World War I 23.1 Chapter 23 Section 1
Jan 01, 2016
Underlying Causes
• Nationalism– Devotion and loyalty to one’s country
• Rivalries– Needed to be biggest nation, most colonies, biggest
empire– Alliance-promise to defend if any were attacked
• Armies– Build large armies with modern weapons– Showed strength; threatened enemies
Spark for War
• 1914- Austria-Hungary vs. Serbia
• June 28, 1914- Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife killed by Serbian nationalist– Austria-Hungary declares war
Fighting Began
• Germany struck first– Attacked Belgium and France– France and Britain forces stop Germany
before they reach Paris
• Trench warfare– Deep ditches from which soldiers defended
their positions– Cost: millions die– Stalemate for next 3 years
Germany’s New Weapon
• The submarine
• Used to block the English from receiving food and supplies
• United States warn Germany: do not attack unarmed ships.– Germans ignore warning.
• America enters the war in April 1917.
Lusitania
Germans Attack
Allies Victory
• American forces gave Allies fresh advantage
• Germans tried new attack in France– U.S. and Allies stopped it AND pushed them
out of France
• Other Central Powers suffered defeats– Fighting occurred in Africa and Asia
• By November 1918: Central Powers had collapsed.
Treaty of Versailles
Met in Versailles, France to determine peace conditions.
League of Nations
• Proposed by American President Woodrow Wilson– Plan to prevent future wars
• Organization where countries would try to solve their problems peacefully.
Allies Redraw World Map
• Took land from Russia and Germany
• Broke up Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire
• Formed seven new countries
Blamed Germany
• Treaty forced Germany to accept blame
• Forced Germany to slash the size of their Army
• Forced Germany to give up their colonies
• Forced Germany to pay for war damage.
Set the stage
• Treaty set the stage for future conflict– Germans thought treaty was too harsh– Not everybody got their own nation– Nations resented losing land
Russian Revolution
• Problems and anger reached boiling point– Poverty, food shortages, heavy loss in war– turned people against government
• Russia czar, or ruler, gave up power
• New government– Communism- economic and political system
which government owns all businesses and controls the economy.
– New leader- Vladimir Lenin– 1st communist state November 1917
• Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, USSR• Or Soviet Union