Download World War I (1914

World War I
(1914-1918)
“The war to end all wars.”
Causes of World War I
M = militarism
A = alliance system
I = imperialism
N = nationalism
Militarism
 Policy
of building up strong armed
forces to prepare for war.
European nations expanded their armies
and navies
Nations raced for
naval dominance and
this led to increased
tension (especially
Britain and Germany)
Alliances
Agreement between nations to aid
and protect each other.
To protect themselves, European
powers formed rival alliances
Central Powers: Germany and
Austria-Hungary and Ottoman
Empire
Allies (Triple Entente): Britain,
France and Russia
Imperialism
Policy
of powerful countries seeking
to control the economic and political
affairs of weaker countries
Will lead to rivalries because Britain,
France, Germany, Italy, and Russia all
scrambled for colonies in Africa, Asia,
and the Pacific.
Nationalism
Pride on one’s country
Many people believed that people with a
common language and culture should get rid
of foreign rule and form their own
countries
Nationalism deepened hostility between
Austria-Hungary and Russia. Russia
encouraged Serbs and other minorities in
Austria-Hungary to rise up against their
rulers.

June 28, 1914
“Murder in Sarajevo”
The spark that started WWI was
the assassination of Austria’s
Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Arriving
at City
Hall
Leaving
Gavrilo
Princip
Central Powers
(Germany, Austria-Hungary, & the
Ottoman Empire)
Vs.
the Allies
(England, France, Russia, and the
United States)
A Local Conflict leads to a World War

Map of World with Participants in
World War I - Allies in green Central
Powers in orange - neutral in grey
Entangled Alliances
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Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28,
1914, a month after the assassination in Sarajevo.
Russia, bound by treaty to Serbia, mobilizes its army
Germany viewed the Russian mobilization as an act of
war against its ally Austria-Hungary and so declared war
on Russia
France, bound by its treaty to Russia declared war on
Germany and, by extension, its ally Austria-Hungary
Germany invaded Belgium so Britain declared war on
Germany to protect Belgium
Three weeks later, Japan declared its military alliance
with Britain
The Schlieffen Plan

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Germany feared a war on two fronts
General Alfred von Schlieffen developed a plan to avoid
a two front war
– He believed that Russia would be slow to mobilize so he figured
that Germany would have time to quickly defeat France before
having to fight Russia
This plan required Germany to march
through Belgium to get to France…
this caused a problem because Britain
and other European nations had signed
a treaty guaranteeing Belgium neutrality…
Britain declares war on Germany in
response to the invasion of Belgium.
German Troops enter Belgium
Many people believed this would be a
short war… Why?

Weaponry was more
efficient than ever
before
This is the reaction
to the declaration of
war in Paris
They
were WRONG, the war dragged on until 1918
WWI was a new kind of
war, far deadlier than any
before.
Weapons of World War I
Machine Gun
Poison Gas
Airplanes
Tanks
Submarines (U-boats)
Machine Guns
1.) Transformed warfare
2.) Able to kill an entire unit of men.
3.) Created a stalemate during the war.
The First Tanks

Used to breech holes in trench line
defenses
Poison Gas
1.) Used for the 1st time during WWI.
2.) French were the 1st to use it.
3.) Mustard gas - most lethal of all gases.
Odorless & remained active for weeks.
German U-Boats

Hunted in “packs” to attack Allied shipping
in the Atlantic
Read the article on U-Boats
A New Kind of Hero
Baron Manfred von Richthofen
 80 kills

Aerial Combat
for the First Time in History
Trench warfare
The Germans decided to dig trenches that would
provide them protection from the French and
British troops. The Allies couldn’t break through
this line, causing them to dig trenches.
Eventually they spread from the North Sea to the
Swiss Frontier.
Conditions of the Trenches

Millions of soldiers
roasted under the
broiling summer sun
or froze through
long winters. They
share their food
with rats and their
beds with lice.
Pumping
out the
trenches
to avoid
trench
foot
Trench Foot
Primary Sources on Trenches

Discussion Question: What was your
general reaction to these conditions?
No Man’s Land
1.) Ground between two opposing trenches.
2.) Contained barbed wire.
3.) Millions of men died
trying to make it
across.
Preparing to Enter No-Man’s Land
Over the Top
World War I
Battles
Battle of Gallipoli (1915)
1.) Happened in modern day Turkey.
2.) British Indian, Australian, and New
Zealand troops attacked the
Ottomans.
3.) After 10 months and 200,000
causalities, the Allies withdrew.
Battle of Verdun (1916)
1.) Takes place in France
2.) German forces tried to overwhelm
the French, but failed to do so.
3.) The struggle cost more the halfmillion causalities on both sides.
Battle of the Somme River
(1916)
1.) Takes place in France
2.) Allied offensive here was even
more costly than Verdun.
3.) In a single day, 60,000 British
soldiers were killed or wounded.
After 5 months of fighting only 11 kilometers of
territory is gained by the Allies.
By 1917, total war, the
channeling of a nation’s
entire resources into a war
effort, was instituted by
almost all nations involved.
Both sides waged a
propaganda war, which is the
spreading of ideas to
promote a cause or damage
an opposing cause.
The Sinking of
the Lusitania
Major Leaders of
World War I
Archduke Franz
Ferdinand
Austria-Hungary
His assassination led
to the outbreak of
World War I.
Kaiser Wilhelm II
Germany
Stepped down from
power in 1918 and
fled into exile to the
Netherlands.
King George V
England
Cousins of Nicolas
and Wilhelm, he is
the only one able to
celebrate victory
in 1918
President Woodrow
Wilson
United States
His ideas for peace
led to the creation
of the League of
Nations.
Czar Nicolas II
Russia
Military defeats and
high casualties in
WWI led to his
murder.
Russia leaves the war (1917)
1.) Communist revolution brings the Russian
monarchy down.
2.) Vladimir Lenin claims power.
3.) Russia signs a treaty with
Germany that ended Russian
participation in WWI.
Finally, the war ends
In 1918, both sides of the war continued to
fight. With the Kaiser fleeing into exile
and Austria-Hungary reeling towards
collapse, an armistice was signed. On
November 11, 1918, World War I came to an
end.
Outcomes and global
effects
The colonies’ participation in
the war increased demands for
independence, which they would
not get until later in the 20th
century.
WWI caused the
destruction of many
empires and
governments,
including Russia, the
Ottoman Empire,
Germany, and
Austria-Hungary.
The Cost

Soldiers, sailors, and airmen involved worldwide = 65,038,810

Total military deaths worldwide = 8,020,780

Total civilian deaths worldwide = 6,642,633

Military wounded worldwide = 21,228,813
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Approximate cost in early twentieth century dollars = $281,887,000,000
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
•A list of terms for
resolving
this and future wars.
•He called for an end to
secret treaties, freedom
of the seas, free trade,
and large-scale reductions
of arms.
League of Nations
Created
to prevent another world war by
encouraging peaceful resolution of problems.
The
USA didn’t join because the League might
pull them into another European confrontation.
Treaty of Versailles
1.) Germany was forced to accept guilt for
war (Article 231).  War Guilt Clause
2.) Germany had to pay 30 billion dollars in
war damages.
3.) The treaty severely
limited the size of
Germany’s military.
4.) The treaty stripped
Germany of their
overseas colonies.