1. Daily Learning Goal: I can describe in detail the MAIN causes of the Great War The Great War – World War I Warm up: Use the map on p.404-405 to answer the questions: 1.What countries made up the Central Powers? 2.What countries made up the Allied Powers? 3.Which country could only be attacked through the air?

2. Geography of the Great War 1. Why would Russia have struggled to obtain resources from its allies? 2. Which group of Allies would have had the greater challenge during the war? Keep in mind limitations in regards to travel and transportation. 3. Which group of countries controlled more land? Why might this have been an advantage? 4. What did the majority of the Neutral countries have in common?

3. Playing Alphabet Soup with The Great War The MAIN Causes of World War I Militarization – Many countries in Europe were determined to build the strongest armies in the world. This led to a competition to create new weapons – Arms Race. Alliances System – For increased security, nations formed alliances between one another. Imperialism – Many European nations controlled large foreign empires. They had competed with one another to conquer different lands, and continued to compete to maintain control. Nationalism – This feeling of loyalty towards ones own nation led to competition between nations in the period before the war.

4. M is for Militarism European nations thought that to be truly great, they had to have a large standing army. A Standing Army is the number of active military personnel a country has. In 1914, all member nations of the two alliances except for Great Britain had large standing armies. In addition to the large number of troops, countries were constantly looking to modernize their weapons, find ways to transport troops faster, and had built large scale defense plans in case of war.

5. A is for Alliances Triple Alliance / The Central Powers The Triple Entente / Allied Powers Germany Austro-Hungarian Empire Italy [Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria] France Great Britain Russia [Italy, Greece, Serbia, Montenegro, Romania and later the United States]

6. A is for Alliances - continued From 1864-1871 Otto von Bismarck, the German Chancellor used war to expand German lands in Europe. Bismarck saw France as the greatest threat to peace in Europe. “As long as it is without allies, France poses no danger to [Germany]” – Bismarck. 1879 – Germany and Austria-Hungary form “Dual Alliance” 1881 – Bismarck makes a treaty with Russia 1882 – Italy joins Germany/A-H Empire to form Triple Alliance. 1890-1907 – Germany’s treaty with Russia lapses. France, G.B. and Russia form military alliances [Triple Entente formed]

7. ABC Review: M – is for: A – is for: Germany + Austro-Hungarian Empire + Italy = Britain + France + Russia = What effects could be caused by the creation of treaties between different nations?

8. Those same old friends again I is for ImperialismN is for Nationalism European countries had competed for overseas territories for hundreds of years. This competition often led countries to the brink of war. These colonies provided many natural resources (rubber, coal, soldiers) needed for waging war. Nationalism created competition with other countries, but also resulted from competition with other countries. Militarism Imperialism Alliances All grew as a result of Nationalism and international competition.

9. World War I – The Self-fulfilling prophecy A Self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that causes itself to become true. World War I as a self-fulfilling prophecy: European Countries expected/anticipated war and as a result took the following actions before the war: Formed Military Alliances Built large standing armies Improved weapons technology Responded to aggression from other countries with aggression of their own.

10. The “Powder Keg” of Europe The Balkan Peninsula is the area in southeast Europe between Germany, Italy, Russia and the Ottoman Empire. For hundreds of years, this land was controlled by the Ottoman Turks and the Austro-Hungarians. Nationalist movements in the Balkans began in the early 1900s leading to a number of independence movements. The area was home to a large Slavic population, which was spread through a number of areas. Disputes between Serbia and Austria-Hungary over territory became increasingly tense.

11. Shots fired! On June 28, 1914 the Austro-Hungarian heir to the throne – the Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by a Serbian Nationalist group in Sarajevo. Austria demanded Serbia be held responsible for the murder, but ultimately wished war with the Nation. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Russia, which had a large Slavic population of its own, moved a large number of troops to the Austria-Hungarian border.

12. Prophecy Fulfilled – A Chain Reaction Expecting trouble with the Central Powers - Russia not only moved troops to the Austria-Hungarian border, but to the border with Germany as well. Germany saw the Russian actions as a declaration of war and declared war on Russia on August 1. Russia looked to France for help, though Germany declared war against France on August 3. The two groups of allies now squared off against one another. [Italy left the Central Powers because they felt A-H unjustly started the war, and later joined the Allies].

13. The Schlieffen Plan -A German General Alfred Graf von Schlieffen had come up with a plan to quickly attack and defeat France, before Russia could invade Germany to the East. -Germany quickly made progress until September 5, 1914 when French troops stopped the Germans at the battle of the Marne (river). -The Germans now turned their attention to the east to defend against Russia, while digging in to the West to protect against the French.

14. Trench Warfare Read War in the Trenches – p.413-414 What made fighting in the trenches so deadly? What new weapons debuted during the gridlock of Trench Warfare? How did Militarization affect the fighting in World War I?