1. LESSON OBJECTIVES/ GOALS/ SWBAT
STANDARD(S): Students analyze the significant events in the founding of the nation.
LESSON OBJECTIVES/ GOALS/ SWBAT
Identify the long term causes and the immediate circumstances that led to World War I.
Describe the first two years of the war.
Summarize U.S. public opinion about the war.
Explain why the United States entered the war.

2. A BULLDOG ALWAYS
Commitment
Attitude
CARES
Respect
Encouragement
Safety

3. World War I Begins Section 1
As World War I intensifies, the United States is forced to abandon its neutrality.
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4. World War I Begins Causes of World War I Nationalism 1
SECTION
World War I Begins
Causes of World War I
Nationalism
• Nationalism—devotion to interests, culture of one’s nation
• Nationalism leads to competition, antagonism between nations
• Many fear Germany’s growing power in Europe
• Various ethnic groups resent domination, want independence
• Russia sees self as protector of all Slavic peoples
Continued . . .
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7. NATIONALISM
Often nationalism led to rivalries and conflicts between nations
Additionally, various ethnic groups resented domination by others and wanted independence
Russia and Austria-Hungary disagreed over the treatment of Serbs in central Europe
Germany was allied with Austria-Hungary while Russia, France and Britain were partners

9. Guided Reading: How did the following help to ignite the war in Europe?
1. Nationalism –
encouraged competitiveness and antagonism among nations;
made various ethnic groups want to establish independent nations of their own.

10. Chapter 11 Section 1
A – How did nationalism and imperialism lead to conflict in Europe?
Nationalism and imperialism encouraged each European nation to pursue its own interests and compete for power.

11. World War I Begins Causes of World War I Imperialism 1
SECTION
World War I Begins
Causes of World War I
Imperialism
• Germany industrializes, competes with France, Britain for colonies
Continued . . .
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12. IMPERIALISM For many centuries, European nations built empires
Colonies supplied European nations with raw materials and provided markets for manufactured goods
As Germany industrialized it competed directly with France and Britain
Major European countries also competed for land in Africa

15. Guided Reading: How did the following help to ignite the war in Europe?
2. Imperialism –
Encouraged competiveness and antagonism among nations

16. 1
SECTION
continued Causes of World War I
Militarism
• Cost of building, defending empires leads to more military spending
• Militarism—development of armed forces, their use in diplomacy
• By 1890, Germany has strongest army on European continent
- competes with Britain for sea power
- leads other powers to join naval arms race
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18. MILITARISM
Empires had to be defended and European nations increased military spending enormously in the late 19th and early 20th century
By 1890 the strongest nation militarily in Europe was Germany
Germany had a strong army and built up a navy to rival England’s fleet
France, Italy, Japan and the United States quickly joined in the naval buildup

19. Battleships were being stockpiled by European nations, Japan and America in the late 19th and early 20th century

20. Guided Reading: How did the following help to ignite the war in Europe?
Militarism –
Led to military build-ups and a naval arms race.

21. An Assassination Leads to War1
SECTION
An Assassination Leads to War
Alliances Complicate Conflict
• Balkan Peninsula known as “the powder keg of Europe” because:
- ethnic rivalries among Balkan peoples
- leading powers have economic, political interests
• Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria shot by Serbian nationalist
• Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, expects short war
• Alliance system pulls one nation after another into war
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22. THE ASSASSINATION
Gavrilo Princip

23. THE SPARK: AN ASSASSINATION
The Balkan region was considered “the powder keg of Europe” due to competing interests in the area
Russia wanted access to the Mediterranean Sea
Germany wanted a rail link to the Ottoman Empire
Austria-Hungary, which had taken control of Bosnia in 1878, accused Serbia of subverting its rule over Bosnia
Finally, in June of 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne was gunned down by a Serbia radical igniting a diplomatic crisis
The Archduke is assassinated in Sarajevo in June 1914

24. Alliance System 1 Triple Entente or Allies—France, Britain, Russia
SECTION
continued Causes of World War I
Alliance System
Triple Entente or Allies—France, Britain, Russia
Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire are Central Powers
Alliances give security; nations unwilling to tip balance of power
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25. x

26. ALLIANCE SYSTEM
By 1907 there were two major defense alliances in Europe
The Triple Entente, later known as the Allies, consisted of France, Britain, and Russia
The Triple Alliance, later known as the Central Powers, consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (Soon joined by the Ottoman Empire
TRIPLE ENTENTE
FRANCE
BRITAIN
RUSSIA

28. Guided Reading: How did the following help to ignite the war in Europe?
3. Alliances –
Committed nations to support one another if attacked.

29. x Domino Effect

30. CAUSES OF THE WAR
Historians have traditionally cited four long-term causes of the First World War
MILITARISM – The growth of nationalism and imperialism led to increased military spending
ALLIANCE SYSTEM – By 1907 Europe was divided into two armed camps
IMPERIALISM – Economic and political control over weaker nations
NATIONALISM – a devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation

31. B – Why were so many European nations pulled into the conflict?
The alliance system pulled one nation after another into the conflict.

32. Guided Reading: How did the following help to ignite the war in Europe?
5. Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand –
Led to Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia,
Which automatically brought nations involved in the alliance system.

33. The Fighting Starts Early Battles 1
SECTION
The Fighting Starts
Early Battles
Germany’s Schlieffen Plan: hold Russia, defeat France, then Russia
German troops sweep through Belgium, cause major refugee crisis
By spring 1915, 2 parallel systems of trenches cross France
“No man’s land”—barren expanse of mud between opposing trenches
Scale of killing horrific, fighting inconclusive
Armies fight to gain only yards of ground in bloody trench warfare
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34. THE FIGHTING BEGINS
The Alliance system pulled one nation after another into the conflict – The Great War had begun
On August 3, 1914, Germany invaded Belgium, following a strategy known as the Schlieffen Plan
This plan called for a quick strike through Belgium to Paris, France
Next, Germany would attack Russia
The plan was designed to prevent a two-front war for Germany
The Schliefflen Plan

35. THE WAR BECOMES A STALEMATE
Unable to save Belgium, the Allies retreated to the Marne River in France where they halted the German advance in September of 1914
Both sides dug in for a long siege
By the spring of 1915, two parallel systems of deep trenches crossed France from Belgium to Switzerland
There were 3 types of trenches; front line, support, and reserve
Between enemy trenches was “no man’s land” – an area pockmarked with shell craters and filled with barbed wire
British soldiers standing in mud

36. German Soldiers
The conditions in these trenches were horrific; aside from the fear of bombardment, soldiers also had to contend with the mud, flooding and disease associated with living in such a harsh environment.

37. FIRST BATTLE OF THE SOMME
During the First Battle of the Somme - which began July 1, 1916 and lasted until mid-November – the British suffered 60,000 casualties the first day
Final casualties for the First Battle of the Somme totaled 1.2 million, yet only 7 miles of ground was gained
This bloody trench warfare, in which armies fought for mere yards of ground, lasted for three years
Gas attacks were common features of trench life and often caused blindness and lung disease

38. TRENCH WARFARE
Fighting in long interconnected Fox-holes/ ditches

39. TRENCH WARFARE
All quiet on the western front.

44. Trench Foot- is a fungal infection caused by standing in cold, wet, and unsanitary trench conditions. It is a severe condition if the skin is blackened and the underlying bone is dead. that severe of a condition could result in the need of amputation. 44

49. Trench Fever which is caused by Lice Excrement is a disease which soldiers got that had the symptoms of the following; headaches, skin rashes, inflamed eyes, and leg pains. The recovery time was usually between five days to several weeks with hospitalization.

50. Trench Fever

51. C – Why do you think soldiers were rotated in the trenches?
To maintain their morale by changing their surroundings periodically.

52. Americans Question Neutrality1
SECTION
Americans Question Neutrality
Divided Loyalties
Socialists, pacifists, many ordinary people against U.S. in war
Naturalized citizens concerned about effect on country of birth
Many feel ties to British ancestry, language, democracy, legal system
U.S. has stronger economic ties with Allies than with Central Powers
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53. AMERICANS QUESTION NEUTRALITY
In 1914, most Americans saw no reason to join a struggle 3,000 miles away – they wanted neutrality
Some simply did not want their sons to experience the horror of warfare
German-Americans supported Germany in World War I
However, many American felt close to the British because of a shared ancestry and language
Most importantly, American economic interests were far stronger with the Allies
French propaganda poster portrayed the Germans as inhuman and impacted American attitudes toward the Germans

54. Why did the following groups of Americans tend to oppose US participation in the war?
6. Naturalized citizens –
Had close ties to their home nations.
7. Socialists –
Saw the war as an imperialist struggle
8. Pacifists –
Believed that all wars are evil
9. Parents –
Didn’t want their sons to experience the horrors of warfare and to die.

55. D – Why did the United States begin to favor Britain and France?
The US favored France and Britain because it traded extensively with them,
and because Germany had been the aggressor.

56. The War Hits Home The U.S. Prepares 1
SECTION
The War Hits Home
The U.S. Prepares
• By 1917, U.S. has mobilized for war against Central Powers to:
- ensure Allied repayment of debts
- prevent Germans threat to U.S. shipping
Continued . . .
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57. The War Hits Home The British Blockade 1
SECTION
The War Hits Home
The British Blockade
• British blockade, mine North Sea, stop war supplies reaching Germany
- also stop food, fertilizer
• U. S. merchant ships seldom reach Germany
• Germany has difficulty importing food, fertilizer; by 1917, famine
Continued . . .
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58. THE WAR HITS HOME
During the first two years of the war, America was providing (selling) the allied forces dynamite, cannon powder, submarines, copper wire and tubing and other war material
Both the Germans and British imposed naval blockades on each other
The Germans used U-boats (submarines) to prevent shipments to the North Atlantic
Any ship found in the waters around Britain would be sunk
German U-boat 1919

59. German U-Boat Response1
SECTION
continued The War Hits Home
German U-Boat Response
• Germany sets up U-boat counterblockade of Britain
• U-boat sinks British liner Lusitania; 128 Americans among the dead
- U.S. public opinion turns against Germany
• President Wilson protests, but Germany continues to sink ships
• Germany asks U.S. to get Britain to end food blockade
- otherwise will renew unrestricted submarine war
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60. THE LUSITANIA DISASTER
United States involvement in World War I was hastened by the Lusitania disaster
The Lusitania was a British passenger liner that carried 1,198 persons on a fateful trip on May 7, 1915
A German U-boat sank the British passenger liner killing all aboard including 128 American tourists
The Germans claimed the ship was carrying Allied ammunition
Americans were outraged and public opinion turned against Germany and the Central Powers
May 7, 1915

61. The N.Y. Times reports on the Lusitania

62. E – How did the German U-boat campaign affect U.S. Public opinion?
Because the U-bout campaign killed Americans and destroyed American property
It turned public opinion against Germany.

63. 1
SECTION
continued The War Hits Home
The 1916 Election
• Democrat Wilson defeats Republican Charles Evans Hughes
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64. 1916 ELECTION
The November 1916 election pitted incumbent Democrat Woodrow Wilson vs. Republican candidate Supreme Court justice Charles Evans Hughes
Wilson won a close election using the slogan, “He kept us out of war”
That slogan would prove ironic because within a few months the United States would be embroiled in World War I
Wilson

65. The United States Declares War1
SECTION
The United States Declares War
German Provocation
• Wilson tries to mediate, calls for “a peace between equals”
• Kaiser announces U-boats will sink all ships in British waters
• Zimmerman note—proposes alliance of Germany, Mexico against U.S.
• Four unarmed American merchant ships sunk
• Russian monarchy replaced with representative government
- war of democracies against monarchies
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66. AMERICA EDGES CLOSER TO WAR
Several factors came together to bring the U.S. into the war;
1) Germany ignored Wilson’s plea for peace
2) The Zimmerman Note, a telegram from the German foreign minister to the German Ambassador in Mexico, proposed an alliance
Germany promised Mexico a return of their “lost territory” in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona
3) Next came the sinking of four unarmed U.S. merchant ships by German subs
(Zimmerman note)
Encoded message from Germany to Mexico

67. Zimmerman note intercepted by a British agent and decoded1

68. The United States Declares War1
SECTION
The United States Declares War
America Acts
• Wilson calls for war to make world “safe for democracy”
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69. AMERICA DECLARES WAR
A light drizzle fell on Washington on April 2, 1917, as senators, representatives, ambassadors, members of the Supreme Court, and other guests crowded into the Capital building to hear Wilson deliver his declaration of war
Wilson said, “The world must be safe for democracy”
Congress passed the resolution a few days later

70. What did the following nations do to encourage US participation in the war?
10. Britain –
Cut the transatlantic cable between Germany and the US.
Took out large loans from American Banks.
11. Germany –
Engaged in unrestricted submarine warfare.
Promised Mexico American territory.
12. Russia –
Overthrew the Czar and established a representative govt.

71. F – Why did the Zimmermann note alarm the U.S. government?
It raised the possibility of spreading the war into the Americas.