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World War I
Inevitability of war
• June 28, 1914 Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria assassinated
• July 5, 1914 Germany issues A-H “blank check” – pledging military
assistance if A-H goes to war against Russia
• July 23, 1914 Austria issues Serbia an ultimatum
The inevitability of war
• July 28, 1914 A-H declares war on Serbia
• July 29, 1914 Russia orders full mobilization of its troops
• August 1,1914 Germany declares war on Russia
• August 2, 1914 Germany demands Belgium declare access to German troops
“Belgium is a country, not a road”
• King Albert I of Belgium denied permission
• August 2, 1914 Germany declared war on France– Why??? – The Schlieffen Plan!
• August 4, 1914 Great Britain declared war on Germany for violating Belgian neutrality
1914 – 1915 Illusions and Stalemate
• Many Europeans were excited about war– “Defend yourself
against the aggressors”
– Domestic differences were put aside
– Parties and celebrations were held at the start.
1914 – 1915 Illusions and Stalemate
• War would be over in a few weeks– Ignored the length and
brutality of the American Civil War
(prototype to World War I)
1914 – 1915 Illusions and Stalemate
• Belief that Modern industrial war could not be conducted for more than a few months
• “Home by Christmas”
1914 – 1915 Illusions and Stalemate
• “Fatal attraction of war”– Exhilarating release
from every day life– A glorious adventure– War would rid the
nations of selfishness– Spark a national re-
birth based on heroism
The Schlieffen Plan’s Destructive Nature
The Schlieffen Plan
• Invade western front 1st; quickly defeat French
• After defeating France concentrate on the Eastern front
• Avoid fighting a 2 front war
The Schlieffen Plan’s Destructive Nature
• Germany made vast encircling movement through Belgium to enter Paris
• Underestimated speed of the British mobilization– Quickly sent troops to
France
The Schlieffen Plan’s Destructive Nature
• Sept 6-10, 1914– Battle of Marne– Stopped the Germans
but French troops were exhausted
– Both sides dug trenches for shelter
STALEMATE
War of Attrition: Waiting out enemy until they give up [stop supplies!]
The Trenches
• Trenches dug from English Channel to Switzerland
• 6,250 miles• 6 to 8 feet deep• Immobilized both
sides for 4 years
The Trenches
Life in the Trenches
• Elaborate systems of defense– barbed wire– Concrete machine gun
nests– Mortar batteries– Troops lived in holes
underground
Life in the Trenches
• Boredom– Soldiers read to pass the
time– Sarah Bernhardt came out
to the front to read poetry to the soldiers
“Death is everywhere”
• “We all had on us the stench of dead bodies.” Death numbed the soldier’s minds.
• Shell shock• Psychological devastation
“Death is everywhere”
• Mustard gas– Carried by the wind– Burned out soldier’s lungs– Deadly in the trenches
where it would sit at the bottom
Life in the Trenches
• Trench warfare baffled military leaders– Attempt a breakthrough– Then return to a war of
movement– Millions of young men
sacrificed attempting the breakthrough
Battle of Verdun
• Germany wanted to inflict heavy losses and capture Verdun
• 10 months• 700,000 men killed• Extremely costly
and deadly. Almost 1 million injured.
Battle of Verdun
• 10 months• 700,000 men killed• French lost some
ground but not very much.
• Germany lost 336K• France lost 362K
The changes of war
• New weapons crippled the “frozen front”– Poison gas (mustard gas)– Hand grenades– Flame throwers– Tanks– Airplanes– Subs
The changes of war
• Airplanes– Dog fights in the air– Bombing inaccurate– Romanticized the
battlefields– Paris and London
bombed– Pilots fired pistols and
threw hand grenades
The Eastern Front
• Russian army moved into Eastern Germany on August 30, 1914– Defeated
• The Austrians kicked out of Serbia
• Italians attacked Austria in 1915
• G. came to Austrian aid and pushed Russians back 300 miles into own territory
The Eastern Front
• Much more mobile more than the West– But loss of life still very
high– 1915: 2.5 million
Russians killed, captured, or wounded
The Eastern Front
• Germany and Austria Hungary joined by Bulgaria in Sept. 1915– Attacked and
eliminated Serbia from war
The Home Front
• Women took war factory jobs
• Support by females back home vital to the war effort (supplies, medicine, ammo)
• Received lower wages than males
• Food shortages made running a household difficult
The Home Front
• Censorship – Not told about high
death toll– Romanticized the
battlefields
“soldiers have died a beautiful death, in noble battle, we shall rediscover poetry…epic and chivalrous”
The Home Front
• Censorship “Newspapers described
troops as itching to go over the top.”
“Government reported to the press that life in the trenches promoted good health and clear air”
The Home Front
• “On Leave”
Troops would stay together so they could sympathize with each other
The Home Front
• Impossible to hide death– Women in
mourning– Badly wounded
soldiers returned home
– Opposition began to emerge
The war winds down…
• U.S. joins the war on the Allied side1915 - Sinking of Lusitania
1915 - Unrestrained sub-warfare by Germany
1917 – Zimmerman Note (next last slide)
U.S. wouldn’t get paid back if France/Britain lose
•1917 – Russia surrenders (a separate peace)– Russia was experiencing the Russian Revolution (Bolshevik
Revolution)– Ultimately leads to a civil war (1918-1923) between Bolsheviks (“Red
Army”) and those opposing the revolution (“White Army” mostly Monarchists).
– In 1922, The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is formed (USSR); Also called The Soviet Union
• We intend to begin on the first of February unrestricted submarine warfare. We shall endeavor in spite of this to keep the United States of America neutral. In the event of this not succeeding, we make Mexico a proposal of alliance on the following basis: make war together, make peace together, generous financial support and an understanding on our part that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The settlement in detail is left to you. You will inform the President of the above most secretly as soon as the outbreak of war with the United States of America is certain and add the suggestion that he should, on his own initiative, invite Japan to immediate adherence and at the same time mediate between Japan and ourselves. Please call the President's attention to the fact that the ruthless employment of our submarines now offers the prospect of compelling England in a few months to make peace."
Signed, ZIMMERMANN
The war ends
• 1917 – Russia surrenders (a separate peace)
• U.S. joins the war on the Allied side
• Nov. 11, 1918 Armistice Day!!!
• Treaty of Versailles: Treaty that ended WWI
Death Toll of WarThe most accepted figure for deaths caused by the war = 20,000,000
(20 million)
Allied Powers Central Powers
42 million served 23 million served
22 million casualties
(includes injured, civilian & military)
15 million casualties
(includes injured, civilian & military)
Around 55 die/hour for 50 months20,000 Dead at Battle of Somme in 1 day
Social Impact• Men lost limbs and were mutilated
• Birthrate fell markedly
• Injured unable to work
• Ethnic hostility
• Influenza epidemic (killed around 50million)– Dropped the U.S. life expectancy by 12 years (in 1 year)
– Effected young adults (usually great immune system)
• Poverty and massive rebuilding needed throughout Europe (helps the States!)
Psychological impact
• “Never such innocence again”
• Bitterness towards aristocratic officers whose lives were never in danger
• Existentialist movement
• Extraordinary melancholy throughout much of Europe (France, Russia, Armenia)
Internationalism: We can solve our disputes through international groups, not war.
• Woodrow Wilson attempts to start the League of Nations (international body to prevent war)
• Anti-colonialism: Colonizing foreign lands and stripping natives of autonomy is a mistake
• Treaty of Versailles: Treaty that vastly favors Allied powers and places extraordinary debt on Germany [some claim this is what leads to Hitler’s rise to power].
