Download World War I

Although
the United States
tried to remain neutral,
what events eventually
pushed the nation into
World War I?
 Alliances:
• Triple Alliance – Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy
• Triple Entente – Great Britain, France, Russia
 Military
Buildup
• Both Great Britain and Germany began building
their naval powers
 Nationalism
and Self-Determination
• Pride in one’s homeland and the idea that
people who belong to a nation have the right to
govern themselves.
Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand
assassinated in Serbia by a member of the “Black
Hand” on June 28, 1914.
 July 28, 1914 – Austria declared war on Serbia
 August 1, 1914 – Germany declared war on
Russia

Russians were ethnic Slavs and felt an obligation
August 3, 1914 – Germany declared war on
France
 Britain declares war when Germany crossed into
Belgium

 Allies:
• Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Serbia,
Greece, Belgium
 Central
Powers:
• Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman
Empire
 “We
must be impartial in thought as well
as in action.” –Woodrow Wilson
 What
are the possible positive and
negative impacts of this statement?
 Why
would American citizens disagree
with President Wilson’s statement?
 Unterseeboots
(U-Boats) being used by
the Germans to attack British and French
vessels
 Sinking of the Lusitania on May 7, 1915 –
killed 1,200 passengers (128 Americans)
 March 1916 – Sussex Pledge made
between U.S. and Germany
 Germany
sent a telegram to Mexico
promising to give back lost territory
“taken” by the United States if Mexico
allied itself with Germany.
• Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona
 German
U-boats resumed unrestricted
submarine warfare
• Sank 6 American merchant ships without
warning between February 3 and March 2
 April
4, 1917 - U.S. declares war on
Germany