World War I

1. World War I

2. War Begins • Main Point: As World War I began and spread to much of Europe, the U.S. tried to remain neutral as long as possible. • World War I lasted from 1914 to 1918 and was originally called the Great War. • The largest war ever fought with terrible casualty rates.

3. War Begins • There were five major causes for the outbreak of World War I. • Imperialism – Rush by European nations to claim new territories. • Great Britain and France had a head start on expansionism and Germany envied their gains.

4. War Begins • Militarism – Aggressively building up a nation’s armed forces in preparation for war and giving the military more power over government. • Industrialization had an effect on militaries around the world – more weapons – bigger military – created the urge to see them in action.

5. War Begins • Nationalism – A mentality that our country is better than yours. • The Austrian-Hungary empire controlled many different cultures – most of these competing cultures wanted self-government. • This led to animosity between cultures and countries.

6. War Begins • Alliances – agreements between countries to defend each other in times of war. • A complicated network of alliances existed throughout Europe. • If one country was attacked many other countries would be expected to get involved via the alliance.

7. War Begins • The assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand. • The immediate cause of the war • Ferdinand was from Austria-Hungary and was shot by a Serbian nationalist who wanted independence from Austria-Hungary

8. War Begins • The assassination set off a chain reaction and eventually wrapped up Europe in war. • Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia • Serbia supported by Russia • Germany (alliance with Austria-Hungary) declares war on Russia • France (alliance with Russia) declares war on Germany

9. War Begins • World War I had begun – • Central Powers: Germany and Austria-Hungary. • Allies: Great Britain, Russia, and France. • They used trenches for protection and this method of defense created a stalemate. • The use of trenches led to “trench warfare” which resulted in a high number of casualties on both sides.

10. War Begins • Both sides tried attacking each other’s trenches – had to climb out of the trench and charge across “no man’s land”. • The lines of trenches became known as the Western Front. • Advancements in weapons added to the high casualty totals.

11. War Begins • Machine guns could fire 450 rounds per minute. • Rapid fire artillery blasted enemy soldiers in “no man’s land” – and poison gas (mustard and chlorine). • Flamethrowers – used to kill men in the trenches.

12. War Begins • Soldiers lived in the trenches and the conditions were far from nice. • Trenches were muddy, infested with rats, wounded and dead were near. • Constant explosions from artillery caused “shell shock” for many troops.

13. summary

14. America Goes To War • At the outbreak of World War I most Americans watched the events unfold in Europe with great interest • America’s population consisted of 92 million people – most family heritage came from European nations involved • Right away – President Wilson decaled U.S. neutrality – following the isolationist policy.

15. America Goes To War • However the majority of the public opinion favored Great Britain. • Most Americans share British customs and culture – identified with British better. • Germany’s leader Kaiser Wilhelm II was an autocrat – unlimited power – and this went against democracy.

16. America Goes To War • Great Britain was controlling the Atlantic Ocean and Germany tried fighting back with u-boats. • U-boats or “Unterseeboot” was a German submarine. • German u-boats were used to attack British ships to prevent delivery of supplies.

17. America Goes To War • United States was involved in heavy trading in Europe and goods were sent across the ocean. • American citizens also traveled across the ocean to Europe as well. • Germany issued warnings to passengers traveling across the ocean – u-boats will attack – unrestricted submarine warfare.

18. America Goes To War • May 7, 1915 – Great Britain passenger ship Lusitania was sunk by German u-boat. • 1,200 passengers dead – including 128 Americans. • Americans were outraged and anti-German feelings grew – even though Lusitania was carrying weapons to England.

19. America Goes To War • President Wilson demanded Germany cease u-boat attacks and pay families of the deceased. • Germany promised to warn before firing on passenger ships and would instead board and search them – called the Sussex Pledge. • However, more passenger ships sunk – more Americans killed.

20. America Goes To War • Great Britain intercepts a letter from German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmerman. • The letter was for Mexico – urging Mexico to help Germany by invading the U.S. • The Zimmerman Note fueled more anger towards Germany – U.S. declares war on April 6, 1917.

21. America Goes To War • The unrestricted submarine warfare and attacks, the social outrage against German acts, and the Zimmerman Note were all major factors in U.S. declaring war. • Wilson claimed that it would be the “war to end all wars” and that America must fight to make democracy safe around the world. • Americans celebrated the call to arms and many were eager to sign up and go fight.

22. America Goes To War • After declaring war on Germany, the United States’ military was hardly ready to fight. • A small force of 14,500 men were sent to Europe to help the morale of the Allies. • The U.S. concluded that more soldiers would be needed to help win the war.

23. America Goes To War • Congress passed a Selective Service Act in May 1917 authorizing a draft of young men for military service. • 24 million men registered for the draft – and 3 million men were drafted. • Volunteers made up the rest of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF).

24. America Goes To War • U.S. Government sold Liberty Bonds to help fund the war – and took over war-related production. • Women and minorities began working outside the home – helped show society they were competent – helped them earn the right to vote. • Everyone at home helped – victory gardens, rationing, and daylight savings time. • Movement led by Food Administration Herbert Hoover (future president) – increase production, reduce waste.

25. America Goes To War • 11,000 women volunteered to serve in uniform as nurses, drivers and clerks. • Camps opened across the country to train soldiers for fighting in Europe. • Learned how to use a rifle, bayonet, dig a trench, put on a gas mask, and throw grenades.

26. America Goes To War • Fears of spies and sabotage led to changes in the U.S. • More restrictions on immigration by nativists – including using literacy tests. • Discrimination and violence toward German-Americans – racism. • Repression of free speech – fines and jail time for speaking out against the U.S. Government – Sedition Act 1918.

27. America Goes To War • U.S. developed a convoy system to get troops to Europe. • Troop ships were surrounded by destroyers and torpedo boats to protect them from U-Boats. • Convoy system was successful and most troops made the trip safely.

28. America Goes To War • Upon arrival in Europe, Americans brought energy and spirit to the Western Front. • They were fresh and excited and provided morale support to exhausted French and British. • 300,000 African-Americans also served in the war – however their units were segregated and rarely allowed to fight – but still sought to fight for democracy.

29. America Goes To War • Americans were viewed as saviors of the war. • It was the surge of reinforcements from U.S. that helped the Allies regroup and turn the tide. • Slowly Germany began losing and Austria-Hungary collapsed.

30. America Goes To War • Kaiser Wilhelm II fled Germany. • Armistice – or treaty was signed on November 11, 1918 – (Veteran’s Day). • Europe was in ruins – 8 million dead – even more sick and starving – 50,000 Americans died.

31. summary

32. War Ends • When the fighting ended in Europe, President Wilson pressed for a treaty that would bring peace to the postwar world. • Wilson pushed for a program called the Fourteen Points – however his idea would end up going through several changes. • The points included ending alliances, removal of trade barriers and reducing militaries.

33. War Ends • Wilson had hoped that his Fourteen Points would form a lasting peace. • Wilson showed up in Paris for the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. • He preached his Fourteen Points and made it clear that the U.S. was not interested in spoils of war.

34. War Ends • However, other Allied countries were more interested in making Germany pay. • They wanted to blame Germany for the war and receive money and Germany’s lands gained through imperialism. • Wilson switched gears and proposed his League of Nations plan instead.

35. War Ends • The League of Nations was designed to be an organization in which the nations of the world would join together to ensure security and peace for all its members – stop future wars. • The sticking point for the U.S. was article 10 – which said that if one nation in the league was attacked, then all nations would come to their defense – Republicans in Congress did not like this idea and argued against Wilson.

36. War Ends • Wilson came back to the U.S. to try to get the U.S. membership into the League of Nations ratified. • However, Wilson faced Republican resistance in the Senate – especially over Article 10. • The Senate rejected it because it challenged U.S. sovereignty – isolationism.

37. War Ends • Wilson returned to the Peace Conference and the rest of the Allies were no longer interested in the League of Nations. • The Allies focus returned on breaking the Central Powers up and receiving money for the war. • Germany was forced into taking blame for war.

38. War Ends • Germany was forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles that had very harsh terms for them. • Germany owed $33 billion dollars – an amount that they could not pay. • Germany also forced to lose land.

39. War Ends • The effects of the war were very beneficial to the U.S. • The U.S. was now a dominant worldly power – and escaped the war damage and destruction that was suffocating Europe. • The U.S. was on a fast track to becoming the most powerful nation in the world.