1. Warm Up Create a timeline of the major battles of WWI, 1914-1918
Note the results of the battles

2. Chapter 8 Section 2

3. Neutrality As war raged in Europe, the U.S. remained neutral
Reflected American tradition of isolationism
- Washington’s Farewell Address

4. Leaning Toward the Allies
President Wilson favored the Allied Cause
- Sympathetic toward neutral Belgium
- Historic and commercial ties to Great Britain and France
British fleet blockaded Germany, preventing American commerce
By 1917, U.S. businesses sold $75 million per week of war goods to British

5. German Submarine Warfare
Germany suffered under blockade
began to attack ships headed to Great Britain using submarines, or U-Boats
Declared waters around Great Britain a war zone in 1915
Unrestricted Submarine Warfare- all ships in British waters, including those from neutral nations, were subject to attack

6. Sinking of the Lusitania

7. Sinking of the Lusitania
British passenger ship carrying 1,900 passengers
- Secretly carried war supplies
Torpedoed by German U-Boat on 5/1/1915
1,200 people died, including 128 Americans
- Outraged Americans
Germany agreed to only attack supply ships

8. Sinking of the Sussex
French passenger ship Sussex torpedoed on 3/24/1916
- Killing 80
President Wilson threatened to end diplomatic relations with Germany
Germany feared U.S. might enter war,
Issued Sussex Pledge,
promised not to sink merchant vessels “without warning and saving human lives”

9. U.S. Entry into War
March 1917
Revolution in Russia overthrew the Czar & established a more democratic government.
Many Americans believed the U.S. should support democracy and became more supportive of the Allies

10. U.S. Entry into War
March 1917
Germans sank three American merchant ships
Americans outraged at violation of Neutrality

11. Entry into War Zimmerman Telegram Germans made overtures to Mexico
Attack the U.S. in exchange for former Mexican territory in the U.S.
British intercepted telegram it was later published in U.S. newspapers, outraging Americas

12. Zimmerman Telegram

13. U.S. Entry into War
President Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany
“Make the world safe for democracy”
April 6,1917, Congress declared War
U.S. entered the war on the side of the Allies

14. What does a nation need to do to prepare for war?
Warm Up:
What does a nation need to do to prepare for war?

15. Raising an Army
Selective Service Act - men between ages had to register to be drafted into the armed forces.
Conscientious Objectors - people whose moral or religious beliefs prevented them from fighting

16. Raising an Army Pre-war the U.S. army was small
The army was unprepared for the massive influx of soldiers
Soldiers slept in tents until barracks could be built
Recruits spent days learning basics of military
- Rules, marching, preparing for inspections
Military was short on rifles so recruits practiced with wooden sticks

17. Raising an Army
African American soldiers were segregated into separate divisions and camps
Southern whites feared training African American soldiers to use weapons
Few were trained for combat roles

18. Arriving in Europe
American soldiers who went overseas formed the American Expeditionary forces (AEF)
Led by General John J. Pershing
First arrived in France in June of 1917

19. Arriving in Europe
Americans used the convoy system to safely transport troops and supplies to Europe
Troop-transport ships were surrounded by cruisers and destroyers for protection from German U-Boats

20. Arriving in Europe
When American forces arrived in France, the Allies situation was bleak
German forces occupied all of Belgium and parts of northeastern France
Russia was facing famine and civil war
Allies wanted and needed American forces to start fighting on arrival

21. Arriving in Europe Pershing had other plans
Wanted his soldiers to fight as American units, not as replacement soldiers in British and French units
Also wanted to give troops additional training

22. Allied Setbacks Nov. 1917 Russia undergoes another revolution
Communist government takes over
New government, led by V.I. Lenin withdraws Russia from the war
Germany now free to focus on the Western Front

23. Allied Setbacks
March 1918
Germany launched a series of offensives against the Allies on the Western Front
Big Berthas - 6,000 artillery pieces firing 2,100 pound shells 75 miles
Germans pushed to within 70 miles of Paris

24. U.S. Troops in Action
American troops finally saw combat a year after arriving in France
Trench warfare
Soldiers dug trenches to protect themselves from enemy fire
Trenches were separated by no man’s land, covered in bared wire

25. Trench Warfare

26. Trench Warfare Life in the trenches
Soldiers stood deep in mud as rats ran over their feet
Enemy planes dropped bombs
Artillery shells exploded nearby
Mustard gas attacks

27. U.S. Troops in Action
American troops proved to be a major factor in the war
Helped stop the German advance, saved Paris
Turning Point
Second Battle of the Marne
Germans launched a massive offensive
Forced to retreat after suffering 150,000 casualties

28. U.S. Troops in Action Allied troops began to advance
Began to retake portions of Belgium, northeastern France
Battle of the Argonne Forest
Americans suffered 120,000 causalities (dead & wounded)

29. The Armistice
Lacking the will to keep fighting, the Central Powers began surrendering one by one
11/11/1918 Armistice with Germany went into effect
Germany surrendered its aircraft, submarines, tanks, heavy artillery and some of its territories

30. Human Cost
8.5 million killed during the war
126,000 Americans