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Chapter 21 Study Guide: World War I
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 Militarism, the alliance system, imperialism, and nationalism all caused tension in the early
20th century amongst European nations and were the MAIN causes of WWI.
 The Triple Alliance and Triple Entente were alliances established to keep the military
balance of power in Europe.
 The Central Powers or Triple Alliance included the powers of Germany, AustriaHungary and the Ottoman Empire (Italy was a member until 1915)
 The Allies: Russia, France and Great Britain were members of the Triple Entente. (The
US joined these nations in 1917)
 The assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian
throne was the immediate spark/cause of World War I in Europe.
 In 1914, the US adopted a policy of neutrality, or the policy of non-involvement when
war erupted in Europe
 Fighting increased rapidly in Europe from a local conflict in Bosnia to a world war
because powerful nations had opposing alliances.
 Trench Warfare was developed to try to combat the use of machine guns and other
devastating weapons and was the main type of fighting in WWI
 Woodrow Wilson was the US President during the First World War, and was re-elected in
1916 by promising neutrality.
 A blockade is an attempt by a country to stop all types of shipping from entering
another country’s harbors or ports. Both Britain and Germany blockaded ports during
WWI.
 The Germans used a strategy of unlimited submarine warfare to stop supplies from
getting to the Allies.
 The sinking of the Lusitania and US merchant ships along with Germany’s
Zimmermann Telegram to Mexico gave the US reason to consider fighting a war with
Germany
 The Zimmerman Note/Telegram was a German message sent to Mexico trying to lure
Mexico into the war on the side of Germany by attacking the US
 As a result of the Russian Revolution of 1917, Russia decided to withdraw from World
War I. The Bolsheviks led by Vladimir Lenin led the Russian Revolution to bring
Communism to Russia. He executed Czar Nicholas II and his family.
 With the Russian dictator now out of the war the U.S. felt it could now join the Allies in a
fight for democracy around the world.
 The US government sold liberty bonds to help raise money for the war effort and
planted Victory gardens to help grow extra food.
 Trade with the Allied powers during the war helped the US economy grow tremendously.
Herbert Hoover was put in charge of the Food Administration during WWI to monitor
the U.S. Food supply.
 The status of women changed during the war because with the absence of men greater
job opportunities were suddenly available for women
 Wilson tried to expand the army by passing The Selective Service Act requiring all
men between the ages of 18 – 45 to register for the draft
 The Harlem Hell Fighters were a segregated black army unit from Harlem NY that
fought for the U.S. in WWI. Even though they were discriminated against at home, they
fought in more battles and received more medals than any other U.S. fighting unit in
WWI.
 The armistice, an end to fighting, was set for November 11, 1918 at 11:00am.
 Wilson’s Fourteen Points was a peace plan to prevent future wars.
 Wilson’s main goal at the Paris Peace conferences was to arrange for the League of
Nations to guarantee world peace.
 The Big Four at the Paris Peace Conference were France, Britain, Italy and the US.
 Through President Wilson’s Fourteen Points he hoped to provide peace without
victory and set up democratic governments in Asia and Europe and prevent future
wars.
 One portion of Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points which was included into the Treaty
of Versailles was his idea of a League of Nations, which had the goal to prevent all future
world wars
 Led by Henry Cabot Lodge, The US Senate did not join the League of Nations because
membership would involve the U.S. in world affairs too much. The US Senate refused to
ratify (pass) the Treaty of Versailles
 The US Senate did not want the US to be dragged into any future European wars, which
the League of Nations would pledge to protect
 The Treaty of Versailles punished the Germans for WWI. Germany had to take full
responsibility for the war.
 Germany would have to pay reparations for the war. Reparations are payments made
by one nation to another for damages caused by a war
 Germany lost all of its colonies to Britain and France.
 Germany lost Alsace-Lorraine to the French and other territory in Europe which became
Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia.
 The proceedings at the Versailles peace conference would have real important
consequences on the events of Europe in the decades to come. (1930’s and
1940’s) The terms of the Treaty of Versailles would cause resentment and bitter
feelings amongst the defeated nation of Germany.