World War I

Section 1: The Road to War

World War I Begins
Section 1
Long-Term Causes of
World War I
Imperialism
Militarism
Nationalism
Alliances
A Cause of World
War I: Imperialism
Imperialism stronger
nations dominating weaker
nations
Scramble for colonies in late
1800s
1910 most wanted colonies
taken
Competition led to conflict
Germany envied Britain and
France
Only way for Germany to expand take
colonies from other countries in Africa.

A Cause of World War I:
Militarism
Militarism - a policy under which nations built up
their armed forces, was a major cause of World
War I.
Preparation for war
Build up of arms
Giving military more authority
Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Great Britain, and
Russia
A Cause of World War I:
Nationalism
Nationalism devotion to the interests and culture of
ones nation
Led to competitive rivalries among nations
Many feared Germanys growing power
Ethnic groups resent those controlling them & desire
independence
Russia considered itself protector of Europes Slavic
peoples
Serbs Slavic people, under rule of Austria-Hungary
Russia and Austria-Hungary rivals over Serbia
A Cause of World War I:
The Alliance System
Alliance System by 1907 defense alliances form in
Europe.
Complicated system to bolster security
Bound great powers to come to one anothers aid if they
were attacked.
Germany and Austria Hungary treaty
Russia and France Treaty
Great Britain and France loose alliance
An
Assassination
Leads to War
Interest in the Balkan
Peninsula
Russia wanted for
Mediterranean Sea
access
Germany wanted for rail
link to Ottoman Empire
Austria-Hungary taken
control of Bosnia accuses
Serbia of subverting its
rule
An
Assassination
Leads to War
Archduke Franz
Ferdinand
Assassinated
Heir to Austrian throne, shot
while driving through the
Bosnian capital Sarajevo by
Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip
(member of Black Hand
promoted Serbian nationalism)
One nation after another pulled
into the conflict
Timeline of Events
One nation after another pulled into the conflict
July 28 Austria declares war on Serbia
August 1 treaty forces Germany to support
Austria Hungry, declares war on Russia (it
supported Serbia)
August 3 Germany declares war on France
Germany invades Belgium
Britain declares war on Austria-Hungry
Central Powers vs. Allied
Powers
Central Powers: Germany and Austria-Hungary
Allied Powers: Russia, France, Serbia, Great Britain
The Fighting Starts
The active fighting begins when Germany invades Belgium
The ultimate goal of The Schlieffen Plan was to take over
Belgiums capital. The plan called for Germany to attack the
western powers of Europe while troops held off the Russians in the
east.
After France had fallen, all German forces would be directed at
defeating the Russian Czar
For more than three years, Trench warfare was used as the
major form of fighting on the western front.
Armies lined up and stationed behind fort like structures with an
area between them called no mans land
Front line, support, & reserve (P. 376)
Millions died and little ground was gained At the First Battle of
the Somme 1.2 million died in 7 months over 7 miles of land
Fighting is deadlocked for two years.
Trench Warfare
America Desires
Neutrality
Neutrality is staying out of a conflict not supporting
either side
America desired to stay neutral because of trade and
commercial investments
Business leaders support neutrality

Americans Question Neutrality
Some feel personally involved
More than 1/3 of Americans = immigrants
Favor Central Powers:
German American, Irish American & those with Hostility toward Britain
Favor Allies
Many trace roots to Great Britain
Identify with history, literature, culture
Recent immigrants from Italy & parts of Austria-Hungary hope for
independence at home
German autocrat Wilhelm II ruler with unlimited power vs. Democracy
News reports of German Barbarians
Propaganda false
World War I
Section 2: World War I Begins
The War Hits Home
The British Blockade
Blockade the German coast to prevent weapons, other military
supplies & food getting through
Causes widespread starvation in Germany
American ships dont reach destination Germany
Angry that the British blockade threatened freedom of the seas
Britain Encourages Anti-
German Feelings
Shortly after war began Britain cut transatlantic cable between U.S.
and German
U.S. only receives pro-Allied bias news
American people favor punishing Germany for use of submarines.
German U-
Boats
Germany deployed U-Boats (submarines) to prevent munitions & food
from reaching Britain
First rose to surface to allow crew of merchant ships to abandon
Britain then armed merchant ships to fire back at U-Boats
In response, Germany permitted U-Boats to fire without warning.
U-Boat enables Germany to break stalemate at sea
The Lusitania
May 7, 1915
Lusitania, British Passenger liner
German U-Boat suspects liner is carrying weapons for allies
correct
Fires upon liner
Lusitania sunk
1200 passengers dead 128 Americans
Germans had warned Americans to stay off British ships.
Americans furious

American Response to the
Lusitania
Wilson asks Americans to be patient
Wilson demands Germany stop submarine warfare and pay victims
families
Germany replied the Lusitania was carrying arms
Germany promised to stop sinking passenger ships without warning as
long as the ships crew offered no resistance to German search or
seizure.
Germans continue to torpedo Allied ships
U.S. threatens to cut diplomatic ties to Germany
http://www.history.com/to
pics/world-war-i/lusitania

Germany Signs the
Sussex Pledge
Sussex Pledge
Promise by German government
that U-boats would warn ships
before attacking
Germany Breaks the
Sussex Pledge
Germans break Sussex
Pledge - January 31, 1917
February 3 U.S. broke off
diplomatic relations with
Germany
Few weeks later Wilson asks
congress for permission to
arm American merchant ships.
The Zimmerman Note
British intercept a German telegram
From Arthur Zimmermann, Germanys
foreign secretary
Makes secret offer to Mexico
If Mexico declared war on U.S. Germany
would reward Mexico with American land
in the southwest
Not taken seriously by Wilson or Mexico
Civil war in Mexico = could not have
launched successful invasion
American people still angered

The United States Declares
War
German Provocation
Zimmermann note Telegram between German foreign minister to the
German ambassador in Mexico, intercepted by Great Britain
Proposed an alliance between Germany and Mexico if the U.S. got
involved in the war promised to retrieve Texas
Not taken seriously
The sinking of 4 American unarmed merchant ships 36 lives
Pushes the U.S. into War
Russia replaces its monarchy with a representative govt. - becomes
viewed as democracies vs. brutal monarchies
America Acts
April 2, 1917 President Wilson deliver war resolution
The world must be made safe for democracy
Neutrally finally shattered pave way for future order of peace and freedom
World War I Map Activity
Section 1: Primary Source
The Zimmerman note
Section 2: Primary Source
The Zimmerman note
According to this telegram, what did the German
government decide to begin on February 1, 1917?
Unlimited submarine warfare
What did Zimmerman propose if the United States went to
war with Germany during World War I?
He proposed that if Mexico formed a military alliance with
Germany, then Germany would help Mexico recover New
Mexico, Texas, and Arizona from the United States.
If this telegram had not been intercepted by British agents,
what do you think might have happened? Cite evidence from
your textbook to support your opinion.

Bell Ringer:
How would you react if we went to war? Would you
volunteer to serve? Would you refuse to go? Would you
protest your countrys involvement in the conflict? How
did you feel about the war in Iraq?

Americans on the
European Home Front
Section 3
America Mobilizes: First
Actions
Cautious Congress sent naval support,
supplies, arms, and 3 billion in loans
14,500 men led by General Pershing
called for more troops
1 million by 1918
3 million by 1919

America Mobilizes:
Raising an Army
Selective Service Act required men to register
with the government in order to be randomly
selected for military service = DRAFT
24 million registered 3 million called through
lottery
Wide acceptance of the draft
Viewed as the War to end all wars
Most did not attend high school; 1 in 5 foreign born
400,000 African-Americans

America Mobilizes:
The Convoy System
Developed to transport troops overseas safely
May 1917 all merchant and troop ships traveled in a
convoy
Group of unarmed ships surrounded by a ring of
destroyers, torpedo boats, armed vessels with
hydrophones
Between April and December 1917 merchant marine
losses dropped by half
Convoy system successful in carrying troops to Europe
America Mobilizes:
Women Serve
11,000 women served as nurses,
drivers, and clerks
14,000 women served abroad
civilians working for the government or
private agencies
Women begin to have new opportunities
Farms, Telegraph messengers, elevator
operators, letter carriers, some mgmt.
positions
400,000 women join industrial work force.
America Mobilizes:
African Americans
More than 300,000 African
Americans volunteered or were
drafted
Served in segregated units
Most never saw combat given
lesser jobs
Many fought with distinction
Nearly 4,000 died or were wounded

African Americans:
369
th
Regiment
369
th
Regiment Harlem Hell
Fighters
eager to fight
persuaded white officers to
loan regiment to French
French integrated regiment
into French army
Entire regiment received
Frances highest combat
medal

America Turns the Tide
Convoy system, barrier of mines
Fighting in Europe
Allied forces tired, Americans fresh &
enthusiastic
American Expeditionary Force
General John J. Pershing
New Weapons
Battlefront trenches, Airplanes,
tanks, Pistols, and bayonets

Filth, lice, rats, polluted
water, poison gas,
stench of decaying
bodies, lack of sleep,
battle fatigue, trench foot
& mouth
The Final Toll: Influenza
Influenza epidemic killed more people
worldwide than all of the wartime battles
American troops carried a new strain of
influenza in 1918
Spread easily in crowded, unsanitary
conditions
More American soldiers died from
influenza than from battle
Over a half million Americans and
perhaps 30 million people worldwide
died
American Troops Go on the
Offensive
The Collapse of Germany
November 3, 1918 Austria-Hungary surrender to
the Allies
11
th
hour, 11
th
day, 11
th
month of 1918 Germany
signed armistice
American Troops Go on the
Offensive
The Final Toll
22 million deaths, 20 million wounded, 10
million refugees, cost $338 billion
United States 48,000 lost in battle,
62,000 died of disease, 200,000 wounded
The U.S. lost the fewest lives
World War I:
Americans on the Home
Front
Section 4
Bell Ringer:
Are people who voice their opposition to the governments policies
during wartime disloyal or unpatriotic?

Raising Money for the War
Government borrowed money by selling Liberty Bonds to support the
Allied
Could be later redeemed for original value plus interest
Raised more than 20 billion $
Propaganda advertising, speeches, booths, etc.
Raising Money for the
War
War Financing
US spent $35.5 billion on the war effort
1/3 raised through taxes; progressive income tax,
war-profits tax, excise tax on tobacco, liquor, and
luxury goods.
2/3 raised by selling Liberty Loan and Victory
Loan bonds
Raising Money for the
War
Committee on Public Information
First propaganda agency, designed to influence peoples thoughts
and actions.
George Creel head of CPI
Persuaded artists and advertising agencies to create
thousands of painting, posters, cartoons, and sculptures to
promote the war.
Printed 25 million copies of How the War Came to America
which included Wilsons war message
Promoted war bonds
Promoted patriotism, but inflamed hatred and violations of the
civil liberties of certain ethnic groups and opponents of the war
Methods that the
government used to
persuade Americans to
buy bonds
Newspaper &
billboard ads
Bond drives
Speeches by the
Four-Minute Men
parades rallies
Promotions by such movie
stars as Douglas Fairbanks,
Mary Pickford, and Charlie
Chaplin
Sales talks
between theater
acts
Congress Gives Power to
Wilson
War Economy
Wages increased
Company stock increased
Uneven pay between labor and management,
increasing work hours, child labor, dangerous
conditions, unions boomed.
National War Labor Board 1918 established to
settle disputes between management and labor.
Refusing meant losing draft exemptions
Improved factory conditions, 8-hour work day, safety
inspections, and child labor ban
Congress Gives Power to
Wilson
Food Administration
Under Herbert Hoover
Help produce and conserve
food; gospel of the clean
plate; one day a week
meatless, sweetless,
two days wheatless, two
days porkless.
Victory Gardens
Americans Fear
Immigrants
Americans fear immigrants spying
Might try to undermine war by destroying transportation or
communication networks
Resulted in restrictions on immigration
National Security League 100% Americanism
Literacy Test for immigrants excluded those who could not read
English or any other language
Few failed the test
Americans most hostile toward Germans referred to as Huns
High schools stop teaching German
German authors removed from libraries
Change names of goods, things, etc.
Attacks on those of German descent
Americans Fear Immigrants
Espionage and Sedition Acts
a person could be fined up to
$10,000 & sentenced to 20 years
in jail for interfering with the war
effort or for saying anything
disloyal, profane, or abusive about
the govt. or the war effort.
Violated the spirit of the First
Amendment
Over 2,000 prosecuted over half
convicted
Targeted socialists (anti-war) and
labor leaders (pro-worker)
Examples: Debs, Robert
Goldstein The Spirit of 76


WWI Changes the
Workforce
War virtually stops European immigration
Young men out of labor pool
Need workers in war-related industries
Recruit African Americans and Mexican Americans to
fill jobs

WWI Changes the Workforce:
African Americans
African Americans and
the War
W.E.B. DuBois believed
African-Americans
should support the war
to strengthen calls for
racial justice
William Monroe Trotter
opposed DuBois and felt
victims of racism should
not support a racist
government.
Most African Americans
supported the War.
The greatest effect WWI
had on African
Americans was that it
accelerated the Great
Migration:
Southern African
Americans move to
Northern cities.
Contributing factors:
escape racial
discrimination
boll weevil infestation
(ruined cotton fields)
job opportunities
WWI and less
immigration
Free RR passes
WWI Changes the
Workforce: African
Americans
WWI Changes the Workforce:
Women
Women in the War
Moved into jobs typically held
by men
Examples: RR workers,
dockworkers, cooks,
bricklayers
Volunteered Red Cross,
encouraged the sale of
bonds/planting of victory
gardens.
Peace Movement Jane
Addams (Womens Peace Party
remained pacifist)
Bolstered support for woman
suffrage 19
th
amendment
ratified in 1920.
Global Peacemaker
Section 5
The Paris Peace
Conference
Big Four
Great Britain = David Lloyd George
France = George Clemenceau
Italy Vittorio Orlando
U.S. Wilson
Big three (not U.S.) desired to make the Central Powers pay wanted
to divide Germanys colonies
Russia absent
Civil war between Bolsheviks and armies loyal to old government
British, French, & Americans involved on side of those against
Lenin
Lenin called for workers to overthrow their governments
U.S. feared Bolshevik Russia
Wilsons Hopes
Wilson hoped the world would be made safe
Fourteen Points
End alliances
Keep peace
Removal of trade barriers
Reduction of military forces
Self-determination
The Allies Reject Wilsons Plan
Allied leaders angry, wanted to punish Central Powers
Central Powers had no say
Wilson conceded on most of Fourteen Points in return for
League of Nations

Debating the Treaty of
Versailles
Provisions of the Treaty
9 new nations
France & Britain temporarily gain 4
areas of the Ottoman Empire
Germany has no army & forced to
pay reparations of $33 billion to
Allies
Debating the Treaty of
Versailles
The Treatys Weaknesses
The severe treatment of Germany fails to
provide a lasting peace; problems eventually
led to WWII
Germany Humiliated; war-guilt clause; no way
to pay reparations due to lost territories
Russia excluded lost territory, wanted it back
Ignored claims of colonized people for self-
determination
Debating the Treaty of
Versailles
Opposition to the Treaty
Too harsh with dire economic
consequences
Did not end colonialism
Treaty did not satisfy self-determination
demands of ethnic groups
Debating the Treaty of
Versailles
Debate Over the League of Nations
A few thought it threatened the US foreign
policy of isolationism
Conservative senators were suspicious of the
provision for joint economic and military action
against aggression. Wanted the constitutional
right of Congress to declare war.
Debating the Treaty of
Versailles
Wilson Refuses to Compromise
Wilson set out on 8,000 mile tour giving 34 speeches
explaining why the US should join the League of
Nations; suffered a stroke, partially paralyzed for more
than 2 months
Senate added amendments which qualified the terms
under which the US would enter the League of Nations;
Senate rejected the amendments, failed to ratify the
treaty
Wilson refused to compromise; Senate again failed to
ratify
US signed a separate treaty with Germany in 1921 with
President Harding
Video
Germany Reacts to the
Treaty
Germany was humiliated, angry, and felt betrayed
They insisted the treaty violated the Fourteen Points
Reluctantly signed under threat of a French invasion.
Treaty was signed at Versailles

The Legacy of War
U.S. Businesses boosted during war
U.S. now worlds largest creditor nation
European countries owed estimated $11 billion to U.S.
U.S. in position of unexpected strength
Upon return home jobs were scarce
The Legacy of War
Great Britain
Spent much wealth on war
Nations power declined
France
German invasion devastated France
Germany
Weakened by the Treaty of Versailles