Understanding the First World War: Causes, Players, and US Involvement

1. The First World WarAdapted from McIntyre at http://worldhistory.pppst.com U.S. government WWI posters

2. Bell Ringer 3/11 • What do you know about World War I

3. The First World War: What? • When? • War involving nearly all the nations of the world • 1914-1918

4. Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria and his Wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg one hour before their deaths, June 28, 1914. The assassination was the spark that ignited the war. The First World War: • Why? Long term causes: 1. Militarism 2. Alliance system 3. Imperialism 4. Nationalism (Memory tip: Think MAIN.) Short term cause: Assassination of Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire

5. Kaiser Wilhelm II, Mehmed V, Franz Joseph: The three emperors of the Central Powers in World War I The First World War: • Who? Central Powers: Allies: • Germany • Austria-Hungary • Ottoman Empire • Bulgaria • Russia • France • Great Britain • Italy • Japan • United States (1917)

6. Map of Europe during WWI: Originally, Italy joined the Triple Alliance but after the war broke out, it switched sides and went to fight with the Triple Entente. Turkey later joined the Triple Alliance. The First World War: • Where?

7. In this cartoon, “The Great Wall” (1914), the Monroe Doctrine is shown as a protective shield for the United States. Why did it take so long for America to get involved in the war? • America was isolationist. • “Why should I get involved in someone else’s problems?” • The Monroe Doctrine (1823) sought to isolate “the American continents” from European influences and problems.

8. Thinking Slide: • Is isolationism really an option for a country as powerful as the United States? • What are the disadvantages of isolationism? • What are the advantages?

9. Which side should the U.S. pick? Central Powers: Allies: • 11 million German- Americans • Irish-Americans hated Great Britain • Close cultural ties to other allies • American, England, and France’s economies were increasingly interdependent. US Exports to both sides:

10. HMS Renown seen from another British warship (circa 1917) What did it take to get the U.S. involved? 1. Blockades • Britain blockaded (stopped) all German ships going to America.

11. Bell Ringer 3/12 • Why did the U.S. enter WWI?

12. The New York Times reports on the Lusitania’s sinking. What did it take to get the U.S. involved? 1. Blockades • May, 1915: Germany told Americans to stay off British ships, and they could and would sink them. • Germany torpedoed the Lusitania, sinking it with 1200 passengers and crew (including 128 Americans). • It was eventually found to be carrying 4200 cases of ammunition.

13. Note in bottle after Lusitania disaster What did it take to get the U.S. involved? 1. Blockades • The US sharply criticized Germany for its action. • Germany agreed not to sink passenger ships without warning in the future.

14. A British ship torpedoed by a German U-boat What did it take to get the U.S. involved? 2. Unlimited Submarine Warfare • In 1917, Germany announced “unlimited submarine warfare” in the war zone.

15. The decoded Zimmerman Telegram What did it take to get the U.S. involved? 3. Zimmerman Note • The U.S. intercepted a note from Germany to Mexico. • It promised to give Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona back to Mexico in return for an alliance and attacking the United States.

16. New York Journal (4/7/1917) announcing the declaration of war the previous day What did it take to get the U.S. involved? • The Zimmerman Note and the sinking of four unarmed American ships led to a declaration of war.

17. Calling for a Communist revolution, anti-Tsarist protesters gather outside the Winter Palace in Petrograd, Russia, February 1917. How was the war looking for the allies? Not Good... • Russia left the war after its communist revolution in 1917. • Russia’s withdrawal allowed Germany to fight a one- front war with all its troops concentrated on France (remember this point when you study WWII!).

18. Convincing the American People • Posters • How do you think these posters helped to convince the American people that the war was a good idea?

19. Bell Ringer 3/13 • How do you think Utah was affected by WWI?

20. Convincing the American People Idealism: 2 Goals For War • Wilson had to convince Americans that this would be the “War to End All Wars.” • He had to convince American that beating the Germans and its allies would make the world safe for democracy.

21. On Christmas Eve 1914, German and English soldiers stopped fighting to celebrate Christmas. It started when German troops decorated their trenches and began singing Christmas Carols, particularly “Stille Nacth.” British troops opposite them began singing English Christmas Carols. The singing soon turned to shouts of Christmas cheer across the lines, eventually causing the troops to cross the No Man’s Land between the trenches. The two sides began to exchange small gifts between each other. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KHoVBK2EVE

22. President Woodrow Wilson Convincing the American People Idealism: Fourteen Points President Wilson’s Fourteen Points was his vision for the future after the war, including freedom of the seas and a League of Nations to work for world peace.

23. American troops march through London. What did the U.S. do to help? Supplies: • The U.S. provided the food, money, and fresh troops needed to win the war.

24. How did the war affect the U.S.? Women • Women filled factory jobs • Women’s war effort helped bring about passage of the 19th Amendment after the war giving women the right to vote. African Americans • Black soldiers still served in segregated units. • In the “Great Migration” thousands of African Americans moved to the North to work in factories.

25. How did the war affect the U.S.? Enforcing Loyalty • Hatred of all things German spread across the U.S. For example “sauerkraut” was renamed “Liberty Cabbage.” • The Espionage Act 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 punished those against the war, many of whom were labor leaders.

26. What ended the war? The Treaty of Versailles • After the Central Powers were exhausted by the war, especially after the US began fighting, it sought an armistice (the end of fighting). • The Treaty of Versailles (ver-sigh) was signed between the Allied powers and Germany. • It took land away from Germany. • It dismantled Germany’s military. • It forced Germany to make reparations (payments) to the countries it harmed in the war. • This treaty so destroyed the German economy and the morale of the German people, that within 20 years, they would start another world war.

27. https://www.abc4.com/news/top-stories/utahns-gather-at-capitol-to-mark-world-war-i-milestone/688180405https://www.abc4.com/news/top-stories/utahns-gather-at-capitol-to-mark-world-war-i-milestone/688180405 Utah’s Involvement in WWI World War 1 veterans in Ogden, 1919

31. Extend your learning: Movies • All Quiet on the Western Front • A Farewell to Arms • Gallipoli • Paths of Glory • Wings Literature • All Quiet on the Western Front • A Farewell to Arms • Johnny Got His Gun • Under Fire