World War I: Causes

• The main causes of World War I should be defined and described in terms of how they directly led to the war.

Militarism

• Belief in maintaining a strong military for defense and promotion of interests.
• In the early 1900s, militarism was considered more important than diplomacy.
• Aggressive military build-up was used to increase national power and military influence over government policy.
• Great powers like Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Great Britain, and Russia heavily invested in new weapons and warship expansion.
• Military preparations made war more likely.

Alliances

• Agreements between countries to support each other during war.
• Alliances were for protection but ultimately dragged many nations into war.
• Germany and Austria-Hungary were linked.
• Russia and France were allied.
• Great Britain and France had a looser alliance called the Entente Cordiale.
• By 1914, the balance of power collapsed leading to war.

Imperialism

• The expansion of European nations as empires.
• The Scramble for Africa led to increased tensions in the 1800s.
• European powers competed for the remaining uncolonized areas, especially in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.
• Japan joined in 1895, acquiring Korea, Taiwan, and mainland China.
• By 1910, most desirable colonies were taken, increasing competition.
• Germany, late to the game, envied Britain and France and their resource-rich colonies.
• Germany could only expand in Africa by taking land from other colonizers.

Nationalism

• A feeling of pride in one's country.
• Two types of nationalism contributed to World War I: countries acting in their own national interest and ethnic minorities within large nations seeking independence.
• The Alsace-Lorraine region, taken by Germany from France in 1871, was a point of contention.
• France wanted to reclaim Alsace-Lorraine for national pride.
• Germany valued Alsace-Lorraine for its defenses and historic ties.
• Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire governed multiple ethnic groups (Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, etc.) seeking independence.
• Serbia, backed by Russia, wanted to unite Slavs under one nation, threatening Austria-Hungary.
• The longing of an ethnic minority for independence often led to violence.

New Technologies of WWI

• Gas attacks (April 1915): Germany used gas to attack lungs and eyes of soldiers.
• Machine guns: Fired 450 rounds per minute, devastating advancing troops.
• Artillery shells, grenades, and poison gas resulted in thousands of deaths.

U.S. Neutrality

• From 1897-1914, U.S. overseas investments grew from $700 million to $3.5 billion.
• German submarines and the British naval blockade threatened these investments.
• Wilson declared U.S. neutrality on August 4, 1914.

Preparedness Movement in the U.S.

• Some business leaders wanted the U.S. to prepare for war.
• Founded in 1914, the National Security League promoted patriotism and military readiness.
• By late 1915, the U.S. set up training camps.
• In 1916, Wilson worked with Congress to increase military funding for camps and forces.

The Peace Movement in the U.S.

• Consisted of Populists, Midwest progressives, and social reformers.
• Women played an active role, including suffragists.
• On August 29, 1914, suffragists marched in New York City carrying a banner with a dove.
• The American Union Against Militarism was founded in November 1915.
• Congress raised taxes to fund military preparedness.

Events Leading to U.S. Entry into WWI

• On May 7, 1915, a German U-boat sank the British passenger ship Lusitania, killing 1,198 people, including 128 Americans. This increased anti-German sentiment in the U.S.
• In January 1917, Germany sent the Zimmermann Telegram to Mexico, proposing an alliance against the U.S. in exchange for helping Mexico regain lost territory (Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico). The British intercepted and revealed this to the U.S., causing outrage.
• In 1917, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare, attacking all ships, including American vessels, without warning. This directly threatened U.S. trade and security.
• On April 6, 1917, after increasing German aggression, President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war, officially bringing the U.S. into World War I.

U.S. Government Influence on Public Opinion During WWI

• The Committee on Public Information (CPI) spread propaganda campaigns to influence people to enlist, sacrifice, support victory gardens and liberty loans/bonds, feel guilt (if opposing the war), and dehumanize or fear the enemy, and promote patriotic appeal.
• The Espionage Act (1917) prohibited interference with the war effort.
• The Sedition Act (1918) prohibited speaking out against the U.S. government war effort or its allies.

Paris Peace Conference Resolutions

• The Treaty of Versailles (June 28, 1919) primarily dealt with Germany, imposing harsh penalties.

Treaty of Versailles Terms

• Germany must admit war guilt.
• Germany lost colonies.
• Germany had to pay $30 billion in reparations.
• Germany had to disarm.
• Blockades on ships were prohibited.
• An independent Polish state was created.
• The Covenant of the League of Nations was to be adopted.
• Member nations all had an equal vote in the assembly.
• Members had to respect and preserve the independence of all member nations.
• Members had to submit to all disputes.
• Members had to reduce armaments.
• Members had to help set up an international court.

Other Treaties with Central Powers

• The Treaty of Saint-Germain (1919) broke up Austria-Hungary, creating new nations like Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia.
• The Treaty of Trianon (1920) reduced Hungary's territory by over two-thirds, giving land to Romania, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia.
• The Treaty of Neuilly (1919) forced Bulgaria to cede land to Greece, Romania, and Yugoslavia.
• The Treaty of Sèvres (1920) dismantled the Ottoman Empire, creating modern Turkey and placing the Middle East under British and French control (e.g., Palestine, Syria, Iraq).

WWI Key Terms

• Triple Alliance (pre-war): Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy.
• Triple Entente (pre-war): Russia, France, Great Britain.
• Allied Powers (during war): Russia, France, Great Britain, Serbia, Italy.
• Central Powers (during war): Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

• Heir to the throne in Austria-Hungary.
• He met his wife Sophie and had three children.
• While visiting Bosnia to inspect imperial soldiers, he was shot by Gavrilo Princip (Black Hand).
• The assassination was a trigger event for World War I.

Trench Warfare

• A major form of combat in World War I, especially on the Western Front
• Soldiers fought from deep, fortified trenches.
• The system included frontline, support, and reserve trenches, separated by dangerous no man's land.
• Soldiers endured harsh conditions like mud, disease, trench foot, and constant bombardment.
• Tactics included artillery, gas attacks, and infantry charges.
• Warfare often resulted in stalemate with high casualties and little territorial gain.
• Highlighted the brutal nature of WWI and led to tactical and technological developments, such as tanks.

Shell Shock (PTSD)

• A condition caused by constant explosions and battle stress.
• Symptoms include anxiety, panic attacks, memory loss, shaking, paralysis, and speech problems, even without physical injury.

The "Lost Generation"

• Young adults who came of age during World War I felt disillusioned and aimless due to the war's horrors.
• They lost faith in traditional values and turned to reckless behavior, living abroad, particularly in Paris.
• They expressed their experiences through revolutionary literature and art.

Sinking of the Lusitania (May 7, 1915)

• A German U-boat (submarine) torpedoed the British passenger ship, the Lusitania.
• About 160 Americans were on board, and 120+ died.
• The Germans had warned ships traveling to or from Britain would be at risk of attack by German U-boats.

U-Boats

• German submarines were used primarily for naval warfare and to disrupt the supply lines of the Allied forces.
• Key part of Germany's strategy to break the British blockade and weaken the Allied war effort.
• Used unrestricted submarine warfare, blockade and disruption, and torpedo attacks.

Zimmerman Note

• A secret message sent by Germany to Mexico in January 1917.
• Germany proposed that Mexico join Germany's side in World War I against the United States.
• In return, Germany promised to help Mexico regain lost territories (Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona).
• The British intercepted and decoded the telegram.
• Public outrage in the U.S. contributed to shifting public opinion in favor of entering the war.
• The telegram and Germany's unrestricted Submarine warfare led to the U.S. declaring war on Germany on April 6, 1917.

Liberty Bonds

• Government-issued bonds sold to American citizens during World War I to help fund the war effort.
• Key part of the U.S. strategy to raise money for the war as the government needed resources to support military operations, supply troops, and provide equipment.

WWI Propaganda

• Posters aimed to enlist men, promote sacrifice, support victory gardens and liberty loans/bonds.
• Propaganda also aimed to create guilt among war opposers, dehumanize/fear the enemy, and promote patriotic appeal.

Schenck v. United States

• A Supreme Court case where Charles Schenck, a socialist, was convicted for distributing pamphlets encouraging resistance to the military draft during World War I.
• He was charged under the Espionage Act of 1917.
• The Court upheld his conviction, with Justice Holmes ruling that free speech could be limited if it presented a clear and present danger to national security, especially during wartime.
• The case established a key legal precedent for future free speech cases.

Fourteen Points

• A plan with the points below:
• No secret treaties
• Freedom of navigation of the seas
• Removal of economic barriers to trade
• Reduction of national armaments
• Adjustment & self-determination for colonies
• Withdrawal of foreign troops from Russia
• Restoration of Belgium
• Restoration of France and return of Alsace and Lorraine
• Establishment of Italy's frontiers
• Independence for Austria-Hungary
• Independence for Romania and Serbia
• Establishment of independent Turkey
• Creation of Poland
• Establishment of the League of Nations

Self-Determination

• The principle that nations and peoples should have the right to choose their own political status and govern themselves.
• Promoted by President Wilson's Fourteen Points, it dismantled empires and allowed ethnic groups to form their own nations.
• It led to the creation of new states like Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia after the war.
• Limitations included the lack of independence for many colonies and the creation of new borders that caused ethnic conflicts.

The "Big Four"

• Woodrow Wilson (United States): U.S. President, known for his Fourteen Points and advocating for the League of Nations to promote lasting peace.
• David Lloyd George (United Kingdom): British Prime Minister, focused on securing Britain's interests, particularly its empire, and ensuring Germany would not become a future threat.
• Georges Clemenceau (France): French Prime Minister, seeking harsh penalties for Germany, including heavy reparations and territorial losses, to ensure France's security after the war.
• Vittorio Emanuele Orlando (Italy): Italian Prime Minister, whose country hoped for territorial gains from the war, particularly in Dalmatia and other areas promised by the Allies in the Treaty of London (1915).

WWI Reparations

• Payments required from Germany under the Treaty of Versailles as punishment for its role in the war.
• Germany was held solely responsible for the war through the War Guilt Clause and was required to pay 132 billion gold marks in reparations.
• Payments compensated the Allies for war damages, particularly in France and Belgium.
• The economic burden led to hyperinflation in Germany, contributing to political instability and resentment, which played a role in the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party.

WWI Treaty of Versailles Terms

• Germany must admit war guilt.
• Germany Loses colonies.
• It forced Germany to pay $30 billion in reparations.
• Germany had to disarm.
• Blockades on ships were prohibited.
• It created an independent Polish state.
• The Covenant of the League of Nations was to be adopted.
• Member nations all had an equal vote in the assembly.
• Members must respect and preserve independence of all member nations.
• Members must submit to all disputes.
• Members must reduce armaments.
• Members must help set up an international court.

League of Nations

• An international organization formed after World War I to promote peace, resolve conflicts, and prevent future wars.
• Established by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919.
• It had a Council and Assembly with member nations committed to collective security.
• The League struggled due to the absence of the U.S. and its inability to prevent aggression, such as Japan's invasion of Manchuria.
• The League dissolved in 1946, but its legacy influenced the creation of the United Nations.