Pre World War I

Unresolved Tensions

"Coffin Nails" was a term used by British soldiers to describe cigarettes.

I. Competition for Africa

North Africa Fashoda Affair Moroccan Crisis

1905 Algeciras 1911 French Protectorate

•Boer War

II. Nationalism in Eastern Europe

Russification Pan Slavism Balkan Crisis-Serbia and collapse of

the Ottoman Empire

BalkansOttomans, Russia & Austria

1. Crimean War 1853-562. Russo-Turkish War 1877-783. Bosnian Crisis 19084. Balkan crisis 1912-19135. Turkish nationalism-Young Turks -

Committee for Union and Progress

The Causes of WWIThe Causes of WWIMilitarism

Alliances

Imperialism

Nationalism

Significant individuals

Militarism

Germany was competing with the UK to build battleships.

The British feared an attack on their Empire

Militarism

Germany was competing with Russia and France to expand their armies

1880

1914 Germany 1.3m 5.0m France 0.73m 4.0m Russia 0.40m 1.2m

Alliances

By 1914 all the major powers were linked by a system of alliances.

The alliances made it more likely that a war would start.

Once started, the alliances made it more likely to spread.

Alliances

Triple Entente – UK, France & Russia Triple Alliance – Germany, Austria-

Hungry & Italy

Imperialism

All the great powers were competing for colonies / territory.

The British feared Germany in Africa.

The Austrians feared Serbia / Russia in the Balkans

Nationalism

This was an age when all nations wanted to assert their power and independence.

In Europe Slavs, aided by Serbia and Russia, wanted to be free of Austrian rule.

Serbia’s national flag

Significant Individuals

Kaiser Wilhelm II Built up German army

and navy Aggressive foreign policy Determined to make

Germany a top nation. Distrusted by other

powers

“Germany must have its place in the sun”“The world belongs to the strong.”

Significant Individuals

Count Berchtold Austrian Prime

Minister. During the July

Crisis, decided on a very tough ultimatum for Serbia

Significant Individuals

Bethmann Hollweg German Prime Minister Gave very strong

support to Austria during the July crisis while Kaiser was cruising on his yacht

Germany issues a “blank check”

“The Austrian demands are moderate. Any interference by Britain, France and Russia would be followed by incalculable consequences”

The Crisis

28 June 1914 Heir to Austrian

throne Franz Ferdinand visits Sarajevo.

Capital of Bosnia, recently grabbed by Austria.

Hotbed of Slav nationalism

Seal of the Black Hand group

The Crisis

“Black Hand” terrorists attack the Arch Duke

Bomb attempt fails in morning Gavrilo Princip shoots

Archduke and wife in the afternoon.

Austrians blame Serbia for supporting terrorists.

The Crisis

Austrians, supported by Germany, send Serbia a tough ultimatum.

Serbia agrees to all but two terms of the ultimatum.

Russia mobilises her troops to support Serbia

Germany demands that Russia stands her armies down.

Germany declares war on Russia

“Demands must be put to Serbia that would be wholly impossible for them to accept …”

Why did Britain get involved?

Britain had Ententes with France and Russia.

Only “friendly agreements” but French and Russians given impression Britain would fight.

The Schlieffen Plan

Sir Edward GreyBritish Foreign Secretary … “There’s some devilry going on in Berlin”

The Schlieffen Plan

Germany’s military plan to defeat France and Russia.

“Knock out blow” aimed at France first.

Avoid French defences by invasion of Belgium.

Germans thought Britain would not intervene.

Britain’s Reaction 1838- UK had signed a

Treaty to protect Belgium.

Britain also scared of Germany controlling Channel ports.

Did not want Germany to defeat France and dominate Europe. Britain next?

UK issued ultimatum to Germany to withdraw troops from Belgium. War declared August 4 1914

Propaganda

GERMANY USA

Propoganda

Australian Germany

Propaganda

FRANCE

Nationalism – Rupert Brooke

1914 V: The SoldierIf I should die, think only this of me:That there's some corner of a foreign fieldThat is for ever England. There shall beIn that rich earth a richer dust concealed;A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,A body of England's, breathing English air,Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.

And think, this heart, all evil shed away,A pulse in the eternal mind, no lessGives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,In hearts at peace, under an English heaven. 

Mid War – Seigfried Sassoon

Absolution The anguish of the earth absolves our eyes 

Till beauty shines in all that we can see. War is our scourge; yet war has made us wise, And, fighting for our freedom, we are free. 

Horror of wounds and anger at the foe,And loss of things desired; all these must pass. We are the happy legion, for we know Time’s but a golden wind that shakes the grass. 

There was an hour when we were loth to part From life we longed to share no less than others.Now, having claimed this heritage of heart, What need we more, my comrades and my brothers? 

Total Warfare

Soldiers Private Citizens

Production Economy

Two Fronts (oh yeah and Italy)Western Front

Western Front - The Western Front followed a line between France and Germany through Belgium

The French and British fought on one side against the Germans, eventually joined by Americans in 1917.

The war bogged down quickly, with both sides digging trenches, and fighting from them until the war ended in 1918.

Trench Warfare

Technologies The stalemate occurred partly because new

technology; machine guns and poison gas; made any offensive attack so lethal that the army had to retreat to trenches.

Attacks were followed by counter-attacks that resulted in huge casualties.

Each side simply hoped that the other would run out of young men first.

That happened when the United States entered the war, and Germany could not match the combined forces on the Western Front.

Casualties From Gas - The Numbers

Country Total Casualties

Death

Austria-Hungary 100,000 3,000British Empire 188,706 8,109France 190,000 8,000Germany 200,000 9,000Italy 60,000 4,627Russia 419,340 56,000USA 72,807 1,462Others 10,000 1,000

Eastern Front

Eastern Front - was on the opposite side of Germany from the Western Front.

Germany and Austria-Hungary fought Russia along a much more fluid battle line.

Central Powers overran Serbia, Albania, and Romania. Russians took the offensive in Prussia, but by the

summer of 1915 combined Germany and Austrian forces drove the Russian armies back eastward across Poland, and eventually back into Russia's borders.

Russia's armies were poorly led and badly equipped, with the tsar sending men into battle without guns, food, or shoes.

Mass desertions and loss of confidence in the tsar led to chaos in Russia, where a communist-inspired group called the Bolsheviks eventually took over the government and assassinated the tsar.

Eastern Front

Russians took the offensive in Prussia, but by the summer of 1915 combined Germany and Austrian forces drove the Russian armies back eastward across Poland, and eventually back into Russia's borders.

Russia's armies were poorly led and badly equipped, with the tsar sending men into battle without guns, food, or shoes.

Mass desertions and loss of confidence in the tsar led to chaos in Russia, where a communist-inspired group called the Bolsheviks eventually took over the government and assassinated the tsar.

War ends of the Eastern Front with the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, 3 March 1918.

United States Joins

Sinking of the Lusitania May 7, 1915

German U-Boats Angered Americans America will join

the war April 2, 1917

Withdrawal and End

Russia withdrew from the war in 1917.

This released German soldiers to transfer to the Western Front.

U.S. soldiers supplemented French and British soldiers on the West so that the stalemate was finally broken.

The armistice occurring in November 1918.

Net Effect

The net effect of the war was the slaughter of a huge portion of a generation of young men, primarily from Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary, England, and France.

Arguably, Europe never fully recovered from the loss.

Effects

What was the effect on areas other than Europe?

Gallipoli India China South America