Transcript Innovations of WWI - Mr. Vernon's Class Page

LONG-TERM CAUSES
OF WORLD WAR I
NATIONALISM
•Loyalty and pride for one’s nation
•People usually share common language,
history or culture
•In Germany, many small regions united to
form one country (late 1800’s)
•Problem: small disputes between 2 countries
can become major issues and involve many
countries
•Austria-Hungary and Russia:
•Made up of many minority groups
•Many had a desire to unify all Slavic people
(Pan-Slavism)
•Austrian government was loyal to
Germany (Pan-Germanism)
MANY ETHNIC GROUPS
FOUND
WITHIN AUSTRIA-HUNGARY
ALLIANCES
•Fear and distrust among countries led to
the formation of alliances
•Discouraged attacks from enemies
•Dangers:
•Gave countries a sense of security
•A country may deal differently with
another if it has support
•Conflict will involve numerous
countries instead of the original 2
Triple Entente:
Triple Alliance:
Great Britain
Germany
France
Russia
Austria-Hungary
Italy
IMPERIALISM
•Domination by one country of the political,
economic, or cultural life of another country
or region (Colonies)
•Major European nations began dividing up
Africa, Asia and the Middle East into colonies:
•Supply raw materials for production
•Larger market to sell goods
•More opportunities for investments
EUROPEAN COLONIES
WORLDWIDE
•Britain was the world’s
superpower throughout most of
the 1700’s and 1800’s:
•However: Germany began to
out produce Britain by early
1900’s
•Also competing for colonies
worldwide
•Created an economic rivalry
MILITARISM
•Glorification (build up) of the military
•Military leaders began to gain more
influence in national policy due to rivalry
among countries
•The public supported military build up
and the use of force to achieve national
goals
BRITAIN:
•World’s best navy
•Began to fear
Germany’s strength
British Warship
Kaiser Wilhelm
GERMANY:
•Best trained army in world
•Significant increase in
naval power(u-boats)
An Industrialized War

Weapons were produced with the same efficient
methods of mass production that industrialists
had applied to other products
TECHNOLOGICAL
ADVANCEMENTS
IN WARFARE
Machine Gun:
•Accurate and rapid fire
•1 man could hold off a hundred
The Machine Gun
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One of the most important weapons of WWI
Highly effective
Land armies often found any advance difficult
and costly
Machine Guns
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Trench Warfare
Protection from machine gun fire and artillery bombardments
Armies dug large trenches where they might live for months
British boys play acting Trench Warfare
Tanks
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Introduced by the British
An armored vehicle mounted with guns
Enabled troops to break though enemy lines
TANKS
•Armored vehicle designed to break
trenches
•Protected advancing troops
•Often slow and clumsy
POISONOU
S GAS
•Various gases caused choking, blinding, or skin
blisters
•Used to kill or disable troops during an attack
•Gas masks lessened the effectiveness
Poison Gas

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The Germans were the first to use it
The Allies quickly followed suit
American wearing a Gas Mask
British Horse wearing a Gas Mask
American wearing a respirator
Sounding the gong in preparation of a gas attack
Casualties From Gas - The Numbers
Total Casualties
Death
Austria-Hungary
100,000
3,000
British Empire
188,706
8,109
France
190,000
8,000
Germany
200,000
9,000
60,000
4,627
419,340
56,000
USA
72,807
1,462
Others
10,000
1,000
Country
Italy
Russia
FLAMETHROWERS
•Used to clear enemy trenches
•Could be hazardous carrying into combat
•Used for observation early
•Later on: “dogfights” were carried out
•Overall, minor impact on the war
AIRPLANES
Airplanes

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Airplanes in the early 1900’s were neither very
maneuverable nor very fast
They were used primarily for observing troop
movements and for dropping explosives
Gun on German Airplane
Balloons were also used in
WWI
U- BOATS
(Unterseeboot)
•Underwater ships: launch torpedoes or bombs
•Used mostly by Germans to destroy Allied shipping
and break blockades
Submarines/U-boats

Did serious damage to Allied shipping
Loading torpedoes into a French submarine
The Draft
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Most European wars before this time had been
fought by professional soldiers who worked for
money and rations
WWI was fought by armies of drafted citizens
Those who could not fight worked at home to
help the war effort
Many women participated in the war effort by
working in factories
Governments made use of propaganda