wwi: victory! or, victory?. in the trenches trench conditions: dirty, cold, damp, lice, mice, foul...
TRANSCRIPT
WWI: Victory! Or, Victory?
In The Trenches
• Trench conditions: Dirty, cold, damp, lice, mice, foul water, rancid food, no sleep, constant gunfire– Caused foot & mouth infections,
dysentery outbreaks, “shell shock”
New weapons
• Airplane• Submarine• Machine gun• Tanks• Poison gas
Practice makes perfect
• US practiced mobilizing for emergency. Here in Toledo– 1916: Preparedness parade. People
volunteered for community orgs.– 1917: Volunteers patrolled TOL
bridges
War Ends
• Nov. 3, 1918: AH & GER surrender.
• 11/11 - Armistice ends war.
• 22M dead. 20M wounded. 10M displaced.
Home-Front Problems
• Spanish Flu: Oct. 1918, 1 in 4 Americans contracts flu. – Cities shut down– Corpses unburied– 500K Americans dead in 3 mo.– 30M worldwide dead
A Plan For Peace
• Wilson dreams of world where war is impossible.
• Introduces 14 Points. 6 big parts:– 1. No secret treaties– 2. Freedom of the seas.
• 3. Eliminate tariffs among nations. If we rely on each other we won’t fight!
• 4. Reduce army & navy sizes• 5. Colonial governments should
listen to people
• 6. A “League of Nations” would be “congress” for countries to work out troubles. – Germany shouldn’t be punished;
it should be helped
Problems with 14 Points
• France & England wanted to make Germany pay!
• Allies refused to let GER be part of peace conference!
• Wilson gives up all but “League of Nations”
Treaty of Versailles
• Forces GER to pay $33B to Allies• Forces GER to accept “war guilt”• Forces GER to get rid of military• Takes land from Russians.• Carves up Ottoman Empire into
new colonies
Final Insult
• U.S. Senate has to ratify treaty to make us part of League of Nations
• Republicans refuse to even bring treaty to a vote. Say “America 1st!”
• Wilson forces it, Republicans defeat treaty. League dies before it even starts
Results
• U.S. refuses to have anything to do with rest of the world
• GER is upset w/UK, FRA, US. Wants revenge
• All economies in trouble• Horrors of war turn off Western nations• ‘Lost generation:” 52M killed, 25M wnd