World War I Overview

World War I

• Triple Alliance: An alliance formed in 1882 between Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Italy, aimed at mutual defense.
• Triple Entente: An alliance between Great Britain, France, and Russia, established to counter perceived German aggression. The alliance was less formal than the Triple Alliance.
• Balkan "Powder-Keg": Describes heightened tensions in the Balkan region before WWI, stemming from competing nationalistic desires for independence from Austria and Ottoman rule. The Balkan Wars (1912-1913) saw Ottoman territorial losses to several Balkan states.
• Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: June 28, 1914, assassination by a Bosnian Serb, Gavrilo Princip, triggered WWI.
• "Blank Check": Germany's unconditional support promise to Austria-Hungary in 1914. Germany would back Austria-Hungary's action against Serbia.
• Austro-Hungarian Ultimatum: July 23, 1914, a harsh ultimatum presented to Serbia by Austria-Hungary demanding control over Serbian affairs.
• Schlieffen Plan: Germany's strategic plan for a swift victory in WWI. This aimed for a quick invasion of France through Belgium before turning to Russia.
• Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria formed the Central Powers during WWI. Their location between Great Britain, France, and Russia.
• Trench Warfare: A new tactic employed on the Western Front following the Battle of the Marne and Schlieffen Plan failure. Trenches, artillery, and new weapons greatly increased casualties with minimal territorial gain.
• War of Attrition: Both sides in WWI employed a strategy to wear down their enemies' resources and manpower.
• Total War: A term to describe the immense sacrifices and commitment made by participating countries in WWI, involving mobilization, uncompromising attitudes, blurring soldier/civilian roles, and total societal control.
• New Weapons: New weapons like submarines, machine guns, aircraft, and poison gas significantly impacted the battles in World War One.
• "Home Front": A term encompassing all domestic aspects of wartime participation (rations, production, labor control, censorship, propaganda).
• Rationing: Distributing goods according to fixed amounts to allocate vital materials for wartime efforts.
• Propaganda: Biased information intended to promote a particular viewpoint and encourage support for the war.
• Unrestricted Submarine Warfare: German unrestricted use of submarines to sink Allied ships.
• US Entry into the War: April 4, 1917, US entry under Woodrow Wilson marked a significant turn in the war's outcome, bringing significant resources and manpower into the fight.

Post-War Peace

• Fourteen Points: Woodrow Wilson's blueprint for post-war peace, advocating for trade equality, ending secret treaties, and the creation of the League of Nations.
• Armistice: An agreement to temporarily cease fighting to negotiate long-term peace (World War I).
• Paris Peace Conference: A 1919-1920 diplomatic meeting involving 30 nations and the "Big Four" (Britain, Italy, France, and US) to establish post-war peace terms. Meeting took place outside of Paris at the Palace of Versailles.
• Treaty of Versailles: June 28, 1919, treaty ending WWI between the Allied powers and Germany. This included German concessions like disarmament, territorial losses, reparations, extradition of war criminals, and the "War Guilt" clause.
• "War Guilt" Clause: Germany's acceptance of responsibility for all war damages caused by Germany.
• Reparations: Compensation that a defeated country pays to the winning countries to cover war costs.
• Self-Determination: Wilson's concept that people have the right to choose their own government and political destiny.
• Mandates: Authorizations by the League of Nations for certain nations to govern former German and Ottoman territories, aiming to develop these areas to eventual self-governance.
• League of Nations: First worldwide intergovernmental organization aiming to maintain international peace through collective security, arms control, and dispute resolution.

The Russian Revolution

• Lenin: Russian revolutionary leader and dictator who led the Bolshevik takeover in 1917 and established the Soviet Union. Ideology was Marxist-Leninist.
• Bolsheviks: A radical faction within the Soviet party, advocating for immediate revolution against the provisional government.
• Trotsky: Russian revolutionary who initially joined the Bolsheviks and played critical roles in the Russian Civil War and the New Economic Policy (NEP).
• Revolutions of 1917: Two phases: March (abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, Provisional Government established) and November (Bolshevik seizure of power).
• Russian Civil War: Conflict between the Bolshevik Red Army and the White Army (anti-Bolshevik forces). Red Army won due to strategic positioning and opposition weaknesses.
• War Communism: A period of extreme state control of the Russian economy during the Civil War.
• New Economic Policy (NEP): Lenin's economic policy that allowed for limited private enterprise to stimulate economic recovery. The NEP was seen as a temporary compromise and a success in rapidly rebuilding industry after the Civil War.
• Stalin: Soviet dictator who came to power after Lenin's death. Author of Stalinism.
• Kulaks: Well-off peasant landowners who, due to the collectivization policy, were targeted and suppressed.
• Five Year Plans: A series of government-led industrial and agricultural plans aimed at modernizing the Soviet economy.
• Social effects (Five Year Plans): Significant social changes like better living conditions, universal employment, etc.
• Collectivization: The forced consolidation of individual peasant farms into large, state-controlled agricultural collectives.
• Purges: Stalin's ruthless crackdown on political opposition and perceived enemies. Show trials and mass arrests targeted various parts of the government and cultural elites (1-6 million killed).