1. CHAPTER 19
THE
WORLD
WAR I
ERA
UNIT 4
THE WORLD WAR I ERA

2. Section 1: The Road to War
America: Pathways to the Present
Chapter 19: The World War I Era (1914–1920)
Section 1: The Road to War
Section 2: The United States Declares War
Section 3: Americans on the European Front
Section 4: Americans on the Home Front
Section 5: Global Peacemaker

3. UNIT OBJECTIVE: Analyze the causes and effects of World War I.
Lecture Objective 4.1: Identify the main causes of World War I.
THEME: At the beginning of the 20th century, a terrible war begins in Europe that will claim over 8 million lives. After staying neutral for a few years, the United States declared war to support its allies and felt the effects of warfare.

4. Presidents of the United States
George Washington; Federalist (1788)
John Adams; Federalist (1796)
Thomas Jefferson (1800)
James Madison (1808)
James Monroe (1816)
John Quincy Adams (1824)
Andrew Jackson; Democrat (1828)
Martin Van Buren; Democrat (1836)
William Henry Harrison; Whig (1840)
John Tyler; Whig (1841)
James K. Polk; Democrat (1844)
Zachary Taylor; Whig (1848)
Millard Fillmore; Whig (1850)
Franklin Pierce; Democrat (1852)
James Buchanan; Democrat (1856)
Abraham Lincoln; Republican (1860)
Andrew Johnson; Democrat (1865)
Ulysses S. Grant; Republican (1868)
Rutherford B. Hayes; Republican (1876)
James Garfield; Republican (1880)
#21 - …
Chester A. Arthur; Republican (1881)
Grover Cleveland; Democrat (1884)
Benjamin Harrison; Republican (1888)
Grover Cleveland; Democrat (1892)
William McKinley; Republican (1896)
Theodore Roosevelt; Republican (1901)
William Howard Taft; Republican (1909)
#28 - Woodrow Wilson; Democrat (1913)

5. Chapter 19 SECTION 1 – The road to war
As World War I began and then spread to much of Europe, the United States tried to remain neutral as long as possible.

6. Main causes of war Militarism Alliances Imperialism Nationalism
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Militarism
By the early 1900s, powerful nations in Europe had adopted policies of militarism, or aggressively building up armed forces and giving the military more authority over government policy.
Alliances
In a complicated system of alliances, different groups of European nations had pledged to come to one another’s aid in the event of attack.
Imperialism
Competition for colonial lands in Africa and elsewhere led to conflict among the major European powers.
Nationalism
One type of nationalism inspired the great powers of Europe to act in their own interests.
Another emerged as ethnic minorities within larger nations sought self-government.

7. THE POWDER KEG
An assassination will start WWI.
However, the main causes of the war existed long before 1914.

8. THE BALKANS Austrian-Hungarian Empire controlled several ethic groups.
Serbian nationalists wanted to untie Serbs who lived in the Austrian-Hungarian Empire with Serbia.
In June of 1914, Francis Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, had been visiting Bosnia, a new Austro-Hungarian province.
Saravejo

9. WAR SPARKED
The immediate event sparking the Great War, was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on June 28, 1914.
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Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his family. Archduke was heir to the throne in the Austrian Hungarian Empire. His assassination June 28, 1914 eventually led to WWI.
The Archduke was shot by Gavrilo Princip, a 19-year-old Bosnian nationalist who believed that Austria-Hungary had no right to rule Bosnia.

10. ENTANGLING ALLIANCES
When Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, the complex alliance system in Europe drew much of the continent into the conflict.

11. Alliances form Germany and Austria-Hungary formed the Central Powers
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Convinced that Serbia was behind the Archduke’s assassination, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914.
Russia, as Serbia’s protector, began mobilization, or the readying of troops for war on July 29, 1914.
France, Russia’s ally, and Germany, Austria-Hungary’s ally, also began mobilization.
On August 1, Germany declares war on Russia – England and France then declare war on Germany
Germany, located between France and Russia, wanted to conquer France quickly to avoid the need to fight on two fronts.
Germany and Austria-Hungary formed the Central Powers
Russia, France, Serbia, and Great Britain were called the Allies.
Many other countries will later join different sides: Italy, Ottoman Empire

12. The War in Europe, 1914–1918

13. MODERN WARFARE
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Armies were not prepared for the new, highly efficient killing machines (ex – machine guns) used in World War I.
Machine guns, hand grenades, artillery shells, and poison gas killed thousands of soldiers who left their trenches to attack the enemy.
As morale fell, the lines between soldiers and civilians began to blur. The armies began to burn fields, kill livestock, and poison wells.
New methods of military transportation, including tanks, airplanes, and German zeppelins, or floating airships, influenced the manner in which the war was fought.

14. NEW TYPES OF WEAPONS

15. NEW TYPES OF WEAPONS

16. NEW TYPES OF WEAPONS

17. NEW TYPES OF WEAPONS

18. Poison Gas
Machine Gun

19. TRENCH WARFARE

20. Stalemate With the Schlieffen Plan, Germany nearly takes Paris
However, by September 1914, the war had reached a stalemate at the Marne River.
A stalemate is when neither side is able to gain an advantage.
When a German advance stopped near Paris (1914), both sides created trenches, which is a type of ditch in the ground. This created a stalemate.
Trenches were used to avoid enemy gunfire.
Technology overcame mobility.
Opposing trenches were separated by an empty “no man’s land.”
This describes the area of land between two enemy trench systems to which neither side wished to move openly or to seize due to fear of being attacked by the enemy in the process.
Small gains in land resulted in huge numbers of human casualties.
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21. Trench Warfare

22. The American Response
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Because many Americans were European immigrants or the children of European immigrants, many felt personally involved in the escalating war.
Support for the Allies was partially caused by Germany’s rule by an autocrat, a ruler with unlimited power.
Anti-German propaganda, or information intended to sway public opinion, turned many Americans against the Central Powers.
To protect American investments overseas, President Wilson officially proclaimed the United States a neutral country on August 4, 1914.
At the beginning of World War I (1914) the United States would remain neutral

23. The Road to War—Assessment
Which of the following was a cause of World War I? (A) Rising nationalism in European nations (B) Decrease in militarism among European powers (C) Pro-German propaganda in Britain (D) United States support of the Central Powers Why did the United States proclaim its neutrality in August 1914? (A) To please supporters of Theodore Roosevelt (B) To protect its overseas investments (C) To allow time for preparedness (D) To aid Great Britain

24. The Road to War—Assessment
Which of the following was a cause of World War I? (A) Rising nationalism in European nations (B) Decrease in militarism among European powers (C) Pro-German propaganda in Britain (D) United States support of the Central Powers Why did the United States proclaim its neutrality in August 1914? (A) To please supporters of Theodore Roosevelt (B) To protect its overseas investments (C) To allow time for preparedness (D) To aid Great Britain