THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Bismarck and Alliances
– 1871 – France gave up Alsace-Lorraine
– 1873 – Three Emperors’ League
»Austria, Germany, and Russia allied
against radical movements
– 1882 – Triple Alliance
»Italy, Germany and Austria ally against
France
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
1888 – Kaiser William II assumes throne
1890 – William II fires Bismarck
– Bismarck had kept Germany friendly with
England
– Nationalism and Socialism slowly begin to
combine in Germany
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Bitter rivalry emerges between Germany and
England after 1890
– Commercial Rivalry
– Naval Rivalry
– The Boer War made English more
aggressive
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
England improved its relations with USA and
France after 1904
England, France and Russia form loose alliance
in 1907
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
The Balkans
– Ottoman Empire being destroyed by
nationalism
– Austro-Hungarian Empire next
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
First Balkan War – 1912
Second Balkan War – 1913
WORLD WAR I
June 28, 1914 – Archduke Francis Ferdinand
assassinated in Sarajevo, Bosnia
– Serbian Nationalists (The Black Hand)
Gavrilo Princip
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Factors making Balkan war a World War
– Austria blames Serbia for assassination
– Russia and Serbia Allies
– Germany and Austria Allies
– Russia, France and England have mutual
defense pact
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Factors making Balkan war a World War
– Germany’s Schlieffen Plan
»Calls for mobilization against both Russia
and France
»Calls for Austria to hold of Russia while
Germany defeats France
• The best route to France was through
Neutral Belgium
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Factors making Balkan war a World War
– Germany’s Schlieffen Plan
»Calls for mobilization against both Russia
and France
»Calls for Austria to hold of Russia while
Germany defeats France
• The best route to France was through
Neutral Belgium
– Russia’s military plan also calls for
mobilization against Austria and Germany
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Important issues from “Guns of August”
– After the First Battle of the Marne, the
western Front becomes a stalemate
– Deadly trench warfare for several years
without significant shifts in lines
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
US enters war for several reasons
– Neutrality violations
– Unrestricted Submarine Warfare (USW)
– SS Lusitania – May 7, 1915
NOTICE!
Travellers intending to embark on the
Atlantic voyage are reminded that a
state of war exists between Germany
and her allies and Great Britain and
her allies; that the zone of war
includes the waters adjacent to the
British Isles; that, in accordance with
formal notice given by the Imperial
German Government, vessels flying
the flag of Great Britain, or any of
her allies, are liable to destruction in
those waters and that travellers
sailing in the war zone on ships of
Great Britain or her allies do so at
their own risk.
IMPERIAL GERMAN EMBASSY
WASHINGTON, D.C., APRIL 22,
1915.
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
US enters war for several reasons
– The Albert Briefcase – August 1915
»Dr. Heinrich F. Albert – head of German
espionage ring operating in New York and
Texas
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
US enters war for several reasons
– Zimmerman Telegram
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
US enters war for several reasons
– Zimmerman Telegram
– Balance of power in Europe threatened
by German Victory
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Russian Revolution of 1917
– Russia was united when war began
– Russians lose several battles to the Germans
– Tzar is providing weak and irrational
leadership
– Inflation is high, food supplies are running
low
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Russian Revolution of 1917
– March 1917 revolution leads to Tzar’s
abdication
– March – October – Russia is a free
democracy
THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Russian Revolution of 1917
– Summer 1917 – Peasant Revolts begin
»Soviets demand land redistribution and
an end to Russian part of WWI
– October – Bolsheviks gain political majority
– November – Peasants seize land, workers
seize factories
– January – Lenin firmly in charge of Russia
»Pulls Russia out of WWI
WORLD WAR I
The United States' role in the war
– American Expeditionary Force
»General John J. “Blackjack” Pershing
– April 1917-May 1918 – limited US force
involvement under French/British command
– Chateau-Thierry – May 1918 – first time US
Troops EVER see significant battle in a
European conflict
– Belleau Woods - June 1918
WORLD WAR I
The United States' role in the war
– Saint-Mihiel - September 1918
– Meuse-Argonne campaign - SeptemberNovember 1918
»By November 1, 1918, Germans are ready
to talk peace
WORLD WAR I
Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points
– First announced in January 1918
»Blueprint for postwar worlds – Germans
laughed it off
– Most important point – the League of
Nations
– Another important point – NO WAR
GUILT
»If Germany is blamed for this war,
Germans will seek retribution
WORLD WAR I
The Armistice
– October 27 – Austria informs Wilson it is
willing to talk peace
– October 28 – German Navy mutinies at Kiel
base rather than face British fleet
»Revolt spreads to German Army
– November 9 – Kaiser Wilhelm abdicates his
throne
WORLD WAR I
– Germany declared a Republic when Kaiser
leaves
– German officials agree to surrender terms at
Compiègne
WORLD WAR I
Versailles
– January 18, 1919 – Allied leaders meet to
determine future
»Wilson is received like a savior in Europe
»France and England accept Wilson’s 14
points, but insist upon punitive war
reparations - (WAR GUILT!!)
»France and England also want Germany to
be disarmed (limited to 100,000
professional soldiers)
WORLD WAR I
– As Wilson works in Versailles, his support
at home is eroding
– US Senate Republicans refuse to support
treaty even before Wilson returns home with
final version
WORLD WAR I
Treaty accepted at Versailles on June 28, 1919
– Wilson returns home to fight for its
ratification
»Suffers stroke in Pueblo, Colorado –
unable to work for four months
– US Senate rejects treaty
»US makes separate peace with Germany
in 1920
Lecture 11