The "Big Four"
leaders of the Allies who attended the peace conference and worked
out the details of the Treaty of Versailles Wilson (US), Clemenceau
(France), Lloyd George (Britain), and Orlando (Italy); Wilson
conceded 13 of his Fourteen Points plan to the others (who wanted
to make Germany pay) in order to set up the League of Nations
Alliance system
two major defense alliances in Europe in 1907: the Triple Entente (later known
as the Allies) wich was France, Britain and Russia; the second was the Triple
Alliance with Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. Germany, Austria-Hungary
and the Ottoman Empire were later known as the Central Powers. Provided
international security to maintain balance, until spark set of war.
Allies / Central Powers:
ALLIES: US, Britain, France, Australia, Canada, Greece,
India, Italy, Japan, Russia, Serbia, Romania, Portugal,
etc; CENTRAL POWERS: Austria-Hungary, Germany,
Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire
Alvin York
American war hero, blacksmith from Tennessee, at first wanted an
exemptions as a conscientious objector because he thought the
Bible said not to kill, but later decided the cause was just; killed 25
Germans and captured 132 prisoners; promoted to sergeant and
became famous in US
American Expeditionary Force (AEF)
American infantrymen from all parts of the US ,
nicknamed doughboys, fought as an independent force
under Pershing, instead of just being reinforcements to
the Allies
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
heir to the Austrian throne, assassinated in 1914 by a
Serbian nationalist, led to Austria-Hungary declaring war
against Serbia, but then Austria's ally Germany declared
war on Russia, etc
Armistice
another word for truce; ended the war in
1918
Charles Lindbergh and the Spirit of St.
Louis
1920s hero, pilot who made the first non-stop solo
flight across the Atlantic in his plane named the
Spirit of St. Louis, 33 hours 29 minutes, Paris
Conscientious objector
a person who opposes warfare on moral
grounds
Convoy system
a heavy guard of destroyers escorted merchant ships back
and forth across the Atlantic in groups; response to the
German U-boat attacks; cut the losses in half
De Lome Letter
letter written by the Spanish Minister to the US (de Lome)
, stolen by a Cuban rebel from the Havana post office and
leaked to a newspaper - criticized President McKinley,
insulted him by calling him weak - made Americans angry
Dollar Diplomacy
the US policy of using the nation's
economic power to exert influence over
other countries
Espionage and Sedition Acts
1917-1918 laws; a person could be fined $10,000 and sentenced to
20 years in jail for interfering with the war effort or saying
anything disloyal, profane or abusive about the government or war
effort; violated the spirit of the First Amendment; used to target
labor leaders and unions
Flappers
free-thinking young women who
embraced the new fashions and urban
attitudes of the 1920s
Fourteen Points
President Woodrow Wilson's plan for peace; dvided into 3 groups; first
group had 5 points on how to prevent another war; 8 were about
boundary changes; the 14th called for creation of a League of Nations;
Allies rejected the plan (wanted to make Germany pay) and Wilson
conceded the first 13 in order to create the League of Nations
Great Migration
large scale movement of African-Americans from
the South to Northern cities; accelerated by WWI
and manufacturing jobs in the North
Harlem Renaissance
Imperialism
Imperialism
Jane Addams
flowering of African-American artistic
creativity during the 1920s, centered in
the Harlem community of New York City
European nations had extended control over colonies
around the world which supplied raw materials and
markets for goods; as Germany industrialized it started
competing with France and England for colonies
policy in which the stronger nations
extend their economic, political, or
military control over weaker territories
co-founded Chicago's Hull House settlement home in
1889 after visiting England; antiwar activist, spoke out
against racial injustice, advocated quality of life; cowinner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931
John J. Pershing
led the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) as an
independent fighting force; aggressive tactics; helped stop
the German advance; after the war was made General of
the Armies of the US (highest rank)
League of Nations
proposed by President Wilson in his Fourteen Points
peace plan; meant to be a forum where nations could
discuss and settle their grievances without having to go to
war; created in the Treaty of Versailles
Lusitania
British liner sunk by German U-boat in 1915
off Ireland, killed 128 American, turned
American opinion against Germany
Militarism
growth of nationalism and imperialism led to more military spending to
defend them; nations developed armed forces to be stronger then their enemies
and started using them in diplomacy; Germany's military expansion meant it
was the strongest in 1890 with a draft reserve army; British navy was the
strongest in the world; Germany decided to be a sea power and then other
nations joined in the naval arms race
Muckrakers
one of the magazine journalists who
exposed the corrupt side of business and
public life in the early 1900s
Nationalism
devotion to the interests and culture of one's nation; led to
competitive and antagonistic rivalries between nations - many
feared Germany's growing power. Also ethnic groups wanted their
nations to be independent, like the Serbs who were split and ruled
by both Russia and Austria-Hungary
Neutrality
Americans were divided: war was 3000 miles away and
didn't threaten American lives or property. But Britain
was a close ally had strong economic ties, and Germany
was "bully of Europe"
No man's land
area between enemy trenches, filled with barbed wire,
mud and shell craters; each side would have to cross it to
charge enemy lines, got cut down by gun fire
Open Door Policy
messages sent by Secretary of State John Hay in 1899 to
Germany, Russia, Great Britain, France, Italy and Japan asked them not to interfere with US trading rights in
China
Prohibition
period 1920-1933 during which the 18th
Amendment forbidding the manufacture, and sale
of alcohol was in force in the United States
Propaganda / Committee on Public
Information / George Creel
government set up agency (CPI) to support the war effort by using
propaganda ( biased communication designed to influence people's
thoughts and actions), led by a former muckraking journalist
George Creel; got artists, cartoonists, authors etc to promote the
war
Reparations
war damages to be paid by Germany to
the Allies; $33 billion
Roosevelt Corollary
(big stick diplomacy) - an extension of the Monroe Doctrine,
announced by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, under which
the US claimed the right to protect its economic interests by means
of military intervention in the affairs of Western Hemisphere
nations
Rough Riders
a volunteer cavalry regiment, commanded
by Leonard Wood and Theodore Roosevelt,
that served in the Spanish-American War
Schlieffen Plan
German invasion of Belgium was part of Germany's strategy, called
for holding action with Russia combined with a quick drive through
Belgium to Paris , then with France defeated the 2 German armies
would defeat Russia
Scopes Trial
sensational 1925 court case in which biology teacher John
Scopes was tried for challenging a Tennessee law that
outlawed the teaching of evolution
Selective Service Act
law passed in 1917 requiring men to register with the
government to be randomly selected for military service;
used to build up fighting power for the war
Spanish-American War
"Remember the Maine!", US declared war in 1898,
fought in Philippines and Caribbean; Rough
Riders, San Juan Hill, Treaty of Paris
Theodore Roosevelt
Rough Riders,
Treaty of Versailles
peace treaty (armistice) which ended WWI; signed by the Big Four; established 9 new nations
(Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia) and shifted boundaries; carved up the Ottoman Empire
into 5 parts and gave them to France and Britain as mandates (temporary colonies); barred
Germany from having an army and required Germany to pay $33 billion in reparations for war
damages and return Alsace-Lorraine to France; humiliated Germany with the war-guilt clause;
set up the League of Nations
Trench warfare
armies fought for yards of ground; three kinds: front line,
support and reserve; separated from the enemy trenches
by "no man's land" of barbed wire; soldiers charged and
died by gun fire
U-boats and unrestricted submarine
warfare
Germany responded to the British blockade with a counterblockade
of U-boat (submarines); said they'd sink any British or Allied ship
found in the waters around Britain, then said they'd sink all ships
in British waters on sight - led to US declaring war
U.S.S. Maine
US warship that mysteriously exploded
and sank in the harbor of Havana, Cuba
in 1898
Upton Sinclair
muckraking journalist who wrote The
Jungle about the terrible conditions in the
meatpacking industry
War Industries Board (WIB) and
Bernard Baruch
the main regulatory (led by businessman Baruch) body for warrelated industries; encouraged mass-production techniques to
increase efficiency and eliminate waste by standardizing products;
set quotas and allocated materials, set wholesale price controls
only so retail prices soared along with corporate profits
War-guilt clause
part of the Treaty of Versailles; forced Germany to
admit sole responsibility for starting WWI, and
had to pay huge financial reparations
William Howard Taft
???
Woodrow Wilson
president during WWI
World War I
4 main causes: nationalism, imperialism, militarism, and the formation of a system of alliances. Assassination
of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914 by Serbian nationalist, Austria-Hungary declared war.
Alliance system pulled other nations into the war: their ally Germany declared war on Russia then Russia's
ally France; Germany invaded Belgium so Britain declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary.
Americans stayed neutral until the British blockade prevented their goods from reaching Germany and then
Germany responded by sinking the British Lusitania, killing Americans on board; Wilson called for peace but
Germn provocation instead said they'd sink all boats in waters around Britain - entered war in April 1917
Yellow journalism
the use of sensationalized and
exaggerated reporting by newspapers and
magazines to attract readers
Zimmerman Note
telegram from the German foreign minister to the German
ambassador in Mexico that was intercepted by British agents,
promised an alliance between Germany and Mexico and promised
to support Mexico's recovery of Texas etc