Lesson 9
World War I: End of the War,
Seeds of the Next
1
Lesson Objectives
• Understand the situation Germany faced as it entered 1918.
• Be able to describe the changes in the war on the Western front
in 1918.
• Understand the role the US played in the fighting in Europe.
• Be able to describe the operations of the US military in Europe in
the years immediately following the armistice.
• Be able to discuss the major provisions of the Versailles Treaty
and how this document sowed the seeds for World War II.
2
Phases of World War I
1914 - Maneuver and Frustration
1915 - Search for New Solutions
1916 - Attrition
1917 - Desperation and Anticipation
1918 - Dénouement
3
Review of the War
August 3, 1914
Germany invades Belgium; war begins
Sept 5-10, 1914
“Miracle of the Marne”; German invasion halted
October 1914
Race to the Sea ends; Stalemate on Western Front
1915
Feb 1915-Jan 1916
1916
Sea blockades established around UK and Germany
Dardanelles Campaign (Gallipoli)
Germans accept futility of breakthrough on
Western Front, adopt attrition strategy against
French at Verdun
4
Review of the War
Feb - Dec 1916
Battle of Verdun (German Offensive)
Jul - Nov 1916
Battle of the Somme (Allied Offensive)
Late 1916
Germany realizes it cannot win
• Adopts strategy to wear down Britain
• strong defense
• stormtrooper tactics
• unrestricted submarine warfare
5
Review of the War
Feb - Dec 1916
Battle of Verdun (German Offensive)
Jul - Nov 1916
Battle of the Somme (Allied Offensive)
1 Feb 1917
German decision for unrestricted sub warfare
24 Feb 1917
Zimmerman Telegram revealed
Mar 1917
6 April 1917
Germans withdraw to Hindenburg Line
US declares war on Germany
6
The Yanks Are Coming!
Video

8:07
7
The Commanders
Enlisted for the Franco-Prussian War (1870)
Commissioned from École Polytechnique 1873
Cautioned against reckless attacks in writings
Corps commander in Battle of the Frontiers 1914
Appointed Supreme Commander of Allied Armies
Marshal Ferdinand Foch
March 26,1918
1851-1929
8
The Commanders
West Point Class of 1886
Combat Experience
Indian Wars
Spanish-American War
Philippine-American War
Russo-Japanese War (observer)
Mexican Punitive Expedition
World War I
General of the Armies John J. Pershing
1860 - 1948
Promoted by President T. Roosevelt (1905)
Captain => Brigadier General
Commander of the American Expeditionary Force (1917-1919)
9
The Commanders
French wanted to integrate US forces into their formations
Pershing insisted on US formations integrated into Allied command
10
Western Front 1917
Germans retire to Hindenburg Line Mar 1917
11
Passchendaele
Third Battle of Ypres July - November 1917
British offensive
Strategic Objectives
Further bleed the German army
Capture German submarine bases
Remove German bomber threat
Ghotha bomber
12
First raid June 13, 1917
Passchendaele
Third Battle of Ypres July - November 1917
Battlefield was reclaimed marshland - damp in dry weather
“Flanders Fields”
Area experienced heaviest rains in decades as battle started
Battlefield became a sea of mud
13
Passchendaele
Third Battle of Ypres July - November 1917
Another bloodbath
Total Casualties *
UK
Germany
508,800
348,300
* Numbers very controversial
British commander, Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig
believed the Germans could not tolerate the losses
as well as the British could
Haig
14
Western Front 1917
British breakthrough at Cambrai Nov 1917
15
Eastern Front
Meanwhile, …
16
Eastern Front
Huge Russian losses exacerbated social unrest
Tzar at the front; tzarina not able to exercise control
Russian Revolution (1917) effectively took Russia out of the war
Dec 15, 1917 - Russia negotiated armistice with Central Powers
• Began negotiations for peace treaty one week later
17
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
March 3, 1918
Ended war between Russia & Central Powers
Russia ceded large territory to Germany
Most significant:
One million German troops
released to Western Front
18
Strumtruppen
Stormtroopers
Special weapons & equipment
Machinegewehr 18 MG18 Schmeiser
Body Armor
19
Strumtruppen
Stormtroopers
Bypassed strong points
to attack from rear
Blitzkrieg
http://www.bellum.nu/basics/concepts/blitzkrieg.htm
Strumtruppen
http://www.worldwar1.com/arm011.htm
20
Strumtruppen
Stormtroopers
Major impact during
Offensive of 1918
but …
Too little, too late!
A
21
Western Front 1917-1918
Spring Offensive
~ 500,000 US troops in
France by March 1918
… and increasing by
300,000/month
Last ditch effort by
Germany
German Spring Offensive March 21 - July 18, 1918
Ludendorff Offensive or Kaiserschlacht (“Emperor’s Slaughter”)
Western Front 1917-1918
Final Allied Offensive Aug-Nov 1918
23
Western Front 1917-1918
Allied offensive Aug-Nov 1918
24
Americans In Europe
German Spring Offensive - March-July 1918
25
Battle of Cantiny
May 28, 1918
German Spring Offensive - March-July 1918
26
Battle of Cantiny
May 28, 1918
First offensive action by US troops in France
28th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division (3,500 men)
· Supported by French artillery, Schneider tanks
US took 1,000 casualties
(dead, wounded, missing)
German Spring Offensive - March-July 1918
27
Battle of Belleu Wood
June 1-26, 1918
German Spring Offensive - March-July 1918
28
Battle of Belleu Wood
June 1-26, 1918
Allied Casualties: 1,800 dead, 8,000 wounded
2nd Division
3nd Division
French, British elements
29
Battle of Belleu Wood
Where legends were born
2nd Division
4th U. S. Marines
Battle of Belleu Wood - June 1918
Frank Schoonover
30
Battle of Belleu Wood
Battle of Belleu Wood - June 1918
31
Battle of Château-Thierry
July 16, 1918
German Spring Offensive - March-July 1918
32
Battle of Château-Thierry
July 16, 1918
33
Battle of Saint-Mihiel
September 12-15, 1918
Allied Offensive - 1918
34
Battle of Saint-Mihiel
September 12-15, 1918
35
Meuse-Argonne Offensive
September 26-November 11, 1918
Allied Offensive - 1918
36
Meuse-Argonne Offensive
September 26-November 11, 1918
37
Americans In Europe
US soldiers escort German prisoners
38
Armistice
Armistice signed at Compiègne – November 11, 1918
39
Armistice
Armistice signed at Compiègne – November 11, 1918
40
Irony
French surrendered at Compiègne – June 20, 1940
Same place, same railroad car
41
Occupation of Germany
Allied Occupation Zones
42
Occupation of Germany
U.S. artillerymen cross the Rhine River for occupation duty
Late November 1918
43
The Cost of War
44
The Cost of War
US
Participants
Deaths
4,744,000
126,000
45
The Cost of War
All Nations
By number of dead
46
The Cost of War
All Nations
By percent mobilized
47
Summary of War’s End
"The Circle of Modern War" and logo
© Thomas D. Pilsch 2007-2013
The Cost of War
Tyne Cote Cemetery (Ypres)
Belgium
Somme American Cemetery
49
The Cost of War
Douaumont Ossuary
Verdun
Contains the bones of an estimated 130,000
unidentified French and German soldiers
50
Seeds of the Next War
Influences on World War II
Versailles Treaty
Lessons of World War I
Great Depression
51
Treaty of Versailles
Extremely harsh conditions
• Significant territorial concessions
• Huge reparations
• Severe limitations on military
• German admission of responsibility for war
52
Treaty of Versailles
Florida Holocaust Museum
http://www.flholocaustmuseum.org/history_wing/thirdreich/treaty_versailles.cfm
53
Treaty of Versailles
Reparations
• 269 billion gold marks ( £ 24 billion)
• Later reduced to 132 B gold marks ( £ 6.6 B)
• Equivalent to $339 B (based on CPI)*
Many feel this led to the economic collapse of the
1920’s that sewed the seeds of Fascism
* 2013
54
Treaty of Versailles
Military Provisions
• German army restricted to 100,000 men (long term contract)
• No conscription or training
• No tanks or heavy artillery
• Navy limited to 15,000 men
• 6 small battleships, 6 cruisers, 12 destroyers, no U-boats
• No air force
55
Treaty of Versailles
War Guilt Clause
``The Allied and Associated Governments affirm, and
Germany accepts, the responsibility of Germany and her
allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied
and Associated Governments and their nationals have been
subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them
by the aggression of Germany and her allies.''
Article 231
56
Review of the War
August 3, 1914
Germany invades Belgium; war begins
Sept 5-10, 1914
“Miracle of the Marne”; German invasion halted
October 1914
Race to the Sea ends; Stalemate on Western Front
1915
Feb 1915-Jan 1916
1916
Sea blockades established around UK and Germany
Dardanelles Campaign (Gallipoli)
Germans accept futility of breakthrough on
Western Front, adopt attrition strategy against
French at Verdun
57
Review of the War
Feb - Dec 1916
Battle of Verdun (German Offensive)
Jul - Nov 1916
Battle of the Somme (Allied Offensive)
1 Feb 1917
German decision for unrestricted sub warfare
24 Feb 1917
Zimmerman Telegram revealed
Mar 1917
6 April 1917
Germans withdraw to Hindenburg Line
US declares war on Germany
58
Review of the War
June 1917
3 Mar 1918
First American troops arrive in France
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (Russia out of the war)
21 Mar - 18 Jul 1918
Germans Spring Offensive
8 Aug - 11 Nov 1918
Allies’ Hundred Days Offensive
11 Nov 1918
Armistice
28 Jun 1919
Treaty of Versailles signed
59
Review of World War I
Animated Maps
Start Animation
( 6:43 )
60
Phases of World War I
1914 - Maneuver and Frustration
1915 - Search for New Solutions
1916 - Attrition
1917 - Desperation and Anticipation
1918 - Dénouement
61
What Would Weinberger Do?
How
The would
U.S. was
USnot
decision
directlytoattacked
enter World
duringWar
WWII.have
stood up against the test of the Weinberger Doctrine?
Vital to our national interest?
Clear intent to win?
Clearly defined political & military objectives?
Objectives, forces committed continuously reassessed?
Support of the American people?
Last resort?
62
Exam 1 - Lessons 1-9
Review Slides
Study Notes
These slides are provided to help you identify the key topics
covered in the lectures. They will assist you in understanding the
material but should not be your only review source.
Of equal importance are the slides leading up to these summaries.
Study these preliminary slides will help you understand the context
and importance of the “Buzzword” summary slides.
Another valuable review source is the study guide questions for
each lesson. Some of the exam questions will come from
these.
I wish you all the best of success!
End
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