World War I- A Review By Mr. G

Timeline U.S. events 8/15/14-US-built Panama Canal opens. 5/7/15-Many Americans die as German U-boat sinks the Lusitania. 11/7/16-Woodrow Wilson reelected President. 4/2/17-Wilson asks Congress to declare war on Germany. 1/8/18-Wilson proposes the League of Nations.

Timeline (con’t.) World events 6/28/14-Austria-Hungary’s Archduke Ferdinand is assassinated, starting World War I. Feb.-Dec. 1915-Allies and Central Powers fight at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire. July-November 1916-French, British, and Germans suffer huge losses at the Battle of the Somme. 3/3/18-Russia withdraws from the war due to Russian Revolution. 11/11/18-Allies defeat Central Powers, ending WWI. 6/28/19-Allies and Germans sign the Treaty of Versailles.

Causes of WWI Imperialism-Britain, France, Germany and Italy fought over land and resources in Africa and Asia. Nationalism-The above-written nations believed they were the best, and they were willing to fight to prove superiority. Militarism-Each nation built large armies/navies to prove they were the strongest. Alliances-Countries formed partnerships to help each other compete against warring nations.

Stalemate in the Trenches As Germany moved further west, battles were largely fought over big sections of land. Trench warfare-Troops fought, and lived, in rat-infested trenches, with the enemy sometimes only yards away. Snipers became a useful battlefield weapon. Casualties reached into the millions (Battle of the Somme) as new weapons and strategies were used. Chlorine and mustard gas was a new weapon that caused permanent, if not fatal, damage to soldiers.

A War of New Technology New weapons caused a rapid rise in the battlefield death toll. Tanks, a British invention, caused many deaths as they plowed through battlefields. New machine guns, firing 600 bullets a minute, also were used. Poison gas blinded and burned soldiers. Airplanes, a new invention, were used to drop bombs on enemy positions. (The Red Baron-a German pilot/ace, shot down more than 80 enemy planes).

A War of New Technology (con’t.) Germans used a new invention-U-boats, or submarines, to control the oceans.

America’s Path to War Pres. Wilson, in 1914 when the war began, announced the US would be neutral-refusing to take sides on the war. Although Americans didn’t want to get involved, the German sinking of the British passenger ship Lusitania changed many minds to going to war. Although Germany promised not to continue naval attacks, they continued, knowing the US would get into the war. World War I (in color) World War I- part 2 (in color) World War I- part 3 (in color) World War I- part 4 (in color)

America’s Path to War (con’t.) The Zimmerman Telegram, a letter from Germany to Mexico, asking Mexico to attack the US in exchange for German support, finally got the US to declare war on Germany.

Revolution in Russia As Russian soldiers fought against the Germans, in Russia, a revolution was starting. Czar Nicholas Romanov, the leader of Russia, was kidnapped by a group of “Red Bolsheviks”-Communist revolutionaries. He and his family were executed and the Bolsheviks took control of the Russian Government-led by Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov-known as “Lenin”. Russian soldiers left the battlefield to return home to take part in the revolution. Russia signed a pact with Germany-Treaty of Brest-Litovsk-now Germany turned it’s full military to the West-against the Allied Forces.

America Enters the War After the Russian army went home to take part in their revolution, Germany planned to end the war by sending their army against France/Britain. May, 1918, one million fresh American troops arrived to turn back the German advance. On Nov. 11, 1918, Germany signed an armistice-an end to fighting.

The Treaty of Versailles Allied countries (US, Britain, France) wanted Germany to pay heavily for the war. Germany had to take full blame for the war. Germany was stripped of most of its colonies and its armed forces. Germany had to pay over $33 billion in reparations- money that a defeated nation pays for the destruction caused by the war. Germany was thrown into an economic depression that did not end until Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933.