Instructions

Anything written in yellow (SLOW down and pay attention) is useful information. You

should write it in your notes IN YOUR OWN WORDS.

Anything in red (STOP and pay close attention) is critical information and should be copied

exactly.

Anything in green (GO on to the next point) you do not have to write.

Questions

1. What is nationalism?

2. Why did Austria-Hungrey declare war on Serbia?

3. Who was the president during World War 1?

4. Why were the countries of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania able to gain independence?

World War IThe Big Idea

World War I and the peace treaty that followed brought tremendous change to Europe.

Main Ideas• Rivalries in Europe led to the outbreak of World

War I.• After a long, devastating war, the Allies claimed

victory.• The war’s end brought great political and

territorial changes to Europe.

Main Idea 1:Rivalries in Europe led to the outbreak

of World War ICauses of World War I

Nationalism, or devotion and loyalty to a country, increased in the 1800s. People across Europe wanted their countries to become large and powerful.

As countries grew more powerful, rivalries began. Some countries were willing to go to war to prove their superiority over their rivals.

Some countries strengthened their armies and created stockpiles of new weapons to prove their strength.

Countries also began to form alliances, or agreements to protect each other, for added protection from their enemies.

The Spark for WarA series of events in 1914 led to the outbreak of World War I:

• Tensions rose between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, both of which wanted the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

• On June 28 a Serbian assassin shot and killed Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary.

• Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.• Serbia turned to its ally, Russia for help.

Serbia’s other allies, Great Britain and France, also joined the war. They were called the Allied Powers.

• Germany joined the war on Austria-Hungary’s side. Together they were known as the Central Powers.

Main Idea 2:After a long, devastating war,

the Allies claimed victory.

The War Begins

• Germany sent troops into Belgium and France. The Allies stopped them outside Paris.

• Russia attacked the Central Powers from the east, forcing them to fight on two fronts.

Trench Warfare

• Both sides dug deep ditches along the font lines.

• Trench warfare was dangerous, both from fighting and from hunger and disease as well. Millions of soldiers died, and neither side gained an advantage.

• New weapons, such as machine guns, poison gas, and tanks, were created to fight soldiers in trenches.

The War at Sea

• The British navy blocked supplies from reaching Germany.

• German U-boats attacked British ships.

The Allies Win

For three years the war was a stalemate. In 1917, however, it began to turn in favor of the Allies:

The Allies Win

• German U-boats began to attack American ships. The United States warned Germany to stop, but these warnings were ignored.

The Allies Win

• As a result the United States joined the Allied Forces.

The Allies Win

• Newly arrived American troops gave the Allies an advantage, though the Russians soon dropped out of the war.

The Allies Win

• Germany renewed its attack on the Allies, but that attack was stopped.

The Allies Win

• The Central Powers surrendered in the fall of 1918.

Main Idea 3:The war’s end brought great political and

territorial changes to Europe.

Effects of World War I• More than 8.5 million soldiers killed• 20 million more soldiers wounded

• Leaders of the Allied countries met at Versailles in France to discuss the terms for peace after the war. Their decisions were recorded in the Treaty of Versailles.

According to the treaty, Germany had to:

–Accept blame for starting the war

–Reduce the size of its army and give up its overseas colonies

–Pay billions of dollars for damages caused during the war

• Germans faced high rates of unemployment and runaway inflation.

• It took 2 marks to equal just one dollar.

• These economic woes paved the way for a new leader about a decade later named Adolf Hitler.

Political Changes After World War I

Political Changes After World War I

Russia• World War I caused great

hardship for people.

• During the war a revolution forced the czar, or emperor, out of power.

• Vladimir Lenin took over Russia’s government and established Communism in Russia.

• Communism is a political system in which the government owns all property and controls all aspects of life.

Europe• The German Empire was

replaced by a German republic.

• Austria and Hungary became separate countries.

• Poland and Czechoslovakia gained independence.

• Yugoslavia was created.

• Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania became independent.