World War I “The Great War” 1914 to 1918 Central Powers vs. Alliance

MAIN Causes of WWI Militarism- Policy of building up strong armed forces to prepare for war (Competition to between different countries) Alliances- Agreements or promises to defend and help another country (A crisis involving one member could affect all of the nation’s allies) Imperialism- A policy in which one nation takes control of the economic or political affairs of another country or region (Nation’s competed for power, which led to wars (ex: Spanish American War) Nationalism: Pride in one’s country and unity (mistrust and hatred towards other countries)

Short Term or Immediate Causes June 1914: Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife Sophie by a Serbian nationalist Tensions in the Balkan peninsula July 1914: Austria-Hungary threatened to go to war with Serbia July 1914: Russia mobilized its forces to come to the aide of Serbia

Alliances Allies Central Powers Great Britain France Russia (1917) exited war U.S. (1917) entered war Central Powers Germany Austria-Hungary Ottoman Empire

What caused the USA to enter WWI? 1. Cultural Ties: Few Americans were neutral. Some favored the Central powers (German-Americans). Most favored the Allies. America had long standing cultural ties with Britain and France. 2. Economic Ties: American trade to the Allies increased during the war. American business and agriculture benefited. The US also financed over $ 2 Billion in loans to the allies. Most Americans did not believe trade or loans violated American neutrality. President Wilson in 1916 was in favor of the allies. In his election campaign he advertised the slogan “he kept us out of the war.”

US Exports to Great Britain, France, and Germany, 1912-1916

What caused the USA to enter WWI? 3. Propaganda: Allies conducted effective propaganda campaigns in the United States. They pictured the war as one of civilized democratic nations verse the barbaric monarch of Germany. 4. German Submarine Warfare: Germany used a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare and. Germany attempted to block any ship that was an ally or helping the allies. The Lusitania was a British ship that sailed from Great Britain to New York…this ship was sunk by Germany. The ship carried close to 200 American civilians. This upset the U.S. government because at the time the U.S. was neutral.

What caused the USA to enter WWI? 5. Zimmerman Note (telegram): a telegram sent from Germany to Mexico inviting Mexico to join Germany…if the Central Powers win, Germany promised to get Texas, New Mexico and Arizona back to Mexico. 6. Russian Revolution: Russians overthrew the Czar, so it appeared to the United States that if they joined the war they would be joining an alliance of democratic nations