Transcript World War I Begins

World War I Begins
As World War I intensified, the
United States was forced to
abandon its neutrality.
Causes of World War I
•
•
•
•
Militarism
Alliance System
Imperialism
Nationalism
Militarism
• The development of armed forces and
their use as a tool of diplomacy.
• Nations wanted stronger armed forces
than those of any potential enemy.
• By the late 1800’s Germany became the
strongest nation in Europe. Through
Industrialization, It had built up its
military and its navy which worried
Britain.
Alliance System
• By 1907 there were two major defense
alliances in Europe.
– The Allies- were made up of France,
Britain, Italy, Russia and Japan.
– Central powers- Germany, Austria Hungary
and the Ottoman Empire ( Middle Eastern
lands controlled by the Turks).
Imperialism
• Throughout the centuries European
nations had been extending their power
by building colonies and ruling over its
people.
• As Germany became an industrialized
nation, it started to compete with
France and Britain for colonies.
Nationalism
• A devotion to the interests and culture
of one’s nation.
– It often led to competitive and egged on
rivalries among nations.
– Many in Europe feared Germany’s growing
power.
Wilhelm II
• He will be Germany’s last Kaiser
(Emperor).
• He was a strong supporter of German
Militarism and Imperialism.
• He built up the German Navy to
compete with the British.
• He was Commander in Chief during
World War I although the military
controlled much of the country.
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
• He was next in line for the throne of
Austria-Hungary.
• He married Sophie Chotek Von
Chotkova in 1900.
• His uncle, Emperor Franz Josef was
against the marriage, and only
approved it as long as their children
had no rights to the throne. He did not
attend the wedding.
Archduke Ferdinand
• Privately he was a devoted family man
to his wife and three children.
• Publicly he was not well liked due to
his ideas if and when he became
emperor.
– Wanted to make the empire a trialism
instead of a dualism. Which means he
would give the Slavs’ a voice in the
government for the first time.
June 1914
• The Archduke is invited to Bosnia’s
captial Sarajevo to inspect military
exercises.
• Bosnia had been under AustriaHungary rule since 1878.
• Serbians were upset being under the
rule of Austria-Hungary.
The Black Hand
• A Serbian terrorist group decided to assassinate the
Archduke when he visited on June 28, 1914.
• Earlier during the motorcade, the Serbs had thrown
grenades at the Archduke but failed.
• Further down the route he and his wife Sophie would
be shot and killed by Gavrilo Princip a Bosnian
member of the Black Hand.
• This gave Austria-Hungary an excuse to invade
Serbia.
• Neither the Kaiser nor Franz Josef attend the funeral
of Ferdinand and Sophie.
Gavrilo Princip
• He will die while in prison from
tuberculosis.
July 28, 1914
• Austria-Hungary declares what was
supposed to be a short war against
Serbia.
• On August 1, 1914 Germany signs a
treaty to support Austria-Hungary and
declares war on Russia.
• On August 3, 1914 Germany declares
war on France.
August 3, 1914
• Germany invades Belgium, which makes
Britain declare war on Germany and Austria
Hungary.
• The invasion of Belgium was part of a
strategy called the Schlieffen Plan– Hold Action against Russia
– Invade Belgium, continue through Paris
– Once France is defeated combine the two German
Armies and attack Russia.
• This Created World War I.
A Total War
• World War I was a total war. Which means
that all of a nation’s resources go into the
war effort.
• Governments drafted men to fight the war.
• They raised taxes to pay the costs of
fighting.
• They rationed (limited) the supply of goods,
so they could supply the military.
• They used propaganda to make the enemy
look bad.
Trench Warfare
No Man’s Land
U-Boat
The U-Boat’s during World War I were small at 237 feet
long, 43 crew members were crammed in this ship.
Submarine (U-Boat)
• An underwater ship that can launch
torpedoes, or guided underwater
bombs.
• It was used by Germany to destroy
Allied shipping. Submarine attacks
helped bring the United States into the
war.
The Lusitania
1916 Election
• The Democrats renominated Woodrow
Wilson.
• The Republicans nominated Supreme
Court Justice Charles Evan Hughes.
• Wilson won on the campaign, “He kept
us out of war.”
Zimmerman Note
• A note intercepted by British intelligence, it
was sent by the Germans to the government
of Mexico.
• It stated that the Germans would ally with the
Mexicans and promised that if the Germans
were to go to war with America, then the
Germans would support Mexico in
recovering their lost territories of Arizona,
Texas, and New Mexico.
Russia’s Revolution
• The oppressive Monarchy of Russia
was taken over by a revolution who
wanted a representative government.
• Now the U.S. could claim they were
warring to protect democracy against
brutal monarchies.
April 2, 1917
• President Wilson went before the
Congress to declare war on Germany.
Wilson pleaded to make the world a
“safe democracy”
• A few days later Congress passed the
resolution.
America Power Tips the Balance
• The United States mobilized a large
army and navy to help the allies
achieve victory over the Central Powers
of
– Austria-Hungary
– Bulgaria
– Germany
– Ottoman Empire
America was not prepared for war.
• Only 200,000 men were in service when
war was declared and very few had
combat experience.
• Drastic measures were needed to build
an army large and modern enough to
make an impact in Europe.
Selective Service Act
• Congress passed this bill in April 1917.
– 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, 3 million were called to duty.
– 2 million fought in Europe.
Women
• Were not allowed to enlist, though the
army reluctantly accepted women in
the Army Corps of Nurses.
– They denied them rank, pay, and benefits.
– 13,000 women accepted noncombat
positions in the navy and marines where
they served as nurses, secretaries, and
telephone operators, with full military rank.
Mass Production
• 1. The Government had many shipyard
workers from the draft.
• 2.They started a public relations campaign to
emphasize the importance of shipyard work.
• 3. Ships pieces were built elsewhere and
then the ships were put together in the
shipyard. This method created up to 95 ships
per day.
• 4. The government took over commercial and
private ships and converted them for
transatlantic use.
Admiral William S.Sims
• Created the Convoy System in order to
fight the U-Boat attacks.
– The system was a heavy guard of
destroyers that would escort merchant
ships back and forth across the Atlantic in
groups.
– This cut shipping loses in half.
The U.S. Navy sets Mines
• All across the North Sea from Scotland
to Norway, the U.S. Navy set 230 miles
of mines.
• By early 1918 the Germans found it
difficult to navigate around the convoys
and the mines.
A new enthusiasm
• After two years of fighting the allies
were tired and exhausted from fighting
the central powers.
• When the U.S troops arrived they
picked up everyone’s spirits and
helped the allies push on.
New Weapons
• The Tank:
The Tank
• Armored vehicle that travels on a track
allowing it to cross many kinds of land.
• It protected advancing troops as they
broke through enemy defenses.
• The early tank was slow and clumsy.
The Plane
The Plane
• One or two seat propeller plane
equipped with machine gun or bombs.
• At first, mainly used for observation.
Later, flying “aces” engaged in air
combat.
The Red Baron
He downed 80 planes and killed 127 French, British and
American air personnel.
The Machine Gun
The Automatic Machine Gun
• Mounted gun that fires a rapid,
continuous stream of bullets.
• It made it possible for a few gunners to
mow down waves of soldiers.
Poison Gas
• Would sicken, suffocate, burn and blind
anyone who inhaled the fumes.
• The gases caused choking, blinding or
severe skin blisters.
• Gas masks were used to protect
soldiers from poison gas.
• The Gas would be in cannisters and
thrown into enemy trenches, killing or
disabling troops.
Trench Foot
A painful condition of the feet
caused by long immersion in cold
water or mud and marked by
blackening and death of surface
tissue.
Trench Foot
Trench Mouth
Signs and symptoms of trench
mouth can include:
Severe gum pain
Bleeding from gums when they're
pressed even slightly
Red or swollen gums.
Trench Mouth
American Hero Emerges
• Alvin York, armed with only a rifle and
revolver killed 25 Germans and with the
help of six other Americans, captured
132 prisoners.
Alvin York
November 3, 1918
• Austria-Hungary surrendered to the
Allies.
• German sailors mutinied against
government authority.
• The mutiny spread quickly throughout
Germany’s fighting forces.
• On November 9, Socialist leaders
established a German Republic.
• The Kaiser gave up the throne.
11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th
month
• Germany agreed to cease-fire and
signed the Armistice or truce.
• This ended World War I.
• It was the bloodiest War at that time.
• 22 million killed, 20 million wounded.
• The U.S lost 48,000 in battle and
another 62,000 dying of disease.
200,000 were wounded.
The Cost of World War I
• Human Cost- More than 8.5 million
dead
– More than 17 million wounded
– Famine (Hunger) throughout Europe.
Political Costs
• Collapse of governments
• Unrest in colonies.
• Rising threat of communism.
Financial Costs
• War loans to repay
• Factories, farms, homes, and roads
destroyed.
• German reparations
• Loss of economic and industrial power
in Great Britain.
Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points
• He gave this speech before Congress
on January 18, 1918.
• The points were divided into three
groups.
• The first five were issues that Wilson
believed had to be addressed to
prevent another war.
First Five Points
• There should be no secret treaties among nations.
• Freedom of the seas should be maintained for all.
• Tariffs and other economic barriers among nations
should be lowered or abolished in order to foster
free trade.
• Arms should be reduced “to the lowest point
consistent with domestic safety thus lessening the
possibility of military responses” during diplomatic
crises.
• Colonial practices should consider the interests of
the imperialist powers.
The Fourteenth Point
• Called for the creation of a League Of
Nations.
– Would provide a forum of nations to
discuss and settle their grievances without
having to resort to war.
– The French and British rejected Wilson’s
plan, they wanted Germany to pay.
– Wilson agreed to eliminate most of his
points in return for the establishment of
the League of Nations.
The Treaty of Versailles
• June 28, 1919 the nations of World War I
met in the Hall of Mirrors of the Palace of
Versailles in France.
• It created nine new nations including:
– Poland
– Czechoslovakia
– Yugoslavia
Treaty of Versailles
• It split up areas of the Ottoman Empire
among Britain and France.
• It barred Germany from maintaining an
army.
• Germany also had to return the region
of Alsace-Lorraine to France and to pay
reparations: war damages, in the
amount of $33 billion to the Allies.
Treaty’s Weaknesses
• The treatment of Germany weakened the
ability to establish peace in Europe.
• Several flaws in the treaty will eventually lead
to World War II.
– It forced Germany to admit sole responsibility for
starting World War I. (War Guilt Clause)
– Germany could not pay the huge financial
reparations. They had been stripped of all
colonies which would have helped them pay off
the fine.
The War to End All Wars