World War I or The Great War

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World War I or The Great War

• 1914-1918/19 Historys most destructive
  half-decade.for now

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Prelude to War

• Nationalism in major European powers builds up
  and tensions grow as countries compete for
  territories and natural resources.
• Militarism- glorifying the idea of war, became
  patriotic among the global empires and countries
  spend on the military to ensure their
  supremacy over their neighbors.
• Industrialization now allows for the rapid
  production of weapons and military supplies.
• Balkan nationalism- ethnicities compete for
  territory and support of larger nations or the
  elimination of influences from others.
• Powder Keg

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Balkan Powder Keg
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Alliances

• The creation of alliances will eventually force
  the nations of Europe to go to war.
• The Triple Alliance of 1882 was an attempt by
  Germany to isolate France. Italy joined in 1882.
  However, Italy will change sides as war breaks
  out.
• Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, the Ottoman
  Empire (joins later) will be known throughout the
  war as the Central Powers.

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Alliances cont.

• Not to be outdone, France signs a defensive
  alliance with Russia in 1892 1894. If war
  breaks out, Germany will have to fight a
  two-front war.
• Great Britain, as response to aggressive German
  naval building, in 1907 joins France Russia in
  an alliance known as the Triple Entente.
• Britain also signed a defensive alliance with
  Belgium (1830s), protecting its neutrality.
• Britain her colonial possessions, France her
  colonial possessions, Russia (until 1917), Italy,
  Japan, Greece, Serbia, Portugal, Romania, and the
  United States (joins in 1917) will be known
  throughout the war as the Allies.

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Britain spent an estimated 500 million on
battleships alone between 1906-1914.
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Mad Rush To War

• Tensions hostilities grow very quickly as
  opposing nations maneuver themselves into
  position that will lead to war.
• Brinkmanship- use the threat of going to war to
  achieve a political/diplomatic goal. Normally
  used by larger countries against smaller
  countries, though not exclusively.
• As part of militarism, nations institute
  conscriptions (draft or mandatory military
  service) in peacetime. This causes other nations
  to do the same to protect themselves if conflict
  arises.
• Estimated size of armies (in millions) at the
  onset of WWI Germany- 4.5 Austria-Hungary- 3
  France- 4 Russia- 6 Britain- .975

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Outbreak of War

• Conflicts between Austria-Hungary Serbia start
  the global conflagration that is World War I.
• Since gaining independence, Serbia was
  technically under the political, economic,
  social influence of A-H.
• Connected ethnically, both Slavic, Russia
  supported the Serbians in their attempts at
  breaking A-H influence.
• Fearful of Russian intervention further south,
  Germany pledges full support to A-H regardless of
  what happens.

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The shot felt around the world

• In an attempt to eliminate A-H influences, the
  radical Serbian nationalist organization Society
  of the Black Hand organizes and carries out the
  assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his
  wife Sophie on June 28, 1914.
• The couple were in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina
  on a public relations tour when they were shot a
  point blank range.
• The assassin was 19 year old Gavrilo Princip.
• Franz Ferdinand was the heir to the throne of
  Austria-Hungary.
• This event was the spark that ignited the
  powder keg.

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Archduke Ferdinand, wife Sophie, children
Actual bloodstained uniform worn by Ferdinand
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Princip
Mug-shot of Princip after assassination
Photograph of Princip being arrested immediately
after assassination
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The World Goes To War

• On July 23, A-H delivers an ultimatum to Serbia
  demanding numerous terms be met or war would
  begin. The ultimatum basically demanded that
  Serbia surrender itself to A-H.
• Serbia will cave in on all demands except one.
• On July 28, A-H declares war on Serbia.
• Over the next several days a series of events
  catapults the world to war.

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Rapid Chain of Events

• In support of Serbia, Russias Tsar Nicholas II
  orders his army mobilized on July 28-29.
• Germanys Kaiser Wilhelm II declares war on
  Russia on August 1.
• Germany wants to eliminate the biggest threat to
  them at that time and delivers an ultimatum to
  neutral Belgium allowing German forces to move
  through Belgium to attack France.
• On August 3, Belgium rejects the ultimatum and
  Germany declares war on Belgium France.
• On August 4, Britain declares war on Germany for
  violating the neutrality of Belgium.

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Schlieffen Plan

• The German plan of attack against France was laid
  out in the Schlieffen Plan.
• This attack called for the German army to use the
  flat terrain of Belgium and quickly attack into
  France, capture Paris, and defeat the French army
  before it could regroup.
• The plan would avoid the French fortifications
  and natural boundaries that separated France
  Germany cut off the British Expeditionary Force
  (BEF) from joining with the French.
• With France out of the war, Germany could focus
  its attention on Russia, which it feared would be
  more difficult to beat.

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False Hope Bloody Stalemate

• People on both sides believed that the war would
  be over by Christmas and soldiers marched off to
  war with high hopes of returning home quickly
  victorious.
• Reality sets in with the 1st Battle of the Marne
  as the Germany advance is stopped 20 miles
  outside of Paris. Both sides dig in and the war
  of attrition known as trench warfare begins on
  the Western Front.
• On the Eastern Front, Austrian, German Russian
  armies clashed starting at the end of August.
  While the Western Front gets most of the
  attention, the Eastern Front saw some of the
  worst fighting and highest casualties of the war.

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French troops leaving for the front
Aftermath of the 1st Marne
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Trench warfare on the Western Front
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New Weapons-Old Tactics

• The industrial revolution allowed countries to
  create new weapons of war at much faster rates.
• These new weapons were the most technologically
  advanced at the time but tactics/strategies were
  still from the Napoleonic Era to the American
  Civil War.
• Most high commanders never changed their tactics
  to contend with the new weapons.
• As a result, casualties (killed, wounded, POW) on
  both sides reached into the hundreds of thousands
  and even over one-million.

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German machine gun During the course of the war
Germany manufactured over 100,000 of these guns.
The tank was developed first used by the
British to cross No Mans Land. Its size and
speed limited its use in certain terrains but
proved invaluable when used on the battlefield.
Poison Gas attack
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Zeppelin airship
German submarines called U-Boats ravaged allied
shipping. The passenger ship Lusitania was
torpedoed and sunk by a U-Boat killing over 1000
people, including Americans.
Aircraft, originally used for observation, now
take on combatant roles and control of the skies
becomes a top priority.
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Major Battles/Campaigns

• 1st Battle of the Marne- Sept. 6-10, 1914 German
  advance halted 20 miles outside of Paris.
• Battle of Verdun- February 21-Dec. 6, 1916 The
  longest single battle the war estimated number
  of total casualties exceeded 700,000.
• Battle of the Somme- July 1-Nov. 19, 1916
  Attempt by the allies to relieve the French
  trapped at Verdun. Horrendous loss of life on
  both sides, with the British suffering over
  420,000 casualties 60,000 troops on the first
  day alone. The first use of tanks occurred
  during this battle.
• Battle of Jutland- May 31-June 1, 1916 Only
  major sea battle of the war. Fought between
  Britain Germany, this was to be the epic battle
  between two titans of the sea. Britain suffered
  more losses in terms of ships and men, but
  Germany never used its surface fleet again.
• 2nd Battle of the Marne- July 15-Aug. 4, 1918
  Final German offensive of the war. Failed
  attempt at breaking the stalemate. 1st use of
  American troops in battle.

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Russian Troops surrender at Tannenberg
British wounded at the Somme
German counter attack at Verdun
German warship on fire after Jutland
Flamethrower
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Turning Points in the War

• Russia is knocked out of the war after the
  Russian Revolution of 1917 toppled the Tsars
  government. In 1918, Russia Germany signed the
  Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Russia is out of the
  war and has to give up large amounts of land to
  Germany. This allows Germany to shift troops to
  the Western Front.
• T.E. Lawrence of Arabia, was a British officer
  charged with getting the support of Arabs to
  mount civil conflict within the Ottoman Empire.
  With British military economic support and
  promises of independence for the different Arab
  nationalities, Lawrence waged a successful
  guerilla war against the Ottoman Turks causing
  them to waste valuable resources, keeping troops
  off the front lines, and leading to their
  eventual defeat.

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Turning Point cont.

• The entry of the United States in World War I
  came after a series of events that pushed the
  isolationist nation into the conflict.
• Anti-German sentiment propaganda began to
  spread around the country as many Americans saw
  Germany as the aggressor.
• Unrestricted submarine warfare the Lusitania
  sinking on May 7, 1915 killed hundreds of
  Americans.
• The Zimmermann Telegram was the final straw. The
  telegram stated that Germany would help Mexico
  retake the land lost in the Mexican-American War
  if Mexico sided with Germany if war were to break
  out with the US.
• The United States declares war on Germany on
  April 6, 1917. Mexico, however, stays out.

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Propaganda after the Lusitania sinks
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Zimmermann Telegram decoded
Zimmermann Telegram coded
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End of the Fighting

• After the failure of the 2nd Marne campaign,
  German citizens soldiers were tired of the war.
• Citizens began to aggressively protest against
  the government and on November 3, 1918, soldiers
  sailors refused to fight under the current
  government.
• Wilhelm II attempts to reform the government but
  ultimately abdicates the throne on November 9.
  The new government immediately seeks to end the
  fighting and signs an armistice (cease fire) on
  November 11, 1918.
• The fighting of World War I ends though Germany
  has not been technically defeated.

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Peace?????

• With the armistice signed, the allies, 32
  countries in all, went to work on creating an
  official treaty with Germany with the leaders of
  the Big Four leading the way.
• The countries leaders that made up the Big Four
  are
• Woodrow Wilson of the United States
• David Lloyd George of Great Britain
• Georges Clemenceau of France
• Vittorio Orlando of Italy
• In what becomes the Treaty of Versailles, singed
  on June 28, 1919, the allies deal harshly with
  the Germans, who they believe are responsible for
  the war. Provisions of the treaty include
• Germany cannot have a strong military
• give up vast amounts of land in Europe colonial
  possessions
• sign the War Guilt Clause accepting
  responsibility for the war
• make monetary reparations to the allies

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Peace???? cont.

• The allies will make separate treaties with the
  other Central Powers nations with many terms
  being the same as far as giving up land making
  reparations.
• The United States signed the treaty but it was
  never ratified by the senate. Technically, the
  US remained at war with Germany and her allies
  until 1921.
• The Treaty of Versailles turned out to be a
  punishment for Germany and not an attempt at
  bringing peace stability to Europe.
• The 14 Points of Woodrow Wilson were an attempt
  of bringing stability to Europe, but many of the
  provisions were ignored.
• As a result, the nations never really solved
  their problems. In fact, they only got worse and
  would lay the foundation for the worst conflict
  in human history World War II.

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Major Effects of World War I

• Political Effects
• Some countries gained territory (size)
• Romania got lands from Russia, Bulgaria and
  Austria-Hungary
• Italy gained lands from Austria-Hungary
• Japan gained colonies in the Pacific
• Ottoman Empires lands in the Middle East (that
  were promised independence by Britain and France)
  were colonized by them instead
• Britain Palestine and Iraq
• France Syria and Lebanon

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Major Effects of World War I

• Social Effects
• Minority groups in new countries (a source of
  conflict for later on)
• Some Arabic peoples betrayed by Britain (and
  France)
• Germany and Russia weakened
• Spanish Influenza outbreak of 1918 ? another 30
  million deaths worldwide!
• Refugees and mass migrations (many to USA,
  Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and France)
• Damage to countries in which the fighting occurred

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Casualties

• World War I was the costliest (human economic)
  war up to that time and was a total war.
• Since records were not accurate, it is estimated
  that over 8.5 million soldiers died over the
  course of the war with at least 3-4 times that
  wounded. Some records say that the number could
  reach 10 million dead.
• Civilian casualties from the war reached almost 7
  million.
• Disease, starvation, exposure to the elements,
  and combat related incidents contributed to the
  high mortality figures among civilians.

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