World War 1

Interesting facts about the WW1 Vid ref...B/A First Known use of chemical weapons (mustard Gas) 58000 British soldiers were lost in the first day at the battle of the Somme (A Record) An Armistice was signed ending the war at 5 AM the conflict ended at 11am on the 11.11.1918

Interesting facts about the WW1 Hitler fought in WW1 in the German Army. Hitler wasn't happy about the armistice which left Germany destitute and lead to him gaining power so WW1 leads Into WW2 as nobody managed to learn any lessons from the 6 million deaths involved

Hitler – excited about the announcement of war

Interesting facts about the WW1 One in five of the Australians and New Zealanders who left their country to fight in the first world war never returned, 80,000 in total. There were 70 million men and women in uniform of that number one-half were either killed, wounded or became prisoners of war.

Interesting facts about the WW1 Austria-Hungary faced 90% casualties of their total troops mobilised Russia faced more casualties than any other nation in WW1, their total casualties were 9,150,000. Russia mobilised 12 million men during the war; France 8.4 million; Britain 8.9 million; Germany 11 million; Austria-Hungary 7.8 million; Italy 5.6 million; and the USA 4.3 million.

Interesting facts about the WW1 296 US soldiers committed suicide during the 7 months US was part of the WW1. 1,808,000 German soldiers killed in four years of WW1. More German soldiers were killed than any other nation in WW1.

Interesting facts about the WW1 A total of 65,038,810 troops were mobilized during the WW1, out of which 8,538,315 were either killed or they died. 21,219,452 were wounded. 7,750,919 were made prisoners. So, the total casualties of WW1 were 37,508,686 which makes 57.6% of the total troops that were mobilized. Adapted from http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_ten_facts_about_World_War_1#ixzz1TkugBBHz

M.A.I.N. CAUSES OF WWI

M.A.I.N. Causes M - Militarism A - Alliances I - Imperialism N - Nationalism

Militarism When a nation’s armed forces come to dominate a country’s national policy. It is also a glorification of the military and war itself.

Comparative figures on army increase, 1870-2011 Militarism Comparative figures on army increase, 1870-2011 1870 1914 1939 2011 Russia 700 000 1.3 million 12 million 21 million France 380 000 846 000 595 000 496 000 Germany 403 000 812 000 5.69 million 491 425 Austria-Hungary 247 000 424 000 - Britain 302 000 381 000 495 000 374 890 Italy 334 000 305 000 533 000 478 002 Japan 70 000 250 000 6 million 284 035 U.S.A 37 000 98 000 413 000 3.4 million

Militarism (Arms Race) The British had introduced the 'Dreadnought', an effective battleship, in 1906. The Germans soon followed suit introducing their own battleships.

Militarism (Schlieffen Plan) The German, Von Schlieffen also drew up a plan of action that involved attacking France through Belgium if Russia made an attack on Germany. The map below shows how the plan was to work.

Alliance Signed treaties in which each nation involved pledges to defend the other if attacked by an aggressor. Basically, countries agreed to help each other.

1879 The Dual Alliance                                         Germany and Austria-Hungary made an alliance to protect themselves from Russia 1881 Austro-Serbian Alliance                                      Austria-Hungary made an alliance with Serbia to stop Russia gaining control of Serbia 1882 The Triple Alliance                                          Germany and Austria- Hungary made an alliance with Italy to stop Italy from taking sides with Russia 1914 Triple Entente (no separate peace)                                      Britain, Russia and France agreed not to sign for peace separately.                                                                                        1894 Franco-Russian Alliance                                       Russia formed an alliance with France to protect herself against Germany and Austria-Hungary 1907 Triple Entente                                          This was made between Russia, France and Britain to counter the increasing threat from Germany. 1907 Anglo-Russian Entente                                         This was an agreement between Britain and Russia 1904 Entente Cordiale                                         This was an agreement, but not a formal alliance, between France and Britain.

Alliance

Imperialism Domination by one country over the political, economic or cultural life of another country or region. Due to the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s, some European nations had a large portion of the world under their control. Think colonies!

Imperialism

Nationalism Pride and patriotism in one’s nation. Nationalism means being a strong supporter of the rights and interests of one's country. In terms of WWI, nationalism became aggressive and subsequently(because of this) a major cause of international tension.

Nationalism

The Powder Keg Moroccan Crisis  In 1904 Morocco had been given to France by Britain, but the Moroccans wanted their independence. In 1905, Germany announced her support for Moroccan independence. War was narrowly avoided by a conference which allowed France to retain possession of Morocco. However, in 1911, the Germans were again protesting against French possession of Morocco. Britain supported France and Germany was persuaded to back down for part of French Congo.

Bosnian Crisis  In 1908, Austria-Hungary took over the former Turkish province of Bosnia. This angered Serbians who felt the province should be theirs. Serbia threatened Austria-Hungary with war, Russia, allied to Serbia, mobilized its forces. Germany, allied to Austria-Hungary mobilized its forces and prepared to threaten Russia. War was avoided when Russia backed down. There was, however, war in the Balkans between 1911 and 1912 when the Balkan states drove Turkey out of the area. The states then fought each other over which area should belong to which state. Austria-Hungary then intervened and forced Serbia to give up some of its acquisitions. Tension between Serbia and Austria-Hungary was high.

Political Tensions There is no single explanation for the apparent willingness of the nations of Europe to go to war in 1914. The political tensions that preceded the war, however is often said to be caused by the following factors; Colonial rivalry Economic rivalry The arms race French and German hostilities European military alliances Nationalism

Think about this question The Powder Keg On June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princip a Serbian, assassinated Archduke Francis Ferdinand heir to the Austria Hungarian Throne Think about this question How was this one event so important to the beginning of World War I?