EQ

• What were the MAIN causes of the First World War?

• How did these causes contribute to the most destructive war in history (to that point)?

• How did WWI end the old world and lead to a new world?

• In what way was WWI the prelude to WWII?

EQ II

• What were some of the constitutional issues facing the US Federal Government as a result of WWI?

• What attempts were made to preserve the peace post 1918?

• Were these attempts successful?

Causes of World War I

Militarism

Alliances

Imperialism

Nationalism

Militarism

• Industrial Revolution• Arms race• Strong military = great power• All nations have standing armies• Patriotism

Alliances

• Pre-War– Make pacts (agreements) to avoid war– Dual Alliance leads to Triple Alliance: Germany,

Austria-Hungary and then Italy– Triple Entente: Britain, France & Russia

Alliances

• War time:• Central Powers:

– Germany– Austria-Hungary– Ottoman Empire– Bulgaria

Alliances

• War time:• Allied Powers• Britain• France • Russia (out in March 1918)• Italy (in May 1915)• US (in April 1917)

Imperialism

• Competition for colonies = struggle for survival

• Competition brings nations to brink of war• Desire for empire brings mistrust among

nations

Nationalism

• Industrialism leads to competition among nations like Germany & Britain

• Disputes over territory causes problems between France & Germany over Alsace-Lorraine

• Various ethnic groups in the Austrian Empire like the Serbs

Closer ties with the Allies

• Americans traced their Ancestry to Britain• Common language• Shared democratic principles• U.S. had developed into a main source of

goods for the Allied powers. – For example, arms, supplies, food and loans.

Neutrality

• 1914: President Wilson issues “Proclamation of Neutrality”– urges America remain neutral– Following the precedent of Washington

America Declares War

• Reasons:• German Submarine Warfare:

– German U-Boats used to blockade Britain:• also attacked neutral ships• Americans were shocked by Germany’s violation of

international law

America Declares War

• Lusitania {1915}:– British passenger liner sunk by German U-Boat:– 1,000 passengers killed

• 128 Americans

Sussex Pledge1916

Sussex Pledge• German submarine attacked an unarmed French

Passenger ship, the Sussex• Wilson threatened to break off relations with

Germany– Germany needed to appease the US & keep them

out of the war• Passenger ships would not be targeted;• Merchant ships would not be sunk until the presence of weapons

had been established, if necessary by a search of the ship• Merchant ships would not be sunk without provision for the safety

of passengers and crew

The Zimmerman Note

The Zimmerman Note

• 16 January 1917– Sent from Foreign Minister Zimmerman to

German embassy– Germany asked Mexico to declare war against the

United States {wanted U.S. in two-front war}– Germany promised to restore Texas, New Mexico,

Arizona to Mexico at end of the war– Promised Mexico financial aid if they declared war

on the US– Mexico refused the offer

Submarine Warfare Continues

• 1917- Germans renew unrestricted submarine warfare– Germans believed Allies could be defeated before

the US entered the war– sink unarmed American ships

• Wilson asks Congress to declare war inApril 1917– claims “world must be made safe for democracy”

The Russian Revolution

• November 1917:– Communists come to power:

• take Russia out of war• Germany free to fight only on western front• US officially in the war but still in small numbers• Germany could potentially win war now• American involvement therefore saved Allied

war effort• 11 November 1918- Germany surrenders

Wilson AsCommander-in-Chief

Mobilizing the Economy

*Industry

*Labor Unions

*Railroads

*Shipping

*Fuel

*Food

Increasing Presidential Powers

• Wilson was a strong wartime President– given emergency power to direct economy and

war effort– federal and executive power greatly increased– precedent of strong executive leadership during

wartime established by Lincoln during the Civil War

Controlling the Economy

• Due to the national emergency the Federal Government took control over the following areas of the economy:– industry – labor unions– railroads– shipping– fuel– farming

Controlling the Economy

• The Federal Government purchased the entire 1917 wheat crop– encouraged “wheat-less” and “meatless” days at

home– encouraged Americans to grow “Victory Gardens”

to produce their own food

Financing the War

• the Federal Government raised money in the following ways:– increased income and excise taxes– America loaned Allies $10 billion to buy war

supplies– Federal government issued Liberty Bonds to raise

money– Apr 24, 1917 Emergency Loan Act authorizes issue

of $5 billion in bonds at 3.5 percent

Raising Revenues

Providing Manpower

• Wilson asks Congress to “impose” a military draft because volunteers weren’t enough– three weeks after war was declared, only 97,000

had volunteered for service– 3 million men drafted under “Selective Service Act”– use of “substitutes” forbidden– many people opposed conscription {draft}:

• considered denial of individual rights

Providing Manpower

• Selective Service Act– all males aged 21 to 30 were required to register

for military service– August 1918: the age range expanded to include

all men 18 to 45– By the end of World War I, 2.8 million had been

drafted

Selective Service Act

Wilson & CivilLiberties

Espionage Act 1917

Sedition Act 1918

Constitutional Issues

• Espionage Act {1917}– prohibited mailing of any anti-war materials

• Sedition Act {1918}:– imprisoned anyone who spoke or wrote against

war effort– considered violation of 1st Amendment

Schenck v. U.S.

• Background– Charles Schenck arrested and convicted for

publishing and distributing literature to resist the draft

– Felt his First Amendment rights were being violated

• Freedom of Speech and Right to Assemble

Constitutional Issues• Decision

– Supreme Court ruled there are limits to speech– Freedom of speech could not be allowed in the

face of “clear & present danger ”– Anything that causes panic is forbidden.– Court ruled against Schenck.– Believed his actions would endanger the safety of

the United States.

Oliver WendellHolmes

“A clear and present danger…” Oliver Wendell Holmes

The Red Scare,

1918 – 1919Scared, yet?

The Red Scare1918-1919

The Red Scare• A. Mitchell Palmer:

– led the “Palmer Raids” to arrest suspected communists

– constitutional rights often violated during Palmer Raids

• Palmer violated Constitution in the following ways:– phones illegally wiretapped– habeas corpus often denied– the fear created by the Palmer Raids called the “Red

Scare”

The Fourteen Points

• Wilson’s plan for world peace which called for the following:– fair treatment of Central Powers– “self-determination” for nationalities– Freedom of the seas– peace maintained by League of Nations {Point 14}

• “Mr. Wilson bores me with his Fourteen Points; why, God Almighty has only Ten!”– Georges Clemenceau

Treaty of Versailles• France and Britain favored harsh terms against

Germany– Wilson favored fairness

• Terms of Versailles Treaty:– Germany lost territory to France and Poland– German army reduced to 100,000 soldiers– Germany forced to pay reparations ($33 billion)– Germany had to accept full responsibility for starting

the war• War Guilt Clause (Article 231)

Treaty of Versailles

• Germans outraged at the peace terms– Created, in part, the conditions for Hitler and

Nazism to come power in Germany– German saw Treaty as huge humiliation that

needed to be avenged

Georges Clemenceau

“It’s easier to make war than to make peace”. George Clemenceau

French Premier

German Outrage

Lodge Reservations

• Senator Henry Cabot Lodge opposed U.S. membership in League of Nations– believed membership in League would violate

America’s “isolationist” policy {George Washington}

– League could involve U.S. in war which would violate the Constitution {only Congress can declare war}

Lodge Reservations

• Lodge demanded changes made before Senate would accept U.S. membership in the League

• changes called the “Lodge Reservations”– Wrote 14 “reservations” that, if agreed to by

Wilson, would have undermined the League of Nations

Constitutional Crisis• Wilson refused any compromises on League

– suffered a stroke campaigning for U.S. entry into the League

– left partially paralyzed

• Wilson’s wife believed to be the acting President during illness– violated the order of succession

• 1920- Senate votes down Versailles Treaty and League membership

Election of 1920

Election of 1920

• Warren Harding elected President:– calls for a “return to normalcy”

• Go back to the way life was before the war

– isolationism becomes U.S. foreign policy– progressivism officially ends

Attempts to Preserve Peace

• Washington Naval Conference 1921– U.S., Britain, Japan, France, Italy agree to limit the

construction of warships for 10 years

• War Debts:– World War I transformed U.S. from debtor to

creditor nation– nations tried to avoid or cancel debts

Attempts to Preserve Peace

• Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928– an international agreement to “outlaw” war– Germany, Italy, Japan also signed the pact {later

become the Axis Powers in World War II}

Attempts to Preserve Peace

• World Court– established by League of Nations to settle disputes

according to international law• U.S. did not join• considered violation of isolationist policy

“I can predict with absolute certainty that within another generation there will be another world war”. Woodrow Wilson