4 Monarchs of the Great War Czar Nicholas II of Russia 5 King George V of BritainKaiser Wilhelm II of Germany Cousins!?

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Monarchs of the Great War

Czar Nicholas II of Russia King George V of Britain Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany

Cousins!?

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Causes of World War I

• Nationalism• Imperialism• Alliances• Militarism

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The Spark• Archduke Franz

Ferdinand of Austria.

• Sarajevo, Serbia• June 28, 1914• The Black Hand• Gavrillo Princep

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Major Events and Themes of The Great War

• Schlieffen Plan– General Count Alfred von Schlieffen

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Battle of Verdun

• Verdun, France• Germans un-successfully try to take Verdun• Results: estimated 500,000 dead and wounded between February and July of

1916.

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The Tide Turns

• Un-restricted submarine warfare– German U-Boats

• Lusitania– May 7, 1915

• 2000 dead (130 US Citizens)

• USA gives Germany an ultimatum to stop attacks, if not diplomatic relations would end.– Germany stops the attacks, but starts up again in 1916.

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The Zimmerman Telegram, March 1917

• German Foreign minister, Arthur Zimmerman.– Ambassador to Mexico.• Mexican support in the war

– Promised Mexico Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico back from the USA.

• Telegram intercepted by the British.• USA enters the war in April, 1917.

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The End of The Great War

• Germany’s allies surrender in 1918– Ottoman Empire surrendered after losing battles

in the Balkan Peninsula.– Austria-Hungary surrendered after being defeated

in the Battle of Vittorio in Italy.• Germany’s last attempt at victory– March to July 1918. Stopped about 40 miles from

Paris.

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The End of The Great War

• Allies launch a counter offensive– The German army is weak. Major Flu outbreak.– September, Germans were pushed back to the

borders of Germany—Knew there was no way to win.

– November 9, 1918, Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated and went to Holland (a neutral country).

– November 11, 1918 at 11:00 AM the fighting finally stopped.

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Treaty of Versailles

• Negotiated and written by The Big Four.• German Delegates were forced to sign on June

28th, 1919.• Major Provisions:– “Guilt Clause”: Germany forced to accept

responsibility for causing WWI.– German armed forces greatly weakened• Only allowed to keep a very small army and navy• Greatly limited the amount of weapons and equipment