Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The First World War

Chapter Summary

After 1870, the possibility of war loomed over Europe. The Great Powers formed unstable alliances with each other that pitted France, Britain, and Russia against the Triple Entente of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. After a series of crises in the Balkans, war broke out with the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the Habsburg empire, in 1914. Hopes that the war would end quickly dissipated as the warring powers settled into a stalemate. Russia, facing internal pressures related to the revolution it had undergone in 1917, signed a treaty with the Germans at the end of that year. The Americans began to mobilize, and their intervention led to Germanys surrender to the Allies in 1918. The German and Austrian-Hungarian empires collapsed, and Germany was forced to bear the brunt of the peace settlements. The experiences of World War I left their mark on European culture, the relationship between governments and national economies, and on international relations. The Treaty of Versailles would prove a failure, as would the League of Nations, founded in hopes of preventing similar conflicts in the future.

Chapter Outline

17.84 The International Anarchy

a. Rival Alliances: Triple Alliance versus Triple Entente

i. A place in the sun

ii. The Triple Alliance

iii. Splendid isolation

iv. Naval race

v. Triple Entente

b. The Crises in Morocco and the Balkans

i. Testing the Entente

ii. Crises in the Balkans

iii. Ethnic and religious divisions

iv. The first Balkan crisis

v. Two Balkan wars

c. The Sarajevo Crisis and the Outbreak of War

i. The assassination at Sarajevo

ii. The German blank check

iii. English isolation

iv. Causes of the First World War

17.85 The Armed Stalemate

a. The War on Land, 1914-1916

i. The battle of the Marne

ii. War in the trenches

iii. The battle of Verdun

iv. The battle of the Somme

b. The War at Sea

i. Naval blockade

ii. Submarine warfare

iii. The Lusitaniac. Diplomatic Maneuvers and Secret Agreements

i. Italy joins the Allies

ii. The Zimmermann telegram

iii. Disruption in the Ottoman Empire

iv. Japan in China

v. German expansionism

vi. A peace without victory

17.86 The Collapse of Russian and the Intervention of the United States

a. The Withdrawal of Russia: Revolution and the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

i. The Provisional Government

ii. The Bolsheviks return from exile

iii. The treaty of Brest-Litovsk

iv. American intervention

b. The United States and the War

i. America divided

ii. Unrestricted submarine warfare

iii. To make the world safe for democracy

iv. The French and the British hold the line

v. America mobilizes for war

c. The Final Phase of the War

i. The armistice

17.87 The Collapse of the Austrian and German Empires

i. Nationalities gain independence

ii. Democracy in Germany

iii. The Weimar Republic

17.88 The Economic, Social, and Cultural Impact of the War

a. Effects on Capitalism: Government-Regulated Economies

i. The planned economy

ii. The rationalization of production

iii. The allocation of manpower

iv. Export controls

v. Shipping and imports

vi. German war socialism

b. Inflation, Industrial Changes, Control of Ideas

i. Mortgaging the future

ii. Industry spreads

iii. Propaganda and public opinion

c. Cultural pessimism

i. War poets

ii. Freud and Spengler

iii. Tzara, Mann, Yeats

17.89 The Peace of Paris, 1919

a. The Fourteen Points and the Treaty of Versailles

i. A new era

ii. A League of Nations

iii. Alsace and Lorraine

iv. Germany loses its colonies

v. War damages

vi. The war guilt clause

vii. The Treaty of Versailles

b. Significance of the Paris Peace Settlement

i. National self-determination

ii. The failure of Versailles

iii. Victors uneasiness

iv. The League of Nations

Learning Objectives

Chapter 17 teaches students about:

1. the causes of WWI, which ranged from the crisis in the Balkans that set off the war to the tensions created by the alliance system and Germanys ambitions.

2. the course of the war on land and at sea, resulting in a stalemate for several years.

3. the withdrawal of the Russians from the conflict.

4. the United States renunciation of neutrality and subsequent mobilization, which turned the tide against the Germans.

5. the collapse of the German empire and the establishment of the Weimar Republic.

6. the impact of the war on the role of government in national economies, and the increasing adherence to the idea of economic equality.

7. the shift in economic growth and influence globally as Europe suffered from inflation while the U.S. and other regions rapidly industrialized.

8. the sense of crisis in the ideals of progress and western civilization provoked by the experiences of war.

9. Woodrow Wilsons dream of creating an international regulatory body to prevent future conflicts.

10. Allied demands of reparations and German resistance to such demands during the peace negotiations.

11. the weaknesses of the treaty of Versailles.

Lecture/Discussion Topics

1. Why did Bismarck seek to form the Triple Alliance in 1879, as well as a reinsurance treaty with Russia?

2. What brought the British out of their splendid isolation?

3. What points were agreed upon in the formation of the Triple Entente?

4. How did the Germans test the Triple Entente? Were their efforts to break up the alliance victorious?

5. What caused the crises in the Balkans?

6. How did the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand lead to the outbreak of war?

7. What, aside from the successive crises in the Balkans, were the causes of WWI?

8. What kind of internal crisis did Germany face on the eve of the war?

9. Why did the battle of the Marne change the character of the war?

10. How did technology determine the kind of war that was fought?

11. How did international law regulate the flow of goods to a country at war? Was international law heeded during WWI?

12. What did the battle of Jutland reveal about both British and German naval power?

13. How did both sides attempt to recruit allies and stir up discontent in Europe and elsewhere?

14. How did the Japanese turn their alliance with Britain into an opportunity for expansion?

15. What kinds of people made up the majority of Russias Provisional Government? How did they view the war?

16. Why did the Bolsheviks negotiate with the Germans at Brest-Litovsk? What kind of compromise did they forge?

17. Why was the U.S. divided over the issue of entering the war?

18. How did the Germans provoke an American declaration of war?

19. How did the U.S. mobilize for war? Did the Germans anticipate correctly the length and strength of U.S. mobilization?

20. How did Germany become a republic in the aftermath of WWI?

21. How did the war change attitudes about work, consumerism, and the governments role in the economy?

22. How did the various participants in WWI allocate labor to meet the demands of war?

23. How did WWI transform the relative economic positions of the major participants?

24. How did governments finance the war? How did European debt and economic ruin brought by the war precipitate changes elsewhere in the world?

25. What role did the media play in WWI?

26. Why did WWI produce a sense of crisis in western culture? How did that feeling manifest itself culturally?

27. Why did Wilson encounter difficulties in persuading Europeans to accept his Fourteen Points?

28. What, during the peace negotiations following the war, were the most pressing concerns of the French? The British? The United States?

29. What did the war guilt clause stipulate? Which other aspects of the Treaty of Versailles did the Germans resist?

30. What were the major weaknesses of the Treaty of Versailles?

Causes of WWI

Inevitability of war: June 28, 1914 Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria assassinated July 5, 1914 Germany issues Austria-Hungary blank check

Pledging military assistance if Autria-Hungary goes to war against Russia

July 23, 1914 Austria issues Serbia an ultimatum July 28, 1914 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia

July 29, 1914- Russia orders full mobilization of its troops

August 1, 1914 Germany declares war on Russia

August 2, 1914 Germany demands Belgium declare access to German troops ..King Albert I of Belgium denied permission

August 2, 1914 Germany declared war on France

The Schlieffen Plan

August 4, 1914 GB declared war on Germany for violating Belgian neutralityBackground Information: MAIN

Militarism: Relaiance on armies/navies to decide issues

Arms race occurred in Europe

Military spending increased by 300%

In 1900, Germany passed the Navy Law

Alliances: Pledge a country to support another in times of war + provide support in peacetime Bismarck created alliances to protect Germany +isolate France

Triple Entente vs. Triple Alliance

Nations lost sight of their own nations weaknesses

Imperialism: Controlling foreign lands as colonies + building an empire

Due to technology, strong state system, a sense of Euro superiority

Colonies=good source of raw materials + markets for finished products

Nationalism encouraged race for colonies increased national pride

Nationalism: Deep feeling of loyalty to ones nation

Serbia, Germany, RussiaImmediate Causes In June 1914 Gavrilo Princep member of the Black Hand assassinated Franz Ferdinand and his wife

Balkan powder keg was ignited

Vienna charged Serbia with the responsibility for the crime and issued an unrealistic ultimatum

Germany:

They would knock out France quickly then turn their entire force on Soviet Russia

Blank Cheque given to Austria-Hungary

Germany declared war on Russia

Austria-Hungary:

Death of Franz Ferdinand was the excuse needed to move against Serbia

Austria hoped for a limited war

Serbia + Russia:

Serbia agreed to all demands except those which dealt with sovereignty Russia is prepared to mobilize and fight

Determined to support Serbian nationalism

Long Term Causes

Napoleon Bonaparte + Rise of Nationalist Sentiment

Colonial Expansion

Anglo-German Naval Race

Tension in the Balkans

Ascension of Kaiser Wilhelm I

Web of Alliances Nationalism means being a strong supporter of the rights and interests of one's country. The Congress of Vienna, held after Napoleon's exile to Elba, aimed to sort out problems in Europe. Delegates from Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia (the winning allies) decided upon a new Europe that left both Germany and Italy as divided states. Strong nationalist elements led to the Re-unification of Italy in 1861 and Germany in 1871. The settlement at the end of the Franco-Prussian war left France angry at the loss of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany and keen to regain their lost territory. Large areas of both Austria-Hungary and Serbia were home to differing nationalist groups, all of whom wanted freedom from the states in which they lived. The French Revolution resulted in chaos and the ascent of Napoleon to power. Napoleon's armies marched all over Europe, bringing not only French control, but French ideas. The rise of ideas of nationalism, devotion and love for one's common people and ethnicity, increased in popularity during the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon encouraged the spread of nationalism, which he saw in his troops, to better the French war machine. The French people began to feel pride in their culture and ethnicity. The world watched nationalism for the first time and saw the power the French gained from it. Following the Napoleonic Wars, all of Europe was sharing these ideas Europe 1914 By 1914 Europe was divided as a continent in power struggling forces for the top place in the world economic market. At the start of the Great War in 1914, Germany was a relatively young power, only coming into existence following a series of wars in 1871. Germany's Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, had shepherd the country into the 20th century with the adage that Germany must always be in a majority of three in any dispute among the five great European powers. His aim was to maintain peaceful ties with Russian. When Kaiser Wilhelm II came to power, he quickly retired Bismarck, and upset the Chancellor's delicate balance of power by refusing to renew Germany's friendship with Russia. Germany soon found itself in a minority of two. Its only European ally was the weakest of the European powers, Austria-Hungary.Imperialism and Colonial Expansion When Kaiser Wilhelm II came to power, he quickly retired Bismarck, and upset the Chancellor's delicate balance of power by refusing to renew Germany's friendship with Russia. Germany soon found itself in a minority of two. Its only European ally was the weakest of the European powers, Austria-Hungary. Imperialist rivalry had grown more intense with the "new imperialism" of the late 19th and early 20th cent. The great powers had come into conflict over spheres of influence in China and over territories in Africa, and the Easter question , created by the decline of the Ottoman Empire, had produced several disturbing controversies. Particularly unsettling was the policy of Germany. It embarked late but aggressively on colonial expansion under Emperor William II came into conflict with France over Morocco , and seemed to threaten Great Britain by its rapid naval expansion.Militarism Militarism means that the army and military forces are given a high profile by the government. The growing European divide had led to an arms race (competition between nations to have the most powerful weapons) between the main countries. The armies of both France and Germany had more than doubled between 1870 and 1914 and there was fierce competition between Britain and Germany for mastery of the seas. The British had introduced the 'Dreadnought', an effective battleship, in 1906. The Germans soon followed suit introducing their own battleships. 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.Alliances An alliance is an agreement made between two or more countries to give each other help if it is needed. When an alliance is signed, those countries become known as Allies. A number of alliances had been signed by countries between the years 1879 and 1914. These were important b/c they meant that some countries had no option but to declare war if one of their allies declared war first Formation of the Triple Alliance In 1879 Germany and Austria- Hungray agreed to form a Dual Alliance. This became the Triple Alliance when in 1882 it was expanded to include Italy, The three countries agreed to support each other if attacked by either France or Russia. It was renewed at five-yearly intervals. The formation of the Triple Entente in 1907 by Britain, France and Russia reinforced the need for the alliance. Formation of the Triple Entente In 1882 Germany, Austria Hungary and Italy formed the Triple Alliance. The three countries agreed to support each other if attacked by either France or Russia. France felt threatened by this alliance. Britain was also concerned by the growth in the Germany Navy and in 1904 the two countries signed the Entente Cordiale (friendly understanding). The objective of the alliance was to encourage co-operation against the perceived threat of Germany. Three years later, Russia who feared the growth in the Germany Army, joined Britain & France to form the Triple Entente. The Russian government was also concerned about the possibility of Austria Hungary increasing the size of its empire. It therefore made promises to help Serbia if it was attacked by members of the Triple Alliance 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, mobilised its forces. Germany, allied to Austria-Hungary mobilised 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.The Black Hand

In May 1911, ten men in Serbia formed the Black Hand Secret Society. Early members included Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijevic, the chief of the Intelligence Department of the Serbian General Staff, Major Voja Tankosic and Milan Ciganovic. The main objective of the Black Hand was the creation, by means of violence, of a Greater Serbia. Its stated aim was: "To realize the national ideal, the unification of all Serbs. This organisation prefers terrorist action to cultural activities; it will therefore remain secret." By 1914 there were around 2,500 members of the Black Hand. The group was mainly made up of junior army officers but also included lawyers, journalists and university professors. Three senior members of the Black Hand group, Dragutin Dimitrijevic, Milan Ciganovic, and Major Voja Tankosic, decided that Archduke Franz Ferdinand should be assassinated. Dimitrijevic was concerned about the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Ferdinand's plans to grant concessions to the South Slavs. Dimitrijevic feared that if this happened, an independent Serbian state would be more difficult to achieve. In 1914, Austria-Hungary was a world power, but its rulers were afraid. They feared nationalism. Many different races lived in the Austrian Empire; 15 different languages were spoken within its borders. If nationalism caught on in Austria-Hungary, the Empire would fall apart. Small nation-states in the Southeast of Europe (`the Balkans') were very nationalistic. Serbia was the worst. In Serbia, there was a group called Union or Death (nicknamed the `Black Hand'). It was the Balkan equivalent of the IRA. It was dedicated to uniting all Serbs. Many Serbs lived in the Austrian province of Bosnia, and after 1908 the Black Hand waged a terrorist war there, with bombings, shootings and poisonings. The Austrian Army wanted to destroy the Black Hand by attacking Serbia. PAGE