Transcript A Global Conflict

A Global Conflict
Introduction

World War I was much more than a European
conflict Australia and Japan, for example, entered
the war on the Allies’ side, while India supplied
troops to fight alongside their British rulers.
Meanwhile, the Ottoman Turks and later Bulgaria
allied themselves with Germany and the Central
Powers. As the war promised to be a grim, drawnout affair, all the Great Powers looked for other allies
around the globe to tip the balance. They also
sought new war fronts on which to achieve victory.
War Affects the World

The Gallipoli
Campaign




Allies move to capture
Ottoman Dardanelles
strait in February 1915.
Hope to defeat the
Ottoman Empire, a
Central Powers ally.
Also want to open a
supply line through
region to Russia.
Effort ends in costly
Allied defeat.
War Affects the World

Battles in Africa and Asia


Allies take control of German holdings in Asia and
Africa.
Britain and France use their colonial subjects to
help in war effort
War Affects the World

America Joins the Fight



Germany seeks to control Atlantic Ocean to stop
supplies to Britain.
Germany uses unrestricted submarine warfare,
and ship near Britain are sunk without warning.
Germany halts this policy in 1915 after the sinking
of the Lusitania angers the United States
RMS Lusitania arriving in New York on her maiden voyage
arriving in New York in September 1907. Upon its sinking
by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915, 1,198 people died
when the ship went down.
War Affects the World




Germany renews unrestricted policy in 1917 in
hopes to starve Britain quickly.
Renewal of policy angers the United States.
Zimmerman Telegram—effort to enlist Mexico in
war against the United States—angers the United
States.
The United States declares war against Germany
in April 1917 joining the Allies.
War Affects the Home Front

Governments Wage Total War




World War I becomes a “total war”—nations
devote all resources to war.
Governments take control of the economy to
produce war goods.
Nations turn to rationing—limiting purchases of
war-related goods.
Propaganda—one sided information to build
morale and support for the war.
War Affects the Home Front

Woman and the War


At home, thousands of women fill jobs previously
held by men.
Many women also experience the war by working
as nurses.
The Allies Win the War

Russia Withdraws



Civil unrest in Russia forces Czar to step down
from throne in 1917.
Communists soon take control of Russia’s
government.
Russia signs a treaty with Germany in March
1918, pulls out of war.
The Allies Win the War

The Central Powers Collapse



With Russia gone, Germany moves most forces
to Western Front
Engage in major fighting; Allies force Germans to
retreat.
Allies win war; armistice—end of fighting—signed
November 1918.
John J. “Black Jack” Pershing


Pershing is nicknamed
“Black Jack” because he
commanded Buffalo
Soldiers near the end of the
wars with Native Americans,
specifically fighting the
Lakota (Sioux).
Only person to hold the
highest rank in the United
States Army in his own
lifetime “General of the
Armies”. George
Washington holds this rank
posthumously.
Pershing’s Military Policies
During World War I

Pershing insisted that
the American
Expeditionary Force
fight as units under
American command
rather than being split
up by battalions to
augment British and
French regiments and
brigades.
Pershing’s Legacy


Pershing is often given credit
for Allied victories. However,
junior officers of the time like
Douglas MacArthur (later
commander of the U.S. Army
in the Pacific during World War
II) saw him as a “desk general”
commanding far back from the
lines.
He controversially ordered his
troops to continue fighting after
the armistice was signed. This
resulted in 3,500 U.S.
casualties on the last day of
the war, an act which was
regarded as murder by several
officers under his command.
“Pershing Boot” used to
prevent Trench Foot

Pershing
oversaw the
development
of a new
combat boot
to prevent
“trench foot.”
The Legacy of the War

A High Price




War takes heavy toll; 8.5 million soldiers dead, 21
million wounded
War devastates European economies, drains
national treasuries.
Many acres of land and homes, villages, towns
destroyed.
Survivors suffer disillusionment and despair;
reflected in the arts.