World War I 2014 – 2015 American History Harrison Career Center: Mr. Leasure

World War I

I can identify the causes of WWI. I CAN statement #1

I can identify the causes of WWI. A single action, the assassination of the archduke, started World War I, but the conflict had many underlying causes.

I can identify the causes of WWI.

An underlying cause was imperialism. Many European powers completed for colonies in Africa and Asia. The powers needed colonies to provide resources and but its goods.

I can identify the causes of WWI.

A second underlying cause was nationalism. European people were very nationalistic, meaning that they had strong feelings of pride, loyalty, and protectiveness toward their own countries.

I can identify the causes of WWI. A third underlying cause was militarism. Europeans believed their nation needed a large military force. The major European powers built up large armies and navies.

I can identify the causes of WWI.

The fourth underlying cause was alliances. In 1914, a tangled network of competing alliances bound European nations together. An attack on one nation forced all its allies to come to its aid.

I can identify the causes of WWI. European nations were divided into two opposing alliances – The Central Powers and the Allied Powers.

I can identify the causes of WWI.

I can describe the stalemate in the trenches and the new technology used in the conflict. I CAN statement #2

..stalemate in the trenches.. When the war began in August, most people on both sides assumed it would be over within a few months.

..stalemate in the trenches..

Instead of one side quickly defeating the other, the three sides stayed stuck in the mud for more than three years. The soldiers were fighting a new kind of battle, trench warfare.

..stalemate in the trenches..

Troops huddled at the bottom of rat- infested trenches. They fired artillery and machine guns at each other.

..stalemate in the trenches..

Lines of trenches stretched across France from the English Channel to the border with Switzerland.

..stalemate in the trenches..

For more than three years, the battle lines remained almost unchanged. Neither side could win a clear victory.

..stalemate in the trenches.. In the trenches, soldiers faced the constant threat of sniper fire. Artillery shelling turned the area between the two opposing armies into a “no mans land”.

..stalemate in the trenches.. When soldiers left their trenches to attack enemy lines, they rushed into a hail o bullets and clouds of poison gas.

..stalemate in the trenches..

When battles did take place, they cost many thousands of lives, often without gaining an inch for either side.

..new technology used.. New technology raised the death toll. The tank, a British invention, could cross trenches and clear a path in “no mans land”.

..new technology used.. New technology raised the death toll. The tank, a British invention, could cross trenches and clear a path in “no mans land”.

..new technology used..

Soldiers also had machine guns that fired 600 bullets a minute. Poison gas, used by both sides, burned and blinded soldiers.

..new technology used..

World War I was the first major conflict in which airplanes were used in combat. By 1917, fighter plans fought each other far above the clouds.

..new technology used..

At sea, the Germans used submarines, which they called U-Boats, to block trade.

..new technology used..

I can explain why the United States decided to join the Allies. I CAN statement #3

..why the U.S. decided to join.. When the war started, in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson announced a policy of neutrality, refusing to take sides in the war.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. The American people were tired of war. In the last 50 years, we had fought the American Civil War and the Spanish- American War.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. Over time, however, German attacks shifted public opinion to the Allied cause. In May 1915, a German U-boat torpedoed the British passenger ship Lusitania.

..why the U.S. decided to join..

The attack on the Lusitania killed 1,198 people, including 128 Americans. The sinking turned many Americans against Germany.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. The U.S. demanded the German government halt unrestricted submarine warfare, and Germany agreed.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. Desperate to defeat Britain, Germany resumed attacking passenger ships knowing it would force the U.S. to enter the war.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. Soon after, Britain discovered the Zimmerman Telegram. Arthur Zimmerman, the German foreign minister, promised to return Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona to Mexico in exchange for their support in the War.

..why the U.S. decided to join..

The U.S. was furious. German submarines sank three American ships.

..why the U.S. decided to join.. The U.S. declared War.

I can describe how the Russian Revolution affected the war effort. I CAN statement #4

..how the Russian Revolution.. Events in Russia made U.S. entry into the war more urgent for the Allies. The large Russian army had been outfought by the smaller German army.

..how the Russian Revolution.. As a result of Russian involvement in the war, there were increased food shortages and Russian money became worthless.

..how the Russian Revolution.. The Russian people became angry at their government and forced their government to step down.

..how the Russian Revolution.. In the end, the Bolsheviks, a communist group led by Vladimir Lenin, took power. Communism is a political system in which the government owns key parts of the economy, and there is no private property.

..how the Russian Revolution.. Because the war had devastated Russia, Lenin at once began peace talks with Germany. In 1918, Russia withdrew from the Great War by signing a treaty with Germany.

..how the Russian Revolution.. German soldiers could now turn from Russia to the Western front. The Allies urged American troops to come quickly.