Transcript Results of World War I File

WORLD WAR I
PRE-WORLD WAR I
ALLIANCES
Pre world War I Alliances
• 1870
• German Unification
• Franco Prussian War
• Germany took Alsace & Lorraine from France in the War
• Why is this significant?
• German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck looked for support in
case France attacked
• 1879- Austro-German Alliance
• 1882- Triple Alliance- Germany, Austria-Hungary & Italy
-conditions of this alliance were secret
Pre WWI Alliances cont.
• 1887- Reinsurance Treaty (Germany & Russia)
• Each neutral in war unless Russia attacked Austria-Hungary or
Germany attacked France
• 1890- Bismarck fired by Kaiser Wilhelm II
• Wilhelm II lets reinsurance treaty lapse
• 1894- Franco-Russian Alliance
• Unexpected! A radical republic & an autocracy!
• 1902- Anglo Japanese Alliance
• Why?
• 1899-1901- Boer War costly & difficult
• 1898- fear as Germany begins building a navy
Naval Advances- HMS Dreadnought
Dreadnoughts Sparked an Arms Race
Dreadnoughts in 1914
Britain
Germany
USA
France
Japan
A-H
Italy
At Sea
19
13
8
8
4
2
1
Under Construction
13
7
Pre World War I Alliances cont.
• 1904- Anglo-French Entente
• Settles disputes in empire: Egypt, Morocco, Netherlands etc.
• 1904-1905- Russo-Japanese War
• (did not drag Britain & France into it, which strengthened the
Entente)
• 1905 Moroccan Crisis
• Wilhelm tests the friendship of Britain & France
• 1907 Anglo-Russian Entente
• Settles Disputes in Persia/Afghanistan
• 1908-1913- Balkan Wars- (Newly independent nations in S.E
Europe look to expand)
Pre-World War I Alliances cont.
• 1908- Austria-Hungary annexes Bosnia-Herzegovina (Serbia
wanted it to gain sea access)
• Russia saw itself as the Slavic “big brother” but it had to back
down- however, they vowed never again
• July Crisis
• June 28, 1914- Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferinand
visited the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo
• A member of the Black Hand, Gavrilo Principe, assassinated
the archduke
MOST IMPORTANT EVENT OF THE 20th CENTURY
Franz Ferdinand & Gavrilo Principe
Franz Ferdinand & Sophie
CAUSES OF WAR
Nationalism, Imperialism,
Militarism & the Alliance System
Nationalism
• National interests placed ahead of cooperation
• Foreign affairs guided by its own self-interest
• French revenge against Germany
• French desire for return of Alsace & Lorraine
• Pan Slavism in Eastern Europe
• German pride in military power and industrial growth
• Serbian desire to create Slavic State
Imperialism
• desire to expand empire, fighting over colonies
• Russo-Japanese War
• Germany competing for colonies
• British concern over German Growth
• Economic rivalries among Britain, Germany & France
• British & French desire to contain German territorial
claims in Africa
Militarism
• Militarism-the development of armed forces and their
use as a tool of diplomacy
• Military Power seen as a symbol of National prestige
• Glorification of war by all powers
• Arms race among great powers
• Influential military leaders
• Social Darwinism
• Each country wants their own military to be the
strongest
Alliances
• Everyone worried about getting attacked
• Agreements among nations to aid each other if
attacked
• Russian agreements with smaller Slavic Nations
• Emergence of Allies (Triple Entente)
• Emergence of Central Powers
WORLD WAR I
Timeline
Timeline
• June 28, 1914- Franz Ferdinand (archduke of AustriaHungary) is assassinated in Sarajevo
• July 6- Wilhelm II and his Imperial Chancellor, Theobald von
Bethmann-Hollweg offer a “blank check”
• Support whatever action is necessary
• July 23, 1914- Austria-Hungary sends ultimatum to Serbia
• Assumes the Serbian Government was implicated in events
at Sarajevo
• July 28, 1914-Austria Hungary declares war on Serbia
• August 1, 1914- Germany declares war on Russia (claim they
had crossed frontier in afternoon & begun war)
Timeline
• August 2, 1914- France is invaded by Germany
• August 3, 1914- Germany declares war on France
• August 4, 1914- Germany declares war on Belgium
• August 6. 1914- Austria-Hungary declares war with Russia
• August 6. 1914- Serbia declares war with Germany
• August 26-August 30- Battle of Tannenberg
• Resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian
Second Army
• Russian POWs
Timeline
• September 5-12- Battle of the Marne- allied victory, ended month
long German offensive
• French infantrymen charging
• April 25, 1915- Battle of Gallipoli
• Joint British & French operation to capture Istanbul & secure
sea route to Russia
• Heavy Casualties on Both Sides- Major victory for the Turks
Armenian Genocide
• Spring-Summer 1915
• Armenian Massacre/Armenian Holocaust/Great Crime
• Systematic killing of the Armenian population of the
Ottoman Empire
• Massacres, deportations, forced marches, Concentration
Camps
Naval Blockade
• 1915
• Britain & France begin naval blockade of Central
Powers
• Goal: Restrict the maritime supply of materials &
foodstuffs to the Central Powers
• Blockade continued even after the Armistice in order
to force Germany to sign the controversial Treaty of
Versailles in June 1919
• German Empire claims 700,000+ Germans died from
starvation caused by the war
The Lusitania
• April 22, 1915- German Embassy posts warning (those who sail on
British ships in warzone do so at their own risk)
• May 5, 1915- Ship sunk by German U-Boat
• Ship sank in 18 minutes (?), 1,198 of 1,959 died (128 of 139 Americans
on board died)
• Turned public opinion in many countries against Germany,
contributed to eventual US entry into war
• Germany justified the sinking because the Lusitania carried
“contraband of war” (ammunition & military goods)
• Wilson issued an ultimatum on July 21 that said any future sinkings
would be perceived as deliberately unfriendly.
May 23, 1915- Italy enters war
Timeline
February 21-December 6, 1916- Battle of Verdun
• 10 months
• Almost 1,000,000 deaths
• Primarily an artillery battle- 40 million artillery shells
exchanged
• French tactical victory (Germany failed to capture
Verdun)- or costly strategic stalemate?
• May 31-June 1, 1916- Battle of Jutland (naval)
• British lost more ships & men but both sides still claim
victory
• July 1-November 15-Battle of the Somme
• Tried to create a rupture in German line
• Battle of Attrition- Very high casualties
Zimmerman Telegram
• January 19, 1917
• British interception
• Diplomatic proposal from Germany to Mexico to
make war against the US
• Sent in anticipation of resumption of unrestricted
submarine warfare, which Germany feared would
bring US into the war
• February 1, 1917- Germany resumes unrestricted
submarine warfare
(Allied Propaganda- reveals they did regard U-Boats as one of the war’s
greatest threats)
Russian Revolution
• Nicholas II
• Russia lagged behind Europe in Industrial Revolution
Unrest in Russia
• Russo-Japanese War (loss)
• Bloody Sunday- Revolution of 1905
• Unarmed Peaceful Protesters Gunned down by
Imperial Guard (est. 1000)
• 1914- Nicholas II got involved in World War I
• Unprepared to handle military & financial costs
• Czarina Alexandra ran gov.- ignored Advisers, trusted
Rasputin- let him make decisions
• Made royal court corrupt
• Opposed reform action
• Murdered by aristocrats in 1916
Revolution in Russia
• Tsar deposed & replaced by provisional government
• Members of the imperial Parliament or Duma,
assumed control
• March 15, 1917- Nicholas II abdicates
• October Revolution (November in Gregorian
calendar)
• Bolshevik party overthrew Provisional government
• Led by Lenin
• Signed Treaty of Brest Litovsk, March 3, 1918 to get
out of war (more on this later)
• Civil War between Red (Bolshevik) & White factions
• Revolution paved the way for USSR
Propaganda to influence US entry in war..
• German soldier- looming across the Atlantic
The United States enters the War
• April 6, 1917- Congress declares war upon the
German Empire
• Why?
• Publication of Zimmerman Telegram
• Sinking of US Merchant ships by submarines
• Economics? (France & Britain borrowed huge
amounts of money- if they were to lose it would
be difficult to pay back loans)
• Ideology- occupation of Belgium, sinking of
Lusitania (public opinion)
French Mutiny- April 1917
• Nearly 1 million deaths by early 1917
• 3 years of mud, rats, & lice in trenches
• Soldiers believed the attacks they were ordered to
make were futile
• Involved, to various degrees, nearly half of the
French infantry divisions on the western front
• 35,000 participated
• Kept secret at all times
• Full extent only revealed recently
Food Shortages in Britain
• Britain imported food during the war- manly from
America & Canada
• Merchant ships had to cross the Atlantic Ocean
• Unrestricted Submarine Warfare– German U-boats
sunk merchant ships with great frequency
• April 1816- Britain had 3 weeks worth of wheat left
(bread was a staple of most diets)
• Food prices rose, rationing increased
Timeline cont.
• June-November 1917-Battle of Passchendaele/ Third
Battle of Ypres
• November 6, 1917- Bolshevik Revolution
• January 1918- 14 points
Wilson’s 14 Points
• Fourteen Points = Speech given by Wilson to Congress, Jan 1918
• Convince Country Great War was fought for moral cause & postwar
peace
• Became the basis for the terms of German Surrender
• Transparent diplomacy
• Freedom of the seas
• Reduction of Trade Barriers
• Independence for Poland
• Restoration of the Balkan nations
• League of Nations
Timeline
• Treaty of Brest Litovsk
• (March 3, 1918)
• Peace between Russia & Central Powers
• 2nd Battle of the Marne (July 15 - August 7, 1918)
• Last major German Spring Offensive on the Western Front
• Failed- overwhelmed by counterattack
• Mutiny at Kiel (November 3, 1918)
• Revolt by sailors of German High Seas fleet
• Triggered German revolution which would sweep aside the
monarchy & ultimately lead to the end of the war & the
start of the Weimar Republic
• Spirit of rebellion spread
• Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates (November 9, 1918)
The War Ends
• Armistice signed between the Allies & Germany
• Went into effect at 11am on November 11, 1918
• Marked a defeat for Germany though not technically a surrender
• German troops must retreat to their own borders
• Cessation of hostilities
The End of the War
• Charles I of Austria Hungary renounced
participation in State Affairs on November 12, 1918
Treaty of Versailles
• Finalized at Paris Peace Conference which began January
18, 1918 (Germany was not invited)
• “Big Three”- most influential at the debates, David Lloyd
George of UK, Georges Clemenceau of France, & Wilson
• Given to Germany May 7, 1918
• Signed June 28, 1919 (5 years after assassination)
• Provided for the creation of the League of Nations
Germany & the Treaty of Versailles
• Legal Restrictions- Article 231 lays sole responsibility for the
war on Germany
• Rhineland would be occupied by allied troops for 15 years
• Germany military severely restricted (100,000 men)
• Loss of land in Europe & in Colonial Empire
• Alsace/Lorraine returned to France
• Pay reparations
• 226 billion marks
• Reduced to 132 billion marks in 1924 (Dawes Plan)
• At the time worth 31.4 billion US dollars
($442 billion US dollars in 2012)
• July 1919- Blockade of Central Powers Ends
• Germany won’t finish reparations payment until 2010!
Self Determination & New States
• Self-Determination for the people of E. Europe was
one of Wilson’s 14 points & accomplished in Treaty of
Versailles
• Land on Baltic Coast (which Germany gained from
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk)- created Estonia, Latvia &
Lithuania
• Poland created by treaty of Versailles
• Nine new states set up
(Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland,
Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, & Yugoslavia)
Cost of War
• $400,000,000,000
• Enough to purchase an average priced American home with
$1000 worth of furniture, on 5 acres of land worth $100 per
acre for every family in
• The United States
• Canada
• Australia
• England
• Wales
• Ireland
• Scotland
• Belgium
• Germany
• Russia
Cost of War
• PLUS
• One $5 million library and one $10 million university
for each country involved
• PLUS
• Pay the Salaries for 125,000 teachers and 125,000
nurses
• And Finally
• Buy all the land in France and Belgium