SSUSH15 The student will analyze the origins and impact of U.S. involvement in World War I.

a. Describe the movement from U.S. neutrality to engagement in World War I, with reference to unrestricted submarine warfare.

How it all began… In 1914 WWI broke out in Europe.. Reasons for the start of the war were based on nationalism(pride in ones own country) and forming of various alliances, along with other issues. The assignation of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie by a Serbian nationalist group called the “Black Hand” helped spark the start of the war. After this assignation, Austria Hungry declared war on Serbia which led to the outbreak of the war. Austria-Hungary accused Serbia of being involved in the assassination and threatened to go to war. Russia, which was allied with Serbia, vowed to intervene if Austria-Hungary attacked.

Aligning Powers.. Triple Entente- Great Britain, France, and Russia. Central Powers- Germany, and Austria- Hungary.

U.S. Remains Neutral…but not for long. Woodrow Wilson declares that the U.S. will remain neutral. United States believed in isolationism. The U.S. felt loyal to Britain because U.S. bankers had loaned large amounts of money to Great Britain and had vested interest in them winning the war. People in the U.S. started to see Germany as a ruthless aggressor, out to destroy democracy and freedom.

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare Germany had their fiercest weapons called the U-boat. Germany warned all nations they would attack any ships entering or leaving British ports. The U.S. ignored this warning and began to ship military supplies to Great Britain aboard commercial cruise liners. The Lusitania, was torpedoed by a German U- boat in 1915, 1,200 people died in the attack.

U.S. Enters.. After this, the United States people became furious! Zimmerman Telegram- The U.S. intercepted a telegram from Germany to Mexico asking them to attack the United States if the U.S. declared war on Germany. In return, Germany would help Mexico gain land back from the U.S. The U.S. finally entered the war in 1917 and found that they had to adjust their tactics due to the advancement of technology and weapons. Soldiers were forced to sit and fight in trenches but having to sit in wet, nasty conditions led to disease/ quicker death rate of the soldiers.

b. Explain the domestic impact of World War I, as reflected by the origins of the Great Migration, the Espionage Act, and socialist Eugene Debs.

Great Migration When the younger generation went off to fight, this opened up a significant number of jobs in the North. As a result, many African Americans began to leave the South and move up North to have better economic opportunities and escaping the South’s racism. This movement became known as the Great Migration.

Espionage Act and Sedition Acts These laws made it illegal to interfere with the draft, obstruct the sale of Liberty Bonds, or make statements considered disloyal to, or critical of, the government. Socialist leader, Eugene Debs was actually sentenced to 10 years in prison under these laws for criticizing the U.S. government. Debs also was the leader of the Pullman Strike.

c. Explain Wilson’s Fourteen Points and the proposed League of Nations

Even though WWI lasted nearly 5 years, the United States was only involved for a few months before the war was over Once war was over, the leaders of the involved countries met in Paris to settle the aftermath President Wilson had no desire to gain territory for the United States or to punish Germany severely

Wilson’s main goal was to establish peace between the warring nations in Europe President Wilson had several key ideas in his “Fourteen Points” approach 1. reduction in weapons for all countries 2. right of self government for groups in places like Austria-Hungary

Wilson’s biggest idea in his “Fourteen Points” was the proposal of the League of Nations This would provide a place for countries to meet and discuss diplomacy rather than immediately go to war with each other This was included in the Treaty of Versailles, which ended the war, but many Americans wanted to go back to isolationism and did not support this. The U.S. did not sign the treaty