The Great WarWhy did it happen?AKA Causes of WWI

Nationalism• Positive effect= unity within a country• Negative effect= competition with other nations

– materials and markets– Territorial disputes– Desire to dominate regions that were growing

nationalistic themselves (Imperialism) made the great powers rivals

Imperialism• The Quest for territory oversees to

provide raw materials and markets for manufactured goods– Often competition led to the brink of war– Nations began to mistrust each other and

rivalries grew.

MilitarismMilitarism- the policy of having a large, strong army that

was prepared for war by being able to quickly mobilized– European Arms Race- belief that to be truly great

you had to have a large military– Made citizens feel patriotic and foreigners

frightened

Alliances• Designed to help keep peace • Triple Alliance (Bismark)= Germany, Austria-

Hungary, and Italy (Goal to unify against future French aggression)

• They also signed a treaty with Russia• Kaiser Wilhelm II- German leader in 1890 who

changed Bismark’s policies

Kaiser Wilhelm II- Aggression?• Boasted of a strong German army• Allowed the treaty with Russia to lapse.

– Russia aligned with France out of fear• Sought to build a powerful navy (better than

Britain's)– Britain aligned through an agreement (entente)

with France in 1907 that they would not fight each other, then signed one with Russia

Two Sets of AlliancesTriple Alliance

AKA Central Powers

GermanyAustria-Hungary

Italy *Would later join the Allies

Triple EntenteAKA Allied Powers

EnglandFranceRussia

Some of these had additional alliances with other nations …. Russia with Serbia

The Balkans• Where- Eastern Europe• What- former parts of the

Ottoman Empire that had gained independence

• Problem- Slavic people were spread throughout the region Serbians sought to join all Slavic people into one nation

• The Fuel- Austria-Hungary held a large chunk of land-including Bosnia- made of Slavs and Serbia wanted it!!!

• Both vowed to fight if necessary!

The shot….• Serbians in Bosnia wanted the Austro-Hungarians

out• June 28, 1914- Heir to the throne (Archduke Franz

Ferdinand) and his wife visited the capital• A 19 year old, Serbian member of the Black Hand

group (Gavrilo Princip) shot & killed them• Austria blamed Serbia & sent them demands to avoid

war

Europe Plunges into war

The Great WarEurope Plunges into War

Declarations of war• Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia• Russia declared war on Austria Hungary• Germany declared war on France• Great Britain declared war on Germany• Central Powers (Austria-Hungary, Russia)

joined by Bulgaria and Ottoman Empire• Allies (Russia, Serbia, Britain, France) were

joined by Japan & Italy

Things to know about WWI• Western Front= Stalemate along northern France• Eastern Front= Along the German-Russian border

– More mobile that the Western Front• Schieffen Plan- Germany would full-force fight in the

West and then move toward Russia• Battle of Marne- Allies won and ruined the Schieffen

Plan• Trench Warfare- miles of parallel trenches for

protection and fighting that stretched for 500 miles

Life in the trenches• Misery

– mud– Rats– No fresh food– No sleep– Danger of collapse

• No man’s land– Between opposing trenches– Entered only on command= certain death

Trench Warfarehttp://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41830000/jpg/_41830392_somme416_3.jpg

www.germannotes.com

Russia Struggles• Lack of industrialization led to shortages

– Food– Guns– Ammunition– Clothes and boots– Blankets

• Allies couldn’t help b/c Germans controlled the Baltic Sea and Ottoman control in the south

• Russia’s only asset= large population

New weapons of war• Poison Gas

– Introduced by Germans

– Blindness, blister, death by choking

www.1914-1918.net/PIX/uniform1918.JPG

Poison Gas AttackEnormous Stock Pile of Poison Gas in a Belgian Forest

www.1914-1918.net/PIX/uniform1918.JPG

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Poison_gas_attack.jpg

A Soldier with

Mustard G

as

Burns

z.about.com/.../200px-Mustard_gas_burns.jpg

An Attack using poison gas cylinders

New weapons of war• Machine Gun

– First used in Civil War- perfected by the British (Maxim Machine Gun

http://www.ppu.org.uk/war/arms/maxim_1.jpg

Hiram Maxim and his Machine Gun

198.144.2.125/MG42/FULL/Maxim%20MG.jpg

WWI German Maxim Machine Gun

New Weapons of War• Flame Thrower

– German made– Terrorized allies in

the trenches

www.venetika.eu/storage/WW1-02.JPG?__SQUARESP...

WWI French Troops Using Flame Throwers

• " ... flame has a powerful psychological effect in that humans instinctively withdraw from it, even when their morale is good. In addition, it is a casualty producing and lethal agent.“

(Austrian Training Pamphlet WWI)

New weapons of war• Tanks

– British– Soon used by

everyone

www.warbirdphotographs.com/ATC/ATC-FrenchWWI-...

New weapons of warFighter Planes– Both sides– Developed as the

war progressedtechcenter.davidson.k12.nc.us/Group9/airship.jpg

Hot air balloons were first used

The French outfitted planes with machine guns

boonedocks.net/pa/img.php?id=62&x=320&y=320

New weapons of warSubmarines– Germans– Used torpedoes to

attach ships (not always enemy ships….)

U 151- First German SubmarineImage www.njscuba.net/sites/images/u-151_1__.jpg