American History

Chapter 14: World War I

The 4 MAIN underlying causesof World War I

M

A

I

N

militarism

alliances

imperialism

nationalism

The Alliances

Triple Entente

Triple Alliance

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The Balkans were nicknamed the “powder-keg of Europe”

The area was ready to explode!

When the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary was assassinated, it was the spark.

The immediate cause of WW I

The Alliances took sides . . .

Allied Powers

G R I E F GRIUF

Great BritainRussiaItalyUnited StatesFrance

“Our” side in World War I . . .

GRIUF

Central Powers

AGO

A

G

O

Austria-Hungary

Germany

Ottoman Empire

Our Enemyin World War I

Von Schleiffen Plan

“Strangle the French chicken before wrestling the Russian bear.”

Germany hoped to defeat France (on the west) quickly before attacking Russia on the east.

Why the von Schleiffen Plan didn’t work

The Germans were close to Paris . . .

but the “taxicab army” came from the city and stopped the German advance.

The result was years of stalemate.

First Battle of the Marne

Trench warfare

“No man’s land”

The area between the trenches of the opposing armies

Shell shock

The stress of war sometimes led to mental breakdowns

over the top

Somme

Bloodiest battle of the war

Verdun

The longest battle of the war

More than 4 months (before it was “dun”

Argonne ForestThe biggest offensive ever in American history.

Under General Pershing, Americans opened a hole in German lines.

New Weapons of WW IMachine gun

artillery

tanks

airplanes

zeppelinPoison gas

U-boat

dreadnaught

War of Attrition

• To wear the other side d

o w

n

• In hopes that you can make a break through

Total War

The army Folks at home

Everyone is affected by the war.

neutral

Before 1917, the United States did not OFFICIALLY take sides in the war. We were . . .

Reasons U.S. Joined the War

$$$ Economic ties to Britain and France

U.S. banks loaned a lot of money to the Allies. They needed the Allies to win so they could get their money back.

U-Boats Germans sank the Lusitania, a British liner. It was carrying some American passengers.

Zimmerman note Germany tried to persuade Mexico to enter the war and attack us.

Woodrow Wilson

President during WW I

Selective Service Act

All men 23-30 had to register for the draft. A lottery randomly selected those who had to serve.

Doughboy(nickname for American soldiers in WW I)

General John J. Pershing

American general in WW I

The American army . . .

AEF: American Expeditionary Force

Convoy System

Navy ships surrounded ships carrying troops and supplies to guard then from German U-boats as the American ships crossed the Atlantic.

Herbert Hoover

People were encouraged to have Wheatless Mondays, Meatless Tuesdays, Porkless Thursdays

The head of the Food Administration encouraged people to save food.

Government order to limit or conserve resources in order to support the war effort.

Rationing

War Industries Board

Government agency that regulated production, costs, and the use of natural resources during WWI.

Committee on Public InformationCPI

To promote the war in a favorable way (and present the enemy in an unfavorable way)

propaganda

It’s job was to “sell” the war to the American public.

Great MigrationThousands of African Americans left the South to settle and work in Northern cities (Chicago, New York, Cleveland, Detroit)

Espionage and Sedition Acts

It made penalties and prison terms for anyone who gave aid to the enemy.

Officials could prosecute anyone who criticized the president or government.

Even though the acts seemed to deny free speech, the courts usually upheld them.

Russian Revolution

Communist party leader in Russia Bolsheviks seized power

Lenin

Russia

Before World War I After World War I

Armistice Day

Celebrating the end of the Great War

11-11-1918

The day the fighting stopped

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson’s plan for peace

Big FourLeaders of the peace conference in Paris

Britain: Lloyd-George

France: Clemenceau

Italy: Orlando

United States:Wilson

They dictated the terms of the treaty.

Treaty of Versailles

The treaty that officially ended World War I.

The U.S. Senate refused to sign the Treaty – it was too harsh.

War guilt clause

Germany was forced to take full responsibility for the war.

German anger and frustration over the clause (and loss of many of. their resources) were among the causes of World War II).

Reparations

Germany had to repay huge sums of money to the Allies after the war.

*The last payment was made September 29, 2010.

League of Nations

Wilson’s 14th point

The U.S. Senate was afraid that if we joined, the U.S. could be pulled into another European war.

An international peace-keeping organization formed after World War I

The U. S. didn’t join.

A New Map

• Austria-Hungary was divided up

• Ottoman Empire ended

• Russia gone, USSR in its place

• Poland added

Boston Police Strike

Prices rose after the war, and the cost of living went up.

Workers were better organized than before the war, and many went on strike.

Police in Boston went on strike; The Governor fired them and hired new workers.

Impact on the U.S.

Race Riots of 1919

Many African Americans left the South during the war to find factory jobs in Northern cities.

“the Great Migration”

Tension between racial groups led to riots in some cities.

Impact on the U.S.

The Red Scare

Americans were afraid that Communists were going to take over the country.

Impact on the U.S.

J. Edgar Hoover

Led the hunt for “Reds”

He became the head of the FBI.

Two Hoovers . . .

Herbert Hoover

• Led the Food Administration during WWI

• Became President of the US

J. Edgar Hoover

• Led the hunt for Communists

• Became the head of the FBI

Legacy of WW I

• 1st modern, mechanized war• Total war – all aspects of nations were involved• Spanish influenza epidemic –30 to 50 million died worldwide• Death and destruction

• 10 million military deaths• Millions more wounded, shell-

shocked, and gassed soldiers• 5 million civilian casualties

Leading up to WW II

• Reparations caused debt & depression

• Revenge – countries were eager for it• Radical leaders became powerful

And countries wanted to Regain lost territory