World War I
Section 1
Section 1
World War I
The Great War Begins
Preview
• Starting Points Map: European Alliances and Military Forces
• Main Idea / Reading Focus
• Europe on the Brink of War
• Quick Facts: Causes of World War I
• War Breaks Out
• Fighting in 1914
• Faces of History: Kaiser Wilhelm II
• Map: World War I Battles, 1914
World War I
Click the icon to play
Listen to History
audio.
Click the icon below
to connect to the
Interactive Maps.
Section 1
Section 1
World War I
The Great War Begins
Main Idea
Europe in 1914 was on the brink of war. After an assassination,
the nations of Europe were drawn one by one into what would be
called the Great War, or World War I.
Reading Focus
• Why was Europe on the brink of war in 1914?
• Why did war break out?
• What were the results of the fighting in 1914?
Section 1
World War I
Europe on the Brink of War
Rising tensions in Europe, 1914
• Tensions result of four factors
– Militarism
– Alliances
– Imperialism
– Nationalism
Section 1
World War I
Europe on the Brink of War
Militarism
Alliances
• Massive military buildup in
European countries, late 1800s
and early 1900s
• Nations formed partnerships to
protect against opposing forces
• Wanted to protect overseas
colonies from other nations
• Growing power of armed forces
left all sides ready to act at first
sign of trouble
• Minor disagreements had
potential to turn to armed
conflict
• Triple Alliance united
Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy
• Great Britain joined France,
Russia in Triple Entente
• Believed no one nation would
attack another, because allies
would join fight
Section 1
World War I
Europe on the Brink of War
Imperialism
• Late 1800s and early 1900s
saw quest to build empires
• Created rivalry, ill will among
European nations
• Germany, France, Russia,
Great Britain vied to become
great imperial nations
• Each did not want others to
gain power
Nationalism
• Strong devotion to one’s
national group or culture,
increased in late 1800s
• Led to formation of new
countries, struggles for power
• Most visible in Balkan
Peninsula, southeastern Europe
• Home to many ethnic groups
trying to break free from
Ottoman Empire
Section 1
World War I
Europe on the Brink of War
Some of strongest nationalist tensions in
Balkans in Serbia, independent nation
• Serbian leaders wanted to expand borders, unite people
in “greater Serbia”
• Austria-Hungary, powerful empire to north, opposed
expansion
• Feared growth might encourage ethnic groups there to
rebel
• Tensions continued to rise in early 1900s
World War I
Section 1
Section 1
World War I
Summarize
Why was Europe on the brink of war in
1914?
Answer(s): rising tensions as result of militarism,
alliances, imperialism, and nationalism
Section 1
World War I
War Breaks Out
In the midst of the tensions with Serbia, archduke Ferdinand of
Austria-Hungary decided to visit the Bosnian city of Sarajevo.
The Impact
• Serbian Gavrilo Princip
assassinated archduke, wife
• Austria-Hungary declared war
on Serbia
• Russia prepared to support
Serbia
• Austria-Hungary ally Germany
saw Russia as threat
• Germany declared war on
Russia, ally France
Fighting Begins
• Germany faced war on two
fronts: Russia to east, France
to west
• Decided to strike France
quickly then move to Russia
• Began with quick strike into
neutral Belgium
• Attack on neutral country led
Great Britain to declare war on
Germany
Section 1
World War I
War Breaks Out
Main players in World War I in place
• Central Powers
–
Germany
–
Austria-Hungary
• Allied Powers
–
Great Britain
–
France
–
Russia
–
Serbia
Section 1
World War I
Sequence
What events led to the outbreak of World
War I?
Answer(s): Serbian Gavrilo Princip killed Austrian
Archduke Ferdinand and his wife; Germany (an
ally of Austria-Hungary) declared war on Russia
(an ally of Serbia); Germany attacked Belgium;
Great Britain declared war on Germany
Section 1
World War I
Fighting in 1914
Germany’s plan
• Germany wanted to quickly defeat France, move east to fight Russia
• Great Britain’s declaration of war on Germany doomed its plan
• The Great War became bloody stalemate
Early battles
• Battle of the Frontiers pitted German troops against both French and British
• Both sides suffered heavy losses
• Germany victorious
Russia enters fighting
• Russia attacked German territory from the east
• Russians defeated in Battle of Tannenberg
• Germany distracted from France, Allies turned on German invaders
World War I
Section 1
Section 1
World War I
Fighting in 1914
Trench warfare begins
• Allied troops drove Germans back, Battle of the Marne,
September 1914
• Retreating Germans dug series of trenches along Aisne
River
– Waited in trenches for Allied attack
– Trenches elaborately constructed, cleverly concealed
• Allies dug trenches of their own
– Major battles for months with little change in positions
– Deadlocked region became known as Western Front
World War I
Section 1
Section 1
World War I
Summarize
What were the major events of the fighting in
1914?
Answer(s): Germany advanced through Belgium
to attack France; Russia attacked East Prussia;
Russians crushed in Battle of Tannenberg; British
and French forces regrouped; millions died or
were wounded; trench warfare resulted in a
stalemate