World War 1 Study Guide

Eastern Front

The zone of conflict in an eastern sector, specifically (now historical) in central and eastern Europe during the First World War (1914-18), and in eastern Europe and the Soviet Union during the Second World War (1939-45), in which the German army with its allies engaged the armies to its east. The Eastern Front — 1914 - 1917. In the late summer of 1914, the ancient monarchies of Austria, Russia and Germany plunged their countries into a world war which engulfed Europe in one of the bloodiest conflicts in history. Transcript of The Eastern Front in WW1. ... Where the action happen How the war was fought The Eastern Front was a theatre of war during World War I in Central and, primarily, Eastern Europe. The fighting started on August 17th 1914 on the Eastern Front and it ended on March 3rd 1918 due to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The zone of conflict in an eastern sector, specifically (now historical) in central and eastern Europe during the First World War (1914-18), and in eastern Europe and the Soviet Union during the Second World War (1939-45), in which the German army with its allies engaged the armies to its east. Eastern Front: Ottoman Empire and the Sykes Picot, etc. - After getting Arab and Jewish parts of the Ottoman Empire to rebel (in exchange for independence), Sykes Picot was where the British and French decided to keep that land for themselves!

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Heir to the Austria-Hungarian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo, started World War I. In an event that is widely acknowledged to have sparked the outbreak of World War I, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, nephew of Emperor Franz Josef and heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is shot to death along with his wife by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on this day in 1914. The great Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck, the man most responsible for the unification of Germany in 1871, was quoted as saying at the end of his life that "One day the great European War will come out of some damned foolish thing in the Balkans." It went as he predicted. The archduke traveled to Sarajevo in June 1914 to inspect the imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Ottoman territories in the turbulent Balkan region that were annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908 to the indignation of Serbian nationalists, who believed they should become part of the newly independent and ambitious Serbian nation. The date scheduled for his visit, June 28, coincided with the anniversary of the First Battle of Kosovo in 1389, in which medieval Serbia was defeated by the Turks. Despite the fact that Serbia did not truly lose its independence until the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448, June 28 was a day of great significance to Serbian nationalists, and one on which they could be expected to take exception to a demonstration of Austrian imperial strength in Bosnia. June 28 was also Franz Ferdinand's wedding anniversary. His beloved wife, Sophie, a former lady-in-waiting, was denied royal status in Austria due to her birth as a poor Czech aristocrat, as were the couple's children. In Bosnia, however, due to its limbo status as an annexed territory, Sophie could appear beside him at official proceedings. On June 28, 1914, then, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were touring Sarajevo in an open car, with surprisingly little security, when Serbian nationalist Nedjelko Cabrinovic threw a bomb at their car; it rolled off the back of the vehicle and wounded an officer and some bystanders. Later that day, on the way to visit the injured officer, the archduke's procession took a wrong turn at the junction of Appel quay and Franzjosefstrasse, where one of Cabrinovic's cohorts, 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip, happened to be loitering. Seeing his opportunity, Princip fired into the car, shooting Franz Ferdinand and Sophie at point-blank range. Princip then turned the gun on himself, but was prevented from shooting it by a bystander who threw himself upon the young assassin. A mob of angry onlookers attacked Princip, who fought back and was subsequently wrestled away by the police. Meanwhile, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie lay fatally wounded in their limousine as it rushed to seek help; they both died within the hour. The assassination of Franz-Ferdinand and Sophie set off a rapid chain of events: Austria-Hungary, like many in countries around the world, blamed the Serbian government for the attack and hoped to use the incident as justification for settling the question of Slav nationalism once and for all. As Russia supported Serbia, an Austro-Hungarian declaration of war was delayed until its leaders received assurances from German leader Kaiser Wilhelm that Germany would support their cause in the event of a Russian intervention-which would likely involve Russia's ally, France, and possibly Britain as well. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and the tenuous peace between Europe's great powers collapsed. Within a week, Russia, Belgium, France, Great Britain and Serbia had lined up against Austria-Hungary and Germany, and World War I had begun.

Assassination

In an event that is widely acknowledged to have sparked the outbreak of World War I, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, nephew of Emperor Franz Josef and heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is shot to death along with his wife by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on this day in 1914. The archduke traveled to Sarajevo in June 1914 to inspect the imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Ottoman territories in the turbulent Balkan region that were annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908 to the indignation of Serbian nationalists, who believed they should become part of the newly independent and ambitious Serbian nation. The date scheduled for his visit, June 28, coincided with the anniversary of the First Battle of Kosovo in 1389, in which medieval Serbia was defeated by the Turks. Despite the fact that Serbia did not truly lose its independence until the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448, June 28 was a day of great significance to Serbian nationalists, and one on which they could be expected to take exception to a demonstration of Austrian imperial strength in Bosnia. June 28 was also Franz Ferdinand's wedding anniversary. His beloved wife, Sophie, a former lady-in-waiting, was denied royal status in Austria due to her birth as a poor Czech aristocrat, as were the couple's children. In Bosnia, however, due to its limbo status as an annexed territory, Sophie could appear beside him at official proceedings. On June 28, 1914, then, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were touring Sarajevo in an open car, with surprisingly little security, when Serbian nationalist Nedjelko Cabrinovic threw a bomb at their car; it rolled off the back of the vehicle and wounded an officer and some bystanders. Later that day, on the way to visit the injured officer, the archduke's procession took a wrong turn at the junction of Appel quay and Franzjosefstrasse, where one of Cabrinovic's cohorts, 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip, happened to be loitering. Seeing his opportunity, Princip fired into the car, shooting Franz Ferdinand and Sophie at point-blank range. Princip then turned the gun on himself, but was prevented from shooting it by a bystander who threw himself upon the young assassin. A mob of angry onlookers attacked Princip, who fought back and was subsequently wrestled away by the police. Meanwhile, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie lay fatally wounded in their limousine as it rushed to seek help; they both died within the hour. The assassination of Franz-Ferdinand and Sophie set off a rapid chain of events: Austria-Hungary, like many in countries around the world, blamed the Serbian government for the attack and hoped to use the incident as justification for settling the question of Slav nationalism once and for all. As Russia supported Serbia, an Austro-Hungarian declaration of war was delayed until its leaders received assurances from German leader Kaiser Wilhelm that Germany would support their cause in the event of a Russian intervention-which would likely involve Russia's ally, France, and possibly Britain as well. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and the tenuous peace between Europe's great powers collapsed. Within a week, Russia, Belgium, France, Great Britain and Serbia had lined up against Austria-Hungary and Germany, and World War I had begun.

Serbia

On July 28, 1914, one month to the day after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were killed by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, effectively beginning the First World War. The Allies included Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States. These countries fought against the Central Powers which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Archduke Ferdinand, of Austria-Hungary, was assassinated by a Serb on June 28, 1914. Gavrilo Princip was a Serbian terrorist responsible for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. This evidence reveals that the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand made Austria-Hungary quite mad at Serbia. On 28 June 1914, Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb student and member of a multi-ethnic organisation of national revolutionaries called Young Bosnia, assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo, Bosnia. On July 28, 1914, one month to the day after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were killed by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, effectively beginning the First World War. Threatened by Serbian ambition in the tumultuous Balkans region of Europe, Austria-Hungary determined that the proper response to the assassinations was to prepare for a possible military invasion of Serbia. After securing the unconditional support of its powerful ally, Germany, Austria-Hungary presented Serbia with a rigid ultimatum on July 23, 1914, demanding, among other things, that all anti-Austrian propaganda within Serbia be suppressed, and that Austria-Hungary be allowed to conduct its own investigation into the archduke's killing. Though Serbia effectively accepted all of Austria's demands except for one, the Austrian government broke diplomatic relations with the other country on July 25 and went ahead with military preparedness measures. Meanwhile, alerted to the impending crisis, Russia—Serbia's own mighty supporter in the Balkans—began its own initial steps towards military mobilization against Austria. In the days following the Austrian break in relations with Serbia, the rest of Europe, including Russia's allies, Britain and France, looked on with trepidation, fearing the imminent outbreak of a Balkans conflict that, if entered into by Russia, threatened to explode into a general European war. The British Foreign Office lobbied its counterparts in Berlin, Paris and Rome with the idea of an international convention aimed at moderating the conflict; the German government, however, was set against this notion, and advised Vienna to go ahead with its plans. On July 28, 1914, after a decision reached conclusively the day before in response to pressure from Germany for quick action—apart from Kaiser Wilhelm II, who by some accounts still saw the possibility of a peaceful diplomatic resolution to the conflict, but was outmaneuvered by the more hawkish military and governmental leadership of Germany—Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In response, Russia formally ordered mobilization in the four military districts facing Galicia, its common front with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. That night, Austrian artillery divisions initiated a brief, ineffectual bombardment of Belgrade across the Danube River.

Battle of the Marne

The Battle of the Marne was a World War I battle fought from 6-10 September 1914. It resulted in an Allied victory against the German armies in the west. On September 9, the exhausted Germans began a fighting retreat to the Aisne River. The Battle of the Marne was the first significant Allied victory of World War I, saving Paris and thwarting Germany's plan for a quick victory over France. 9 Sep 2017. The First Battle of the Marne was fought in September 1914. ... The French army retreated towards the River Marne and it was here that both German and French armies fought out the first major battle on the Western Front. The German advance got them as near as 30 miles to Paris. On September 6, 1914, some 30 miles northeast of Paris, the French 6th Army under the command of General Michel-Joseph Manoury attacks the right flank of the German 1st Army, beginning the decisive First Battle of the Marne at the end of the first month of World War I. First Battle of the Marne, (September 6-12, 1914), an offensive during World War I by the French army and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) against the advancing Germans who had invaded Belgium and northeastern France and were within 30 miles (48 km) of Paris. After the outbreak of hostilities in Europe in August 1914, Germany took the offensive in the West, hoping to defeat France before the Russians were able to fully mobilize in the East. The Germans rushed across Belgium, routing the Allies, and by September the "Schlieffen Plan"-the planned outflanking of the French forces-seemed headed to a triumphant conclusion. In early September, German forces crossed the Marne River to the northeast of Paris, and the French government was evacuated to Bordeaux. As retreating French forces and the British Expeditionary Force scrambled to prepare a counterattack, they were dealt a lucky hand when precise information about the German plan of attack was found in a knapsack retrieved from a slain German officer. The French had thought that German General Alexander von Kluck's 1st Army would march into the Oise Valley, but the plan told of a direct march on Paris. The French commander in chief, General Joseph Joffre, coordinated the information into his battle plans, and on the afternoon of September 5 the French 6th Army under General Michel-Joseph Maunoury surprised the right flank of Kluck's 1st Army near the Marne River. Kluck turned his army to meet the French 6th Army, creating a gap between his 1st Army and German General Karl von Bulow's 2nd Army, 30 miles to the southeast. The French 5th Army then turned and rushed into the gap to attack BÝlow, and the British Expeditionary Force halted its retreat and turned to likewise advance into the gap. Meanwhile, to the west of the German 2nd Army, the newly created French 9th Army attacked the German 3rd Army. For three bloody days, the battle shifted back and forth along a 100-mile front. The French 6th Army stubbornly held its ground under heavy counterattacks by Kluck's 1st Army, and at one point 600 Paris taxicabs were enlisted to drive 6,000 French troops from the capital to the battle front. The fighting was so near the city that the automobiles could make the trip there and back on a single tank of gas. On September 9, General Bulow learned of the approach of the British Expeditionary Force and ordered his 2nd Army to retreat. General Kluck and the German 1st Army had no choice but to follow, and by September 11 the retreat extended to all the German armies. The Germans retreated 40 miles north to the Lower Aisne River, where they dug trenches and succeeded in repelling successive attacks by the pursuing Allied forces. Both sides then tried and failed to outflank each other in the "Race to the Sea," in which trench networks were extended northwestward by both sides until they reached the Atlantic at a point inside Belgium. Because it defeated Germany's Schlieffen Plan and also ended Allied hopes for a quick end to the war, the First Battle of the Marne ranks as one of the most decisive battles in history. Around 100,000 soldiers were killed or wounded in its six days of heavy fighting, roughly an equal number on each side. By the end of 1914, well over a million soldiers of various nationalities had been killed on the battlefields of Europe, and neither for the Allies nor the Central Powers was victory in sight. On the western front-the battle line that stretched across northern France and Belgium-the combatants settled down in the trenches for a terrible four-year war of attrition. - (German Schlieffen Plan to end the war fails, trench warfare starts. 1914) - From this point on, German military leaders know they can not really win the war. This means that German leaders will keep wartime actions a secret from their people --> leads to Hitler stuff.

British Blockade of Germany

The British—with their overwhelming sea power—established a naval blockade of Germany immediately on the outbreak of war in August 1914, issuing a comprehensive list of contraband that all but prohibited American trade with the Central powers, and in early November 1914 declared the North Sea to be a War Zone, with any ships entering the North Sea doing so at their own risk.

Brusilov Offensive

Eastern Front. The Brusilov Offensive also known as the "June Advance", of June to September 1916 was the Russian Empire's greatest feat of arms during World War I, and among the most lethal offensives in world history. World War I 1916 Brusilov Offensive begins Share this: facebook twitter google+ PRINT CITE On this day in 1916, the Battle of Lutsk marks the beginning of the Brusilov Offensive, the largest and most successful Allied offensive of World War I. When the fortress city of Verdun, France, came under siege by the Germans in February 1916, the French pleaded with the other Allies, Britain and Russia, to mount offensives in other areas to force the diversion of German resources and attention from the struggle at Verdun. While the British plotted the offensive they would launch near the Somme River in early July, the first Russian response came more quickly—a failed offensive in March at Lake Narocz, in which Russian troops were slaughtered en masse by the Germans with no significant effect at Verdun. Still, the Russians plotted another diversionary attack in the northern region of the Eastern Front, near Vilna (now in Poland). While the Vilna offensive was being planned, General Alexei Brusilov—a 63-year-old former cavalryman and aristocrat given command of the Southwestern Army (the Russians divided their army into three major groups, Northern, Eastern and Southwestern) in March 1916—pressed his superiors at a meeting in April that he be allowed to attack as well, although no action was planned for the southwestern section of the front. At the very least, Brusilov reasoned, his attacks would draw troops away from the other area and ensure the success of their offensive in the north. Though he was given the go-ahead, the other Russian generals had little confidence in Brusilov's strategy. Brusilov's troops began their attacks on the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army at the city of Lutsk (now in Ukraine), on June 4, 1916, with an impressive bombardment from nearly 2,000 guns along a 200-mile-long front stretching from the Pripet marshes to the Bukovina region to the southwest, in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. Though the Austrian troops at Lutsk, led by the over-confident Archduke Josef Ferdinand, outnumbered the Russians—200,000 men against 150,000—the success of the barrage obliterated this advantage, along with the Austrian front line, as Brusilov's troops swept forward, taking 26,000 prisoners in one day. Within two days, the Russians had broken the 4th Army, advancing 75 kilometers along a 20-kilometer-long front, and effectively ending Josef Ferdinand's career. Some 130,000 casualties—plus the capture of over 200,000 prisoners—forced the Austrian commander, Conrad von Hotzendorff, to close down an offensive against Italy in the Trentino region to divert guns and divisions back east. On June 15, Conrad told his German counterpart, Erich von Falkenhayn, that they were facing the greatest crisis of the war so far—a fact that took Falkenhayn, who was optimistic about an imminent French surrender at Verdun, completely by surprise. Confronted with the Austrian panic against Russia, he was forced to release four German divisions from the west, a weakness that allowed a successful French counterattack at Verdun on June 23, just one day before the preliminary British artillery bombardment began at the Somme. Dubbed The Iron General and respected and beloved by his troops, Brusilov relied on absolute preparedness for battle and on the execution of even the most minute detail of his orders. The June 4 attacks began a string of crushing victories against the Austrian army across the southwestern portion of the Eastern Front, forcing Germany to abandon plans for their own 1916 offensive in France in order to bail out their hapless ally—even as they confronted a new British offensive at the Somme in July. By September, Russian resources had began to run out, however, and the Brusilov Offensive reached its limits; it was shut down on September 20, 1916, having cost the Austro-Hungarian army a staggering total of 1.5 million men (including 400,000 taken prisoner) and some 25,000 square kilometers of territory. Though turmoil and revolution shattered Russia in 1917, disintegrating its army and leading to its subsequent exit from the war—a fact that caused the success of the Brusilov Offensive to be largely forgotten—the offensive permanently secured more enemy territory than any other Allied offensive on either front. Moreover, a permanently debilitated Austria-Hungary never again played a significant role in the war. Its army was reduced to holding trenches against the weaker Italians, and Germany was left to fight virtually alone for the final two years of World War I.

Spring Offensive

The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht (Kaiser's Battle), also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during the First World War, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914. Quartermaster General Erich Ludendorff scheduled the beginning of Germany's great 1918 gamble for victory on the Western Front in World War I for the first day of spring, March 21. Success depended on delivering a knockout blow before the arrival of millions of Americans in the summer. The offensive, code-named Michael, struck the sector where British and French forces joined, and matched three fresh German armies against one overstretched British army and part of another. After an intensive and carefully phased bombardment, mixing high explosive and poison gas, elite storm troops went forward. Avoiding strongpoints, they headed for the rear, leaving the mopping up to the conventional infantry. A famously thick fog aided their progress. By the third day of the battle, the Germans had opened a fifty-mile-wide gap and were pouring into open country: Ludendorff had broken the long trench stalemate-but he had not severed the connection between the Allied armies. Now heavy losses and fatigue took their toll; hungry soldiers stopped to loot British supply dumps. After a forty-mile advance, Ludendorff's tactical masterpiece faded to strategic inconsequence. Meanwhile, on March 26, the desperate Allies agreed on a step they should have taken long before: putting their armies under a single commander, Ferdinand Foch. He would deftly coordinate a defense that, several times in that menacing spring, seemed on the verge of collapse. Three German "Paris guns" with a seventy-five-mile range bombarded the capital. Ludendorff launched five more offensives, all on the March 21 model: Arras (March 28), which failed; the Lys River in Flanders (April 9), which threatened to force the British back to the Channel ports; and the breakthrough at the Chemin des Dames (May 27), which reached the Marne, just forty-odd miles from Paris. Americans helped to stop Ludendorff's exhausted divisions at Belleau Wood and Ch[acir]teau-Thierry: he was clearly running out of time. His Oise attack (June 9) was a costly waste. Then, on July 15, Ludendorff made his final throw of the dice, seeking to pinch off Reims. This time the French turned his own defense-in-depth tactics against him, and his last offensive subsided in the chalky downlands of Champagne. Since March 21, Germany had suffered close to a million irreplaceable casualties-and the Americans were now arriving in France at the rate of 300,000 a month. For the Allies, it was the arithmetic of victory.

Austria-Hungary

It was a triple alliance. What were the reasons for the growing hostility between Austria-Hungary and Serbia? Nationalism caused Serbia to want to absorb all Slavs on the Balkan Peninsula. Russia supported this but Austria-Hungary felt that it would stir up rebellion among it's Slavic population. When Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbs pledged to take them back and Austria- Hungary vowed to crush any Serbians who do so. Then, when Archduke Ferdinand from Austria-Hungary was assassinated by Serbian men, they used it as an excuse to punish them. What geographic disadvantage did Germany and Austria-Hungary have in fighting the war? How might that have affected their war strategy? The two countries were stuck between France and Russia so they had to fight a two front war. On July 28, 1914, one month to the day after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were killed by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, effectively beginning the First World War. Threatened by Serbian ambition in the tumultuous Balkans region of Europe, Austria-Hungary determined that the proper response to the assassinations was to prepare for a possible military invasion of Serbia. After securing the unconditional support of its powerful ally, Germany, Austria-Hungary presented Serbia with a rigid ultimatum on July 23, 1914, demanding, among other things, that all anti-Austrian propaganda within Serbia be suppressed, and that Austria-Hungary be allowed to conduct its own investigation into the archduke's killing. Though Serbia effectively accepted all of Austria's demands except for one, the Austrian government broke diplomatic relations with the other country on July 25 and went ahead with military preparedness measures. Meanwhile, alerted to the impending crisis, Russia—Serbia's own mighty supporter in the Balkans—began its own initial steps towards military mobilization against Austria. In the days following the Austrian break in relations with Serbia, the rest of Europe, including Russia's allies, Britain and France, looked on with trepidation, fearing the imminent outbreak of a Balkans conflict that, if entered into by Russia, threatened to explode into a general European war. The British Foreign Office lobbied its counterparts in Berlin, Paris and Rome with the idea of an international convention aimed at moderating the conflict; the German government, however, was set against this notion, and advised Vienna to go ahead with its plans. On July 28, 1914, after a decision reached conclusively the day before in response to pressure from Germany for quick action—apart from Kaiser Wilhelm II, who by some accounts still saw the possibility of a peaceful diplomatic resolution to the conflict, but was outmaneuvered by the more hawkish military and governmental leadership of Germany—Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In response, Russia formally ordered mobilization in the four military districts facing Galicia, its common front with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. That night, Austrian artillery divisions initiated a brief, ineffectual bombardment of Belgrade across the Danube River.

Poison Gas

A gaseous substance, such as chlorine, phosgene, or lewisite, used in warfare to kill or harm. poison gas in Medicine. A gas or vapor used especially in chemical warfare to injure, disable, or kill upon inhalation or contact. The types of weapons employed ranged from disabling chemicals, such as tear gas, to lethal agents like phosgene, chlorine, and mustard gas. This chemical warfare was a major component of the first global war and first total war of the 20th century. On April 22, 1915, German forces shock Allied soldiers along the western front by firing more than 150 tons of lethal chlorine gas against two French colonial divisions at Ypres, Belgium. This was the first major gas attack by the Germans, and it devastated the Allied line. The most widely used, mustard gas, could kill by blistering the lungs and throat if inhaled in large quantities. Its effect on masked soldiers, however, was to produce terrible blisters all over the body as it soaked into their woolen uniforms. British casualties blinded by mustard gas in a gas attack. Chemical agents such as mustard gas became a way to break that uneasy deadlock. Germany's first attempt at chemical weapons came in 1915 at the battle of Ypres in Belgium, in the form of chlorine gas. Although Germany "seized the initiative repeatedly in the gas war," Spiers notes, by introducing the most prevalently used chemical weapons in WWI—namely chlorine, phosgene, and mustard gas—the Allies were often quick to catch up.

Austria's Ultimatum

- Serbia must fire any teacher or public official that is anti-Austria - Want Austrians in charge of Ferdinand's murder investigation - Shut down Anti-Austria newspapers Reaction to Austria's Ultimatum: - Russia offers unconditional support to Serbia if they reject ultimatum - Serbs reject, Austria declares war on Serbia Definition: Serbia initiates the death of Austrian archbishop --> Austria-Hungary gives Serbia ultimatum which makes demands to Serbian gov't --> orders to remove Bosnia from A-H, cut military in half, etc. --> Serbia doesn't agree Significance: A war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia starts; the Germans are happy and offer a blank check to cover all costs; Russia helps Serbia. Austria-Hungary sent Serbia an ultimatum after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Serbia declined the ultimatum and so Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Austria demanded Serbia to surrender its a story and allow Austria to take over the criminal investigation. Austria told serve you they have to obey these demands, basically telling them to surrender their country is payback for the crime. Serbia said no!

Blank Check

After the assassination of the Archduke, Germany tells A-H that they have a blank check, meaning A-H can declare war on Serbia and do anything they want with Germany's support. PROMISE of support from GERMANY to AUSTRIA-HUNGRAY after Ferdinand's assassination; Austria-Hungary sought reprisals against SERBIA. A promise of total support (money, men and military suuplies); Germany issued this to Austria after the assassination of the Archduke. Since Serbia was supported by Russia, A-H asked Germany for support against Russian intervention. Germany promised full support (did not want to loose A-H as an ally). Germany hoped that that a localized war with limited objective would maintain Austria-Hungary as a Great Power. Germany wanted to bring the Balkans into the A-H sphere of influence. - Germany gives Austria a "blank check" to go to war with Serbia and Serbia's ally Russia. (One of the reasons that Germany gets the blame for WWI.).

US Entry into the War

Americans before entry into WW1 Fact 17: On April 6, 1917 President Wilson declared war on Germany, two and a half years after the war had begun. America fought with the allies in WW1 until the war ended on 11 November 1918. On April 6, 1917, the U.S. joined its allies--Britain, France, and Russia--to fight in World War I. Under the command of Major General John J. Pershing, more than 2 million U.S. soldiers fought on battlefields in France. Many Americans were not in favor of the U.S. entering the war and wanted to remain neutral. U.S. Entry into World War I, 1917. ... Wilson cited Germany's violation of its pledge to suspend unrestricted submarine warfare in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean, as well as its attempts to entice Mexico into an alliance against the United States, as his reasons for declaring war. In 1917, Germany, determined to win its war of attrition against the Allies, announced the resumption of unrestricted warfare in war-zone waters. Three days later, the United States broke diplomatic relations with Germany, and just hours after that the American liner Housatonic was sunk by a German U-boat. March 1917, 35 Americans killed in 3 ship sinking accidents caused by the Germans. No immediate military or economic impact on the war because the Allies had already relied on American industry to provide them with resources for the war.

Alliances (A)

An agreement between 2 or more countries to help each other out in war. For twenty years, the nations of Europe had been making alliances. It was thought the alliances would promote peace. Each country would be protected by others in case of war, making it foolish for one country to wage war on another. The danger of these alliances was that an argument between two countries could draw all the other nations allied with them into a fight. This is just what happened when a conflict between Austria-Hungary and Serbia led to World War I. In the summer of 1914 there were two alliances. The Triple Alliance composed of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, stood opposed to the Triple Entente composed of Britain, France, and Russia. The late nineteenth century was an era of military competition, particularly between the major European powers. The policy of building a stronger military was judged relative to neighbors, creating a culture of paranoia that heightened the search for alliances. It was fed by the cultural belief that war is good for nations.A web of alliances developed in Europe between 1870 and 1914, effectively creating two camps bound by commitments to maintain sovereignty or intervene militarily - The Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. - The Triple Alliance of 1882 linked Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. - The Triple Entente of 1907 linked France, Britain and Russia. A historic point of conflict between Austria Hungary and Russia was over their incompatible Balkan interests, and France had a deep suspicion of Germany rooted in their defeat in the 1870 war. The alliance system primarily came about because after 1870 Germany, under Bismarck, set a precedent by playing its neighbors' imperial endeavors off one another, in order to maintain a balance of power within Europe.

Imperialism (I)

Any instance of aggressive extension of authority. Another cause of World War I was that European nations ruled smaller countries, called colonies, and competed with each other to amass more colonies. Gathering colonies is known as IMPERIALISM. The purpose of imperialism was and is to build up national wealth and influence by owning colonies. Both France and Britain had many colonies in Africa and Asia. In the 1880s and 1890s, Germany and Italy decided they wanted a colonial empire too. This global competition for land caused confrontations and conflicts in many places. For example, Great Britain almost went to war with France and the United States during the 1880s over colonies. Imperial Competition also pushed the countries towards adopting alliances. Colonies were units of exchange that could be bargained without significantly affecting the metro-pole. They also brought nations who would otherwise not interact into conflict and agreement. For example, the Russo-Japanese War (1905) over aspirations in China, helped bring the Triple Entente into being. It has been suggested that Germany was motivated by imperial ambitions to invade Belgium and France. Certainly the expansion of the British and French empires, fired by the rise of industrialism and the pursuit of new markets, caused some resentment in Germany, and the pursuit of a short, aborted imperial policy in the late nineteenth century. However the suggestion that Germany wanted to create a European empire in 1914 is not supported by the pre-war rhetoric and strategy.

Central Powers

Central Powers definition. Germany and its allies (Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire) in World War I. Defeat of the Central Powers WWI. World War One is between the Central Powers and the Allies. The Central Powers consist of Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire. Important allied powers are Serbia, Russia, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium and the United States. World War One is a conflict between the Central Powers and the Allies. The Central Powers (red) consist of Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire. Important allied powers (yellow) are Serbia, Russia, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium and the United States. The Allies included Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States. These countries fought against the Central Powers which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Archduke Ferdinand, of Austria-Hungary, was assassinated by a Serb on June 28, 1914. Allied powers. Allied powers, also called Allies, those countries allied in opposition to the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey) in World War I or to the Axis powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan) in World War II. Bulgaria was the first of the Central Powers to surrender, signing an armistice in Salonica on September 29, 1918. On October 7, Poland declared itself an independent state, which immediately sparked fighting between Poland and Ukraine over the possession of the border territory of East Galicia. The Central Powers lost World War I because of unrestricted submarine warfare and the Zimmerman telegram which caused the United States to enter the war. The Central Powers also had worse economies and armies than the Allies. The Central Powers were a group of nations fighting against the Allied Powers during World War I. The members included Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria and their territories.

Shell shock + No man's land

First World War > Trench Warfare > No Man's Land No Man's Land: No Man's Land is the term used by soldiers to describe the ground between the two opposing trenches. Its width along the Western Front could vary a great deal. The average distance in most sectors was about 250 yards (230 metres). However, at Guillemont it was only 50 yards (46 metres) whereas at Cambrai it was over 500 yards (460 metres). The narrowest gap was at Zonnebeke where British and German soldiers were only about seven yards apart. No Man's Land contained a considerable amount of barbed wire. In the areas most likely to be attacked, there were ten belts of barbed wire just before the front-line trenches. In some places the wire was more than a 100 feet (30 metres) deep. An aspect of trench life that caused anxiety for the soldiers was the land between the trenches that was referred to as "No Man's Land," the open space between two sets of opposing trenches. No soldier wanted to cross that space because it was likely the soldier [he] would be attacked by the enemy. No Man's Land was land that was unoccupied by either side because neither side could advance to claim it. During World War I, both sides used barbed wire to try to hold off infantry attacks and cavalry charges against men in the trenches. In "No-Man's Land" barbed wire was particularly hazardous. Front line soldiers would be ordered to advance across No Man's Land towards the enemy's front line trenches, even though they would be shelled, shot at with machine gun fire, and have to attempt crossing barbed wire defenses. Shell Shock: The World War I name for what is known today as post-traumatic stress, this is a psychological disorder that develops in some individuals who have had major traumatic experiences (and, for example, have been in a serious accident or through a war). In the early years of World War One, shell shock was believed to be the result of a physical injury to the nerves. In other words, shell shock was the result of being buried alive or exposed to heavy bombardment. The term itself had been coined, in 1917, by a medical officer called Charles Myers. The term "shell shock" was coined by the soldiers themselves. Symptoms included fatigue, tremor, confusion, nightmares and impaired sight and hearing. It was often diagnosed when a soldier was unable to function and no obvious cause could be identified.

France

French citizens wanted to free the border provinces of Alsace and Lorraine from German control. When Germany declared war on Russia, France came to her aid both because of the alliance they had and because France was protecting its own economic interests. It needed Russia to survive the war. After the Franco Prussian war, France lost Alsace to Germany. Then after France's victory in WWI, France gained back Alsace. As a result of Alsace being tossed back and fourth, they wanted their independent but were silenced by the power of dominant German and French Nationalist. When France regained Alsace after WWI, both France and Alsace believed they would control the relationship with each other. Alsatians agreed that they should have its own distinctive identity and not wholly adopt France's nationalistic core identity. France on the other hand wanted to use Alsace as an essential part of their on respective national core. The Alsatian Malaise is when all of Alsace apart from a minority protested the particular conditions of French Sovereignty. This was an attempt to gain an independent Alsatian identity. The Colmar Trial took independent Autonomist and charged them with treason against France. After the trial Alsatians accepted being part of France for a lack of better alternative. Alsatians found it convenient to ally themselves with whoever constituted lesser evils. After the Franco Prussian war, France started to make changes to the Alsatian culture. The first difference was that the French issued identity cards that distinguished Alsatian-French with half Alsatians, foreigners and Germans. The purpose of this was to purge the region of German influence. The second change was education. All students would be taught in French as the French thought this was the most efficient way to assimilate Alsatians fully into the French culture. The last change was the separation of Church and State. In Alsace, the state paid for the salaries of church officials and supported instruction in schools. The French wanted political assimilation for the Alsatians. The French wanted the Alsatians to incorporate their political beliefs. Another important thing was fascism and nationalism. They wanted to incorporate fascism because the French wanted to control the lives of all the people and their political beliefs. The French with nationalism wanted the Alsatians to be proud of their French culture. The first picture from the Archives was the Germans sweeping Alsace into France and the other picture was France sweeping all of the German influence, for example, swastikas, out of Alsace.

German support of Lenin

Germany devises a plan to eliminate the Russian threat once and for all. The Germans load a secrete weapon unto a heavily guarded train headed for Russia. It's a weapon that promises to destroy their enemies from the inside out. That weapon is Vladimir Lenin. Lenin is the leader of Russia's communist revolutionaries, hell bent on toppling the Russian Czar. For the past ten years he's been in exile in Switzerland ... until Germany sends him home on a train along with over ten million dollars to fund his revolution. The Germans decided that they would take this enormous gamble and bring Lenin back to Russia to bring about a Revolution to get Russia out of the war. That's about as radical a step as you can take.

Tanks

In World War 1 tanks first appeared at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette in September 1916. It was the first time tanks had ever been used in a military conflict. ... Tanks in WW1 played an extremely important role as they increased mobility on the Western Front and eventually broke the stalemate of trench warfare. Things like barbed wire and machines guns and trenches had turned warfare (from about the time of the US Civil War through WWI) into a process in which the defense had a huge advantage. Tanks changed that. They were able to drive over all sorts of terrain, including trenches and they were able to smash barbed wire. A tank is an armored fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat, with heavy firepower, strong armor, and tracks providing good battlefield maneuverability. ... In both offensive and defensive roles, they are powerful units that are capable of performing tasks which are required of armored units on the battlefield. Transcript of Tanks In World War 1. Tanks In WW1 Definition + How it works The army tank is an armored vehicle that is equipped with a cannon and sometimes machine guns or a flame thrower. It rides on caterpillar tracks making it a road mobile beast holding side mounted cannons and a machine gun armament.

Trenches

On the Western Front, the war was fought in trenches. Trenches were long, narrow ditches dug into the ground where soldiers lived all day and night. Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied fighting lines consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are significantly protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. "In the trenches" is a common English expression. Originally this was used literally to refer to soldiers engaged in Trench warfare, however it is now commonly used to refer to somebody engaged in a long, difficult, and unrewarding task. In winter, trenches flooded, and sometimes froze. As a result of wet conditions and poor hygiene, some soldiers suffered from "trench foot". Front line soldiers could be expected to advance across no man's land towards the enemy frontline trenches, in the face of shelling, machine gun fire and barbed wire defenses. A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole). ... Trenches have also often been dug for military defensive purposes. a long, narrow excavation in the ground, the earth from which is thrown up in front to serve as a shelter from enemy fire or attack. 2. Trenches, a system of such excavations, with their embankments, etc. 3. A deep furrow, ditch, or cut.

Moroccan Incident (An example of how Imperialism is helping to start WWI)

On this day in 1905, Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany arrives in Tangiers to declare his support for the sultan of Morocco, provoking the anger of France and Britain in what will become known as the First Moroccan Crisis, a foreshadowing of the greater conflict between Europe's great nations still to come, the First World War. The kaiser did not have any substantive interest in Morocco; neither did the German government. The central purpose of his appearance was to disrupt the Anglo-French Entente, formed in April 1904. The Entente Cordiale, as it was known, was originally intended not as an alliance against Germany but as a settlement of long-standing imperialist rivalries between Britain and France in North Africa. By its terms, Britain could pursue its interests in Egypt, while France was free to expand westward from Algeria into Morocco, the last territory that remained independent in the region. France subsequently signed an agreement with Spain dividing Morocco into spheres of influence, with France receiving the greater part. Angered by its exclusion from the decisions made about North Africa, Germany believed that the Anglo-French Entente went a long way towards the creation of a new diplomatic balance in Europe itself. An international convention had guaranteed the independence of Morocco in 1880; Germany now saw that the friendship between two of Europe's most powerful nations threatened to override this, and thus also posed a challenge to Germany's own influence in Europe and the world. With much pomp and circumstance, Wilhelm—whose ship had faced gale-force winds on its passage to North Africa—arrived in Tangiers on March 31, 1905. In what would be known as the open door speech, he announced that he looked upon the sultan of Morocco as the ruler of a free and independent empire subject to no foreign control and that he himself would always negotiate with the sultan. He also stated that he expected Germany to have advantages in trade and commerce with Morocco equal to that of other countries. Wilhelm's sensational appearance marked an aggressive departure from the German foreign policy under the legendary Otto von Bismarck, who as chancellor had united the German empire in 1871 and had advocated conciliatory gestures towards France and other European rivals as a key part of German foreign policy. Although Germany had intended aggressive action in Morocco to place a wedge between France and Britain, it in fact had the opposite effect, strengthening the bond between the two countries due to their mutual suspicion of Germany. What began as mere friendship turned, after the First Moroccan Crisis, into a type of informal military alliance, including conversations between the British and French governments and military staffs and later, a mutual defense agreement with a third country, Russia. In the wake of the kaiser's appearance, an international conference convened in Algeciras, Spain, in January 1906 to conclude an agreement about Morocco. The resulting convention awarded France a controlling interest in Moroccan affairs, but guaranteed equality of trade and economic freedom for every nation and limited any colonial action by any nation without consultation with the other signatories. A Second Moroccan Crisis flared in April 1911, when the French pushed troops into the country, claiming to be defending the sultan against riots that had erupted in Fez but actually violating the terms of the Algeciras convention. In response, Germany sent its own warship, the Panther, which arrived in the port of Agadir on May 21, intensifying the enmity between the two nations and, by extension, their allies. Slightly more than two years before the outbreak of World War I, then, the two Moroccan crises left no doubt that the traditional power balance in Europe had shifted into large blocs of power, with Germany relatively isolated on one side—enjoying only lukewarm support from Austria-Hungary and Italy—and Britain, France, and Russia on the other.

Eastern Front: Ottoman Empire

Ottomans on the Eastern European Front. Over 90,000 Ottoman troops were sent to the Eastern European Front in 1916, to participate in operations in Romania in the Balkans Campaign. The Central Powers asked for these units to support their operations against the Russian army. A secret treaty was concluded between the Ottoman Empire and the German Empire on August 2, 1914. The Ottoman Empire was to enter the war on the side of the Central Powers one day after the German Empire declared war on Russia. ... Not all parts of the Ottoman government accepted the Alliance. The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers to form the Triple Alliance with the signing of the August 1914 Turco-German Alliance. Turkey formally entered World War I on 28 October 1914 with the bombing of Russian Black Sea ports. The Triple Entente, or Allied Powers, declared war on the Ottoman Empire on November 4. On 2 November, Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. France and the British Empire, Russia's wartime allies, followed suit on the 5th. Enver Pasha had succeeded in bringing the Ottoman Empire into the First World War on the side of the Central Powers, Germany and Austria-Hungary. The armistice of 31 October 1918 ended the fighting between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies but did not bring stability or peace to the region.

Two and a Half rule

Planning for War: - The standing armies of France and Germany doubled in size between 1870 and 1914. Great Britain had a policy of maintaining a navy two and a half times as large as any rival. Germany's naval expansion sparked a naval arms race. - Map of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1914 Map of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1914 Europe narrowly avoided war in 1908. Austria-Hungary annexed the former Ottoman province of Bosnia, thwarting Serbia in the process. In response, Serbia began to mobilise its army (with the support of Russia). When Germany threatened war in defence of its Austrian ally, Russia and Serbia backed down. - These tensions prompted many nations to make detailed plans for military mobilisation. For Germany, any plan had to consider the possibility of a war on two fronts, so its scheme involved crushing one rival quickly. Once begun, mobilisation would be difficult if not impossible to reverse. This was illustrated by Germany's von Schlieffen Plan, developed in 1905. Based on the need to defeat France before Russia had time to react, German forces would invade France through Belgium to avoid the French border defences. Belgium posed no serious military threat to this plan, although Britain had formally guaranteed its neutrality since 1839. Germany felt that ultimately Britain would not risk war to save Belgium.

Black Hand + Gavrilo Princip

Princip was one of three men sent by Dragutin Dimitrijevic, the chief of the Intelligence Department in the Serbian Army and head of the Black Hand, to assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, during his visit to Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. Black Hand: A Serbian terrorist organization dedicated to the creation of a pan-Slavic kingdom. Responsible for the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand. Serbian nationalist/terrorist group responsible for the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand which resulted in the start of World War I. Who: A Serbian nationalist group, viewed by Austria-Hungary as a terrorist group, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. What: Well, one of their men shot Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and let me tell you, Austria-Hungary was not too happy about that When: June 28, 1914 Where: Sarajevo, Bosnia Why: Well, see the Black Hand supported Pan-Slavism, which means that they had to take Bosnia from A-H to unify the Slavic nation, but Ferdinand was cool with Bosnia having semi-autonomy, which meant that Slavs in Bosnia would be less likely to want to separate from A-H. And what was the solution to that? Shoot him. Gavrilo Princip: Member of a terrorist organization called The Black Hand. Helped to end the optimistic Progressive era in America. Murdered Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife. Wanted to set Bosnia and Herzegovina free from Austria-Hungary. The assassin of Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria, a member of the Black Hand. Definition: A Serbian Man Significance: Gavrilo Princip is Significant because he assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand during his visit to Sarajevo. This assassination is the spark that ignited " The Powder Keg " of Europe. Shortly after the Archduke was assassinated, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia which is where Princip from.

Eastern Front: Sykes Picot, etc.

The Sykes-Picot Agreement, officially known as the Asia Minor Agreement, was a secret 1916 agreement between the United Kingdom and France, to which the Russian Empire assented. The agreement defined their mutually agreed spheres of influence and control in Southwestern Asia. Sykes-Picot Agreement, also called Asia Minor Agreement, (May 1916), secret convention made during World War I between Great Britain and France, with the assent of imperial Russia, for the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. The agreement defined their mutually agreed spheres of influence and control in Southwestern Asia.

Riots in Germany/Spartacist Rebellion

Riots in Germany: On a different occasion, navel command in Kiel under Admirals Franz von Hipper and Reinhard Scheer engaged the British Royal Navy, without authorization from the German high command. This mutiny was strong enough to cause revolts and riots all throughout Germany demanding that the monarchy is destroyed. Sailors and citizens of the German Empire called for action against the monarchy because of the loss of the war. By November 4th, 1918, the acts of the Kiel Mutiny spread throughout Germany. By November 7th, 1918 major coastal and port cities such as Munich, Hanover, Brunswick and Frankfurt-am-Main, were seized. "Now word came in that Dusseldorf, Frankfurt-am-Main, Stuttgart, Leipzig and Magdeburg had all come under the control of quasi-revolutionary regimes; the imperial flag had been pulled down in those cities and the red flag hoisted." All throughout Germany, riots and red flags were being raised. Those who opposed the revolutionaries were unarmed and seized under control by detainment. The Spartacus League, named after the ancient Thracian Rebel Spartacus who led the largest slave revolt of the era of the Roman Republic, and after the Russian Revolution of 1917, they started to think the correct course of action was to follow the Bolsheviks. The leaders and most prominent members of the Spartacus League were Karl Liebknecht, Rosa Luxemburg and Clara Zetkin. When the riots and mutinies occurred, the Spartacus League, along with the USPD, launched what was called the Spartacus Uprising. In January of 1919, the Spartacus Uprising was a power (political) struggle between Karl Liebknecht and his Spartacists against the SPD and Chancellor Friedrich Ebert. This was the political power struggle and while the two groups were fighting, unrest stood with the population of the German Empire. Spartacist Rebellion: The man and woman in question were Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg and together they had led the Spartacist Uprising, an attempt to overthrow the post-war government and begin a socialist revolution in Germany. Their uprising ended with their murder, and begs a number of questions. The man and woman in question were Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg and together they had led the Spartacist Uprising, an attempt to overthrow the post-war government and begin a socialist revolution in Germany. Their uprising ended with their murder, and begs a number of questions. - German soldiers were refusing to fight and starting to form their own governments (usually democracies, but some Communist movements).

Storm-troopers

Stormtroopers were specialist soldiers of the German Army in World War I. In the last years of the war, Stoßtruppen ("shock troops" or "thrust troops") were trained to fight with "infiltration tactics", part of the Germans' new method of attack on enemy trenches. Unlike their predecessors, the majority of stormtroopers were non-clone recruits. Imperial cadets were shipped off to Imperial Academies, and subjected to rigorous training programs in order to produce highly trained shock troopers fiercely loyal to the Empire.

Allies

The Allies included Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States. These countries fought against the Central Powers which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Archduke Ferdinand, of Austria-Hungary, was assassinated by a Serb on June 28, 1914. In World War II the chief Allied powers were Great Britain, France (except during the German occupation, 1940-44), the Soviet Union (after its entry in June 1941), the United States (after its entry on December 8, 1941), and China. The Powers known as the Allies in World War I were predominantly: Great Britain, France, Russia and Italy. Italy initially had a treaty with Germany, but recanted and secretly allied with the Allied Powers.

Schlieffen Plan

The Creation of: The Schlieffen Plan was the German army's plan for war against France and Russia . It was created by the German Chief of Staff Alfred von Schlieffen in 1903 the request of Kaiser Wilhelm II. It was revised in 1905. Count on Schlieffen drew up the Schlieffen Plan in 1905 when he was German Chief of Staff. In a general European war, Germany would face France in the west and Russia in the east, and would need to defeat France within six weeks before Russia mobilised her troops. The Schlieffen Plan was the operational plan for a designated attack on France once Russia, in response to international tension, had started to mobilise her forces near the German border. The execution of the Schlieffen Plan led to Britain declaring war on Germany on August 4th, 1914. The Schlieffen Plan involved invading France first, taking Paris, and then sending all forces to Russia after forcing a French surrender. The Schlieffen Plan proved to be a failure early on because German forces could not hold off Russian forces in the East while fighting towards Paris in the West. The Germans then considered the Schlieffen plan a top priority. The Schlieffen plan was made in 1905 by German army general Alfred Von Schlieffen. It was made for the purpose of avoiding a war on two fronts, one against Russia on the east, and the other against France on the west.

Porters

The East Africa campaign was the opposite of the European war of trenches: it was about mobility, short raids and long treks on foot. The German Schutztruppe, white German commanders and black African soldiers called askaris, never exceeded 25,000 men. The British however assembled 150,000 troops: South Africans and Indians at first, joined by Kenyans and Nigerians later on. But none of these soldiers would ever have survived, let alone be able to fight, without the unmentioned exploitation of porters. For every one soldier, German and British troops used four "native carriers," including women and children, who howled food supplies, arms and even artillery; cooked, scrubbed and tended to their needs; and died of exhaustion, malnutrition and disease. Of the 105,000 deaths among British forces during the East Africa campaign, 90% were porters. 45,000 among the dead were from British East Africa (Kenya) alone. Percent wise African Porters died more frequently than the actual soldiers fighting.

Surrender of Germany

The First World War ended when an armistice was signed between the Germans and the Allies. At that point, while Germany had no realistic hopes of winning the war, they had no enemies within their borders and still had troops in enemy territory. The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was an armistice during the First World War between the Allies and Germany - also known as the Armistice of Compiègne after the location in which it was signed - and the agreement that ended the fighting on the Western Front. By the spring of 1945, the Soviets were approaching the German capital of Berlin from the east and the Western Allies were approaching it from the west. Knowing that defeat was imminent, Hitler committed suicide, leaving Karl Dönitz to carry out the surrender of the Nazis. German troops charging confidently into battle in 1914. So, Germany lost WW1 because the French army was able to escape the trap set for them by the Schlieffen Plan, redeploy their forces to the Marne, and halt the German advance in September 1914. After that failed, the odds were always going to be against Germany. On May 7, 1945, Germany officially surrendered to the Allies, bringing an end to the European conflict in World War II. General Alfred Jodl, representing the German High Command, signed the unconditional surrender of both east and west forces in Reims, France, which would take effect the following day.

Indian Corps

The I Indian Corps was an army corps of the British Indian Army in the Great War. It was formed at the outbreak of war under the title Indian Corps from troops sent to the Western Front. The British Indian Army did not have a pre-war corps structure, and it held this title until further corps were created. Over one million Indian troops served overseas, of whom 62,000 died and another 67,000 were wounded. In total at least 74,187 Indian soldiers died during the war. In World War I the Indian Army fought against the German Empire in German East Africa and on the Western Front.

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers to form the Triple Alliance with the signing of the August 1914 Turco-German Alliance. Turkey formally entered World War I on 28 October 1914 with the bombing of Russian Black Sea ports. The Triple Entente, or Allied Powers, declared war on the Ottoman Empire on November 4. On 2 November, Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. France and the British Empire, Russia's wartime allies, followed suit on the 5th. Enver Pasha had succeeded in bringing the Ottoman Empire into the First World War on the side of the Central Powers, Germany and Austria-Hungary. A secret treaty was concluded between the Ottoman Empire and the German Empire on August 2, 1914. The Ottoman Empire was to enter the war on the side of the Central Powers one day after the German Empire declared war on Russia. ... The Sultan himself had wanted the Empire to remain neutral.

Zimmerman Note

The Zimmermann Telegram (or Zimmermann Note or Zimmerman Cable) was a secret diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office in January 1917 that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico in the prior event of the United States entering World War I against Germany. On this day in 1917, the text of the so-called Zimmermann Telegram, a message from the German foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, to the German ambassador to Mexico proposing a Mexican-German alliance in the case of war between the United States and Germany, is published on the front pages of newspapers across America. The Zimmermann Note, or telegram, was sent by German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann in 1917. He had sent it to his ambassador in Mexico and the goal was to get Mexico to become an ally of Germany. He offered a great deal of financial support along with Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico if they won the war. In January of 1917, British cryptographers deciphered a telegram from German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German Minister to Mexico, von Eckhardt, offering United States territory to Mexico in return for joining the German cause. ... The American press published news of the telegram on March. The Zimmermann Telegram (or Zimmermann Note or Zimmerman Cable) was a secret diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office in January 1917 that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico in the prior event of the United States entering World War I against Germany.

Militarism (M)

The belief that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests. 'the need for liberal democratic reforms to avoid a revival of militarism. A political orientation of a people or a government to maintain a strong military force and to be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests. It was one of the four major causes of the war. It was an "arms race." Because Britain had a large navy, Germany wanted a large navy too. Germany and France competed to build larger armies. Many nations introduced "universal conscription" (the draft), even in times of peace. For reasons of prestige and self-defense, the more one nation built up its army and navy, the more other nations felt they had to do the same. The expense of the "arms race" fell on civilian populations in the form of high taxes. Between 1870 and 1914, all of the major powers except Great Britain and the United States, doubled the size of their armies.

Nationalism (N)

The doctrine that your national culture and interests are superior to any other. In addition to political conflicts, the causes of the war included such forces as nationalism, or pride in one's country. The belief that one's own nation or culture is superior to all others, nationalism led European nations to compete to build the largest army and navy. It also gave groups of subject peoples the idea of forming independent nations of their own. Serbians, Czechs, Slovaks, Bosnians and many other peoples living under the rule of the Ottoman or Austro-Hungarian Empires wanted freedom from "foreign" rule. Nationalism was also a new and powerful source of tension in Europe. It was tied to militarism, and clashed with the interests of the imperial powers in Europe. Nationalism created new areas of interest over which nations could compete. For example, The Habsburg empire was tottering agglomeration of 11 different nationalities, with large slavic populations in Galicia and the Balkans whose nationalist aspirations ran counter to imperial cohesion. Nationalism in the Balkan's also piqued Russia's historic interest in the region. Indeed, Serbian nationalism created the trigger cause of the conflict - the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne - Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Germany

The first country to declare war in WWI was Austria-Hungary. That country issued an ultimatum to Serbia after the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand. When Serbia rejected the ultimatum, Austria-Hungary declared war on July 28. Austria-Hungary was an ally of Germany. The Schlieffen Plan was therefore set. The German army would quickly pass through Belgium and then fight and defeat France before turning its attention to Russia. The Unexpected Beginning of War: Schlieffen advised the Kaiser that his plan be implemented by 1916. Russia, not Germany, mobilised first. The resulting war, with France and Britain backing Serbia and Russia against two Central Powers, was Russia's desired outcome, not Germany's. Still, none of the powers can escape blame. All five Great Power belligerents, along with Serbia, unleashed Armageddon. Decade long tensions in Europe over the arms race, political alliances, and a growing sense of nationalism all came to a head when the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in Sarajevo in June 1914 by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. The Schlieffen Plan was created by General Count Alfred von Schlieffen in December 1905. The Schlieffen Plan was the operational plan for a designated attack on France once Russia, in response to international tension, had started to mobilise her forces near the German border. To What Extent Was Germany Responsible Wwi History Essay. Germany was significantly responsible for the outbreak of World War One in 1914. It began in 1870, where France declared war on Prussia, unifying Germany, which led to the events that provoked the First World War. The Allies included Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States. These countries fought against the Central Powers which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Archduke Ferdinand, of Austria-Hungary, was assassinated by a Serb on June 28, 1914. So, Germany lost WW1 because the French army was able to escape the trap set for them by the Schlieffen Plan, redeploy their forces to the Marne, and halt the German advance in September 1914. After that failed, the odds were always going to be against Germany. Still, German defeat was not assured.

Total War + Civilians in Wartime

Total War: Total war, military conflict in which the contenders are willing to make any sacrifice in lives and other resources to obtain a complete victory, as distinguished from limited war. Throughout history, limitations on the scope of warfare have been more economic and social than political. Total War is when the entire resources and population are mobilized towards the war effort, which takes priority over everything else.Further, Total War also involves prosecuting the war against the entire population of the enemy, not just against its military. ... Conscription into the military for all countries involved. Total war is the idea that the enemy can best be defeated by attacking everything: soldiers, citizens, food, supplies, and more. ... The warfare conducted by ancient civilizations, such as Persia or Rome, and the modern warfare conducted by the Nazis during World War II are both good examples of total warfare. The American-English Dictionary defines total war as "war that is unrestricted in terms of the weapons used, the territory or combatants involved, or the objectives pursued, especially one in which the laws of war are disregarded." In the mid-19th century, scholars identified "total war" as a separate class of warfare. Civilians in Wartime: The term "civilian" is slightly different from a non-combatant under the laws of war, as some non-combatants are not civilians (for example, military chaplains attached to the belligerent armed forces or neutral military personnel). Civil War battles were not reserved to battlefields and soldiers. ... Sometimes, the battlefield even touched the home front when armies clashed in Northern territory and Confederate raids struck the heart of the Union. Indeed, the Civil War had a marked effect on Northern civilians. Civilians did things such as mend clothing for soldiers, make ammunition from household silver, and many women followed their husbands to the battlefield where they washed, mended, and cooked for troops.

Britain

Transcript of Great Britain's involvement in WW1. Britain and Belgium had a treaty to support each other if they were attacked. in 1914, Germany attacked France by moving through Belgium. Britain told Germany to retreat. Belgium's ports were close to the British coast and German control of Belgium would have been seen as a serious threat to Britain. In the end, Britain refused to ignore the events of 4 August 1914, when Germany attacked France through Belgium. Within hours, Britain declared war on Germany. 1939: Britain and France declare war on Germany. Britain and France are at war with Germany following the invasion of Poland two days ago. At 1115 BST the Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, announced the British deadline for the withdrawal of German troops from Poland had expired.

Living conditions in trenches?

Trenches were long, narrow ditches dug into the ground where soldiers lived all day and night. What was it like in a World War One trench? There were many lines of German trenches on one side and many lines of Allied trenches on the other. In the middle, was no man's land, so-called because it did not belong to either army. Soldiers crossed No Man's Land when they wanted to attack the other side. Rest Soldiers in the trenches did not get much sleep. When they did, it was in the afternoon during daylight and at night only for an hour at a time. They were woken up at different times, either to complete one of their daily chores or to fight. During rest time, they wrote letters and sometimes played card games. Dirty trenches The trenches could be very muddy and smelly. There were many dead bodies buried nearby and the latrines (toilets) sometimes overflowed into the trenches. Millions of rats infested the trenches and some grew as big as cats. There was also a big problem with lice that tormented the soldiers on a daily basis.

"Unrestricted Submarine Warfare"

Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink vessels such as freighters and tankers without warning, as opposed to attacks per prize rules (also known as "cruiser rules"). Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink vessels such as freighters and tankers without warning, as opposed to attacks per prize rules (also known as "cruiser rules"). During WWI, German military had adopted a policy called "unrestricted submarine warfare". ... The prewar submarines, and submarines for war in general were built to attack enemy ships. Submarines changed the war because it was easier to attack enemies from under the water. As a result, Germany sank British ships. Despite this, the political situation demanded even greater pressure, and on 31 January 1917, Germany announced that its U-boats would engage in unrestricted submarine warfare beginning 1 February. On 17 March, German submarines sank three American merchant vessels, and the U.S. declared war on Germany in April 1917. A German U-boat had sunk the British passenger ship the Lusitania at great loss of life. Unrestricted submarine warfare was suspended following public outcry in the US, but was reinstated in 1917. This eventually led to the American declaration of war on Germany. He believed that the sinking of a few neutral merchant ships at the start of a campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare would be enough to scare off most ships from trading with Britain. ... On February 18th, 1915, Germany announced that it would start a commerce war against those nations trading with Britain. Unrestricted submarine warfare was first introduced in World War I in early 1915, when Germany declared the area around the British Isles a war zone, in which all merchant ships, including those from neutral countries, would be attacked by the German navy.

Why trench warfare?

War from inside trenches enemies would try killing each other with machine guns and tanks, and poison gas. Trench warfare 'works'* by offering soldiers a contiguous shelter from the storm of rifle, machine gun and artillery fires. ... Each trench started out as individual or paired soldier fighting pits. Troops dig at night until the basic trench line gets dug, and then can continue digging during the day. No Man's Land was a place both armies would used to patrol, repair or add barbed wire to their front lines. Trench warfare had a massive impact on soldiers as it caused huge amounts of casualties on the battlefield and also caused health problems of the battlefield. Trenches were infested with rats and lice. "Trench warfare was the dominant feature of WWI." ... As no one expected the war to last as long as it did, the first trenches were hurriedly made. They were holes dug by soldiers to protect themselves from the enemy. With modern weapons, even a shallow hole could sufficiently protect soldiers from the enemy. Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied fighting lines consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are significantly protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. Trenches were also infested with rats and lice, this caused diseases to spread extremely quickly and things like the common cold could quickly turn into a major problem. Mustard gas was used to break the deadlock between two forces throughout trench warfare and it had some devastating effects.

Propaganda/How the war was sold to soldiers and civilians

World War I was the first war in which mass media and propaganda played a significant role in keeping the people at home informed about what was occurring on the battlefields.[1] This was also the first war in which the government systematically produced propaganda as a way to target the public and alter their opinion.World War I propaganda stamp. External propaganda to other countries was an integral part of the Diplomatic history of World War I and were designed to build support for the cause, or to undermine support for the enemy. Many different types of propaganda were used in World War I successfully since people only received the information that the government wanted them to know. It twisted the truth and allowed for governmental control of people's thoughts and viewpoints towards the war. Usually, people supported the war because propaganda allowed them to believe that war was worth fighting for. Some examples include: convincing people to go to war, unification of the nation, conserving food, buying bonds, and more. Good examples of literary propaganda would be: countries fabricating the total number of deaths, only choosing to report information that is beneficial to them, and even eliminating information completely, all done in order to give the allusion that fighting the war is beneficial when in actuality, it is not. They even used music and postcards to get ideas through towards everyone, as music is universal, and also an important part of the family during that time. Additionally, countries constantly used posters to show superiority against other countries. Some posters even called for people's help based on ties they had with another country. They were also used to get people to enlist in combat. Some posters depicted how everyone was a part of the war, how everyone had a responsibility as they called for male and female soldiers, female workers, families to save food so the armies can have food, which is using people's emotions as the posters stir up feelings of nationalism. The average person has definitely seen the poster of Uncle Sam stating he needs you to join the army and also the poster of a woman revealing her biceps stating we can do it. Propaganda attacked the emotional parts of human beings as women, children, dogs, etc. were used to stir up emotions.

Russia

World War One was to have a devastating impact on Russia. When World War One started in August 1914, Russia responded by patriotically rallying around Nicholas II. ... By the end of 1917, the Bolsheviks led by Lenin had taken power in the major cities of Russia and introduced communist rule in those areas it controlled. WWI -- Russia. Russia entered the first world war with the largest army in the world, standing at 1,400,000 soldiers; when fully mobilized the Russian army expanded to over 5,000,000 soldiers (though at the outset of war Russia could not arm all its soldiers, having a supply of 4.6 million rifles). Russia leaves the war. In March 1917 riots broke loose in Russia. ... Lenin wanted to concentrate on building up a communist state and wanted to pull Russia out of the war. He accomplished this by agreeing to the Treaty of Brest-Litvosk with Germany on March 3, 1918. The Allies included Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States. These countries fought against the Central Powers which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Archduke Ferdinand, of Austria-Hungary, was assassinated by a Serb on June 28, 1914. The first country to declare war in WWI was Austria-Hungary. That country issued an ultimatum to Serbia after the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand. When Serbia rejected the ultimatum, Austria-Hungary declared war on July 28. Austria-Hungary was an ally of Germany. By November 1917, significant portions of the Russian Army had laid down their arms, although some factions continued to fight. After months of negotiations, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk officially ended Russia's involvement in World War I. War and Revolution in Russia 1914 - 1921. Russia signalled her withdrawal from World War One soon after the October Revolution of 1917, and the country turned in on itself with a bloody civil war between the Bolsheviks and the conservative White Guard.