engage in a war of revenge against the Germans victors of 1870, Germany
was determined to isolate France by attaching all of its (France) potential allies to Germany.
 Italians join out of fear of the French; they resented the French occupation of a territory
they regarded as theirs (Tunisia).
 By 1882, France was cut off from nearly every possibility of obtaining aid from powerful
friends.
 1907 European nations become more suspicious of each other. Germany is convinced
they were surrounded by enemies, and needed to do everything in their power to retain
allies, the biggest being Austria-Hungary.
AUSTRIA CALLS ON GERMANY
 Austria sought an assurance of German support in
eliminating Serbia.
 Germany thought it was “better now than in one or two
years’ time when the Entente will be stronger.”
 Russia has to rebuild army after the Russo-Japanese
war, and France were undergoing a three-year rebuild
of its conscription laws.
MOBILIZATION OF ALLIES
 The attitude of Germany was ambiguous. The Kaiser was shocked and infuriated by the
assassination, but the German government did not make any threats until after the actions of
Russia gave for alarm.
 For a moment there was a possibility that the conflict might be contained. It was quickly
transformed into a war of larger scope by the action of Russia.
 The Russian government decided to respond to any Austrian military initiative against Serbia
with a mobilization of troops, not only against Austria but Germany, as well.
 The Germans were alarmed by Russian preparations for war; general mobilization meant war.
Germany sent an ultimatum to Russia demanding mobilization cease, Russia refused.
 Germany also sent an ultimatum to France demanding that its leaders make known their
intentions. France stated they would act “in accordance with her interests” and immediately
ordered a general mobilization of troops.
BRITAIN STEPS IN
 In the beginning, the British foreign secretary was
unsure of his country’s willingness to go to war; he
convened with other country’s to help settle the AustroSerbian dispute.
 It is guessed if perhaps Britain declared its readiness to
war on the side of France and Russian earlier, that
declaration would have compelled Germany and
Austrian to draw back.
THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM AT WORK
 Japan declares war on Germany, partly because of their
alliance with Great Britain, but mainly for the purpose of
conquering German possessions in the Far East.
 Turkey negotiated an alliance with Germany, and began
the bombardment of Russian ports on the Black Sea.
 Within five weeks after the assassination of the
archduke, war was at hand.
SECTION 19.1: WORLD WAR I BEGINS
LEARNING TARGET 2
Describe the first two years of the war.
GERMAN WAR STRATEGY
 The Schlieffen Plan called for Austria to hold against the Russians. Germany will
deliver a massive strike against France to defeat them quickly, leaving British forces
stranded on the other side of the English Channel.
 With France and Britain out of the war, Germany would then join Austria to defeat
Russia.
 German forces wanted to avoid the heavily defended French-German border by
invading France through Belgium.
 Germany demands of the Belgium government permission to send troops across its
territory, promising to respect the independence of the nation and to pay for any
damage to property.
 Belgium refused. Germany invaded anyway on August 3-4, 1914. . (The same request
was sent to Luxembourg, which was accepted.)
A GREAT ATROCITY?
 Germany’s violation of Belgian neutrality was viewed as an outrage,
but NOT a great atrocity against mankind.
 Germany’s invasion of neutral Belgium brings support for
intervention. (In 1839, great powers signed a treaty
guaranteeing the neutrality of Belgium.)
 An ultimatum is sent to Berlin, demanding that they respect
Belgium neutrality, and that Germany respond with a reply: they
argued it was a matter of life and death for its soldiers reach
France by the quickest route.
NOT YOUR GRANDFATHER’S WAR
 The small Belgian army puts up unexpected resistance, giving the
French and British time to rush troops into the battle.
 Unable to out-maneuver the each other, both sides dig in for a
defensive siege at the Marne River in France. (First Battle of the
Marne.)
 Both sides also realize that there would be no quick victory.
 Leaders thought this war would resemble earlier conflicts—with
cavalry charges, decisive battles, and a quick victory.
 War Horse, charge scene…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKUdxkaDoNo
TRENCH WARFARE
 Inside the trenches was a miserable existence; rats, lice, flooding, and
drenched uniforms, dead soldiers lay unburied for days, unsanitary
conditions caused disease and sickness that claimed nearly as many lives as
the fighting.
 Between the trenches lay “no-man’s-land,” a barren wasteland of wire,
craters, land mines, and mud.
 Battles began with massive artillery barrages. Then soldiers went “over the
top” of the trenches and charged across the no-man’s-land toward enemy
trenches. Thousands of soldiers were cut down by machine gun fire.
 Warfare in WWI - TeacherTube Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9iR0xJW-Fk
 The war remained locked in a stalemate throughout 1915; 1916 both sides
prepared massive offensives.
MAJOR BATTLES, 1914-1917
 Tannenberg, Aug. 1914 Germans stop Russian advance. complete
German victory of the First World War, the encirclement and destruction
of the Russian Second Army in late August 1914 virtually ended Russia's
invasion of East Prussia before it had really started. Over 50,000 Russian
soldiers were killed and some 92,000 taken as prisoners.
 Gallipoli, April 1915-Jan. 1916 Allied forces defeated in bid to establish
a supply route to Russia. Approximately 205,000 for the British Empire
and 47,000 for the French, and 250,000 Turkish casualties.
 Caporetto, October-Dec. 1917 combined German and AustroHungarian force scores one of the most crushing victories, decimating
the Italian line along the northern stretch of the Isonzo River. Italian
casualties at Caporetto totaled almost 700,000—40,000 killed or
wounded, 280,000 captured by the enemy and another 350,000
deserted.
MAJOR BATTLES ON THE WESTERN FRONT,
1914-1917
 First Battle of the Marne, Sept.1914 Allies stop German advance on Paris, the outcome
of the Schlieffen Plan fails. 250,000 French soldiers were lost and the Germans suffered
approximately the same. The British lost just under 13,000.
 Second Battle of Ypres, May 1915 Germans use chemical weapons for the first time, 150
tons of chlorine gas. German army forced an the Allies retreat to the town of Ypres. Ends
on May 25, with insignificant gains for the Germans.
 Battle at Verdun, Feb.-July 1916 Germans launch an offensive to “bleed the French army
white.” Begins with a 21-hour artillery barrage, 1 million German soldiers advance on
200,000 French defenders. French hold the line in longest battle of the war.
 First Battle of the Somme, July-Nov. 1916 Disastrous British offensive; goal was to
exhaust the enemy’s reserves. Scale of slaughter was horrific, British suffered 60,000
casualties on the first day, final total 1.2 million. Only seven miles of ground changed
hands.
SECTION 19.1: WORLD WAR I BEGINS
LEARNING TARGET 3
Summarize U.S. public opinion about the
war.
AMERICANS QUESTION NEUTRALITY
 Americans see no reason to join a war 3,000 miles away; it was not a threat to
lives or property.
 Socialists see the war as capitalist/imperialist to control markets and colonies.
 Pacifists see the war as evil and America should be setting an example of peace.
 Many did not want to see their loved ones experience the effects of war.
 Naturalized citizens still had ties to the nations they emigrated from. Examples:
 Many felt close to Britain because of a common ancestry/language and
democratic/legal system.
 People of Irish descent remembered British oppression in Ireland, saw war as
a means to independence.
NEUTRAL IN THOUGHT, WORD, AND DEED
 British propaganda—later proven untrue—swayed support to
the Allies.
 Americans will absorb the message that Germany was evil
incarnate and needed to be crushed for the sake of the
civilized world.
 U.S. had stronger economic ties with Allied nations.
 Trade with Britain and France more than double compared
with Germany.
 First few years of the war, the U.S. experienced a labor
shortage due to increased demand for war materials.
U.S. MOBILIZES FOR WAR
 Americans favor an Allies victory over the Central Powers.
 By 1917, America mobilizes for two reasons:
 To ensure Allied repayment of war debt to the United
States.
 Prevent Germans from threatening U.S. shipping.
BRITISH BLOCKADE
 Britain uses naval strength to blockade the German coast to prevent
civilian and military supplies fro getting through.
 Blockade extended to neutral ports and mining the North Sea.
 Results: 1.) American ships do not challenge the blockade, therefore, do
not reach Germany, and 2.) Because of the difficulty to import goods,
Germany experiences a famine and 750,000 Germans starve to death.
 Americans are angry about the blockade, but will become outraged at
Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare.
GERMAN UNTERSEEBOOT
 German U-boats counterblockade Britain’s naval blockade.
 Any ship, either British or Allied, discovered in the waters near Britain would be sunk, with
or without warning.
 Lusitania May 1915, Passenger ship carrying munitions, 1,198 persons lost, 128 Americans.
 American opinion turns against the Central Powers; Wilson sends a protest to German government.
 Arabic August 1915, British liner, 2 Americans killed.
 U.S. sends another protest; Germany agrees to not sinking passenger ships; 6 months later break
promise.
 Sussex March 1916, French passenger liner, 80 killed that included some Americans.
 U.S. warns it will break off diplomatic relations; Germany agrees under conditions: persuade Britain
to lift its blockade against food and fertilizer.
ELECTION OF 1916
 Woodrow Wilson (D), “He Kept Us Out of War”
 Charles Evans Hughes (R); Freedom of the seas, leniency towards
Germany.
 Election results went back and forth between the candidates; Wilson wins
by 23 electoral votes.
 Wilson wins, and begins to mediate between alliances.
 Wants nations to work towards a “league of peace.”
SECTION 19.1: WORLD WAR I BEGINS
LEARNING TARGET 4
Explain why the United States entered
the war.
GERMAN PROVOCATION
 Germany ignores Wilson’s calls for peace; resumes unrestricted submarine
warfare, will sink both hostile and neutral ships in British waters.
 “Actual overt acts”
 Zimmerman Note: telegram sent to Mexico from Germany.
 Sinking of unarmed American merchants ships killing 36.
 Oppressive Russian monarchy is replaced with a provisional,
representative government, making it a war of democracies vs.
monarchies.
AMERICA ACTS
 April 2, 1917 Wilson delivers his war resolution speech. **Only Congress
can declare war, the president merely “requests” the declaration.
 Congress passes the resolution a few days later.
 Jeanette Rankin, Montana
 the first woman elected to Congress
 pacifist
 was the only dissenting vote.
 loses next election, but will be re-elected
 votes against go to war during WWII
 loses next election.
SECTION 19.2: AMERICAN POWER TIPS THE
BALANCE
 Learning Target 1: Describe how the United States mobilized for war.
 Learning Target 2: Summarize U.S. battlefield successes.
 Learning Target 3: Identify the new weapons and the medical
problems faced in World War I.
 Learning Target 4: Describe U.S. offensives and the end of the war.
LEARNING TARGET 1: DESCRIBE HOW THE
UNITED STATES MOBILIZED FOR WAR.
 The U.S. is not prepared for war, only 200,000 in the military, few
with combat experience.
 To raise an army, Congress passes the Selective Service Act in
May1917.
 Required men to register; government would randomly select for
service.
 24 million men register, 3 million are called up.
 2 million reach Europe before the truce, ¾ see combat.
 Most have not attended high school, 1:5 was foreign born.
RAISING AN ARMY
 About 400,000 black soldiers serve in segregated units.
 Mostly assigned to non-combative units
 Exception: 369th Infantry, serving more continuous duty
on the front lines than any other regiment.
 Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts, first Americans to
receive France’s highest military honor, the Croix de
Guerre– the “cross of war.”
RAISING AN ARMY
 Army reluctantly accepted women into the Army Corps of
Nurses.
 Denied rank, pay, and benefits.
 13,000 women serve with full military rank in noncombat
positions—nurses, secretaries, telephone operators – in the
Marines and navy.
BASIC TRAINING
 Eight-month training period; partly in U.S., and partly in Europe.
 Seventeen-hour days of target practice, bayonet drill, kitchen duty, and
cleaning up the grounds.
 Real weapons in short supply, soldiers drill with fake weapons: rocks =
grenades,
wooden poles = rifles.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQAQkDUMg-g
MASS PRODUCTION
 Four steps:
 Exemption/deferment from the draft for shipyard workers.
 U.S. Chamber of Commerce public relations promotes the
importance of shipyard work; distribute service flags, rides to
work.
 Used prefabricated techniques, reducing construction time.
 Took over commercial and private ships and converted into
war use.
LEARNING TARGET 2: SUMMARIZE U.S.
BATTLEFIELD SUCCESSES.
Convoy system protects
merchant ships traveling in
war zone; 1917 losses are cut
in half.
U.S. Navy lay a 230-mile
barrier of mines to keep
uboats out of the Atlantic
Ocean.
Apart from the number of
troops, American forces
contributed freshness and
and enthusiasm to the
demoralized and exhausted
Allied forces.
LEARNING TARGET 3: IDENTIFY THE NEW
WEAPONS AND THE MEDICAL PROBLEMS
FACED IN WORLD WAR I.
 American Expeditionary Force (AEF)
led by John J. Pershing.
 Infantrymen nicknamed “doughboys”
because of their uniform.
 Most had never traveled from home;
shocked by the horrors of the
battlefield, and astonished by new
weapons and tactics of modern
warfare.
TECHNOLOGY IN WAR
 Large scale weapons become standard in modern warfare.
 Machine gun: was refined increasing firepower to 600 rounds/minute; changes the
nature of warfare.
 Mechanized warfare: the tank and the airplane.
 Tank




Used to mow down barbed wire and soldiers.
First used by the British during the first battle of Somme. (1916)
Not effective.
By 1917, British were effectively driving through defenses, clearing a path for infantry
units.
AIRSHIPS AND AIRPLANES
 Airplane
 Flimsily constructed.
 First use was for scouting.
 Dogfights—duals, pilots sit in open cockpits and shot at each other with pistols; later
planes were constructed with mounted machine guns.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUHZZwuybiY
 Germans introduce the interrupter gear.
 Built to travel fast and carry heavy payloads.
 Observation balloons
 Used by both sides.
 Strategic importance; protected by aircraft
 Targets for pilots.
NEW HAZARDS
 Dysentery – filth, lice, rats, and polluted water.
 Poison gas/death – inhalation caused sickness; lack of sleep, battle fatigue.
 “Shell shock’ – nervous system shattered by noisy shelling.
 Trench foot – standing in cold, wet trenches for long periods.
 Trench mouth- painful infection of gums and throat.
 “Basket case” – quadruple amputee.
 Surgeons learn more about treating wounds and injuries.
 Fighting infections.
 Rehabilitation.
 Skin graft techniques; founded the field of plastic surgery.
LEARNING TARGET 4: DESCRIBE U.S.
OFFENSIVES AND THE END OF THE WAR.
“Retreat? Hell, we just got
here!”
--Captain Lloyd Williams, USMC
at the Battle of Belleau Wood,
when he was ordered to retreat
by a French officer.
A group of Marines walk through Belleau
Wood prior to the Memorial Day service
here May 25.
“LAFAYETTE, WE ARE HERE!” 1777 AND 1917
 Russia pulls out, Germans focus on the
western front, 50 miles from Paris.
 American troops joined the Allies in
France.
 Address given July 4, 1917, by Col. C.E.
Stanton.
 Photo taken at the grave of Marquis de Lafayette.
ALLIED VICTORIES
 Russia pulls out of the war, Germans focus resources on the western front.
 By May, German troops come within 50 miles of Paris.
 Geography Skillbuilder: Allied Victories, 1917-1918
AMERICANS GO ON THE OFFENSIVE
 Cantigny, May 1918, U.S. troops fill gaps between French and British lines during the
second day of the German offensive, (Third Battle of the Aisne) . Minor action; first
sustained American offensive of the war. American casualties 1,067.
 Chateau-Thierry, June 1918, Part of the larger Second Battle of the Marne. Allied forces
surprise attack the Germans: troops go "Over the Top" without a preparatory artillery
bombardment. U.S. troops help stop the German advance on Paris.
 Belleau Wood, June 1918, Second Division's Marine Corps were tasked with the taking of
the wood. Involved a murderous trek across an open wheat field, swept from end to end
by German machine gun fire. The wood was first taken by the Marines, then ceded back to
the Germans - and again taken by the U.S. forces a total of six times before the Germans
were finally expelled. U.S. forces suffer 9,777 casualties, of which 1,811 were fatal.
 **The combined Chateau-Thierry/Belleau Wood action brought to an end the last
major German offensive of the war.
AMERICANS GO ON THE OFFENSIVE
 Second Battle of the Marne, July-Aug 1918, *TURNING POINT OF THE WAR.*
Last major German offensive; significant Allied victory. Germans had not only
failed in their aim to win the war in this offensive, but had in fact lost ground; a
number of German commanders believed the war was lost. Casualties: France
95,000 , Germany 168,000, Britain 13,000 and the U.S. 12,000.
 St. Mihiel, September 1918, Under the command of Pershing, U.S. launches first
major offensive operation as an independent army. American casualties: around
7,000.
 Meuse-Argonne, Sept-Nov 1918, Largest operation and victory of the AEF;
American advance helps end the war. American losses: 26,277 killed and 95,786
wounded; Germans losses: 28,000 killed and 92,250 wounded.
GREATEST AMERICAN WWI HERO
 Alvin York
 Conscientious objector
 Decided it was morally right if the cause was just.
 Meuse-Argonne
 Armed with rifle and revolver, killed 25 Germans
 York and six others capture 132 prisoners.
 Pershing, “outstanding soldier of the AEF.”
 Foch, “the greatest thing accomplished by any private soldier of all the
armies of Europe.”
 Promoted to sergeant, returned home a celebrity.
MORE ABOUT CONSCIENTIOUS
OBJECTORS…
 Around 3,500 obtained C.O. exemptions.
 Small number refused to cooperate with the military.
 Reasons varied on philosophical, moral, and religious
grounds.
 Approximately 500 objectors were court-martialed and
imprisoned.
COLLAPSE OF GERMANY
 November 3,1918
 Austria-Hungary surrenders
 German sailors mutinied against government.
 Mutinies spread, revolutionary councils formed.
 November 9, 1918
 Berlin, socialist leaders establish a German republic.
 Kaiser abdicates the throne.
 *** There are no Allies in German territory, no decisive battles; Germans
are simply too exhausted to continue fighting.
 Armistice Day
 Eleventh hour, eleventh day, eleventh month of 1918.
THE FINAL TOLL
 Bloodiest war up until that time.
 Death: 22 million, more than half of that number were civilian deaths.
 Wounded: 20 million
 Refugees: 10 million
 Economic cost: $338 billion
 U.S. Numbers
 48,000 KIA
 62,000 non-combat related (disease)
 200,000 approx. wounded
 Americans expect life to return to normal.
 Lives at home changed as much as those who had fought in Europe.
19.3 THE WAR AT HOME
LEARNING TARGETS…
Explain how business and government
cooperated during the war.
Show how the government promoted the war.
Describe the attacks on civil liberties that
occurred.
Summarize the social changes that affected
African Americans and women.
LEARNING TARGET 1: EXPLAIN HOW BUSINESS
AND GOVERNMENT COOPERATED DURING THE
WAR.
 Entire economy had to be focused on the war effort, i.e. goods shift from
consumer to war.
 Business and government collaborate in production effort, thereby expanding the
power of government.
 Congress gives the president direct control of the economy and the power to fix
prices and regulate industries.
WAR INDUSTRIES BOARD
 Led by Bernard M. Baruch, prosperous businessman.
 Encouraged mass production, and standardizing products to eliminate waste.
 Set quotas and allocated raw materials.
 Production increases by 20%.
 Other federal agencies that regulated the economy:
 Railroad Administration
 Fuel Administration
 Monitored coal supplies.
 Rationed gas and heating oil.
 Daylight savings time.
WAR ECONOMY
 WIB applied price controls at wholesale level, making retail prices soar.
 Prices almost double than before the war.
 Corporate profits increase in industries—chemicals, meatpacking, oil, and steel.
 Workers’ wages increase; household income was undercut by increase prices in
household goods.
 Stockholders see large increase in profits.
 Union memberships increase; 6,000 strikes.
 National War Labor Board created.
FOOD ADMINISTRATION
 Helped to produce and conserve food.
 Lead by Herbert Hoover.
 No rationing, instead “gospel of the clean plate.”
 Sets a high price on products, such as wheat.
 Farmers respond by planting an additional 40 million acres.
 Rationing of bread and sugar.
 One day each week was set aside to reduce consumption of foods.
 “meatless, sweetless, etc…”
 Victory gardens.
 American food shipments triple.
LEARNING TARGET 2: SHOW HOW THE
GOVERNMENT PROMOTED THE WAR.
 Government raised money for the war effort by raising taxes and selling bonds.
 Progressive
 War-profits
 Excise
 “Victory” and “Liberty” loans
 Bonds sold through volunteers.
 Propaganda… “ ‘a friend of Germany’ would refuse to buy war bonds.”
PROPAGANDA
 Committee on Public Information, headed by George Creel a former muckraker.
 Persuaded artists and advertising agencies to create media that promoted the war
effort.
 “Four-Minute Men”
 Ordered the printing and distribution of pamphlets, booklets, and leaflets.
 Highly effective campaign, promoted both patriotism and violations of civil
liberties.
LEARNING TARGET 3: DESCRIBE THE ATTACKS
ON CIVIL LIBERTIES THAT OCCURRED.
 “Anti-immigrant hysteria”
 Target those from Central Power nations.
 Lost jobs.
 Orchestras refused to play famous pieces of music, such as Mozart, etc…
 German-named towns changed name; foods renamed.
 Stop teaching German language.
 Books of German authors removed from libraries.
 Physically attacked and/or killed.
ESPIONAGE AND SEDITION ACTS
 Fines and jail time for interfering with the war effort, saying anything disloyal, or
abusive about the government or war effort.
 Publications could lose mailing privileges.
 Discrimination in employment.
 Targeted socialist and labor leaders… Eugene V. Debs, Emma Goldman, “Big Bill”
Haywood.
LEARNING TARGET 4: SUMMARIZE THE SOCIAL
CHANGES THAT AFFECTED AFRICAN
AMERICANS AND WOMEN.
 African Americans’ opinion of the war was divided.
 DuBois: support the war effort.
 Trotter: don’t support a racist government.
 “Great Migration”





Escape discrimination
Boll weevil infestation, drought, and floods ruined crops.
Job opportunities in the North.
Propaganda articles contrasting life in the South vs. North.
Overcrowding and discrimination in the northern cities.
WOMEN IN THE WAR
 Women move into jobs that had been held by men.
 Volunteered in Red Cross, selling of war bonds, victory gardens.
 Peace Movement
 1919 Congress passes the 19th Amendment, 1920 ratified by the states.
FLU EPIDEMIC
 Worst plagues in history, second to the Bubonic plague (1347-1351).
 Shut down several industries, staggered working hours.
 Shortage of coffins, unburied for days.
 Treatment: cleanliness, quarantine, snuff, chewing tobacco, removing tonsils,
extracting teeth, sprinkling sulfur in shoes.
 In the army, contagious diseases spread more rapidly.
 More than ¼ catch disease.
 Kills about 500,000 Americans, 30 million worldwide.
“THE WAR TO END ALL WARS”
 After four years, World War I comes to a sudden end.
 Leaders meet at Versailles to work out the terms of peace.
 Wilson and a delegation attend the peace conference. Does not include a single
influential Republican; diplomat Henry White is a Republican but does not have a
close connection to the party… RINO.
19.4 WILSON FIGHTS FOR PEACE
LEARNING TARGETS…
Summarize Wilson’s Fourteen Points.
Describe the Treaty of Versailles and the
international and domestic reaction to it.
Explain some of the consequences of the war.
THE CHÂTEAU DE VERSAILLES
Built by Louis the XIV, on a
marshland, about 10 miles west of
Paris.
Construction at the castle started in
1664 and lasted for close to 50
years. Up to 15,000 builders worked
together at any given time
The Château de Versailles is one of
the largest castles in the world, and
boasts more than 2,000 windows,
700 rooms, 1250 fireplaces, 67
staircases and more than 1,700 acres
of garden.
LEARNING TARGET 1:
SUMMARIZE WILSON’S FOURTEEN POINTS.
 Delivered his plan, Fourteen Points, to Congress in January 1918.
 Points were divided into three groups: prevention, boundaries, creation of an international
organization.
 Points 1-5, Prevention of another war.





No secret treaties.
Freedom of the seas.
Economic barriers—the tariff—lowered or abolished.
Arms reduction.
Consideration of empire/colonial interests.
 Points 6-13, Changes in boundaries based on self-determination and nationality.
 Groups that claimed a distinct ethnic identity formed their own nation-state, or to what state they
would belong.
POINT 14, THE CREATION OF THE LEAGUE
OF NATIONS
 Purpose: provided a forum for nations to air their grievances, and settle matters without
going to war.
 Wilson didn’t understand the politics and anger felt by Allied nations.
 Clemenceau (France) saw two German invasions of France and was determined to prevent future
attacks.
 David Lloyd George (Britain) won his re-election on “Make Germany Pay.”
 Vittorio Orlando (Italy) wanted control of Austrian-held territories.
 Who wasn’t represented at the peace conference?
 Russia
 Smaller Allied nations
 Central Powers nations.
***Wilson concedes on most of the points in order to get the League of
Nations established.
THE HALL OF MIRRORS.
More about the Hall of Mirrors…
1871, Kaiser Wilhelm's
grandfather was proclaim head
of the German state, a.k.a. the
“Second Reich,” in the Hall of
Mirrors.
The French found it to be an
appropriate location to sign a
treaty marking Germany’s
defeat, and the end of the
Second Reich.
LEARNING TARGET 2: DESCRIBE THE TREATY OF
VERSAILLES AND THE INTERNATIONAL AND
DOMESTIC REACTION TO IT.
 The “Big Four” and leaders of the defeated nations meet in the Hall of Mirrors to sign the treaty,
that they hoped would bring stability.
 Provisions:
 Established nine new nations, shifted the boundaries of other nations.
 Carved out five areas from the Ottoman Empire, gave control to France and Britain as
mandates or colonies, until the areas were ready for self-rule.
 As for Germany…
 Barred them from maintaining an army.
 Return the region of Alsace-Lorraine to France.
 Stripped of colonial possessions in other regions of the world.
 Pay $33 billion in war reparations to the Allies.
 War-guilt clause.
“A WAR TO END ALL WARS…” REALLY???
 Flaws in the treaty…
 Humiliated Germany; had to accept full responsibility for
starting the war.
 Germany couldn’t pay reparations when resources were taken
away.
 You snooze, you lose… Russia suffers more causalities than
any other nation, but because they were not present at the
conference, they lose more territory than Germany.
 Ignored pleas for self-determination of colonized people.
NO WAY, JOSE!
 Wilson faces strong opposition from Congress.
 Too harsh.
 Sell-out to imperialism.
 Didn’t satisfy the demands for self-determination.
 League of Nations threatens U.S. foreign policy—isolationism.
 Disliked the joint economic and military action provision against aggression.
LEARNING TARGET 3:
EXPLAIN SOME OF THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE
WAR.
 A return to normalcy or a transformation?
 In the United States…
 In Europe…
 Thanks, Treaty of Versailles… for nothing.