MAIN Causes of WWI

Militarism- Massive military build-up

Alliances- For protection

Triple Alliance (1800s)- Germany, Austria-Hungary,

Italy

Central Powers (during WWI)- Germany, AustriaHungary (Ottoman Empire)

Triple Entente (1800s)- France, Russia, Great Britain

Allied Powers (during WWI)- France, Russia, Great

Britain (Italy, Japan)

Imperialism- Rivalries from empire building

Nationalism- Loyalty to country, ethnic groups
wanting independence, new countries (Italy &
Germany) want to compete for power

European
Alliances and
Military Forces,
1914

Given the alliances

and the size of the
armed forces, what
would happen if
conflict broke out?

Whose team would

you want to be onthe Allied or Central
Powers?

The spark that starts the war

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was

assassinated by Gavrilo Princip, a
Serbian nationalist (June 28th,
1914)
Austria-Hungary declared war on
Serbia
Russia prepared to defend Serbia
Germany saw Russias actions as
a threat and declares war on
Why
Russia and France

did a single
assassination start a world
wide war?

And the fighting begins

Germany faced war on two fronts

(Western=France and Eastern=Russia)
Schlieffen Plan- German plan to defeat
France quickly and then attack Russia

Invaded Belgium to get to France

Great Britain declared war because Germany

invaded a neutral country

Trench warfare begins

Battle of the Marne (September 1914)

French drive Germans back

Germans dig trenches
Allies dig trenches

Why would it
be difficult to
fight a war
on two
fronts?

Stalemate on
the western
front!

Fighting during World War I

Trench warfare

Muddy, trench foot

Poor sanitation
Rats, lice, dead bodies
No-mans-land and over
the top

New Weapons

Poison gas
Tanks
Aircrafts

Battle of Somme

See page 784 and 785 in

your textbook

World War I Review

1) What were the 4 long term causes of World War

I? (Think MAIN)
2) What single event sparked the start of the war?
3) Which countries were members of the Central
Powers?
4) Which countries were members of the Allied
Powers?
5) Why did Great Britain declare war on Germany?
6) Describe fighting on the Western Front.

World War I Review Answers

1) Militarism (building up weapons); Alliance system (two competing alliances- Triple

Alliance- Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy and the Triple Entente- France, Great
Britain, and Russia; Imperialism (competition for colonies to supply raw materials for
industrialization); and Nationalism (new countries- Italy and Germany- want to become
world powers, other countries show their power through expansion and arms)
2) The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by a Serbian
nationalist, Gavrilo Prinicip
3) Central Powers- Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Ottoman Empire
4) Allied Powers- Great Britain, France, and Russia (smaller members- Serbia, Italy,
Japan and later the U.S.)
5) Great Britain declared war on Germany because Germany invaded Belgium, a neutral
country. The invasion of Belgium was part of Germanys Schlieffen Plan, a plan to defeat
France quickly.
6) The Western Front fighting was France and Great Britain vs Germany. Both sides used
new weapons including tanks, airplanes, and poison gas. Soldiers fought from trenches
that were infested with rats and lice. Trenches were also a dangerous place to fight with
soldiers having to go over the top to defeat the enemy. Little ground changed hands at
the cost of thousands of lives.

Total War

New type of war called for new tactics Total

War
Government takes control of citizens lives
Factories make military equipment
Conserve food and goods
Propaganda
Urge volunteers
Shape opinions
Tell of atrocities committed by enemies
Women work on the home front
Factory workers
In many countries, the new
view of women after WWI,
Nurses
led to women's suffrage!

Why were
these posters
created?

War Starts off Badly for the Allied

Powers

Italy joins Allied Powers but cannot move forward

against Austria-Hungary
Battle of Verdun (1916)- Germanys goal is to bleed
France white

Battle of Somme (1916)

British attack Germans, lose 60,000 on first day

Stalemate continues

Third Battle of Ypres

400,000 French casualties

Stalemate continues

British attack Germany again and lose

MAIN IDEA: The

start of the war
is characterized
by high loss of
life and little
movement on the
Western Front.

Gallipoli Campaign

Allies try to defeat Ottoman Empire to gain access to water

route to Russia- FAILED

World War I Battles,

1915-1917

Letters and Diary Entries from a

British Doctor and Soldiers

Wanting to go to war
Soldiers who purposefully injure themselves
Dealing with lice
Trench Foot
Christmas Truce
Doctors work
POW and timeline

War Spreads Around the World

30 nations officially take part

Arabian peninsula rebels against Ottoman Empire
Armenian Massacre

Japan declared war on Germany (part of

agreement with Great Britain)

Russia attacked the Caucasus region of Ottoman

Empire, home to Christian Armenians
Ottoman leaders claimed the Armenians helped the
Russians and forcibly removed them from the
Caucasus region
600,000 died from starvation and violence
Ottoman leaders accused of genocide

Captured German colonies in China and the Pacific

Soldiers from colonies fought in war

Many hoped their help would earn them

independence

Revolution in
Russia

Czar Nicholas had promised reform after the

Revolution of 1905 but there was little change

Russia enters WWI in 1914

Russia is not prepared for war, millions killed and

injured
Conditions in Russia grow worse- food and goods
were scarce

March 1917- Peasants protest lack of food and fuel

Bolsheviks led by Lenin wanted to overthrow the

czar so industrial workers would rule Russia

Czar abdicates, temporary government formed

October Revolution 1917- Bolsheviks Red

Army defeat the provisional government
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk ends Russia involvement
in WWI, Russia loses land
Civil War between Bolshevik Red Army and
opponents White Army Bolshevik victory
New Economic Policy allows peasants to sell
food for profit
Russia becomes the SOVIET

UNION

MAIN IDEA:
World War I and
social unrest led
to revolution in
Russia. New
Russian leaders
brought Russia
out of the war
and formed the
communist Soviet
Union.

The War draws to a close

MAIN IDEA: The
involvement of U.S.
troops refreshed
the Allies and
discouraged the
Central Powers,
turning the tide of
the war in favor of
the Allies.

United States joins the allies because

of

Russias exit from the war allows for a

new German offensive

U-boat attacks
Zimmerman Note- German attempt to
make an alliance with Mexico

High loss of life, Germans come within

40 miles of Paris

American troops allow for an Allied

offensive
Peace terms agreed upon at 11 oclock
on 11/11/1918

To punish or to not punish?

Wilsons Fourteen Points
(American plan for
peace)
All people choose their
own government (selfdetermination)
All countries reduce
weapons
League of Nations
Describe the differences
between the U.S. plan for
peace and the actual peace
treaty. Why do you think
they are different?

Treaty of Versailles
(Actual peace treaty)June 28th, 1919
Germany takes full blame

Pays reparations
Limit size of military
Colonies given to other
countries
Germans bitter (we will see
the effects in the next
couple chapters)

League of Nations- U.S.

does not join

Other treaties
MAIN IDEA:
The end of the
war resulted in
the formation of
new countries
and Allied control
of former
Central Power
colonies.

Austria-Hungary and Ottoman

Empire break apart

Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia,

Czechoslovakia, Turkey

Middle East (former Ottoman

Empire) turned into mandates,
territories ruled by European powers

Syria and Lebanon = French

mandates
Palestine and Iraq = British
mandates

Balfour Declaration- British favored

establishing a Jewish state in
Palestine, the ancient Jewish
homeland (this will lead to future
conflicts!!)

How did Europe and the Middle East change because of WWI?
Which new countries were formed?
Which Allied Power lost land, why did this ally lose land?

Effects of WWI

Human Effects

Economic Costs

8.5 million soldiers died

13 million civilians died
21.2 million soldiers were wounded
Deadly influenza virus in 1918 led to the deaths of 50 million people (not an
effect but at the same time

332 billion dollars

Loss of infrastructure, farmland, cities
Europe no longer economic powerhouse

Political Changes

Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire broken apart

Germany greatly weakened
Russian monarchy overthrown= Soviet Union
New countries and colonies formed in Europe and Middle East
Colonies in Africa and Middle East changed hands
Colonists who fought did NOT receive independence

Review

What were the 4 long-term causes of World War I?

What sparked the start of the war?
What were the two alliances and the countries involved BEFORE
the start of the war?
Name the two wartime alliances and the countries that belonged to
each alliance.
What was the Schlieffen Plan?
Describe fighting on the Western Front.
How did American troops change the tide of the war?
Describe the Treaty of Versailles, include all important details.
How did Russia change during the early 1900s?
How did the world change because of World War I?