The Great War By: Heather Henderson and Shelly Smith.

The Great War

By: Heather Henderson and Shelly Smith

The Road to World War I

Conscription

Military draft

The significances of conscriptions was to increase the size of the army.

Between 1890 and 1914 the European armies doubled in size.

The Russian armies had grown to be the largest with 1.3 million men.

The French and German armies had approximately 900,000.

The British, Italian, and Austro-Hungarian armies were between 250,000 and 500,000.

Doughboys First by Frank Schoonover 1

Mobilization

The process of assembling troops and supplies and making them ready for war.

1914 →considered an act of war.

German soldiers celebrating start of war 1

WWI mobilization 2

Archduke Francis Ferdinand

June 28, 1914 →Heir to the throne.

Conspirators plan to kill Ferdinand, along with his wife Sophia. They began throwing bombs at his car, but it bounced off and exploded into another car. Gavrilo Princip succeeded in shooting both Ferdinand and his wife.

Austria declared war on Serbia, because of his death.

Archduke Francis Ferdinand 1

Archduke Francis Ferdinand 2

Emperor William II

Emperor of Germany Gave the “blank check” saying

that Austria-Hungary had Germany’s “full support” even if “matters went to the length of war between Austria-Hungary and Russia”

“Till the world comes to an end the ultimate decision will rest with the sword.”

-Emperor William II

William II 1

William II with his first

wife Augusta Viktoria 2

← William II 3

Czars Nicholas II

July 28: He order partial mobilization of the Russian army against Austria-Hungary

July 29: He ordered full mobilization of the Russian army, knowing that they considered this an act of war.

Czars Nicholas II 1

A portrait of Nicholas II,Painted by V.A. Serov, 1900.

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Triple Entente & Triple Alliance

Blue: Triple Entente Red: Triple Alliance Yellow: Neutral Countries 1

Triple Alliance

Created in 1882 Formed by Germany,

Austria-Hungary, and Italy

Crises tested these alliances; which left European states angry at each other and eager for revenge. 1

Triple Entente

Created in 1907 Formed by France,

Great Britain, and Russia

Crises tested these alliances; which left European states angry at each other and eager for revenge. 1

Militarism

Aggressive preparation for war Armies grew along with the influence of

military leaders Leaders had plans for quickly mobilizing

millions of men and enormous amount of supplies in the event of war. (conscription)

What ethnic groups were left without nations in Europe before 1914?

Slavic minorities in the Balkans and the Hapsburg Empire dreamed of creating their own national states

The Irish in the British Empire wanted to create their own national states

The poles in the Russian Empire also had dreams of creating their own national states.

How did the creation of military plans help draw the nations of Europe into

World War I?

The Germans had a military plan; the Schlieffen plan Called a two front war with France and Russia The plan was that Germany would conduct a small holding action

against Russian while most of the German army would carry out a rapid invasion of France. After the defeat of France, they would move east against Russia

Under the Schlieffen plan, Germany declared war on France on August 3

On August 4, Great Britain declared war on Germany

Which decisions made by European leaders in 1914 lead directly to the

outbreak of war?

June 28, 1914- Archduke Francis Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo. The Austrian-Hungarian government didn’t know if the Serbian government was involved with his assassination, but the Austrian foreign minister saw it as an opportunity to “render Serbian innocuous once and for all by a display of force.” On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

Austrian leaders sought backup from Germany were Emperor William II gave Austria-Hungary, Germanys “full support.”

On July 28, Czar Nicholas II ordered partial mobilization of the Russian army. Then on July 29, Czars ordered full mobilization of the Russian army, which was considered an act of war.

The Schlieffen plan was put into play on August 3, when Germany declared war on France.

What were the chief domestic problems confronting European nations before

1914? Rivalries of colonies and trade grew during an age of

frenzied nationalism and imperialist expansion. Growth of nationalism:

– Not all ethnic groups became nations

Socialist were increasingly inclined to use strikes to achieve their goals.

There were labor strife and class divisions. Resulted in the encouragement of war in 1914.

The War

Propaganda

Ideas spread to influence public opinion for or against a cause.

Government propaganda started national hatred before the war.

Trench Warfare

Fighting from ditches protected by barbed wire

The Germans and the French could not dislodge each other from the trenches, which made them stay in the same position for 4 years.

French soldiers building a trench 1

War of Attrition

A war based on wearing the other side down by contrast attacks and heavy losses.– Ex.: One side would order commands starting

with artillery, to shock the enemy. Then, they would come out of their trenches with bayonets

– The attacks rarely hurt because as they came out of the trench, they had a chance of being fired at by enemy machine guns.

Total War

A war that involves the complete mobilization of resources and people, affecting the lives of all citizens in the warring countries, even those remote from the battlefields.

Men had to be organized and supplies had to be manufactured and purchased for years of combat; increase of government powers→ manipulated public opinion to keep war effort going.

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Planned Economies

System directed by government agencies Governments set up

– Price, wage, and rent controls– Rationed food supplies and materials– Regulated imports and exports– Took over transportation systems

Lawrence of Arabia

British officer Real name: T. E. Lawrence 1917- urged Arab princes to

revolt against their Ottoman over lords.

The British under minded Ottoman rule in the Arabian peninsula; Lawrence of Arabia aided the Arabian nationalists.

Lawrence of Arabia 1

Admiral Holtzendorff

A German admiral for the submarines

Real name: Henning Von Holtzendorff

Assured the emperor, “I give your majesty my word as an officer that not one American will land on the continent.”

He decided that the Germans should return to unrestricted submarine warfare which brought the US into war in April 1917.

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Battle of the Marne

September 6-10 To stop the Germans,

French military leaders loaded two thousand Parisian taxicabs with fresh troops and sent them to the front line.

Battle of the Marne begins 1

Battle of Tannenberg & Battle of Masurian Lakes

August 30 & September 15 Battle of Tannenberg led by

Erich Ludendorff and Paul von Hindenburg

Russian army moved into eastern Germany but was decisively defeated

The Russians were no longer a threat to German territory

Generals Ludendorff and von Hindenburg with Kaiser

Wilhelm II 1

Battle of Verdun

1916; in France German General Erich von

Falkenhayn developed a plan to attack Verdun; considered by many military historians as the “greatest” and most demanding battle in history.

Men would hide in trenches and when they came out they attacked the enemy with bayonets.

Seven hundred men lost their lives over a few miles of land

“war of attrition”

Underground entrance

Overview of battle

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Dead French soldiers in

trench 3

Battle of Gallipoli

April 1915 The Allies tried to open a

Balkan front by landing troops in Gallipoli

They entered the side of the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Ottoman) and were forced to withdraw.

Turkish soldiers defending Gallipoli

Gallipoli Front

ANZAC troops attack enemy positions at Gallipoli

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3

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Lusitania

British ship Departed from Britain on May 1, 1915

and six days later ( May 7, 1915 @ 2:10 p.m.) was sunk by Walther Schwieger, a German commander who fired a torpedo 750 yards away.

May 7, 1915 : Sunk by German forces 1,100 civilian casualties (over 100

Americans) “floating palace” Britain set up a blockade of Germany;

Germany set up a blockade of Britain German authorities saw Lusitania as a

threat Germany accused the British as using

Lusitania to carry ammunition and other war supplies across the Atlantic

Newspaper ad run by German Embassy before Lusitania

sailed 1

Lusitania 2

Zimmerman Telegram

Written by German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmerman

It was a coded message sent to Mexico, proposing a military alliance against the U.S.

Threats contained in the telegram helped convince Congress to declare war against Germany in 1917.

Detail of the Zimmermann Telegram 1

Battle at the Somme

British and French armies joined at the Somme River

British attacked the German defensive line on July 1, 1916

First day of the battle: 21,000 British soldiers were killed

Was the single worst day in death and casualties in British military history

20,000 out of 100,000 troops were killed and over 40,000 were wounded.

Explosions near the Somme 1

Overview of Battle 2

Battle at Ypres

First Battle: 1914 Second Battle: 1915 Third Battle: 1917 June 7, 1917: Set off bombs on

German lines that were dug in mines over the past eighteen months.

General Douglas Haig’s plan failed because when the bombs fired the land was turned into “Quicksand” and all men, animals and equipment sank into the ground.

Post-war Ypres 1

Overview of Battle 2

Why did WWI require total warfare?

So the government could have control over the people and resources

Also so that the people could not go against the government

Before total warfare, there was the trench warfare were they

What methods did governments use to create enthusiasm for war, and counter opposition to the war at home?

Made active use of Propaganda Newspapers were censored and sometimes

their publications were suspended The French exaggerated German atrocities

in Belgium and found that their citizens were only too willing to believe these accounts.

Which government powers increased during the war?

Drafted tens of millions of young men PLANNED ECONIMIES: Set up price, wage,

and rent controls; rationed food supplies and materials; regulated imports and exports; took over transportation.

How did war affect women’s rights, and the role of women in society?

Woman in gas mask factory 1

•Women were asked to take over jobs that had not been available to them before.

•Chimney sweeps

•Truck drivers

•Farm labors

•Factory workers in heavy industry

•At the end of the war government quickly removed women from the jobs.

•1919: 350,00 unemployed women

•Gained the right to vote in Germany, Austria, and the United States

Which events brought the US into the war?

The naval war between Germany and Great Britain.

The U.S. protested the use of unrestricted submarine warfare.

Germany brought back the use of unrestricted submarine warfare which brought the U.S. into war. (April 1914)

U.S. enters WWI 1

How did soldiers try to make life in the trenches bearable?

Produced humor magazines to help pass the time.

Russian Revolution

Soviets

Councils composed of representatives from the workers and soldiers

Soviets of Petrograd had been formed in March 1917.

Soviet sprang up in; army units, factory towns, and rural areas

Were largely made up of socialist who represented the more radical interest of the lower classes.

An assembly of the Petrograd Soviet, 1917 1

War Communism

Was used to insure regular supplies for the Red Army

Meant government control of banks and most industries, the seizing of grain from most peasants, and the centralization of state administration under communist control.

Grigori Rasputin

An uneducated Serbian peasant who claimed to be a holy man

Alexandra believed that Rasputin was holy because he alone was able to stop her son Alexis from bleeding

Was first consulted by Alexandra when making the most important decision. She called him, “he beloved, never-to-be-forgotten teacher, savior, and mentor.”

Rasputin was made an important power behind the throne

Didn’t hesitate to interfere with government affairs

Was assassinated in December 1916 It wasn’t easy to kill a man with such

incredible strength: They shot him three times and then tied him up and threw him into the Neva River. He drowned by then untied the knots underwater before he died. Grigori Rasputin 1

Alexander Kerensky

Headed the provisional government

Decided to carry on the war to preserve Russia’s honor

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Czar Nicholas II

Relied on the Army and bureaucracy to hold up his regime.

Lost support of the Army and stepped down from the battlefield on March 15, 1917 – ending the 300-year-old Romanov dynasty.

Bolsheviks

Began as a small fraction of a Marxist party called the Russian Social Democrats

Came under the leadership of V. I. Lenin Under Lenin’s directions, the Bolsheviks became a party dedicated to

violent revolution. Reflected the discontent of people and promised an end to the war, the redistribution, of all land to the peasants, the transfer of factories and industries from capitalist to committees of workers, and the transfer of the government power from the provisional government to the soviets

Three simple slogans that summed up the Bolshevik program:– “Land, Peace, and Bread”– “Workers control of government”– “All power to the soviets”

At the end of October, they made up a slight majority in the Petrograd and Moscow soviets: the number of party members had grown from 50,000 to 240,000

November 6, Bolsheviks forces seized the Winter Palace Renamed themselves the communists Many people opposed the new Bolshevik and were concerned about the

communist takeover Between 1918 and 1921, were forced to fight on many fronts against

opponents, the anti-communist forces. 1921, communist regain control over the independent nationalist

governments in Georgia, Russian Armenian, and Azerbaijan Were inspired by their vision of a new socialist order and determination

that comes from revolutionary zeal and convictions. Were able to translate their revolutionary faith into practical instruments

of power:– War communism– Revolutionary terror

Appealed to the powerful force of Russian patriotism\ In 1992, were in total command of Russia Had transformed Russia into a centralized state dominated by a single

party

Study 1

under arms 2

Work 3

Lenin

Vladimir Ilyich Ulianov, known to the world as V. I. Lenin Lead the Bolsheviks Believed that only violent revolution could destroy the

capitalist system. Spent most of his time abroad between 1900 and 1917 1917 : Saw an opportunity for the Bolsheviks to seize

power In April 1917, he was shipped to Russia by the German

military leaders, hoping to create disorder in Russia; His arrival opened a new stage of Russian revolution

Lenin maintained that the Soviets of soldiers, workers, and peasants were ready made instruments of power

He believed that the Bolsheviks should work towards gaining control of these groups and then used them to overthrow the provisional government

Turned over the power of the provisional government to the Congress of Soviets; The real power was passed to a Council of People's Commissars, headed by Lenin

Lenin promised peace which meant that a humiliating loss of much Russian territory

On March 3, 1918 Lenin signed the Treaty of Brest Litovsk with Germany and gave up eastern Poland, Ukraine, Finland, and the Baltic Provinces

Vladimir Ilyich 1

Lenin speaks 2

Trotsky

A Commissar of war Reinstated the draft

and insisted on rigid discipline

Executed soldiers on the spot who deserted or refused to obey orders

Trotsky 1

Petrograd

Formerly St. Petersburg Had started bread rationing in

Petrograd after the price of bread went up

Many strikes lead by the working class women were held in the capital of Petrograd

On March 8, about 10,000 women marched through the city demanding “Peace and bread” and “down with autocracy” The Eastern Front 1

Ukraine

Was given up by Lenin when he signed the Treaty of Brest Litovsk with Germany

Siberia

Gave the first serious threats to the communists; an anti-communist force attacked westward and advance almost to the Volga River

Siberia 1

Brest Litovsk

The Treaty of Brest Litovsk Signed by Lenin with

Germany and gave up eastern Poland, Ukraine, Finland, and the Baltic province

The spread of socialist revolution throughout Europe made the Treaty largely irrelevant 1

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What were the main causes of the Russian Revolution?

Rasputin’s assassination Czars Nicholas steps down Lenin rises Lenin signs the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The communist control Russia The March Revolution The Bolsheviks seize power Civil War in Russia

How did World War I contribute to the Revolution?

The Russian government was dissatisfied with the conduct of the war.

The Russians were being peacefully reformed until the stress of WWI cause the revolution.

How did the presence of the allied troops in Russia ultimately help the communist?

The presence made it easy for the communist government to call on patriotic Russians to fight foreign attempts to control the country

What steps did the communist take to turn Russia into a centralized state dominated by a single party?

November 6: Bolshevik forces seized the Winter Palace- provisional government

Meeting in the Petrograd of the all-Russian Congress of Soviets

Bolsheviks renamed themselves the Communists 1921: the communists were in total control of Russia In the course of the civil war, the Communist regime

had transformed Russia into a centralized stated dominated by a single party.

The End of the War

Armistice

A truce, an end agreement to the end fighting On November 1, 1918, the new German

government signed an armistice

Reparation

Payment that made the victors by the vanquished to cover the cost of a war

Clemenceau wanted Germany stripped of all reparation to cover the cost of war

Mandate

A nation governed by another nation on behalf of the League of Nations but not own the territory

France took control of Lebanon and Syria Britain received Iraq and Palestine

Erich Von Ludendorff

Guided German military operations Decided to make a grand offensive in the

west to break the military stalemate but he failed

On September 29, 1918, informed German leaders that the war was lost and demanded that the government ask for peace at once

Friedrich Ebert

Was over the Social Democrats after the departure of William II

Announced the creation of a democratic republic

David Lloyd George

Prime minister of Great Britain Won a decisive victory in the elections in December

of 1918 His platform was to make the Germans pay for his

dreadful war Lloyd along with Clemenceau wanted to punish

Germany One of the men to make the important decisions at

the Paris Peace Conference

Georges Clemenceau

The Premier of France Believed that the French people had suffered the most from

German aggression Wanted Germany stripped of all weapons, vast German

payments to cover the cost of war, and a separate Rhineland as a buffer state between France and Germany

One of the men to make the important decisions at the Paris Peace Conference

Clemenceau along with Lloyd, wanted to punish Germany He compromised to obtain some guarantees for French

security and accepted a defend alliance with Great Britain and the US.

Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen points

US president, Woodrow explained the ideas of the fourteen points

Basis for a peace settlement that Woodrow believed justified the enormous military struggle being waged

Woodrow outlined the “fourteen points” to the US even before the end of the war

Was a puzzle for a truly just and lasting peace which included reaching the peace reaching the peace agreements rather than through secret diplomacy; reduced military forces and weapons to a “point consistent with domestic safety” and “ensuring self-determination”

Second Battle of the Marne

Occurred on July 18 Stopped the German advance French, Moroccan, and American troops

supported by hundred’s of tanks, threw the German’s back over the Marne

What were the most important provisions to the Treaty of Versailles?

The Treaty of Versailles with Germany, on June 28, signed at Versailles near Paris was the most important, by far

Military and territorial provisions angered the Germans

Why was the Mandate System created?Which countries became mandated?Who governed them?

The mandate system was created as a result of the peace settlement

Lebanon and Syria were mandated; France governed them

Iraq and Palestine were mandated; Britain governed them

Compare and contrast Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen points to the Treaty of Versailles.

The Treaty of Versailles and Woodrow’s fourteen points both wanted to have peace

The Treaty of Versailles wanted to blame Germany for the war and changed the way Germany works

Woodrow Wilson’s fourteen points were about the ways of achieving the peace agreement and how to get fourteen points of getting there.

The Impact of the Great War

How many people, both military and civilian, were killed or wounded on both sides?

Killed: 37,466,904 Wounded: 21,189,1545

What was the monetary cost of the war for both sides?

1913: The cost was $82,400,000,000 Inflation: 95% Today: The cost would be $8,239,999,905

What innovations in military warfare occurred during World War I?

Artillery Gas

Camouflage Machine guns

Central Powers

• Rumpler

•Albatross D

•Zeppelin L-44

Allied Powers

•SE-5

•Neuport 28

•SPAD XIII

•SPAD VII

Aircraft

ArmorEquipmentTanks

•Handley-Page bomber•Sopwith Pup•BE-2C Reconnaissance bomber

How did the slaughter of World War I affect British, French, and German painters?

Painters began illustrating death in their pictures.

How did the slaughter of World War I affect British, French, and German poets and writers?

Writers and poets begin to write about death and suffering.

What was the impact of the war on the French environment?

Desired revenge and security against future German aggression.

Lost Russia as its major ally on Germany’s eastern border.

How did the Great War contribute to the rise of an international movement of pacifism?

Pacifism: the belief that disputes between nations should and can be settled peacefully

After the war the peace movement reappeared– The League of nations and the United nations.