Transcript Day 8-The War Ends

 European powers
were initially weary
about US entry into
WWI.
 Doubted their ability
to raise troops in
time to matter.
 Believed the ethnic
diversity would
make it hard for
them to commit.
 Why do you
think this could
cause a
problem?
 Central Powers, unsure of what America’s entry
into the war would mean for them began to increase
U-boat warfare.
Sank alarming # of merchant ships
Allies began to lose ships and supplies.
 British and American ships created a convoy to
protect their ships.
Convoy- ships sailing together to protect each
other.
 War on land was a different
story
 Allies were exhausted from
years of fighting
 After the Russians pulled out
Germany was able to send
more troops to the Western
Front.
 All-out offensive by the Central
Powers
“He [ Pershing] was a strict
disciplinarian” - Gen. George C.
Marshall
PM Clemenceau
PM Lloyd George Supreme
Commander Foch
Pershing faced down enormous pressure
from Allied Leaders
Insisted on separate American command
Difficulties because U.S. troops were
“green” and inexperienced
WORLD WAR I
 America was finally in – Europeans celebrated
 Mobilization
4 million men enter military service
2 million went to France
1.4 million saw combat
50,000 died in combat
50,000 died of disease
 Americans in France
1918, U.S. troops arrive in France in great numbers
(General Pershing)
American troops had an independent role and also
helped British and French troops
Strength & Energy of fresh U.S. troops broke the
stalemate and turned the tide of the war toward the
allies
 American Soldiers
WORLD WAR I
The Home Front
$33 billion spent on war
$9 billion lent to Allies
~ $8.5 billion raised by taxes
~ $25 billion raised by
Liberty Bonds
 Turning point of WWI
 Last German offensive and
first allied victory of 1918
 250,000 Americans fought
 German attack failed when
Allied counterattack led by French and American
forces overwhelmed the Germans.
 First American offensive of
World War I
 American 1st division
captured the village held
by the German 18th Army
 French provided air cover
 Succeeded taking 100
German prisoners
 Greatest American hero of WWI
 Conscientious Objector
 Appeal Denied
 On October 8, 1918 York and 16
other men misread their map
(which was French not English)
mistakenly ended up behind enemy
lines.
 York silenced over 32 German
machine gun nests total and took
over 132 soldiers prisoner.
 Congressional Medal of Honor
•Joined with the
French army and
served in several
campaigns.
•Received the Croix
de Guerre, a French
award for bravery
 German front began collapsing
as the German people began to
protest the war.
 British naval blockades meant
that the German people were
starving and rioting.
 In October 1918 the head of
the German navy resigned and
the German navy mutinied.
 Kaiser Wilhelm II relinquished
his power November 9, 1918.
General Erich Ludendorf,
Quartermaster-General of the Imperial
German Army
Kaiser Wilhelm II
forced to flee
Chancellor Ebert declares
Germany
a REPUBLIC
Prince Max
Spartacist Revolt Communist revolution in
Berlin and Bavaria
German Cartoon:
“Fit for active service!”, 1918
Allied Powers
Central Powers
42 million served
23 million served
22 million casualties
15 million casualties
 Wilson’s 14 Points
 Promoting openness
 Encourage independence
 Support freedom
 Freedom of the seas, free
trade, and a move towards
ending colonialism
 League of Nations
 “mutual guarantees of political
independence and territorial
integrity to great and small
states alike.
 Make no secret diplomatic agreements
 Allow freedom of the seas in peace and war
 Remove as many economic trade barriers as possible between
countries
 Reduce stockpiles of military armaments to lowest point needed
for domestic safety
 Adjust colonial claims, giving more weight to the views of the
colonized peoples
 Evacuate and restore Russian territories seized during the war
 Restore and protect Belgium’s sovereignty
 Restore French territory and settle the debate over Alsace-Lorraine
 Adjust Italy’s boundaries according to the nationalities of
populations living there
 Allow the people of the former Austro-Hungarian Empires to choose
their own government
 Redraw boundaries of Balkan states based on nationalities and
historical allegiance
 Separate the Ottoman Empire into independent countries according
to the nationality; guarantee all nations access to the Dardanelles
 Restore and protect Poland as a sovereign state with access to the
sea
 Establish an association of nations to promote collective security and
to ensure peace.
 U.S. President Woodrow
Wilson informs Germany
that they will be treated
fairly at the Paris Peace
Conference if they agree
to an armistice and
surrender
 At the conference, PM
Borden fights for Canada
to have its own seat in
the League of Nations
rather than be
represented by Britain
 President Woodrow
Wilson had the idea of
creating an international
body that would work to
prevent a war such as
WWI from ever breaking
out again.
 This was the beginning of
the League of Nations –
and Canada had their
own seat there
 Though it was an
American idea, they
never joined
 Germany is forced to sign
the Treaty of Versailles,
even though they
received no input
 Most angering was Article
231 – the War Guilt
Clause – where Germany
was forced to take the
entire blame for the war
 This meant that they
would be forced to pay
for all damages from the
war
Treaty of Versailles – end of WWI
 The main points of the Treaty [BRAT]
1. Germany had
to accept the
Blame for
starting the war
2.
Germany
paid
Reparations for
the damage done
during the war.
3.
Germany
was forbidden to
have submarines
or an air
force. She could
have a navy of
only six
battleships, and
an Army of just
100,000 men.
4.
Germany
lost Territory
(land) in
Europe (see
map).
Germany’s
colonies were
given to
Britain and
France.
 After the war Germany
was:
politically unstable
(Kaiser Wilhelm flees
country);
poor (reparations
payments were 4oo
billion and they were
expected to pay it
back by 1988
angry and betrayed
looking for a hero…
End of War Territorial
Changes
Sykes-Picot
Agreement [1916]
•Agreement between Great
Britain and Russia for
disbursement of the Ottoman
Empire after Russia’s leave from
the war.
•Division of Turkish-held Syria,
Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine.
•Britain had originally pledged to
the Arabs they would have
control over their own
territories.
 1915 Britain had
expressed a
willingness to
recognize the
independence of
the Arabs
 Britain promised
the establishment
of a Jewish home
in Palestine
Balfour Declaration [1917]
Foreign Office
November 2nd, 1917
Dear Lord Rothschild.
I have much pleasure to convey to you, on behalf of His
Majesty’s Government, the following declaration of sympathy with
Jewish Zionist aspirations {hopes} which has been submitted to, and
approved by, the Cabinet.
“His Majesty’s Government view with favor the establishment in
Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their
best endeavors to facilitate {assist} the achievement of this object, it
being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice
the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in
Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other
country.”
I should be grateful if you would bring this declaration to the
knowledge of the Zionist Federation.
Yours sincerely,
ARTHUR JAMES BALFOUR
British Foreign Secretary
League of Nations Mandates in Africa
New Nations &Territories After WW I
End of World War I > Europe in 1919
http://www.fsmitha.com/h2/map01eu.htm
 Wilson was met with
extreme opposition when
he returned to the states.
 Toured the country trying
to gain support for the
treaty but Henry Cabot
Lodge (opponent) trailed
him verbally attacking
him along the way.
 Wilson collapses from a
stroke that paralyzes half
his body on the tour.
Henry Cabot Lodge
 Lodge develops 14
reservations to the Treaty
of Versailles.
 Congress not happy with
Article X which morally
bound the US to aid any
member of the League of
Nations who is victimized.
 Senate had to approve the
treaty with Lodge
reservations tacked on or
it would fail.
 Treaty Fails