CHAPTER 18 THE FIRST WORLD WAR CH. 18-1 A WORLD CRISIS AMERICAN HISTORY
Feb 23, 2016
CHAPTER 18 THE FIRST WORLD WARCH. 18-1 A WORLD CRISISAMERICAN HISTORY
CAUSES OF WORLD WAR I June 28, 1914--The assassination of
the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife by 19-year Serbian Gavrilo Princip
Most of Europe would be at war within 5 weeks
How could 1 assassination start a world war?
A series of political changes in Europe made war almost unavoidable
1) NATIONALISM Extreme pride or devotion to their
country Nationalism led to the formation of
new countries such as Germany and Italy in the 1870s
It also led to competition for power This struggle was most visible in the
Balkans—a region of southwestern Europe made up of many ethnic groups
The current rulers, the Ottoman Empire, started falling apart in the 1800s
The Austro-Hungarian Empire saw an opportunity to expand—annexing Bosnia and Herzegovina
Many slavic peoples, such as the Serbs, rejected the rule of outsiders
Russia saw itself as a protector of the Serbs
By the early 1900s, tensions were high
2) IMPERIALISM Late 1800s—Great Britain and France
had colonial empires in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia
Colonies provided markets and natural resources
Kaiser Wilhelm II (Germany) wanted colonies, too
Germany would need a stronger military
3) MILITARISM The policy of military preparedness
and building up weapons 1900—Germany began to build a
navy that could take on the world’s strongest navy of Great Britain
Germany also enlarged its army and provided them with the latest weapons—machine guns and larger artillery
Germany army officials began drawing up war strategies
The Schlieffen Plan—precise instructions for waging a two-front war against France and Russia at the same time
It also called for a surprise invasion of France by passing through Belgium and subsequent attack on Russia
Great Britain, France, and Russia worry about Germany’s intentions
These countries start to build up military in case war breaks out
European countries believed that strong militaries would prevent countries from attacking each other
3) ALLIANCES Countries formed alliances to
maintain peace but they led directly to war
Two Alliances: 1) Triple Alliance—Germany, Austria-
Hungary, Italy 2) Triple Entente—Great Britain,
France, Russia Some Europeans believed these
alliances would create a balance of power and decrease the chance of war
WAR BREAKS OUT After the assassination, Princip was
arrested An investigation revealed the Serbia
had provided them with guns and bombs
Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for Ferdinand’s murder and declared war
Russia promised to protect Serbian Slavs
Russian army quickly mobilizes Germany views Russia’s mobilization
as an act of aggression against Austria-Hungary
Germany declared war on Russia and France
THE GERMANS TAKE BELGIUM August 14, 1914—German troops cross into
neutral Belgium Great Britain pledged to help Belgium so
they declared war on Germany Most countries had chosen sides: 1) Central Powers—Germany, Austria-
Hungary, Ottoman Empire
2) Allied Powers—Great Britain, France, Russia
By the end of “The Great War” another 30 nations, including Italy, would join the war
Initially the Schlieffen Plan worked well
German attack on Belgium was fierce Entire villages were burned Civilians, included women and
children, were executed
A NEW KIND OF WARFARE French troops mobilized and rushed to
meet the approaching German divisions French troops were dressed in bright
red uniforms Germans were dressed in gray uniforms
that worked as camouflage to help them blend into the battlefield
French troops marched row-by-row onto the battlefield
French troops drew their bayonets and they were met by German machine guns
French were not ready for the massive German fire power
Each German machine gun = 50-100 French rifles
THE FIRST BATTLE OF THE MARNE After one month Germany was about 25
miles from Paris
French troops refused to surrender French needed a victory so they
launched a daring counterattack along the Marne River east of Paris—September 7, 1914
2 million men fought along a 125-mile front
After 5 days—250,000 lives lost French moved Germans back nearly
40 miles This battle allowed Russia to mobilize
and force Germany to reposition some troops
THE WAR REACHES A STALEMATE First Battle of the Marne ended in a
stalemate French and German troops dug trenches for
protection from enemy fire Fall 1914—nearly 400 miles of trenches
across western Europe Battle lines extended from Switzerland to
the North Sea
FIGHTING IN THE TRENCHES TRENCH WARFARE—fighting in the trenches
Anytime a soldier or piece of equipment appeared above the edge of the trench, it/they were fired upon
Troops that left the trench to move to another trench also risked being shot at
Neither the Allies nor the Germans made much progress
Trench warfare became a stalemate
NEW WEAPONS Scientists for both sides created new weapons
in an attempt to gain an advantage German military scientists experimented with
poisonous gas Gas was a risky affair for both sides because
the amount was unknown and wind was an issue
April 1915—German soldiers fired canisters of poisonous gas into allied trenches
A yellow-green cloud of chlorine gas covered the allied soldiers
The gas quickly destroyed the soldiers’ lungs, and many of them panicked
British and French forces soon began developing gas as well
Soldiers started carrying gas masks This led to another stalemate British forces soon developed motorized
tanks In the first battle 18 out of 48 tanks
became stuck in mud
Airplanes were used by both sides to map enemy positions and attack trenches from above
At first airplane pilots dropped bricks and other heavy objects
They also attached machine guns to the planes
Planes participated in air battles called dog fights
German Ace Baron Manfred von Richthofen (aka The Red Baron) shot down 80 planes before begin shot down himself in 1918
Trench warfare did not give either side an advantage
Strategy would have to change for someone to gain a clear advantage.
THE END