World War I

In 1914, Europe was a powder keg…

• Europe was an armed camp– France vs. Germany– Austro Hungary vs.

Russians

• Principles of industrialization applied to war– Massive armies– Railroad networks

(mobilization)– Factories for weapons

Long Range Causes of WWI

• Militarism– Large standing armies– Arms race (ex.

battleships)– Quick mobilization

• Alliances– “Triple Entente”

• Great Britain, France, Russia

– Triple Alliance• Germany, Austro

Hungary, Ottoman Empire

Long Range Causes of WWI• Imperialism

– Quest for colonies brought conflict

– Ex: Berlin Conference / Africa

• Nationalism– Intense love of country– Created competition – National rivalries

developed over territory (Russia vs. Austro Hungary; Germany v. France)

Short Term Cause of WWI

• Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand– Heir to Austro-Hungary throne– Gavrilo Princip (Black Hand)– AH: declared war on Serbs– Russia declared war on AH– Chain reaction of war

declarations, due to alliances– Map to show beginning of war

“The German Right Hook”• Germans strike first

– Schlieffen Plan (1905)• Plan to avoid a 2 front war• 90% of German army =

attack through Belgium• 5% hold Russian border• 5% defend French border

– Later changes to plan• Driven by Nationalism• Weakened R. hook• Strengthened defenses

Schlieffen Plan, in Action

• Schlieffen plan failed• French mobilized too

quickly!• Right hook slowed

down by British, in Belgium; too weak to finish beyond Paris

• German defenders of A-L too strong

War in Europe – the West• Triple Entente = French

and British• Triple Alliance =

Germans

• Trench Warfare– 300 mile long system of

defensive ditches dug from Swiss border to North Sea

“Over the Top”The Myth

The Reality

“No Man’s Land”

Machine Guns

• Water cooled, to avoid overheating• Interlocking fields of fire

• MG gunner responsible for 60 degree arc in front of their position

• Where multiple MGs “fields of fire” overlap, referred to as a “kill zone”

Poison Gas

Caustic agent that blistered external tissue or damaged internal organs Many more injuries than deaths, from poison gas

Needed gas mask for protection from gas attacks

Poison Gas

Country Fatal Non-fatal

Russia 50,000 400,000

Germany 10,000 190,000

France 8,000 182,000

United Kingdom 8,000 181,000

Austria-Hungary 3,000 97,000

USA 1,500 71,500

Italy 4,500 55,000

Totals 85,000 1,176,500

Barbed Wire

Barbed Wire

Artillery• One of the most deadly weapon systems of WWI

• Shells up to 1500 lbs, 5 feet tall

• Types of shells fired• High explosive

• Armor piercing (to attack trench systems)

• Gas

Trench foot

Trench foot

In the East

• Main combatants– Triple Entente =

Russia– Triple Alliance =

Austrians (& Germans)

• Few trenches; instead, a war of maneuver

WWI in SW Asia• Main Combatants

– Triple Entente = Britain and it’s empire (ANZAC)

– Triple Alliance = Ottoman Empire

• Allied goal was a “Third Front” to drain German / Austrian troops from other theaters

Unsuccessful: Gallipoli

• Assault on the Dardanelles, by British and ANZAC troops

• Slaughter, on both sides– About 250k casualties

on each side (stalemated)

Successful: Lawrence of Arabia

• British officer who welded Arabians into army against Turks

• Hit and run raids on horses, camels

• Eventually took most of SW Asia for the British

1917-18: End of WWI

• In East, Russian Communist Revolution in October 1917 took Russians out of war– Freed up 100,000s of

German troops for Western Front

– Russian Soviets made peace w/ Germans in 1918

End of WWI, Western Front

• American Entered war, 1917– Americans entered

war just as British, French troops reached breaking point

– Fresh soldiers, equipment critical to Triple Entente’s success

End of WWI, Western Front

• Germans attempted to win it all at the Somme– After initial success,

offensive ground to a halt

– Germans set up for big losses after overextending army

Collapse of Central Powers• Bulgarians signed

armistice (peace treaty) first, in 9/18

• Ottomans surrendered 10/30/18

• Austrians knocked out on 11/3/18

• German state underwent revolution, overthrowing Kaiser, and became republic on 11/9/18

Collapse of Central Powers

• On 11-11-18, at 11 am, Germany signed armistice to end fighting

• Armistice signed in railroad car in France

• Peace treaty signed in Versailles in July, 1919

Casualties of Triple EntenteCountry Civilian

DeathsMilitary Deaths

Total Deaths Total Wounded

Great Britain 109,000 886,939 995,000 1.6 million

France 300,000 1,397,800 1.7 million 4.2 million

Russia 1.5 million 1.8 to 2.2 million

3.3 to 3.7 million

3.7 to 4.9 million

United States 757 116,708 117,500 205,690

All Entente Countries

3.7 million 5.7 million 9.4 million 12.8 million

Treaty of Versailles• Required Germany to pay

massive war reparations to allies– Germany couldn’t pay, so

borrowed $ from USA– German economy collapsed

(hyper inflation) as the DM became worthless

• Treaty blamed Germans for the war (“War Guilt Clause”)

Treaty of Versailles• Treaty caused bitter

feelings in Germany– “Stabbed in the back”

theory: no foreign troops on German soil!

– Nationalist parties came to power in Weimar Republic

– Example: National Socialist Workers Party, aka Nazis