Causes of World War I
 Nationalism – Love for your country
A. Liberal mindset in the early 19th Century—
maintain organized European state w/ national lines
would lead to a peaceful Europe.
B. All this did was cause competition in the late
19th Century (Germany vs. Britain).
C. Diplomacy was not working in Europe.
Brinkmanship was the norm Each state was motivated
by self interests.
“In questions of honor and vital interests, you don’t consult
others.”Kaiser William II
D. Not all ethnic groups had self-determination
(nationhood—Slavic minorities, Irish, Poles).
 Imperialism – Taking other countries
land, money and resources
A. The Scramble for Africa “The White Man’s
Burden”
1. Seven European nations will divide up the
continent—leading to jealousies (Spain, Portugal,
Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium)
B. United States – Spanish/American War
C. The Scramble for Asia
1. Many European countries wanted to establish a
Sphere of influence in Asia (Great Britain, United States,
Dutch, Japan, Russia, Portugal, France, Germany).
2. “Open Door Policy”
 System of Alliances – countries join to
deter attack and help w/ trade.
A. Prior to WWI two major alliances
1. Triple Entente – Great Britain, France, Russia
(secret treaty w/ Serbia). Formed to prevent a strong Germany
from attacking.
2. Triple Alliance – Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy
B. WWI begins 1914
1. Triple Entente – becomes the Allies
2. Triple Alliance – becomes known as the Central
Powers. Italy will claim Neutrality until 1915 when they join
the allies and the Ottoman Empire (seeking land lost during
Balkan wars) will take their place.
Militarism – Stockpiling of weapons for war
A. This created a situation that if war occurred it would
have the greatest devastation.
B. Conscription became a regular practice prior to WWI
(except in United States and Britain).
Army size:
Germany---------------------------------- 900,000
France_------------------------------------ 900,000
Russia------------------------------------- 1,300,000
Great Britain, Italian, Austria-Hungary --------- 250,000 –
500,000 each
C. Great Britain and Germany have the financial resources
to back a long major campaign
 June 28, 1914
--Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Sophie are assassinated in
Sarajevo (Bosnia). Ferdinand was taking the trip as a goodwill
tour and to let the Slavic people that he was going to bring
more representation to their people.
--Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian narionalist from the group
Black Hand is sent to try and unite Serbia into larger Serbian
kingdom (not sure if gov’t knew).
--Black Hand’s motto = Unity or Death!
WW I Begins: Delusional Expectations
 Enthusiasm for war.
A. Almost everyone in August 1914 believed that the war
would be over in a few weeks.
B. European wars since 1815 had in fact ended in a matter
of weeks (forgot about American Civil War—perfect prototype
for WWI).
C. Countries thought w/ their massive resources they could
fight a war for many months w/o affecting their national
economy.
D. Most believed war would be done by Christmas.
E. War was seen as an exhilarating release from humdrum
bourgeois existence,
F.To many, war meant a glorious adventure and for this
reason the best and the brightest will join (“Flower of Europe”).
The Most Famous Recruitment Poster
Uncle Sam—He the Man!
“Huns Kill Women and Children!”
The “Little Soldier”
1917 – Selective Service
Act
24,000,000 men registered for
the draft by the end of 1918.
4,800,000 men served in WW1
(2,000,000 saw active combat).
400,000 African-Americans
served in segregated units.
15,000 Native-Americans served
as scouts, messengers, and
snipers in non-segregated units.
Council of National
Defense
War Industries Board –
Bernard Baruch
Food Administration –
Herbert Hoover
Railroad Administration –
William McAdoo
National War Labor Board –
W. H.Taft & Frank P. Walsh
U. S. Food Administration
U. S. Food Administration
U. S. Food Administration
National War Garden Commission
U. S. School Garden Army
U. S. Fuel Administration
U. S. Fuel Administration
Results of This New Organization
of the Economy?
1. Unemployment virtually
disappeared.
2. Expansion of “big government.”
3. Excessive govt. regulations in eco.
4. Some gross mismanagement 
overlapping jurisdictions.
5. Close cooperation between public
and private sectors.
6. Unprecedented opportunities for
disadvantaged groups.
YWCA – The Blue Triangle
Munitions Work
Women Used In Recruitment
Hello, Big Boy!
Even Grandma Buys
Liberty
Bonds
The Red Cross - Greatest
Mother in the World
The Red Cross Nurse
Opportunities for
African-Americans in
WW1
“Great Migration.”
1916 – 1919  70,000
War industries work.
Enlistment in segregated
units.
True Sons of Freedom
We are ALL Americans!
The Committee of Public
Information (George Creel)
America’s “Propaganda
Minister?”
Anti-Germanism.
Selling American Culture.
Wilson’s 14 Points
 Delivered to Congress in 1918
1. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at.
– No secret alliances
2. Absolute freedom of navigation of the seas.
– No unrestricted submarine warfare
3. The removal, of all economic barriers.
– Free trade (no tariffs)
4. Reduction in national armaments.
– No Militarism
Wilson’s 14 Points Continued
5. A free and impartial adjustment of all
colonial claims. The interests of the
populations concerned must have equal
weight.
– Reduce imperialism, self-determination
14. A general association of nations must be
formed for the purpose of affording mutual
guarantees of political independence and
territorial integrity to great and small states
alike.
– Prelude to the League of Nations
“Remember Belgium”
The “Mad Brute”
Beat Back the “Hun”
Government Excess & Threats
to the Civil Liberties of
Americans
1. Espionage Act – 1917
- forbade actions that
obstructed recruitment or
efforts to promote
insubordination in the military.
- ordered the Postmaster General
to remove Leftist materials
from the mail.
- fines of up to $10,000 and/or
up to 20 years in prison.
Government Excess & Threats
to the Civil Liberties of
Americans
2. Sedition Act – 1918
- it was a crime to speak against the
purchase of war bonds or willfully
utter, print, write or publish any
disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or
abusive language about this form of US
Govt., the US Constitution, or the US
armed forces or to willfully urge, incite,
or advocate any curtailment of
production of things necessary or
essential to the prosecution of the
war…with intent of such curtailment to
cripple or hinder, the US in the
prosecution of the war.
Government Excess & Threats
to the Civil Liberties of
Americans
3. Schenck v. US – 1919
- in ordinary times the mailing of the
leaflets would have been protected by the
1st Amendment.
- BUT, every act of speech must be judged
in the circumstances in which it was
spoken.
-The most stringent protection of free
speech would not protect a man in falsely
shouting fire in a theater and causing a
panic. [Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes]
- If an act of speech posed a clear and
present danger, then Congress had
the power to restrain such speech.
Government Excess & Threats
to the Civil Liberties of
Americans
4. Abrams v. US – 1919
- majority ruling --> cited Holmes’
“Clear and present danger” doctrine.
- Holmes & Brandeis dissented:
The best test of truth is the
power of the thought to get
itself accepted in the competition
of the market, denying that a
“silly leaflet” published by an
“unknown man” constituted such a
danger.
Problem Areas Caused by the
Treaty of Versailles
The Big Four
United States, Great Britain, France and Italy
Germany
-- War-Guilt Clause (Germany is blamed for
WWI)
-- Must pay reparations (33 billion)
-- Loses a lot of land (Africa colonies/Poland)
-- Three million German speaking people are
placed into the Sudetenland (Czechoslovakia).
-- Military is destroyed
 South East Asia
-- Ho Chi Minh wants to establish a
constitutional government.
--Wilson kicks Ho Chi Minh out of the
peace conference because he feels selfdetermination only applies to Western
European nations.
-- South East Asia is turned back over to
French Rule (French Indo-China).
Africa
--W.E.B. Dubois is also excluded from the
Peace treaty. Wilson believed that the
African countries should be ruled by
Western European countries.
--Oh. By the way—Wilson also reinstituted
segregation in the White House and federal
jobs.
Middle East
--T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia—
British) and the Middle Eastern
representatives had been promised
independence if they fought against the
Ottoman Empire.
--Wilson was seen as their hope, but when
they are betrayed they never trusted the
United States again. This mistrust lasts
through 20th into 21st Century which is
one reason for September 11th.
 American Opposition to the Treaty
Members of the Republican majority in the Senate were determined to
defeat the treaty. Reasons:
1.
Their leader, Henry Cabot Lodge didn’t like Wilson.
2.
Members felt that they should have been included in the drafting of
the treaty.
3.
Some opposed to the concessions made to the Allies.
4.
American minorities of various national origins opposed the
treatment of their fatherlands.
5.
Many opposed American membership in the League of Nations.
6.
Fear that we would become involved in another European war.
Two groups sought to defeat the treaty:
1. The “Irreconcilables”—including Hiram Johnson, William E. Borah, and La
Follett who wished to reject it completely.
2. The “Reservationists” under Lodge followed the strategy of modifying the
treaty so much that Wilson himself would oppose it.
Wilson will decide to take his message to the people on a “whistle stop” tour, but
he will have a major stroke and this leads to the US not ratifying the T of V.
Treaty of Versailles is never ratified by US Senate, but will be signed by
Europe on June 28, 1919 formally ending WWI.
Now to take 20 years off to rebuild and rearm to kill each other again.