AIM: Why and how did World War I begin in 1914?

Do Now: What do you know about the start of WWI?

The Great War

"The Great War was without precedent ... never had so many nations taken up arms at a single time. Never had the battlefield been so vast… never had the fighting been so gruesome...”

The Weight of 1914: Why examine it so closely?

Major Dates & Key Players

European World

Perspectives:British CommonwealthGermany and AustriaChina and JapanUS

World War I1914-1918

Was WWI inevitable?Web Activity

Causes of the War

M

A

I

N

ilitarism

lliances

mperialism

ationalism

Militarism

The glorification of the military

Helped feed the arms race

Militarist tradition painted war in romantic colors

AlliancesThe Triple Alliance:

Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy

Turns into the Central Powers in 1914 when war starts (NO Italy)

The Triple Entente:Britain, France and Russia

Others:Germany signs treaty with Ottomans

Britain tries to get Japan

Imperialism

Overseas rivalries creates competition

Ex: Germany and France

Nationalism

Germans proud of empire’s new military power and industrial leadership

French were bitter about 1871 defeat and yearned to recover lost border of Alsace-Lorraine

Pan-Slavism: Russia sponsors feeling of Nationalism that all Slavic peoples shared a common nationality

The Powder Keg Ignites!

Regional conflict grows rapidly into a general war!

Assassination in Sarajevo: Archduke Franz Ferdinand (of Austria-Hungary) and wife were assassinated by Serbian terrorist Gavrilo Princip

Austria gives Serbia an ultimatum with the assistance of a blank check from Germany!!

Alliances Kick In!

July 23rd: Delivery of the Austrian Ultimatum

July 26th: Serbia responded

July 27th: Russia, France, Italy, and Germany all accepted arbitration in principle

July 28th 1914: AUSTRIA DECLARES WAR ON SERBIA

July 29th: Germany rejects arbitration, , Wilhelm and Nicholas began to exchange telegrams

July 30th: Russian mobilization announced

Let’s Summarize…What would you say the main cause of WWI was?

AIM: What were the true causes of WWI? Do Now: You are living in Europe during the summer of 1914 and the Archduke was just assassinated. What do you do next? How do you prepare for the war?

*Challenging MAIN!

The Storm BreaksWar? Of course there couldn’t be war! The Cabinets, like naughty children, were again dangling their feet over the edge; but the whole incalculable weight of things-as-they-were. . . continued calmly and convincingly to assert itself against the bandying of diplomatic words – Edith Wharton in Paris on July 31.

23 July: Delivery of the Austrian Ultimatum

26 July: Serbia responded

27 July: Russia, France, Italy, and Germany all accepted arbitration in principle

28 July: International Socialist meeting in Brussels; Austria declared war on Serbia

29 July: Germany rejected arbitration; Wilhelm and Nicholas began to exchange telegrams

30 July: Russian mobilization announced

Militarism?Wherever one looks one is aware of the international détente. . . . For years hardened chauvinists and militarists have tried to force upon us the conviction that war is imminent, that it will start in the [upcoming] spring. War has not started and it appears that peace will not be disturbed, that it will last – French Socialist statement, May, 1914

Alliances?

We had been familiar with these diplomatic conflicts for years; they were always happily settled at the last minute, before things got too serious – Stefan Zweig

Nations have no permanent friends or allies, they only have permanent interests – Lord Palmerston.

Imperialism?

Nationalism?I do not think that this question interests the youth of today or the country, nor does it interest me – a 24 year-old interviewed by the Mercure de France about Alsace in 1912.

No considerable body of rational men in either France or Germany desires war or would look upon it otherwise than as a dire calamity – Stanford President D. S. Jordan after a long trip to Alsace, 1913.

What Was Different in 1914?

*World War I was started by the actions of 12 men!

So What?Although these forces existed in Europe, they were not dominant.

You cannot just look at structures; people are still making clear decisions. This particular crises set up a set of circumstances that made it difficult to make the right decisions.

Europeans not eager for war in 1914. From 1905 to 1914 Europeans had seen much bigger crises come and go.

All sides saw war in defensive and moral terms

World War I was the cause not the effect of nationalist hatreds

[1914 was] a year of pain and sorrow, not only for us but for the whole of what is called the civilized world. This terrible war goes on and on, and whereas you thought at the start that it would be over in a few weeks, there is now no end in sight. Your feelings harden, you become increasingly indifferent. You don’t think about the next day any more. A wish for us all for 1915: may this new year make up for 1914 and bring us peace – German soldier Hebert Sulzbach.

Country Analysis DiscussionDirections: Independently Read Handout and be ready to share your thoughts regarding your assigned country and their role in the start of World War I.

*These are excerpts from my 28 pages of notes from my summer seminar so they’re a bit choppy – I apologize!

Exit Slip.

Write a small paragraph (to be collected) answering the following question: If you were asked what caused World War I, what would you respond?

*I’m going to share the best few responses with my colleagues from Chicago this past summer, so please put effort into these, just has to be a paragraph, nothing crazy!

AIM: How and where was World War I fought?Do Now: STALEMATE - What does is mean? How do you think it applies to WWI?

Stalemate on the Western

Front• How they transpired?

• The strategies employed?

• Who was involved?

• Who was affected?

Trench Warfare

Technology of Modern Warfare

The Eastern FrontNot mired in trench warfare

Casualties higher than on Western Front

Russia loses the Eastern Front – August 1914: poorly equipped to fight a modern war.

New combatants in the Balkans and Southern Europe

War Around the World

The Ottoman Empire: a desirable ally b/c of strategic location

Turks join Central Powers in 1914Dardanelles: a vital strait connecting the Black Sea to the MediterraneanBattle of Gallipoli: Allies send massive force, Turkish troops trap the Allies, Allies withdraw after 20,000 casualties

Turkey fights with Russia (Christian Armenians)

Turks hit hard in Middle East – Arab Revolut

Battle of the Somme• July 1 – Nov. 18,

1916• One of the costliest

battles of WWI• Approximately 1.2

million casualties• 420,000 British • 200,000 French • 500,000 German

Dead German soldiers at Battle of the Somme

British gains

Central Historical Question:

A British trench July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme

Who won the first day of the Battle of the Somme?

AIM: How did the Allies win World War I?

Do Now:“Over there, over there,

Send the word, send the word over there,

That the Yanks are coming,The Yanks are coming…

We’ll be over, we’re coming over,And we won’t come back till it’s over

Over there.”-George M. Cohan “Over There”

1917

Analyze the lyrics above.

Waging Total WarTotal War: channeling of a nation’s entire resources into the war effort

Governments began to take a stronger role in directing the economic and cultural lives of their people

Military conscription: “the draft”; enacted in all nations by 1916.

Economic warfare: wartime blockades were allowed to confiscate contraband (not food/clothing)

Propaganda: the spreading of ideas to promote a cause or to damage an opposing cause

Women join the war as workers, nurses and spies

Morale CollapsesWar fatigue:

Long casualty lists

Food shortages

Failure of military

So-long Russia!

March 1917: bread riots in St. Petersburg erupted into full blown revolution

Lenin: came to power with a promise to pull Russian troops out of the war

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk: 1918, Russia signs with Germany, ends Russian participation in WWI

The United States Declares War

April 6, 1917, the United States declared war on Germany.

Why?

The United States was under attack

Lusitania

Zimmerman Telegraph

Democracy was in jeopardy

U.S. economic interests were threatened**

U.S. cultural and economic ties to European nations (especially Great Britain)

Victory at LastSpring Offensive: March 1918

Final showdown on the Western Front

By July, Germans had pushed Allies back 40 miles

Germans exhausted American troops arrive by thousands

Allies launch counterattack

Germans know war cannot be won

11 a.m. on November 11, 1918

Armistice: agreement to end fighting

Aim: What factors influenced the peace treaties that ended World War I, and how did people react to the treaties?Do Now: Review from last class – How did the Allies win the war?

1

23

4

5

6

7

8

Trouble Spots:1 Saar/Rhineland2 South Tyrol3 Fiume4 Sudetenland5 Danzig6 Memel7 Curzon Line8 Smyrna9 Upper Silesia

9

I. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at.

II. Absolute freedom of navigation

III. The removal of all economic barriers

IV. national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety.

V. A free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims,

VI. The evacuation of all Russian territory.

VII. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored.

VIII. All French territory should be freed and the invaded portions restored, and the wrong done to France by Prussia in 1871 in the matter of Alsace-Lorraine, should be righted.

Fourteen Points (abridged)

IX. A readjustment of the frontiers of Italy should be effected along clearly recognizable lines of nationality.

X. The peoples of Austria-Hungary, whose place among the nations we wish to see safeguarded and assured, should be accorded the freest opportunity to autonomous development.

XI. The relations of the several Balkan states to one another [should be] determined by friendly counsel along historically established lines of allegiance and nationality.

XII. The nationalities which are now under Turkish rule should be assured an undoubted security of life, and the Dardanelles should be permanently opened as a free passage to the ships.

XIII. An independent Polish state should be erected which should include the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be assured a free and secure access to the sea.

XIV. A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.

What’s the problem with the Fourteen Points?Fourteen Points: a list of Wilson’s terms for resolving World War I and future wars. He called for freedom of the seas, free trade, large-scale reductions of arms, and an end to secret treaties. For east Europe, Wilson favored self-determination: the right of the people to choose their own form of government. Finally, Wilson urged the creation of a “general association of nations” to keep peace in the future.

The Costs of War

The Costs of World War I

Human and material costs of the war were staggering!Made worse by 1918 pandemic

Financial Toll: everything turned into rubble, high costs of reconstruction = people feel bitter, ask for reparations

Allies ask Central Powers (shocked, viewed armistice as a cease-fire)

Political Turmoil: under stress of war, governments collapsed in Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire!

Political radicals want to step in vs. conservatives

Unrest sweeps through Europe’s colonial empires

The Paris Peace Conference:19 January to 28 June 1919

The Big Three Woodrow

Wilson (USA) David Lloyd

George (GB) George

Clemenceau (France)

Other Reps: Vittorio

Orlando (Italy)*Conflicting Goals!*

The Paris Peace Conference

The Treaty of VersaillesJune 1919: German Republic ordered to sign by Allies

Treaty forces Germany to assume full blame for causing the war

Imposes huge reparationsLimits size of militaryLoss of territory (home and abroad)

Germans have no choice but to sign!

Outcome of the Peace Settlements

Allies drew up separate treaties with other Central Powers

Self-determination in Eastern Europe (tons of new nations created!!!)Create Mandate Systems in colonies, extends imperial rule (bad for rest of world)**League of Nations: more than 40 nations joining together to negotiate peace rather than to resort to war

U.S. never joins!

Exit/Wrap UpImmediate Effects: Long-Term Effects:

AIM: How did two revolutions and a civil war bring about Communist control of Russia?Do Now: Define the words: Socialism, Marxism, Capitalism, and Communism. (Flip back through notes if you’re stuck)

Recipe for the Russian Revolution

100 years of social unrest

100 years of ruthless treatment of peasants

1 Assassination of Czar Alexander II

1 Czar Nicholas with weak leadership

1 defeat in Russo-Japanese War

1 Bloody Sunday

Handful of losses in WWI **Mix ingredients together and agitate with revolutionaries, and wait for the revolution to rise.

* Don’t Copy!

March Revolution Ends TsarismAfter the Revolution of 1905, Nicholas

failed to solve Russia’s basic political, economic, and social problems.

Moderates & Marxists try to ignite change proletariat (growing class of factory, railroad, miners & urban wage workers)

Just like every other war, WWI shows Russia they NEED CHANGE

Why? Nicholas goes to battle fronts, Tsarina Alexandra welcomes in Rasputin

Petrograd – March 1917 – workers strikes, Duma sets up temporary government

Socialists plot own course: set up soviets (councils of workers & soldiers)

Lenin and the Bolsheviks

Bolsheviks, a radical socialist group, took charge with V.I. Lenin as leader.

Brilliant revolutionary: inspired deeply by Karl Marx

Adapts Marxist ideas to fit Russian conditions

Overthrow capitalism

Bolsheviks “majority”

ONLY revolution could bring about the changes needed

*Germans (seeing a change) help Lenin return home to Russia from exile

The November Revolution Brings the Bolsheviks to Power

Lenin is joined by Leon Trotsky, another Marxist revolutionary

“Peace, Land, and Bread.”

Provisional government continues to support war effort Bolshevik takeover

November 1917: squads of Red Guards (armed factory workers) attack provincial government

Lenin’s forces overthrow government without a struggle

End private ownership of land, distribute it to peasants, workers get control

Bolsheviks – renamed Communists

Russia Plunges into Civil War

After Bolshevik Revolution, Lenin seeks peace with Germany (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk)

Opposing forces: “Reds” (communists) vs. the “Whites” (tsarist imperial officers, Mensheviks, democrats, etc.)

Allies try to intervene – fed Communist distrust of West (& makes matters worse for “Whites”)

Reds execute the tsar and his family

Communists use terror to control their own peopleCheka: secret police force

Set up forced labor camps

“war communism”

Commissars: Communist party officials assigned to the army to teach party principles and ensure party loyalty

Building the Communist Soviet Union

New government SAME PROBLEMS! 1922 Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)

Communists produce constitution

In theory, all members shared certain equal rights

Communists reign supreme

Lenin’s New Economic Policy: realizes “war communism” broke economy, so adopts NEP (new economic policy).

Allows some Capitalist venture State keeps control of banks, foreign trade, and large industries

Stops squeezing peasants for grain

Stalin Takes OverLenin dies in 1924, struggle for power between Trotsky and Joseph Stalin

Exit Slip

1. What were the causes of the Russian Revolution?

2. What steps did the Communists take to industrialize the Soviet?

3. Was the Russian Revolution inevitable?

4. Was the Russian Revolution successful

5. Were ordinary Russians better or worse off after 1917?