1. World War I (1914-1918)

2. I. The Road to War:  Hidden Causes of WWI : existed well before 1914 1)Imperialism: -European powers had been building empires for centuries -the colonies supplied European powers with raw materials

4. I. The Road to War: -European powers competed for territory around the world which… -led to conflicts in those areas Militarism: Militarism: -def: policy of building up a nation’s armed forces in preparation of war -empires were expensive to build and defend -by 1890, the strongest European nation was Germany

5. I. The Road to War: -England was not concerned because they had the strongest navy in the world -in 1897, Germany’s Kaiser (emperor) decided that his nation should also become a major sea power -Germany and England began to compete in the building of warships -France, Italy, Japan, and the U.S. quickly joined the naval arms race

7. I. The Road to War: 3)Nationalism: -def: a devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation -often leads to competition and rivalries among nations -many feared Germany’s growing power in Europe -also, various ethnic groups resented domination by others and wanted their nations to become independent -those ethnic groups looked to larger nations for protection

8. I. The Road to War: -Russia viewed itself as the protector of Europe’s Slavic peoples, no matter which gov’t they lived under -ex: the Serbs – Serbia was an independent nation, but millions of ethnic Serbs lived under the rule of Austria-Hungary -that led to a rivalry between A-H and Russia for influence over Serbia

10. I. The Road to War: 4)Alliances: -def: a formal agreement or union between nations -developed in Europe during the late 1800s -designed to increase a nation’s security and to defend each other during an attack

11. I. The Road to War: -two great alliances formed in Europe by 1907: a. Triple Alliance – Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy b. Triple Entente – England, France, Russia

13. I. The Road to War:  Immediate Cause of WWI (sparkplug) was… -the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sofie on June 28, 1914 -he was the heir to the throne in Austria- Hungary -shot while visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia, which was a province of A-H -killed by Gavrilo Princip (19 yrs old), a member of the “Black Hand” (terrorist group promoting Serbian nationalism)

16. I. The Road to War:  After the assassination: -July 28: A-H blamed the Serbian gov’t and declared war on them -July 29: Russia, Serbia’s protector, began mobilization (the readying of troops for war) - Germany, A-H’s chief ally, demanded that Russia stop mobilizing - Russia refused – Russia’s ally, France, began mobilization as did Germany

17. I. The Road to War: -Aug. 1: Germany declared war on Russia -Aug. 3: Germany declared war on France -The U.S. remained neutral

18. I. The Road to War:  Germany knew it would be forced to fight a two- front war (East and West) eventually  so…they had a plan called the Schlieffen Plan: -called for a quick strike on France to knock them out of the war and then they would turn and attack Russia

20. II. War Begins:  To get to France as quickly as possible, the German Army passed through Belgium, a neutral country -the invasion brought England, Belgium’s protector, into the war on Aug. 4 -Germany had hoped England, with the world’s strongest Navy, would stay out of the war

21. II. War Begins:  After the start of the war, countries in Europe began to take sides: Central Powers: Allied Powers (Allies) GermanyFranceRussia A-HItaly (1915)Serbia BulgariaRomaniaGreece Ottoman Empire (Turkey)MontenegroPortugal Belgium U.S. (1917) Great Britain

23. II. War Begins:  Sept. 1914: Germans advanced within 30 miles of Paris but were stopped at the Marne River by French and British troops in the First Battle of the Marne

24. II. War Begins:  The war reached a stalemate, a situation in which neither side could gain an advantage, on the Western Front (in France) -the Allies began to dig trenches to help reduce casualties and the Germans did the same (trench warfare) -the move to the trenches prolonged the war -heavy casualties resulted from soldiers going “over the top” into “no man’s land” (area between the trenches)

26. II. War Begins:  While both sides fought evenly in France, the Central Powers took over Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, and Romania -they also attacked Italy and began to push the Russian lines back

27. II. War Begins:  New Weapons used during WWI: 1)Machine gun – forced the soldiers to the trenches – fired up to 450 rounds a minute 2) Tanks – first used by the British – used mainly to smash barbed wire fences to clear the way for the infantry (foot soldiers) 3) Poison gas – chemical warfare – used by the Germans first

28. II. War Begins: 4)U-boats – German submarines -attacked without warning – used to fight the British blockade -interfered with American trade and threatened the safety of Americans 5) Airplanes – used only for observation at first -later armed with machine guns and bombs -Manfred von Richthofen “Red Baron” (German ace pilot– shot down over 80 planes)

30. II. War Begins:  The American Response: -some Americans felt personally involved – Why? 1/3 were 1 st or 2 nd generation immigrants -most Americans wanted the Allies to win- Why? 1)Cultural ties with England 2)Most of the news from the war came from England 3)Kaiser Wilhelm II, German leader, was an autocrat (ruler with unlimited power)

31. II. War Begins:  The U.S. remained neutral at first and continued to trade with both sides -we were an isolated country at that time

32. III. U.S. Declares War:  3 Major Events led the U.S. to join the Allies: 1)Germany’s use of unrestricted submarine warfare – Ex: a. Sinking of the Lusitania (May 7, 1915) – British passenger liner sunk by a German u- boat because it was secretly carrying weapons for the Allies – 1,200 died (128 Americans)

35. III. U.S. Declares War: b. Sinking of the Sussex (March 24, 1916) – French passenger liner sunk by a u-boat – the Germans later agreed to the Sussex Pledge (promised to warn ships before attacking) – kept the U.S. out of the war b. Sinking of the Sussex (March 24, 1916) – French passenger liner sunk by a u-boat – the Germans later agreed to the Sussex Pledge (promised to warn ships before attacking) – kept the U.S. out of the war

36. III. U.S. Declares War:  Election of 1916 – Pres. Wilson ran under the slogan “He kept us out of the war” and was re- elected  Feb. 1, 1917: Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare – thought they could defeat the British and win the war before the U.S. could make a difference

37. III. U.S. Declares War:  Feb. 3, 1917: Wilson ended Am. neutrality by arming merchant ships – “armed neutrality”

38. III. U.S. Declares War: 2)Zimmerman Note / Telegram – German foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmerman, made a secret offer to Mexico -if they would attack the U.S., then they would be given back the lost territory in TX, AZ, and NM -if they would attack the U.S., then they would be given back the lost territory in TX, AZ, and NM -the note was intercepted by the British -the note was intercepted by the British -neither Wilson nor Mexico took the note seriously -neither Wilson nor Mexico took the note seriously -however, the American public called for war -however, the American public called for war

40. III. U.S. Declares War: 3)Revolution in Russia – March 1917, Czar Nicholas II was overthrown and replaced by a republican (democratic) gov’t -since a czar was no longer in power, the U.S. viewed Russia as an acceptable ally -since a czar was no longer in power, the U.S. viewed Russia as an acceptable ally -this was the last stumbling block to a full Am. commitment to the Allies -this was the last stumbling block to a full Am. commitment to the Allies

41. III. U.S. Declares War:  Pres. Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany saying… “The world must be made safe for democracy.” “The world must be made safe for democracy.”  War was declared on April 6, 1917

42. V. Americans on the European Front:  The Bolshevik Revolution (communist revolution in Russia – Oct. 1917) changed the involvement of Am. soldiers -led by Vladimir Lenin -led by Vladimir Lenin -Russia signed a treaty with Germany in March 1918 to drop out of the war -Russia signed a treaty with Germany in March 1918 to drop out of the war -allowed Germany to send all troops to the Western Front -allowed Germany to send all troops to the Western Front -forced U.S. to send in more foot soldiers to help Allies -forced U.S. to send in more foot soldiers to help Allies

43. VI. Postwar:  An armistice (cease fire) was signed on Nov. 11, 1918 (11 th hour, 11 th day, 11 th month)  WWI Casualties: -Russia – 9 million -Germany – 7 million -France – 6 million -A-H – 7 million -England – 4 million -U.S. – 364,000

44. VI. Postwar:  Pres. Wilson’s Plan for Peace: -to prevent future world wars he outlined his goals in his “Fourteen Points” speech before Congress – included: 1)Ban on secret treaties / alliances 2)Freedom of the seas 3)Reduction of arms

45. VI. Postwar: 4)self-determination, or power to make decisions about one’s own future, for all A-H’s ethnic groups 5)League of Nations – international org. that would help keep world peace and maintain order

46. VI. Postwar:  Paris Peace Conference (Jan. 1919) – attended by the “Big 4” (leaders of the 4 major Allied powers): 1)Woodrow Wilson (U.S.) 2)David Lloyd George (G.B.) 3)George Clemenceau (France) 4)Vittorio Orlando (Italy)

47. VI. Postwar: -remember: Russia had dropped out of the war in 1917 and Italy joined Allies in 1915 -Goals – Wilson concerned about world peace – brought 14 Points with him – the other 3 leaders wanted to punish Germany (esp. France)

48. VI. Postwar: -Treaty of Versailles – officially ended WWI – compromise – included: 1)War Guilt Clause – forced Germany to take the blame for starting the war (big mistake!) 2)Germany stripped of all colonies 3)Germany forced to pay reparations (payment for damages) to Allies - $33 billion total

49. VI. Postwar: 4)League of Nations created 5)Created new countries based on self- determination: -Poland -Austria -Poland -Austria -Finland -Estonia -Finland -Estonia -Czechoslovakia -Latvia -Czechoslovakia -Latvia -Yugoslavia -Lithuania -Yugoslavia -Lithuania -Hungary -Hungary