The End of WWI
In the next 30 seconds….
On a scrap piece of paper…..
Who are the 4 men in the previous picture?
Where are each of these men from?
Where was the picture taken and in what year?
There is an insignificant prize for the fastest and correct
answer.
And the answers are…
• From left to right…
– Lloyd George of Great Britain
– Vittorio Emanuele Orlando of Italy
– Georges Clemenceau of France
– Woodrow Wilson of the United States
– The picture was taken in 1919 in Paris
Just to remind you-the
leaders of WWI (battle)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ferdinand Foch-France
Sir John French-Great Britain
Joseph Joffre-France
John J. Pershing-United States
Paul von Hindenburg-Germany
Erich von Ludendorff-Germany
The Major Battles of WWI
• The Battle of the Marne
– Late August 1914.
– The British and French were able to
prevent the Germans from a quick and
decisive victory.
– However, the Germans were NOT defeated
and this proved the war would not be over
quickly.
Major Battles Continued
• Gallipoli Campaign
– Feb. 1915-Jan. 1916
– Britain attacked Turkish forts along the
Dardanelles
– Both sides suffer heavy casualties, but the
British eventually withdrew all troops.
(although Winston Churchill recommended
sending more troops)
Major Battles Continued
• Battle of Verdun
– Known as the greatest and longest battle in world
history-due in part to the great number of men
fighting over such a small piece of land
– Battlefield was 10 square kilometers
– Lasted from Feb. 1916 to Dec. 1916
– French and German troops fighting for prestige
– Over 700,000 casualties
Major Battles Continued
• Battle of Jutland
– May 31, 1916
– The British battleship Indefatigable is hit 5 times
by a German battle cruiser and eventually sinks.
– 1,000 sailors died
– Less than 25 minutes later, the British battleship
Queen Mary is also hit and sinks.
Major Battles Continued
• Battle of the Somme
– July-Oct. 1916
– This battle has come to symbolize the horrors of
modern WWI warfare and the futility of trench
warfare.
– The British attempted to relieve the French who
had suffered great losses at Verdun. The British
try to advance over a 25 mile front to the German
trenches.
– This battle is also known for the massive amount
of British casualties (420,000)
Major Battles Continued
• 2nd Battle of the Marne
– Summer 1918
– Heavy casualties on both sides, especially
for Germany.
– This battle marks the last real attempt by
the Central Powers to win WWI.
Major Battles Continued
• Battle of Meuse-Argonne
– Also known as the Battle of Argonne Forest
– September-Nov. 11, 1918
– Final Allied offensive of WWI, also known
as the Grand Offensive.
– All major allied powers were involved in
breaking through German lines.
– Fresh U.S. troops are credited with tipping
the scale to victory.
The End of Fighting
• By the end of October 1918, Turkey
signs armistice.
• The German foreign office contacts
President Wilson, armistice is arranged
and on November 11th, 1918 firing
ceases on the western front.
• Austria-Hungary signs Nov. 3, 1918
Official Radio from Paris - 6:01 A.M., Nov. 11, 1918.
Marshal Foch to the Commander-in-Chief.
• 1. Hostilities will be stopped on the entire front
beginning at 11 o'clock, November 11th (French
hour).
• 2. The Allied troops will not go beyond the line
reached at that hour on that date until further orders.
[signed]
MARSHAL FOCH
5:45 A.M.
The Treaty of Versailles
• War ends Nov. 11, 1918-but the treaty is not
signed until June 28, 1919 during the months
long Paris Peace Conference.
• Becomes effective Jan. 10. 1920
• Signatories include Italy, France, Japan,
United States, Great Britain and Germany.
• Signed in Versailles, France
• This is a lengthy document, particularly about
territory and its distribution.
• Article 231 assigns blame to Germany and
charges them 231 billion Reichsmarks.
Article 231
• 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.
Wilson’s 14 Points
• Given as a speech to Congress Jan. 8, 1918, 10 months
before armistice.
• Wilson calls for a peaceful, respectful end to the war.
European allies are cautious of this plan.
• The 14 Points deal with navigation and territory and does
not assign blame for the war.
• The most significant point, #14, calls for an association
of nations (which would later become The League of
Nations).
• The US Congress does not ratify the Treaty of Versailles
and the US does not join the League of Nations.
• President Wilson is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in
1920.
• "I can predict with absolute certainty
that within another generation there will
be another world war if the nations of
the world do not concert the method by
which to prevent it."
•
Woodrow Wilson, 1919
Another random Wilson quote…
• I not only use all the brains that I have,
but all that I can borrow.
» Woodrow Wilson
The horror of war
• 1.8 million German troops are killed, 2.1
million civilians of the Ottoman Empire are
killed.
• 1.3 million French and 1.7 million Russian
troops are killed. Russia also suffers 2 million
civilian deaths.
• The U.S. suffers 330,000 casualties total.
The amount that some countries had lost in a
single battle.
• Close to 20 million troops from both sides are
wounded in action.
One more statistic…
• The U.S. had begun to mobilize for war in
1917, but had been in combat for about 4
months when the war ended.
• In 1918, out of every 100 artillery shells that
were fired by three armies:
– 51 were French
– 43 were British
– 6 were American
• This was a “Great War”, but
was it truly a “World War”?
WWI in Africa
• In 1914 Germany had 4 colonies
• Togoland- surrendered in 1914, British
and French troops fighting.
• Cameroon- surrendered in 1914, British
and French troops fighting.
WWI in Africa
• German South-West Africa (Namibia)surrendered in 1915, British troops
fighting.
• German East Africa
– Largest of the colonies
– Surrendered in 1918 after 4 years of
fighting.
WWI in Asia
• Once Japan declared war on Germany, they
quickly occupy German-leased territories in
China.
• Japanese forces land in Shandong Province
on September 2, 1914 and surround the
German settlement of Tsingtao.
• Tsingtao is surrendered November 7, 1914.
WWI in Asia
• Japan also seizes the German island
colonies in the Pacific without
resistance:
– Mariana
– Caroline
– Marshall Islands
WWI in Latin America
• For the most part, nations wanted no part of
war and declared neutrality
• German ships were seized in Argentina and
Chile
• British ships were chasing the German ship
the Dresden and sunk it in Chilean waters.
• Brazil is the only large country to declare war
on Germany.
WWI in Australia
• In 1914, Commonwealth nations are
called to defend Great Britain.
• Australian troops fight in many
locations, but consider the Battle of
Gallipoli (a peninsula in the Ottoman
Empire) as their greatest moment in the
war.
• This battle is still commemorated today
For you to consider…
• What is the unfinished business
of WWI and how does this lead
the world into WWII?
• How would you have handled
the end of the war differently?