The Great War
UNIT 4
LEQ:
What were the
causes of the
world’s first Great
War?
Drill:
Why might countries
ally themselves with
others?
What are the positives
and negatives of an
alliance?
Imperialism to
1914
Causes of the Great War (WWI)
1. Entangling Alliances
2. Militarism - belief in maintain a strong military capability and be
prepared to use it aggressively
3. Imperialism - a policy of extending a country's power and
influence through diplomacy or military force
4. Nationalism – asserting the interests of one’s own nation as
separate from others
5. Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914
American Imperialism
•Manifest Destiny – 1840s; belief that Americans were destined
to expand
•Annexation of Texas from Mexico in 1842
•Acquired Guam, Puerto Rico, Guantanamo Bay, and the
Philippines from Spain in 1898 (Spanish-American War)
•Annexation of Hawaii in 1898 (becomes a state in 1959)
•Panama Canal in 1903
LEQ:
What factors caused
European nations
and the United States
to enter into World
War I?
Drill:
Why were some many
countries at war over
the assassination of an
archduke?
Nationalism
Alliances
Direct Cause of World War I =
Assassination
of Archduke
Franz
World
War I
Ferdinand
Militarism
Imperialism
Alliances of WWI
Triple Alliance = Italy, Germany, Austria-Hungry
Triple Entente = Britain, France, and Russia
So…Who Fought Who?
Allied Powers = Triple Entente + Italy in 1915 + U.S.A. in 1917
VS.
Central Powers = Triple Alliance + Ottoman Empire + Bulgaria
Propaganda
•Information designed to influence opinion
LEQ:
What factors caused
European nations
and the United States
to enter into World
War I?
Drill:
What happened after
the assassination of
Archduke Franz
Ferdinand?
Bosnia
United States Declares War
What Events
Motivated
the U.S. to
Join the
War?
United States Declares War
Germany breaks
international treaty
& U-boat attack on
the Lusitania in
1915
Zimmerman
Telegram
What Events
Motivated the
U.S. to Join the
War?
Collect on debts
owed to the U.S.
LEQ:
What did Congress
do to prepare the
U.S. for war?
Drill:
Make a list of
everything a nation
needs to fight a war.
Prewar U.S. Economy
•1913-1914 in a recession - a period of temporary economic decline
during which trade and industrial activity are reduced
Result of “Trust Busting”
• Unemployment = around 7%
•Europeans began purchasing U.S. goods in 1914 to assist with their
war effort
Congress Mobilizes the Economy
•1917 there was a shift from consumer goods to
wartime goods in American factories
•Congress created agencies to mobilize and ensure
efficient use of national resources
•These agencies told manufactures what to produce,
allocated materials, and set prices
•All manufacturing was centered on the war and
what the troops needed
Funding the War
•U.S. spent $32 Billion by the end of WWI
•Congress raised income taxes, place new
taxes on corporate profits, and borrowed
over $20 billion through the sale of Liberty
and Victory Bonds
◦ In buying bonds Americans were lending $ to
U.S. Govt. and being repaid w/ interest
The Workforce
•Conditions for workers improved as they were
essential to wartime manufacturing
•More women entered the workforce
•Recruitment of African American and Mexican
workers
The Food Administration
•Increased food production
while reducing civilian
consumption
•Encouraged to grow and
can own food = victory
gardens
Public Opinion
•President Wilson created the Committee of Public
Opinion to “sell” the war to the public
•Legislation was passed to fight espionage: Espionage
Act of 1917 – illegal to support the enemy; Sedition
Act of 1918 – illegal to speak against the war publicly
LEQ:
How did the
American military
prepare for war?
Drill:
Do you agree with the
draft? Why or why
not?
LEQ:
How did new
technology increase
the number of
causalities
in WWI?
Drill:
What do you think life
was like for soldiers
during WWI?
“Many dead Germans along the road. Ne
heap on a manure pile…Devastation
everywhere. Our barrage has rooted up the
entire territory like a plowed field. Dead
horses galore, many of them have a hind
quarter cut off – the (Germans) need food.
Dead men here and there.” – 1918
Characteristic of Combat in WWI
•Unprecedented in the slaughter, carnage, and destruction it caused
•Innovative – new weapons
•Trench warfare - opposing armies dug trenches for protection and defense
•Stalemate – a situation in which no one can win; war at a “standstill”; no
advancement