Text 568-595

The Origins of World War I

WWI came about as a result of years of tension
between European countries
Major causes of WWI:
Nationalism
Militarism
Imperialism

Competing Alliance Systems

The Triple Alliance

Founded in 1882
Consisted of:

Germany
Austro-Hungarian

Empire
Italy

The Triple Entente

Founded in 1907
Britain

France
Russia

Serbian Nationalism
Nationalism was the

most direct cause of the

war
Problems in the AustroHungarian Empire
Many Slavic people
within the empire
wanted independence
Supported by Serbia who
was not part of the
empire

The Spark
Archduke Franz

Ferdinand (heir to the

Austro-Hungarian
throne) and his wife
were assassinated by
Serbian nationalists
Gavrilo Principe and the
Black Hand
The fall out of this
episode activated the
alliance systems in
Europe

Mobilization
In response to the assassination, Austria-Hungary

wanted to invade Serbia

Asked for Germanys support & received a blank
check
Serbia asked Russia for help because Russia saw
herself as protector of all Slavic Nations
Russia mobilized for war on July 30, 1914
Germany mobilized for war as well and declared war
on Russia and France on August 3, 1914
England declared war on August 4th
Fighting began on August 6th, 1914

The Central Powers

Italy refused to honor

its commitment to the

Triple Alliance
The Ottoman Empire
joined Germany &
Austria to make up the
Central Powers
Italy later joined
England, France, and
Russia, in 1915

America and the Great War

As war broke out in Europe, President Wilson worked

to stay out of the conflict

America wanted to be neutral but that was not easy
Americans sympathized with one side or another
Americans traded with both sides of the conflict early
on
Germany declared the seas around the British Isles a
war zone, & Britain blockaded the Central powers
Eventually American exports to the Central Powers
declined, and exports to Britain picked up.

German Submarine Warfare

Unable to challenge

British sea power,

Germans resorted to
submarine warfare
German U-boats sank
any ship in British
waters
On May 7, 1915 U-boats
sank the Lusitania, a
British passenger ship,
killing 1200, include 128
Americans

American Response
Wilson demanded

Germany end
unrestricted submarine
warfare
asked that they respect the
rights of neutral countries
Germany agreed
However as the war
continued this became
difficult as supplies were
making it to the British

Developments in 1916
In 1916, President Wilson

ran for reelection

He pledged to keep
America out of the war
However, he expanded
Americas armed forces just
in case.
Wilson was challenged by
pro-war Republicans
Running on a peace
platform, Wilson won
reelection

Germany Resumes Unrestricted

Submarine Warfare
By 1917 Germany began

to feel the strains of 3

years of war
Germanys leaders
believed to win they
needed to resume
unrestricted submarine
warfare
They hoped to defeat
Britain before America
became involved in the war

The Zimmerman Telegram

Feb 1917
British Intel intercepted

telegram to Mexico
From German foreign
minister Arthur
Zimmerman
If Mexico attacked the
US, Germany would help
them regain TX & the SW
News of this made
Americans ready for war

America Enters the War

On April 2, 1917 President

Wilson asked for a

declaration of war on
Germany
American ships soon began
increasing supplies and aid to
the British
However the war could not be
won by sea power alone.
It soon became clear that the
American Army would be
needed to defeat Germany

Developments in 1917
In Nov 1917, a communist

rev, led by VI Lenin,

overthrew Russias govt.
Lenin ended Russian
involvement in WWI
Germany focused all efforts
on western front
Congress passed the
Selective Service Act in May
of 1917 to create a national
draft
The Draft brought in 5 million
men for US armed forces

The life of an American soldier in

WWI
WWI was the first time

US servicemen served
overseas for an extended
period of time
Life in the trenches was
difficult: constant
shelling, mud, filth, rats,
and lice

The American Expeditionary Force

(AEF)
The AEF was under the

command of General John

J. Pershing
The AEF did not see
combat until early 1918
Pershing wanted an
independent American
command
The French and British
wanted to combine them
with their own troops

The AEF in Combat

American forces first saw

combat in WWI in the

battle of ChateauThierry in June of 1918
In July, US forces
defeated a German
offensive at Rhiems.
Sep 1918, US launched 1st
offensive at MeuseArgonne

The Armistice
Addition of US forces

turned the tide of battle

By late 1918, Germany
feared invasion & asked
for peace
An armistice to end the
war was signed on
November 11, 1918

The Aftermath
US forces: 117,000 dead
Allies: 5 million

casualties
The Central Powers: 4
million lost
Estimates: 6 million
civilians died

WWIs Impact on American Society

WWI had a profound impact on US society:
Strengthened regulatory power of the govt
National budget went from $1 billion to $32 billion
Income tax & corporate taxes
An economic boom
Industrial production rose
New factories built
Agricultural production grew

Gains by Women and Minorities

More opportunities for

women, as men went off

to fight the war
Growth of industry
during the war led to the
Great Migration
Many African Americans
moved north to escape
poverty & oppression

Wilsons Plan for Peace

Wilson wanted to make

the world safe for

democracy.
Proposed a 14 Point plan
for peace
-Self determination for all
-free trade
-freedom of the seas
-end of secret treaties
-arms reductions
-A League of Nations

Reaction to Wilsons Plan

Wilsons ideas based on

progressive ideals
Many Americans
applauded Wilsons plan
European leaders
dismissed it as
idealism
France & Britain wanted
to punish Germany
They did not want a
lenient peace

War Reparations
Major issue of the peace

negotiations was war

reparations
The allies demanded that
Germany pay $56 Billion
In the end Germany paid
around $9 Billion in damages
Purpose: to keep Germany
weak
They hoped that Germany
would never be able to
threaten Europe again

The League of Nations

The Allies supported

Wilsons League of
Nations idea
An assembly of nations
to resolve disputes
among nations
A 9 member security
council: US, Britain,
France, Italy, & Japan
would be permanent
members

Opposition in the United States

Many Americans opposed

the League of Nations

Henry Cabot Lodge,
senator from Mass, led
opposition to the League
Wilson went on a cross
country trip to promote the
League to Americans
Wilson suffered a stroke in
September of 1919
The Senate refused to
ratify the Treaty of
Versailles & the League

After the War

End of war led to the cancellation of military

contracts
the economy suffered
Unemployment rose
farmers lost land
businesses went bankrupt, & prices rose

The Great Influenza Pandemic

March 1918: soldiers

from Ft. Riley, Kansas

came down with the flu
It spread across the US, &
into Europe and Africa
Became known as the
Spanish Influenza
Spread because of WWI
Killed between 50 and
100 million