World War I
Essential Questions
• How does MANIA Explain the Causes for
World War One?
Militarism- Navy
• Britain vs. Germany
• Competition to create
the most Dreadnoughts
– Britain makes 29
– Germany makes 17
• Germany starts making
U-Boats
HMS Dreadnought
Militarism- Army sizes 1914
•
•
•
•
•
Soldiers Mobilized
14
12
10
Millions
Britain- 975,000
Russia- 5,971,000
France- 4,017,000
Germany- 4,500,000
Austria-Hungary3,000,000
• Italy- 1,251,000
• Japan- 800,000
• USA- 200,000
8
6
4
2
0
France
Germany
Russia
Britain
The Alliance System
• Secret Alliances
between European
powers
• Triple Alliance (1882)
– Germany, Italy, Austria
• Triple Entente (1907)
– G.B., France, Russia
Nationalism
Imperialism
in Africa
Imperialism in Asia
The British Empire 1909
Antagonist (Yellow)Journalism
Propaganda- When the media or government
promotes a certain idea or doctrine.
The Steps toward war
• Balkan troubles
– Series of civil wars ends exclusive control by the
Ottomans between 1878-1914
– Leads to increased pressure for control by Austria
and the creation of many small countries
The Balkans 1878
Balkan Wars- several small nations gained
Ottoman controlled territories
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
• Sent to Sarajevo
•2nd most
powerful in
Austria
•Inspect and
secure city
•Potential
“threat” was
neighboring
Serbia
https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/Assassi
n-of-Archduke-Franz-Ferdinand-Gavrilo-Princip
The Assassination: Sarajevo
The Assassin:
Gavrilo
Princip
Who’s To Blame?
July Ultimatum
• Franz Josef, leader of Austria-Hungary, makes
series of ten demands against Serbia
– Serbia fulfills eight out of the ten demands
• July 28th 1914, Austria Declares war!
Activating the Alliances
• July 31st, Russia backs Serbia, declares war on
Austria
• August 1st , Germany declares war on Russia
• August 3rd, Germany declares war on France
• August 4th, Britain declares war on Germany
Enthusiasm for War!
Schlieffen Plan
• Plan was to :
– Invade/conquer France
before Russia can
mobilize.
– Germany invades
Neutral Belgium, on
August 3rd
• When done, Germany
stalls in Belgium
Schlieffen Plan
Battle of the Marne
• September 5-12, 1914
• German advance which
is halted by allied forces
• Allies push Germans
back, ending the idea of
a quick war
• Over 200,000 casualties
on both sides
The Western Front
Trench Warfare
Verdun – February, 1916
German offensive.
Each side had 500,000 casualties.
The Somme – July, 1916
-60,000 British soldiers killed in one day.
-Over 1,000,000 killed in 5 months.
Eastern Front
• Russia vs. Germany and
Austria
• Russia mobilizes and
advances
• Russia gains much
territory
Battle of Tannenberg
• Germany vs. Russia
• Germans win because of…
– Using railroads to transport troops
– Listening to Russian radio transmissions
• Germany loses 20,000; Russia loses 140,000
German pushes
• Germany advances into
Russia.
• Germany and Russia
sign the Treaty of BrestLitovsk
October (Bolshevik) Revolution
• November 7, 1917
• Overthrew the Czar and
put a communist
government in charge
of Russia.
• By 1922, Russia is
known as the USSR or
the Soviet Union
New Technologies
Maxim Machine
Gun
•Used by… Germany,
USA, Britain, France,
Austria, Russia
Artillery- ex. Big Bertha
Artillery at the Battle of Verdun
From Horses to…
British Tanks at Ypres
Little Willie
Use of Planes
Poison gases
• France first uses
mustard gas
• German uses gas
frequently
– Chlorine gas
– Mustard gas
– Tear gas
British soldiers on
horseback with gas
masks
German gas canisters
lined up
Wireless Communication
• Need for
communicating over
hundreds of miles.
• Ships and soldiers on
the front lines used
radio to communicate
with commanders
The Sinking
of the Lusitania
The Zimmerman Note
“We intend to begin on the 1st of February unrestricted submarine
warfare. We shall endeavor in spite of this to keep the United States
of America neutral. In the event of this not succeeding, we make
Mexico a proposal of alliance on the following basis: make war
together, make peace together, generous financial support and an
understanding on our part that Mexico is to reconquer the lost
territory in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. The settlement in detail
is left to you. You will inform the President of the above most
secretly as soon as the outbreak of war with the United States of
America is certain and add the suggestion that he should, on his
own initiative, invite Japan to immediate adherence and at the
same time mediate between Japan and ourselves. Please call the
President's attention to the fact that the ruthless employment of
our submarines now offers the prospect of compelling England in a
few months to make peace. Signed, Zimmermann. “
http://wwi.lib.byu.edu/index.php/1917_Documents
USA enters the war
• President Wilson
declares war on April 6,
1917
“The World must be made
safe for Democracy"
• USA leaves isolationism;
goes to fight in France
• USA soldiers known as
doughboys
Selective Service Act
24,000,000 men registered
for the draft by the end
of 1918.
4,800,000 men served in
WW1 (2,000,000 saw
active combat).
400,000 African-Americans
served in segregated
units.
15,000 Native-Americans
served as scouts,
messengers, and snipers
in non segregated units.
AEF (American Expeditionary Force)
• Led by General John
Pershing
Ludendorff Offensive
• Germany’s last attempt
to conquer France
• Used Sturmtrüppen to
infiltrate trenches
• Immediate success;
stalled when USA
arrives in Sept. 1917
Hundred Day’s Offensive
• Allies
–
–
–
–
USA
Britain
Australia
France
• Battle of St.-Hihiel
• Meuse-Argonne Forest
– Sept. 26-Nov. 11 1918
Sergeant Alvin York
• Most decorated
American in WWI
• Battle of Argonne
Forest
– 132 prisoners taken
– 35 machine guns
captured
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmRRhxo0RHc
Germany beaten back to the Hindenburg Line
World War I Casualties
10,000,000
9,000,000
8,000,000
7,000,000
6,000,000
5,000,000
4,000,000
3,000,000
2,000,000
1,000,000
0
Russia
Germany
Austria-Hungary
France
Great Britain
Italy
Turkey
US
The Homefront
Total War
• Warfare involving all
resources of a nation to
fight.
–
–
–
–
–
–
Women
Factories
Roads
Farms
Food rationing
Bonds
Rationing and Recycling
Paper recycling
Women’s role
• Replaced men in factories
• Signed up as nurses in the
Red Cross
– Women’s League pushed for
service
• 19th Amendment
War Industries Board
• Created in July, 1917
• Coordinated purchases or war materials and
retooling of factories for war.
–
–
–
–
US productivity increases 20% over one year
Unemployment virtually disappeared.
Expansion of “big government.”
Close cooperation between public
and private sectors.
– Unprecedented opportunities for disadvantaged
groups.
Committee of Public Information
• Created April 1917
– Muckraker George Creel
• Volunteer media organizations
– Created anti-German propaganda to promote the
war
– “Liberty Cabbage”
– “Hot Dogs”
Espionage Act – 1917
• forbade actions that obstructed recruitment
or efforts to promote insubordination in the
military
• ordered the Postmaster General to remove
Leftist materials from the mail
• fines of up to $10,000 and/or up to 20 years in
prison.
Sedition Act – 1918
- it was a crime to speak against the
purchase of war bonds or willfully
utter, print, write or publish any
disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or
abusive language about this form of US
Govt., the US Constitution, or the US
armed forces or to willfully urge, incite,
or advocate any curtailment of
production of things necessary or
essential to the prosecution of the
war…with intent of such curtailment to
cripple or hinder, the US in the
prosecution of the war.
Schenck v. US – 1919
• In ordinary times the mailing of the
leaflets would have been protected by the
1st Amendment.
• BUT, every act of speech must be judged
acc. to the circumstances in which it was
spoken.
-The most stringent protection of free
speech would not protect a man in falsely
shouting fire in a theater and causing a
panic. [Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes]
- If an act of speech posed a clear and
present danger, then Congress had
the power to restrain such speech.
Abrams v. US – 1919
• majority ruling --> cited Holmes’
– “Clear and present danger” doctrine.
- Holmes & Brandeis dissented:
The best test of truth is the
power of the thought to get
itself accepted in the competition
of the market, denying that a
“silly leaflet” published by an
“unknown man” constituted such a
danger.
Great Migration
Spanish Flu
• H1N1 virus
– Starts as Swine flu in
Kansas, taken to Europe
• 20-25 million killed
world-wide
• Why is it called the
“Spanish Flu?”
President Wilson’s Fourteen Points
• Speech January 8, 1918
• Fourteen Points for ending the war and
afterwards:
– Free trade throughout Europe
– Open Agreements
– Self-Determination of countries
– Redrawing country borders
Treaty of Versailles
• June 28, 1919
• Germany surrenders--- punishes Germany
– War reparations
– Loss of Territories
– Limited army
• Creation of the League of Nations
– Regulates changes of other countries
– US Congress refuses to sign or join
• Why?
Treaty of Versailles
New Nations 1923