the great war chapter 20. queen victoria 1837-1901
TRANSCRIPT
The Great WarChapter 20
Queen Victoria 1837-1901
Her descendants ruled Europe
Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany was her grandson.
Her descendants ruled Europe
King George V of England was her grandson.
Her descendants ruled Europe
Czar Nicholas of Russia was her grandson-in-law (married to her granddaughter Alexandra)
Her descendants ruled Europe
Another granddaughter became Queen of Romania.
A great-granddaughter became Queen of Yugoslavia.
Another great-granddaughter became Queen of Greece.
Her great-great grandson is the present day King of Spain.
Her great granddaughter is the present day Queen of England.
The “Progressive Era”
People believed that the world was getting better through science and the power of mankind.
Rise of industrialism◦Higher standard of living◦Diseases eradicated◦Efforts at international peace & cooperation
Some International Peace Efforts◦Red Cross◦International Telegraph Union◦Universal Postal Union◦Standard system of weights & measures◦Pan American Union◦Revival of the Olympic Games 1896◦Nobel Peace Prize◦Carnegie’s Peace Palace @ The Hague
Reasons to Fear War (James 4:1)
◦Extreme Nationalism – others inferior
◦Militarism – glorified war, national glory
◦Imperialism – competition for colonies
◦Rival Alliances – defense pacts
Steps Toward War
Bismarck – helped to unify Germany (1870).
Keep France from rising after defeat in Franco-Prussian War
Several alliances formed and reshaped between 1873 and 1877.
Germany & Austria-Hungary
Steps Toward War
Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany – proud, arrogant
Forced Bismarck to resign as chancellorHeightened Europe’s tensions
Steps Toward War
Kaiser Wilhelm’s mistakes:◦1. Allowed the reinsurance Treaty with Russia to
expire, leading to an alliance between Russia and France.
◦2. Antagonize Britain by threatening her naval domination, interfering with her colonies in Africa.
◦This antagonism led to a British-French alliance called the Entente Cordiale.
◦The Russia joined them to form the Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia)
The Powder Keg of Europe
German attempts to control MoroccoBalkans independent of Turkey but fought
each otherAustria-Hungary didn’t like the instability
on her border and actually wanted possession of the Balkans.
Russia intervened to protect their “slavic” brothers the Balkans.
The Catalyst: Assassination
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Duchess Sophie of Austria by a Serbian nationalist on June 28, 1914 was the spark that started The Great War.
Archduke Franz Ferdinand & Sophie
The Result
10,000,000 killed.6,000,000 crippled for life.
…and the bitterness that led to yet another conflict.
Central Powers◦Germany◦Austria
Allies◦France◦Britain◦Russia
The Web of War
Austria blamed the Serbian government for the assassination.
Ultimatum: Austria demanded that Serbia submit to its rule.
Serbia agreed, but Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914.
The Web of War
Russia mobilized its military (July 30) to keep Austria from taking over the Balkan states.
The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains, which run through the center of Bulgaria into eastern Serbia.
The Tangled Web
Austria’s ally GERMANY declared war on Russia. August 1, 1914
The Tangled Web
Russia and France had a mutual security pact, promising to protect one another if attacked.
Germany demanded to know France’s intentions in the matter since France’s ally was at war with Germany.
The French mobilized their troops because they were afraid of the German military buildup. (They share a border.)
The Tangled Web
Germany felt France’s move was one of aggression and declared war on FRANCE. August 3, 1914
The Tangled Web
BRITAIN had signed a treaty promising to protect BELGIUM’S neutrality.
Germany pushed its way through Belgium to attack France. August 5, 1914
Britain intervened to help the Belgians and entered the war.
Sequence of Events
1. Serbian guy kills Archduke of Austria. 7/232. Austria decl. war on Serbia. 7/283. Russia mobilizes troops. 7/304. Germany decl. war on Russia. 8/15. Russian-French security pact.6. France mobilizes troops. 7. Germany decl. war on France. 8/38. Britain treaty to defend Belgium.9. Germans enters Belgium to attack France. 8/5 10. Britain enters war to help Belgium.
Why was Austria’s declaration of war on Serbia a turning point in history?
What other options were available to Austria?
A Two-Front War
War in the West – ◦Germans attack France through neutral
Belgium. ◦The troops build trenches and neither side
gains or loses much ground. (maps page 525)
◦Schlieffen Plan – Germany would try to avoid a two-front war by attacking France by marching through neutral Belgium.
A Two-Front War
War in the East – ◦Germans v. Russians. Russians not
industrialized and can’t supply troops. ◦Ottoman warzone. British enter to hold straits.◦Bulgarians and Turks fight with Germans.
The Course of the War
Western Front – ◦A stalemate in trench warfare.◦War of attrition.
The Course of the War
Italy started neutral, then joined the Allies, mostly in order to gain more territory.
New Weapons of War
Machine gunsFlame throwersPoisonous gas-filled artillery shellsGas masks and gas detection devices“Big Bertha” guns – range 80 milesTanksAirplanesZeppelinsU-Boats
War at Sea
The British blockade Germany to prevent war goods from getting to Germany.
In response to the British blockade, Germany deploys its u-boats. (unterseeboot)
No ships can enter the “war zone” around Britain without threat of being sunk.
Typically, before a warship would attack, it would give a warning to the passengers to abandon ship.
A submarine would lose its element of surprise and become vulnerable to attack itself, so submarines wouldn’t give warnings.
Germany had taken out ads in the New York Times warning Americans NOT to travel on British ships or in the waters around Britain.
A German u-boat sunk a passenger liner.1,198 passengers and crew perished as
the Lusitania went down, including 128 Americans on May 1, 1915.
The sinking caused the Germans to lose support in the United States.
Germany said that they had attacked the Lusitania in self-defense because it was carrying munitions to the Allies to be used against Germany.
The cargo manifest shows that the Lusitania was carrying ammunition, powder, shrapnel, rifles, etc.
U.S. Involvement
Under pressure of the British blockade, Germany declared unrestricted submarine warfare: they would attack ANY vessel in the war zone without warning.
Wilson broke off diplomatic relations with Germany on Feb. 3, 1917.
The Zimmerman Telegraph
British intelligence agents intercepted a telegraph from German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmerman to the Mexican government to enlist their aid in Germany’s war effort.
Zimmerman promised Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona to Mexico if it agreed to join the Central Powers.
The U.S. was outraged. (March 1, 1917)
U.S. Enters the War
The Germans sink 4 unarmed American merchant vessels. (mid-March)
Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany. They did so and Wilson signed it on April 6, 1917.
PropagandaIn World War I
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
Wilson’s goal was for a lasting peace, a “war to end all wars.”
He proposed his Fourteen Points to bring about this peace.
They included freedom of the seas, open diplomacy (no secrets), self-government for the people of Central Europe, and a League of Nations.
American Expeditionary Force marched through Paris on July 4, 1917.
It was not too soon for the Europeans.
The Bolshevik’s had overthrown the Czar in Russia and established a communist government there.
Their leader, Vladimir Iliych Lenin negotiated a peace deal with Germany in early 1918.
With the Russians out of the war, the Germans were able to move all their men and war machines to the Western Front to fight the remaining Allies.
Also, French troops, sick of the war, had mutinied in the spring of 1917.
The British and French were on the verge of collapse.
The million-man U.S. force arrived under General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing and became the critical factor in the Allied Victory.
The German commander Erich von Ludendorff launched a full offensive against the British and French, knowing the Americans were coming.
The Germans made a great advance but were unable to break the British who were reinforced by recent American arrivals.
The Brits and Americans stopped the Germans at Chateau-Thierry and Belleau Wood.
Then they began to push the Germans back.
The Allies launched a massive offensive in the Argonne Forest on Sept 26, 1918. In less than 6 weeks, the kaiser raced into exile and the Germans asked for peace.
The Armistice was signed on 11-11-1918, ending the war.
We used to celebrate that day as Armistice Day; now it is Veteran’s Day.
Treaty of Versailles
The Germans, at this point, found Wilson’s Fourteen Points to be fairly attractive, but the other European leaders were having none of it.
Wilson went to Europe himself to help negotiate the peace because he wanted to implement his Fourteen Points.
Treaty of Versailles
Wilson made a crucial mistake: he failed to take any Republican senators with him to Europe. They were in control of the Senate and he would need their help to get the Treaty ratified by the U.S. Senate as the Constitution requires.
Treaty of Versailles
The Big Four:◦President Woodrow Wilson – U.S.◦Premier Georges Clemenceau – France◦Premier Vittorio Orlando – Italy◦Prime Minister David Lloyd George – G.B.
Treaty of Versailles
France wanted revenge on Germany and the territory of Alsace-Lorraine which she and Germany had fought over for decades.
Treaty of Versailles
Italy, having first been among the Central Powers, later changed sides and wanted some of the “spoils of war.”
Treaty of Versailles
Britain wanted to make Germany pay its war debt to the United States, which was very large at this point.
The British were out for revenge as well.
Treaty of Versailles
Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919.◦Germans had to sign a “war-guilt” clause admitting all fault for the war.
◦They had to pay whatever the Allies demanded, which were huge reparation payments, not just the war damages, but what it cost the British and French to fight the war as well.
Treaty of Versailles
Two of Wilson’s Fourteen Points made it into the treaty.◦Self-determination for European peoples◦Formation of the League of Nations
Treaty of Versailles
Quite a few new nations were created: Latvia, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia, etc.
Germany’s boundaries were changed, and some Germans found themselves living under foreign governments.
All of this became fodder for the rise of Hitler and the Nazis a dozen or so years later.