Download Great War

Unit 9
World War I
(The Great War)
1914 - 1918
1917 - 1918
U.S.
involvement
• Imperialism
When one country controls another country’s land,
politics or economy with no intention of stopping –
literally, establishing empires.
• Foreign policy debate
– Imperialism vs. Isolationism
• U.S. wants to be imperialistic
• U.S. wants to stay out of European problems
• Roosevelt Corollary
– U.S. would use its police power to control Western
Hemisphere
Woodrow Wilson – 28th President of U.S.
• 2 terms: 1913 - 1921
• Democratic Party
• Domestic reform
policies known as the
“New Freedom”
Woodrow Wilson – 28th President of U.S.
• Foreign policy known as
“Missionary Diplomacy”
– Missionary of democracy
• Ethnocentric
– Everyone should be like U.S.
– Contradictory views
• Wilson said imperialism was
immoral
– Not right to own other
people/countries if they don’t
want to be owned
• Wilson also thought U.S. interests
needed to be protected
Woodrow Wilson – 28th President of U.S.
• Foreign policy known as
“Missionary Diplomacy”
– Wilson first used missionary
diplomacy before WWI
• In Nicaragua, U.S. supported
overthrow of its president &
supported the new president
• In Mexico, U.S. helped overthrow
a dictator
Europe Explodes Into War
• Tensions in Europe
– Nationalism created rivalry & hostility between
European nations
– Imperialism
• 1870–1914: Britain, France, Germany, Italy, & Russia
scrambled for colonies in Africa, Asia, & the Pacific
– Each sought new markets & raw materials
– Militarism
• European nations expanded their armies & navies
Europe Explodes Into War
• Tensions in Europe
– Rival alliances
• Germany organized the Triple Alliance
– Included Austria-Hungary & Italy
– To protect Germany & isolate France
• France formed the Triple Entente
– Included Russia & Britain
– Allies agree to support one another in case of
attack
Tensions in Europe
• Archduke
Franz Ferdinand
– Heir to the Austrian
throne
Outbreak of War
June 28, 1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand & wife Sophie
assassinated in Sarajevo
(capital of Austria-Hungary province of Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Outbreak of War
• Archduke Ferdinand
assassinated by
Gavrilo Princip
• Black Hand
– Terrorist group
– Wanted Bosnia to break
free of Austria-Hungary
• Triggered World War I
Outbreak of War
• Alliances lead to war
– Austria-Hungary accused Serbian government of murder
& threatened war
– Russia moved to protect Serbia
• July 28, 1914: Austria-Hungary declared war on
Serbia
– Next day, Russia mobilized its forces
– Germany told Russia to cancel mobilization
• Russia did not reply
Outbreak of War
• Alliances lead to war
• August 1, 1914: Germany declared war on Russia
• August 3, 1914: Germany declared war on France
• When Germany marched through neutral Belgium
on the way to France, Britain declared war on
Germany
– Britain promised to defend Belgium if it were attacked
The “Great War” Begins
• Central Powers
– Germany
– Austria-Hungary
– Ottoman Empire
• Allied Powers
– France
– Britain
– Russia
In time,
21 other
countries,
including
Italy, joined
the Allies
The “Great War” Begins
• Wilson wanted to remain
neutral at first
– Officially, the U.S. was neutral
• In 1914, 1/3 of U.S. citizens
were immigrants or first
generation
– 8 million Americans were
German or Austrian descent
• Most Americans favored the
Allies
The “Great War” Begins
• Profits – trade with Allies
– 1914: $825M
– 1916: $3.2B
• U.S. trade with Central
Powers was miniscule
• U.S. also had millions in
loans to the Allies
The “Great War” Begins
• As a neutral nation, U.S. wanted to trade with
both sides
• Britain & Germany blockaded each other’s
ports
The “Great War”
• Germans used U-boats (submarines)
– Submarine warfare
– Attacked any ship that entered or left British ports
The “Great War” Begins
• Germany warned U.S. to keep ships out of
blockade zone
– Wilson threatened to hold Germany responsible if
German submarines caused Americans to die or
lose property
– Germany ignored Wilson’s threat
The “Great War” Begins
• May 7, 1915 – sinking of Lusitania
– German submarine torpedoed the Lusitania
• British passenger ship
• Off coast of Ireland
• Nearly 1,200 people died, including 128 Americans
The “Great War” Begins
– Wilson called it “murder on the high seas.”
• Threatened to break off diplomatic relations if
Germany did not stop sinking passenger ships
• Germany did not want to risk war with U.S.
• Germany apologized for sinking ships with
Americans on board
• Germany agreed to stop attacking neutral ships
without warning
The Road to War
• Despite his devotion to peace, Pres. Wilson saw
the need to be prepared in case war could not be
avoided
– He called for a stronger army & navy
– He tried to bring the Central and Allied powers together
for peace talks, but failed
The Road to War
• Election of 1916
– Woodrow Wilson ran for reelection
• Campaign slogan: “He kept us out of war!”
• Narrow victory
– To look more progressive just before the election:
» Gave low cost loans to farmers
» Signed the Child Labor Act (under pressure)
» Supported 8 hour work day for railroad workers
Republican candidate
Charles Evans Hughes
Supreme Court Justice
former Gov. of New York
The Road to War
• After 1916 election
– Wilson again pressed for peace
– January 1917, calls on warring
powers to accept “peace without
victory”
The Road to War
• Germany warned neutral nations
– After Feb. 1, 1917, would sink any ship nearing Britain
– Renewed unrestricted submarine warfare
• To break Allied blockade
– Risked bringing U.S. into war
• Germany gambled they could beat the Allies before American
troops could reach Europe
• Pres. Wilson cut diplomatic relations with Germany
The Road to War
• Zimmermann telegram
– Secret note from Germany’s foreign secretary, Arthur
Zimmermann, to German minister in Mexico
– Gave instructions to German minister
• Urge Mexico to attack U.S. if U.S. declared war on Germany
• In return, Germany would help Mexico win back “lost provinces”
in American Southwest
– Land in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas
(land lost after Mexican War)
– Anti-German feeling soared in Americans
Zimmermann Telegram
The Road to War
• Early 1917
– German submarines sank several American merchant
ships
– Revolution in Russia drove Czar Nicholas II from power
• Poor conditions on war front and at home because of food
shortage
• Russia signed a peace treaty with Germany and withdrew from
WWI
• April 2, 1917
– Pres. Wilson asked Congress to declare war
– Congress voted 455 to 56
• Jeannette Rankin of Montana
– First woman elected to congress
– Voted no
The Road to War
• April 6, 1917
– Pres. Wilson signed declaration of war
– Next day, George M. Cohan wrote a song, “Over There”
• Patriot’s tune -- lines expressed American confidence
“Over There”
Johnnie, get your gun,
Get your gun, get your gun,
Take it on the run,
On the run, on the run.
Hear them calling, you and me,
Every son of liberty.
Hurry right away,
No delay, go today,
Make your daddy glad
To have had such a lad.
Tell your sweetheart not to pine,
To be proud her boy's in line.
(chorus sung twice)
Johnnie, get your gun,
Get your gun, get your gun,
Johnnie show the Hun
Who's a son of a gun.
Hoist the flag and let her fly,
Yankee Doodle do or die.
Pack your little kit,
Show your grit, do your bit.
Yankee to the ranks,
From the towns and the tanks.
Make your mother proud of you,
And the old Red, White and Blue.
(chorus sung twice)
Chorus
Over there, over there,
Send the word, send the word over
there That the Yanks are coming,
The Yanks are coming,
The drums rum-tumming
Ev'rywhere.
So prepare, say a pray'r,
Send the word, send the word to
beware.
We'll be over, we're coming over,
And we won't come back till it's over
Over there.
The Great War
• U.S. needed an army to fight
• May 18, 1917
– Congress passed the Selective Service Act
• Required all young men ages 21-30 to register for military draft
• In next 18 months, 4 million men & women joined armed forces
– People from every ethnic group enlisted
» Puerto Ricans, Filipinos, recently arrived immigrants,
Native Americans
• Women served as radio operators, clerks, &
stenographers
The Great War
• Men drilled for combat
– Not enough weapons at training camps
– Trained using broomsticks for guns
– At first, African Americans were not allowed in combat
• When government changed the rules, >2M registered for draft
• Segregated “black-only” units commanded by white officers
• Many thought the war seemed like a great
adventure
The Yanks are coming!
The Great War
• Food for victory
– Pres. Wilson chose Herbert Hoover to head Food
Administration
• Boost food production
– Feed troops
– Help Allies
• Farmers grew more crops
• Families planted “victory gardens”
The Great War
• Foreign policy known as
“Missionary Diplomacy”
– Missionary of democracy
• Ethnocentric
– Everyone should be like U.S.
• Pres. Wilson entered WWI to
“make the world safe for
democracy”
The Great War
• Factories & labor
– Government told
factories what they
had to produce
– Factories began
producing more
– Short supply of
workers
• Women began working
– Unions won better pay
& working conditions
• No one wanted a strike
The Great War
• Americans supported
war effort with their
savings
– Millions bought Liberty
Bonds
• Lending money to the
government to pay for war
• Government raised $21B
The Great War
• During WWI, almost a half million African
Americans left the South & moved to cities in North
– Escaped poverty & discrimination
– Found better paying jobs in war industries
– Competition for housing & jobs led to race riots
• 1917: 39 African Americans killed during riot
– East St. Louis, IL
• Immigrants from Mexico
– Almost 100,000 came to work on farms & in factories
– Were welcomed by Americans & made important
contribution
• But after war, U.S. tried to force them to return to Mexico
The Great War
• Critics of war
– Believed war benefited wealthy owners & not workers
– Pacifists refused to fight in any war
• Congress pass laws making it a crime to criticize
government or interfere with the war
– Nearly 1,600 men & women arrested for breaking laws
– Although laws violated Constitution’s guarantee of
freedom of speech, most felt the laws were necessary in
wartime
The Great War
• Propaganda: France and Great Britain twisted the
war into a fight against democratic powers versus
evil absolute monarchies
• By June 1918, Americans were reaching France in
record numbers
– Commanded by Gen. John J. Pershing
• U.S. wanted a major role in shaping peace
– To do so, would need a “definite and distinct part” during
the war
369th Infantry Regiment – “Harlem Hell Fighters”
• On front lines, attached to
French army
– Spent more time under fire
than any other American
unit during WWI
– French respected their
bravery
• Most African Americans
served in support roles
– Laborers, cargo handlers,
waiters
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Campaign to Victory
In 1917, The United States declared war on Germany.
By 1918, about two million American soldiers had joined
the Allies on the Western Front.
The Germans launched a huge offensive, pushing the
Allies back.
The Allies launched a counteroffensive, driving German
forces back across France and Germany.
Germany sought an armistice, or agreement to end
fighting, with the Allies.
At 11 am, on November 11, 1918, the war ended.
5
Casualties of World War I
Deaths
in Battle
Wounded
in Battle
1,357,800
908,371
1,700,000
462,391
50,585
502,421
4,266,000
2,090,212
4,950,000
953,886
205,690
342,585
1,808,546
922,500
325,000
4,247,143
3,620,000
400,000
Allies
France
British empire
Russia
Italy
United States
Others
Central Powers
Germany
Austria-Hungary
Ottoman empire
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
President Woodrow Wilson issued the Fourteen Points, a list of his terms
for resolving World War I and future wars. He called for:
• freedom of the seas
• free trade
• large-scale reductions of arms
• an end to secret treaties
• self-determination, or the right of people to choose their own
form of government, for Eastern Europe
• the creation of a “general association of nations” to keep the
peace in the future
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The Paris Peace Conference
The delegates to the Paris Peace Conference
faced many difficult issues:
The Big Four:
– Woodrow Wilson (U.S.)
– David Lloyd George (Great Britain)
– Georges Clemenceau (France)
– Vittorio Orlando (Italy)
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The Paris Peace Conference
The delegates to the Paris Peace Conference
faced many difficult issues:
– Great Britain and France wanted to punish
the Central Powers
– Created the Treaty of Versailles
– Created the League of Nations
• Weak & ineffectual
• 60 nations join
– Not the U.S.
5
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty:
•
•
Forced Germany to assume full blame for causing the war.
Imposed huge reparations upon Germany.
The Treaty aimed at weakening Germany by:
• Limited the size of the German military to 100,000 total
•
•
•
•
No tanks, heavy artillery, airplanes, submarines, or draft
Must return Alsace and Lorraine to France
Removed hundreds of miles of territory from Germany
Stripped Germany of its overseas colonies
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The Treaty of Versailles
•The treaty also chopped up and created new countries.
•The Germans signed the treaty because they had no
choice
•German resentment of the Treaty of Versailles would
poison the international climate for 20 years and lead to an
even deadlier world war.
Europe in 1914 & 1920
1914
1920