Unit 7 Notes: World War I
U.S. History & The Constitution
Coach Weathers
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
The Causes & Course of World War I:
M.A.I.N. causes of World War I:
M - Militarism: the development of armed forces and their use as a tool of
diplomacy.
A - Secret Alliances: the creation of two major defense alliances in Europe by
1907 – The Triple Entente (Allies) & the Triple Alliance
(Central Powers).
I - Imperialism: as Germany industrialized, it competed with France and Britain
in the contest for colonies = source of raw materials & a market
for finished goods.
N - Nationalism: the driving force; a devotion to the interests & culture of one’s
nation.
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
“Nationalism” (continued):
- A ‘Nation’ refers to a group of people who share a common language,
religion, history and traditions.
- Not all nations had states; many were included in empires.
- Ethnic & ideological differences led to conflict within these empires.
- Nationalism also spurred competition among states in military strength
& led European nations to establish a complex system of military alliances.
- Russia, France & England formed an alliance called the Allies.
- Germany, Austria-Hungary, & the Ottoman Empire formed a competing
alliance called the Central Powers.
- The newly united countries of Germany and Italy were anxious to establish
colonies to gain wealth & international influence, & competed with other
nations to do so.
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
- The igniting incident of the Great War was the assassination of the
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, in Bosnia
by a Serbian nationalist.
- The resulting confrontation between Austria-Hungary & Serbia quickly
involved much of Europe in conflict due to the alliance system.
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
- The U.S. declared neutrality at the outbreak of the war, however various
factors challenged American neutrality & eventually led to the involvement
of the U.S. in the Great War.
- The traditional trading partnership with Great Britain & the blockade of
German ports by the British navy severely limited American trade with
Germany.
- American businesses made loans to the Allies in order to continue trade.
Public opinion was impacted by America’s traditional connection to the British.
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
- The German use of the submarine affected public opinion against Germany
& alienated President Wilson, who was incensed by the loss of innocent lives.
- The 1915 German U-boat’s sinking of the British passenger ship,
the Lusitania, brought about sharp protests from President Wilson but
did not bring the United States into the European war.
- Instead, Germany pledged to restrict their use of the submarine.
Ch. 19.1: World War I Begins
- Wilson campaigned for re-election in 1916 on the slogan that
“he kept us out of war.”
- The interception and publication by the British of Germany’s Zimmerman note
to Mexico negatively impacted American public opinion.
- In early 1917, revolution in Russia replaced the monarchy with a republic &
President Wilson could now consider allying the U.S. with a ‘democratic’
Russia.
- The decision of Germany to resume unrestricted submarine warfare in the
spring of 1917 & Wilson’s desire to broker a just peace prompted Wilson to
ask the Congress to declare war on Germany in April of 1917.
- President Wilson announced his intention to “make the world safe for
democracy” and later issued his Fourteen Points.
End of 19.1 Notes
Ch. 19.2: American Power Tips the Balance
19.2
- To meet the government’s need for more fighting power, Congress passed
the Selective Service Act in May 1917.
- It required men to register with the government in order to be randomly
selected for military service.
- By the end of 1918, 24 million men had registered under the act.
- almost 3 million were called up.
- About 2 million troops reached Europe before
the truce was signed, & three-fourths of them
saw actual combat.
- About 1 in 5 were foreign born.
- About 400,000 African Americans served in the
armed forces. More than half of them served in France.
Ch. 19.2: American Power Tips the Balance
- The American Expeditionary Force affected the course of the war by
deflecting the last push of the Germans on the western front in France.
- Armistice of November 11, 1918: ended fighting between the Allies & Central
Powers.
- World War I was the bloodiest war in history up to that time:
- Deaths numbered about 22 million.
- More than half of them civilians.
- 20 million people were wounded,
- 10 million more became refugees.
- Direct economic costs of the war may
have been about $338 billion.
- The U.S. lost 48,000 men in battle.
- Another 62,000 died of disease.
- More than 200,000 Americans were
wounded.
End of 19.2 Notes
Ch. 19.3: The War at Home
19.3
- The mobilization of the home front for the war
effort stimulated ethnic & ideological conflicts
within the U.S.
- Propaganda characterized Germans as “Huns”
& resulted in discrimination against Americans
& immigrants of German descent.
- The passage of the Sedition Act restricted the
rights of Americans to voice their ideological
objections to the war effort & contributed to
the post-war Red Scare.
Ch. 19.3: The War at Home
- The greatest effect of World War I on African Americans’ lives was that it
accelerated the Great Migration, the large-scale movement of hundreds of
thousands of Southern African Americans to cities in the North.
- Several factors contributed to the tremendous increase in migration.
- To escape racial discrimination in the South
- A boll weevil infestation, aided by
floods & droughts, had ruined much
of the South’s cotton fields.
- More job opportunities in the North.
Ch. 19.4: Wilson Fights for Peace
19.4
- President Wilson took a leadership role at the Versailles Conference.
- He to create a lasting peace based on the principles of his Fourteen Points
which he hoped would eliminate many of the causes of the war, but did not
understand the desires of the European leaders of France, Italy, & Great Britain.
Ch. 19.4: Wilson Fights for Peace
- The points were divided into 3 groups:
- The first 5 points were issues that Wilson believed had to be addressed to
prevent another war:
1. There should be no secret treaties among nations.
2. Freedom of the seas should be maintained for all.
3. Tariffs & other economic barriers among nations should be lowered or
abolished in order to foster free trade.
4. Arms should be reduced “to the lowest point consistent with domestic
safety, thus lessening the possibility of military responses” during
diplomatic crises.
5. Colonial policies should consider the interests of the colonial peoples as
well as the interests of the imperialist powers.
Ch. 19.4: Wilson Fights for Peace
- The next eight points dealt with boundary changes.
- Wilson based these provisions on the principle of self-determination
“along historically established lines of nationality.”
- In other words, groups that claimed distinct ethnic identities were to form
their own nation-states or decide for themselves to what nations they would
belong.
-The fourteenth point called for the creation of an international organization
to address diplomatic crises like those that had sparked the war.
-This League of Nations would provide a forum for nations to discuss &
settle their grievances without having to resort to war.
Ch. 19.4: Wilson Fights for Peace
- The other allies were determined to protect their own national interests.
- They imposed a war guilt clause &
reparations payments on Germany.
-New national borders drawn at the
conference based on self determination
of peoples could not accommodate all of
the complexity of ethnic diversity within
Europe.
- These actions laid the basis for the next war.
Ch. 19.4: Wilson Fights for Peace
- President Wilson was able to include the League of Nations in the Treaty of
Versailles, however the U.S. Senate was hesitant to involve the U.S. in
European affairs on a permanent basis.
- Wilson was unwilling to compromise with the Senate & his physical
incapacity as a result of a stroke made compromise impossible.
- The Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles & did not become a
member of the League of Nations.
- The U.S. later made a separate peace
with Germany & sent observers to
meetings of the League of Nations.