World War I

World War IMr. Laychuk 2013

Soldiers during World War I

The First World War

When the First World War began in 1914, few believed it wouldn’t last very long. Many young people in Canada and elsewhere saw the war as an exciting chance for travel, adventure, and glory.

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World War I Begins

Battles and Technology

The War at Home

Wilson Fights for Peace

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The First World War

Section 1

World War I BeginsAs World War I intensifies, Canada contributes over 600 000 men to the cause.

Causes of World War I

Nationalism

• Nationalism—devotion to one’s nation• Nationalism leads to competition, antagonism

between nations• Various ethnic groups resent domination,

want independence

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ImperialismPowerful countries practised

imperialism by establishing colonies all over the world to create empires. They exploited the land and resources of the weaker nations they controlled.

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• As the European powers scrambled for possessions in Africa, they needed to justify their actions. One such justification was the notion of the "white man's burden," which suggested that it was the duty of whites to assist Africans and other "inferior" peoples of the world by introducing them to the benefits of “civilization.”

Militarism• Nations glamorized their armed forces, and the size

of their armies and navies became essential to national prestige. They embraced militarism and saw war as an acceptable way to resolve conflicts and achieve their goals.

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Alliance System• These intense rivalries in Europe resulted in a rush

to make or join alliances. By the early 1900s, all the Great Powers in Europe were in alliances with other countries, promising to support one another if they were attacked

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Alliance System• Triple Entente or Allies—France,

Britain, Russia• Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman

Empire are Central Powers• Alliances give security; nations

unwilling to tip balance of power

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Balance of Power: The situation, especially before World War I, in which the strong nations of Europe attempted to remain of equal strength militarily and in their alliances.

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An arms race is a competition between two or more countries for military supremacy. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology.

Section 2

Technology & BattlesWorld War I was not inevitable, as many historians say. It could have been avoided, and it was a diplomatically botched negotiation.

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Technology

Trench Warfare: By the war's end, each side had dug at least 12,000 miles of trenches.

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Technology

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Technology

Canadian Highlander

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Technology

The ‘Great Causes’

Sam Hughes• Sam armed his men with the

Canadian Ross rifle• The rifles jammed in the mud

and overheated after quick firing

• Hughes refused to replace them until it was to late

• Many died for his folly

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Technology

Dead on the wire

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Technology

The Trenches would stretch from the North Sea to the border of Switzerland

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Technology

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Technology

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Technology

No Man’s land

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Technology

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Technology

Trenchfoot: A condition which caused soldiers’ feet to swell and turn black. One of many unpleasant conditions which soldiers suffered from life in the wet trenches.

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Technology

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Technology

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Technology

Official figures declare about 1,176,500 non-fatal casualties and 85,000 fatalities directly caused by chemical weapon agents during the course of the war.

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Technology

Gas at Ypres• Modern warfare was born at

Ypres,Belgium April 22,1915• The German army released

5700 gas cylinders• The chlorine gas drifted across

“no man’s land”• The French colonial troops

broke and ran • The Canadians rushed in to

close the gap• The advance was stopped

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Technology

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Technology

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Technology

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Technology

• The Germans first used gas against the Russians on Jan 13, 1915 with little effect

Even German dogs were

outfitted with gas masks

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Technology

Blind British soldiers waiting for help. This image illustrates the idea of war of attrition.

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Technology

Tanks

The fighting conditions of the Western Front prompted the British Army to begin research into a self-propelled vehicle which could cross trenches, crush barbed wire, and would be impervious to fire from machine-guns.

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Technology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:GermanphotowithEnglishTank.jpg

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Technology

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Technology

Unlike semi-automatic firearms, which require one trigger pull per bullet fired, a machine gun is designed to fire bullets as long as the trigger is held down and ammunition is fed into the weapon.

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Technology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Jedrusie.jpg

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Technology

The first recorded powered flight was in 1903 when the Wright brothers flew their aircraft. In the autumn of 1914 a new recruit to the Royal Flying Corps had a greater chance of being killed during training than during combat.

Canada In The Air• Canada produced more and better

pilots than any other country• Of the top 27 aces 10 were

Canadian• Billy Bishop Owen Sound Ontario

“The Lone Wolf” 72 victories 3th for the war

• Raymond Collishaw Nanaimo BC 60 victories 5th

• Will Barker Dauphin Manitoba Canada’s most decorated war hero

• Roy Brown a Canadian flyer who was credited with shooting down the “Red Baron”

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Technology

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Death was a constant companion to those serving in the line, even when no raid or attack was launched or defended against. In busy sectors the constant shellfire directed by the enemy brought random death. Shell Shock

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Technology

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In May of 1915, U-20 sank the liner RMS Lusitania. Though there was a great deal of outrage at the sinking of an "innocent" merchant ship at the time, historians now believe the Lusitania had 10 tons of weapons aboard, making it a valid target under international law.

The Arms Race

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:U9Submarine.jpg

Emperor Franz Joseph

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Important People

Franz Ferdinand, Sophia and children

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Important People

George V

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Important People

William II

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Important People

Nicholas II and George V

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Important People

On JUNE 28, 1914, the heir to un Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was assassinated in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Bosnia had been part of Austria-Hungary since 1908, but it was claimed by neighboring Serbia. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for the assassination, and on July 28 declared war.

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Start of the War

From an early age, he suffered from tuberculosis, which was his eventual cause of death in 1918, and was also one of the reasons he let himself kill Archduke Ferdinand in the first place. Most historians agree that Princip was a member of the Black Hand.

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Start of the War

• The Schlieffen Plan• If Germany fights Russia it must also fight

Russia’s ally, France• If Germany fights anyone, it must be the

first to launch the attack

• A military-diplomatic powder keg:• If politicians believe that war has become

inevitable, they will strike the first blow and make it happen

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Battles of World War I

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http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/20FWW.htm

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• The first division of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) arrived in France in February 1915. These forces soon became involved in combat along the Western Front, including decisive battles in France and Belgium at Ypres, the Somme, Vimy Ridge, and Passchendaele.

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THE CHRISTMAS TRUCE • On Christmas Eve 1914, soldiers on patrol sang

carols to each other in comradely greetings. The following day, troops along two-thirds of the front did not fight and church services were held. A few soldiers crossed into no-man’s-land to talk to their enemy and exchange simple gifts of cigarettes and other items.

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The Second Battle of Ypres• On April 22,1915, French and Canadian troops

were blinded, burned, or killed when the Germans used chlorine gas, a tactic that had been outlawed by international agreement since 1907.

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The Battle of Vimy Ridge • In 1914, the Germans took control of Vimy Ridge,

a key position near the Somme. This vantage point gave a clear view of the surrounding countryside, supply routes, and enemy positions. For more than two years, both French and British forces tried to capture the ridge but were unsuccessful .

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• Late in 1916, Canadian troops were chosen to lead a new assault on Vimy Ridge. Julian Byng, carefully planned the attack. – Artillery bombarded German positions for more

than a month. – Sappers (army engineers) built tunnels to

secretly move troops closer to the ridge. – On April 10, they captured Hill 145, the highest

point on the ridge. By April 12 they had taken “the pimple,” the last German position.

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• It was a stunning victory. The Canadians had gained more ground. Taken more prisoners, and captured more artillery than any previous British offensive in the entire war. Although the cost was high—more than 3500 men were killed and another 7000 wounded

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VIMY RIDGE

German U-Boat Response• Germany sets up U-boat blockade of Britain• U-boat sinks British liner Lusitania; 128

Americans among the dead- U.S. public opinion turns against Germany

• Germany asks U.S. to get Britain to end food blockade- otherwise will renew unrestricted submarine war

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The Hundred Days Campaign • 1 March 3,1918, Russia and the Central Powers

signed the Treaty of Brest Litovsk. This truce on the Eastern Front freed German troops to fight on the Western Front. – [n a desperate offensive beginning in March

1918, the German army struck at weak points in the Allies’ lines and drove deep into France. Positions that t had been won at great cost in lives, including Ypres, the Somme, and Passchendaele, were lost within weeks.

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Section 3

The War at HomeAs World War I intensifies, Canada contributes over 600 000 men to the cause.

Supporting the War Effort • By 1918, the war effort was costing Canada about

$2.5 million daily. The government launched several initiatives to cover these costs. – Canadians were urged to buy Victory Bonds. – Honour rationing was introduced to help

combat shortages on the home front. Canadians used less butter and sugar, and the government introduced “Meatless Fridays” and “Fuel-less Sundays” to conserve supplies.

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The War at Home

The War Measures Act • To meet the demands of war. Prime Minister

Borden introduced the War Measures Act in 1914. The Act gave the government the authority to do everything necessary “for the security, defence, peace, order, and welfare of Canada.”

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The War at Home

• The government also had the power to limit the freedom of Canadians. It could censor mail. It suspended habeas corpus, which meant that police could detain people without laying charges.

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The War at Home

• Anyone suspected of being an “enemy alien” or a threat to the government could be imprisoned, or deported, or both. Recent immigrants from Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire were treated particularly harshly under this Act. Approximately 100 000 of them had to carry special identity cards and report regularly to registration officers. More than 8500 people were held in isolation in internment camps.

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The War at Home

EMENY ALIENS• Ottawa passed The War Measures Act an act that gave the

government the power to do anything “for the security, defense, peace,order and welfare of Canada”

• The War Measures Act gave the government the power to arrest and imprison 8500 “enemy aliens”

• Canadians of German, Austrian ,Turkish and Ukrainian birth were sent to interment camps

• Many of these people were used as “slave labour”• The War Measures Act would be used in World War II to displace

Japanese Canadians and again in 1970 to lock up French-Canadian nationalists without trial

• Anti-German fever was so high in Canada that Berlin was forced to change its name to Kitchener after the British Field-Marshall

• In 1917, the Canadian government introduced income tax—a measure that was supposed to be temporary. Affluent individuals and families had to pay a tax of between 1 and 15 percent of their income.

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The War at Home

Suffrage Is Granted to Women • Without women’s efforts on the home front,

Canada’s wartime economy would have collapsed.

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The War at Home

The Halifax Explosion • During the war, Halifax was a valuable base for

refuelling and repairing Allied warships. It was also the chief departure point for soldiers and supplies headed to Europe. The harbour was extremely busy, but there was little traffic control and collisions were frequent.

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The War at Home

The Halifax explosion 1917 caused by the collision of the Imo and the munitions ship, Mont Blanc. The resulting explosion caused nearly 2000 deaths.

The Halifax Explosion

• On December 6,1917, the SS Mont Blanc, a French vessel carrying more than 2500 tonnes of explosives, was accidentally hit by another ship. The collision caused an explosion so powerful that it devastated Halifax’s harbour and levelled much of the city. More than 2000 people were killed, another )000 were injured, and thousands were left homeless by the explosion and the fires it caused.

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The War at Home

The Conscription Crisis • By 1917, thousands of Canadian men had been

killed and many thousands more had been seriously wounded. Many men were working in essential industries at home to support the war effort, so there were not enough volunteers to replenish the Canadian forces in Europe.

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• After the war began. Prime Minister Borden promised there would be no conscription, or compulsory enlistment, for military service. – In 1917, Borden introduced the Military Service

Act, which made enlistment compulsory. at first, the Act allowed exemptions for the disabled, the clergy. Hose with essential jobs or special skills, and conscientious objectors who opposed the war based on religious grounds.

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The War at Home

The cost of the war • HE COST OF THE World War I in human lives is

unimaginable. More than 65 million men fought. Of whom more than half were killed or injured I million di( disease, 21.2 million wounded, and 7.8 million taken prisoner or missing. In addition, about 6.6 million civilians perished.

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The War at Home

Shellshock • Shellshock is the collective name that was used to

describe concussion, emotional shock, nervous exhaustion, and other similar ailments. Shellshock was not known before World War I, but trench warfare was so horrific that many soldiers developed shellshock during this war.

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The War at Home

Women on the Western Front • More than 2800 women served during the First

World War. They were part of the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps and worked on hospital ships, in overseas hospitals, and in field ambulance units on the battlefields. Many were killed or injured by artillery fire, bombs, and poison gas.

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The War at Home

Section 4

The Fight for PeaceAs World War I intensifies, Canada contributes over 600 000 men to the cause.

On November 11, 1918, the German and allied military leaders signed an armistice (ceasefire) which ended the fighting on the western front in World War I.

Armistice

Canada’s Emerging Autonomy • The Paris Peace Conference lasted for six

months and resulted in a number of treaties that defined new borders and compensation for losses suffered during the war.

• For the first time, Canada gained international recognition as an independent nation.

The Treaty of Versailles • This document laid out the terms of peace

between Germany and the Allies. Initially, U.S. President Wilson proposed a 14-point plan for “just and lasting peace” that emphasized forgiveness and future international cooperation.

Treaty of Versailles• Demilitarization of the Rhineland• War guilt clause blamed Germany for the

war and justified reparations• German and Turkish colonies taken over by

the League of Nations who gave overseas colonies to the allies and created mandates in the middle east.

• Restoration of Belgium & Poland• Creation of Yugoslavia

The League of Nations • The Treaty of Versailles included the formation of

the League of Nations. The League was Woodrow Wilson’s brainchild— – The League was based on the principle of

collective security. – The League’s 42 founding nations first met in

Paris on January 16,1920.

Flu Pandemic of 1918 • During the winter of 1918 to 1919, a deadly

influenza virus (called Spanish Flu) swept across Europe, killing millions. – Young people were especially susceptible

to the virus, which caused the deaths of an estimated 21 million

– Approximately 50 000 Canadians died during the epidemic.

– Many small Aboriginal communities were almost wiped out.

The War Introduces New Hazards

New Problems of War• New weapons and tactics lead to horrific injuries,

hazards• Troops amidst filth, pests, polluted water, poison

gas, dead bodies• Constant bombardment, battle fatigue produce

“shell shock”• Physical problems include dysentery, trench foot,

trench mouth

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Image

Documents

World War I