"The world must be made safe for democracy. Its peace must be planted upon the tested foundations of political liberty. We have no selfish ends to serve. We

desire no conquest, no dominion. We seek no indemnities for ourselves, no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make.“

- Woodrow Wilson -

Causes of the War

-Lots of Instability – in Europe

Nationalism

•Devotion to one’s country; leads to competition and rivalries (fear of Germany)

Old Empires

•Competition for colonies

•Ethnic groups want to become independent from empires

Old Style Gov’ts (Militarism)

•Imperial nations building large, competitive armies and navies

Alliance System

•Nations fear other militaries, begin to form alliances

                                                                                                  

Alliances

-Led to an arms race

•Major nations all racing to build and arm large armies and navies

-Triple Alliance

(Central Powers)

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire

-Triple Entente

(Allies)

France, Britain, Russia

•Later Italy and the U.S. will join the Allied war effort

Just prior to WWI, the major imperial nations of Europe began competing to build bigger and better armies

and navies. Wanting to become the leading imperial power, Germany

competed with rival Great Britain to build the world’s largest navy. Both countries successfully built strong

navies, and competed with one another in the arms race.

Strategy

-War starts

Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand – heir to Austro-Hungarian throne

•Shot by Serbian nationalist

•Alliances cause chain reaction to Austria-Hungary’s attack on Serbia after the assassination

•Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia

•Russia declares war on Austria-Hungary

•Germany declares war on Russia and its ally France (all within weeks)

•Britain declares war on Germany and Austria Hungary

Memoir of Count Franz von Harrach

As the car quickly reversed, a thin stream of blood spurted from His Highness's mouth onto my right check.  As I was pulling out my handkerchief to wipe the blood away from his mouth, the Duchess cried out to him, "For God's sake!  What has happened to you?"

At that she slid off the seat and lay on the floor of the car, with her face between his knees.

I had no idea that she too was hit and thought she had simply fainted with fright.  Then I heard His Imperial Highness say, "Sophie, Sophie, don't die.  Stay alive for the children!"

At that, I seized the Archduke by the collar of his uniform, to stop his head dropping forward and asked him if he was in great pain.  He answered me quite distinctly, "It is nothing!"

His face began to twist somewhat but he went on repeating, six or seven times, ever more faintly as he gradually lost consciousness, "It's nothing!"

Then came a brief pause followed by a convulsive rattle in his throat, caused by a loss of blood.  This ceased on arrival at the governor's residence.

The two unconscious bodies were carried into the building where their death was soon established.

- Witness to the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand -

MilitarismAlliancesImperialismNationalism

WWICentral PowersAustria Hungary,

Germany

Central PowersAustria Hungary,

Germany

AlliesRussia, France, Great Britain,

Serbia

AlliesRussia, France, Great Britain,

Serbia

Assassination of Ferdinand

Strategy

-War develops into trench warfare after initial German advance failed to defeat France

-Germany wants to defeat Russia first if faced with two front war

•Does not want to split forces on Western Front in France and Eastern Front in Russia

-Allies want to force fighting on two fronts and get help from U.S.

Germany’s first strategy was to avoid fighting a war on two fronts.

To keep this from happening, German leaders developed the

Schlieffen Plan, which would have them defeating France on the

Western Front to later focus on Russia on the Eastern Front. To get to France, Germany had to invade neutral Belgium, which brought Great Britain into the war. What

Germany thought would be a quick, easy victory ended up being

anything but that as stalemate developed.

U.S. Neutrality

-U.S. declares neutrality in the war– President Wilson

-develops sympathy for the Allied cause

•Americans feel loyalty to Britain as stories of atrocity circulate through propaganda

-Begin to export war materials

•U.S. begins to ship millions of dollars in supplies to Allies

Some atrocity stories—spread by British propaganda—referred

to Germany as the “Bully of Europe.” Stories of Germany attacking civilians, destroying villages, cathedrals, libraries, and even hospitals prompted sympathy among Americans.

This was spread through British propaganda aimed at the US:

"It should be America's duty to help us subdue the mad dog of

Europe."

U.S. Neutrality

-Submarine warfare begins

•British blockade German coast and severely limit supplies

•Germans use u-boats to attack British blockade (and others)

-Wilson wins 1916 election on “He kept us out of war!”

-isolationist policy

•Wilson sticking to policy to stay out of European affairs

View from the tower of an attacking u-boat as a torpedo hits home on a

merchant ship.

Stalemate

•Both sides want U.S. involvement

-War quickly reaches a stalemate

•Neither side winning on the Western Front

-Trench warfare

•Thousands of miles, no territory

Over the Top – charge!

No Man’s Land – space between enemy trenches where men were gunned down by machine guns

new technology

submarines (u-boats)

airplanes

horrible weapons

poison gas

mustard gas

U.S. Enters War

-U.S. continues to export war materials

•Hindered by British blockade and German u-boat attacks

-German u-boats sink any ships they find – unrestricted submarine warfare

Lusitania sinks, 1915

British ship sunk by German sub

128 Americans killed; passenger ship

Sussex Pledge

•Germany promises not to use unrestricted submarine warfare and will warn ships prior to attack

U.S. Enters War

-Wilson wins 1916 election

calls for peace

-Zimmerman Note

Attempt to get Mexico involved in war vs. U.S.

•Final straw for U.S. citizens

•Push for war declaration

Think SLUTZ:

S= Sussex Pledge

L= Lusitania

U= Unrestricted submarine warfare

T= Treaties and Alliances

Z= Zimmerman Note

The Zimmerma

n note

19 January, 1917: The Zimmerman Note to the German Minister to Mexico

Berlin, January 19, 1917

On the first of February we intend to begin submarine warfare unrestricted. In spite of this, it is our intention to endeavor to keep neutral the United States of America.

If this attempt is not successful, we propose an alliance on the following basis with Mexico: That we shall make war together and together make peace. We shall give general financial support, and it is understood that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona. The details are left to you for settlement....

You are instructed to inform the President of Mexico of the above in the greatest confidence as soon as it is certain that there will be an outbreak of war with the United States and suggest that the President of Mexico, on his own initiative, should communicate with Japan suggesting adherence at once to this plan; at the same time, offer to mediate between Germany and Japan.

Please call to the attention of the President of Mexico that the employment of ruthless submarine warfare now promises to compel England to make peace in a few months.

Zimmerman(Secretary of State)