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Causes of the War
Growth of nationalism in the central European region of the Balkans
The Ottoman Empire (later known as Turkey) gained control of the Balkans in the 1400s and ruled the area until the 1800s
Four main ethnic groups-Albanians, Greeks, Romanians, and Slavs
Nationalism and territorial rivalries Greece revolted in 1820s and
Romania followed in 1859 Following a war between Russia and
the Ottoman Empire in 1878, Bulgarians, Montenegrins, and Serbs each staked their claims to nationhood
Austria-Hungary occupied the small Balkan kingdoms of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nationalism continued…
Serbia saw Bosnia as part of its territory
Austria-Hungary’s 1908 annexation of the territories produced open hostility
Serbia’s growing strength threatened Austria-Hungary’s control in the Balkans
This encouraged the Slavs to push for independence
Militarism and alliances
Leaders of major European countries believed that disputes would ultimately be settled on the battlefield
As a result, they engaged in an arms race
In this dangerous atmosphere, leaders formed alliances with other nations, each promising to aid the other in case of attack by a third power
Alliances continued… Germany ,Austria-Hungary, Italy France, Russia, Great Britain The alliances avoided war for a time
but created the risk that a single incident could trigger a major war
The Great War Begins
In June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, visited Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital
A Serbian nationalist, Gavrilo Princip, assassinated the archduke and his wife
Austria-Hungary quickly declared war on Serbia
Russia, with a large Slav population, honored its alliance with Serbia
Global War
The Allied Powers of Britain, France, and Russia were pitted against the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria
Italy remained neutral until 1915 , when it joined the Allies
Eventually some 30 nations took sides in the Great War
Germany’s strategy
Called for massive strike against France to defeat it quickly, leaving British forces stranded on the English Channel
Germany then focused its attention on defeating the Russians
Schlieffen Plan
Called for German forces to avoid the heavily defended French-German border by invading France through Belgium
German troops poured into Belgium on the night of August 3-4, 1914
The small Belgian army put up unexpectedly strong resistance, giving the French and British time to rush troops into battle
The German invasion forced the Allies back to the Marne River in France
First Battle of the Marne That September, the Allies pushed
the German lines back some 40 miles
As 1914 drew to a close, leaders of both sides realized that there would be no quick victory
The War Reaches a Stalemate Leaders on both sides originally
thought this would be a quick victory Instead, each side battered and
bloodied the other in a brutal stalemate
Trench warfare
By 1915 both armies occupied trenches along a front for hundreds of miles from the North Sea to the border of Switzerland
The war remained in a stalemate throughout 1915
Each side prepared massive offensives for 1916
Trench warfare video
“bleed the French army white” Germans launched a huge offensive in Feb.
1916 The Germans targeted the fortified French city
of Verdun The battle began with 21-hour artillery barrage
in which more than 1 million shells were fired Then, 1 million German soldiers advanced on
some 200,000 French defenders For months, the battle raged back and forth The longest battle of the war, the two sides
suffered nearly 2 million casualties, half of them deaths
Allied Powers launch offensive In July 1916, the Allied Powers
launched an offensive near the Somme River in northern France
Battle of the Somme-British forces suffered some 60,000 causalities in a single day
This four-month battle left more than 1 million dead and wounded
Maps and Battles of WWI
WWI maps of trenches