The First World War Flashcards

Flashcards to review key concepts and events from the First World War lecture notes.

What were the four long-term causes of the First World War?

Nationalism, Imperialism, Militarism, and the Alliance System

What is Nationalism, as it pertains to the causes of World War I?

A devotion to the interests and culture of one’s nation, often leading to rivalries and conflicts between nations.

What is Imperialism, as it pertains to the causes of World War I?

Economic and political control over weaker nations, leading to competition among European nations.

What is Militarism, as it pertains to the causes of World War I?

The growth of nationalism and imperialism led to increased military spending and build-up in European nations.

What was the Alliance System in Europe by 1907?

Europe was divided into two armed camps: The Triple Entente (Allies) and the Triple Alliance (Central Powers).

What countries comprised the Triple Entente (Allied Powers)?

France, Britain, and Russia

What countries comprised the Triple Alliance (Central Powers)?

Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (later joined by the Ottoman Empire)

Why was the Balkan region considered “the powder keg of Europe”?

Due to competing interests in the area, including Russia's desire for access to the Mediterranean Sea and Germany's desire for a rail link to the Ottoman Empire.

Who was assassinated in June 1914, triggering a diplomatic crisis that led to World War I?

Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne

What was the Schlieffen Plan?

Germany's strategy to invade Belgium for a quick strike through to Paris, France, then attack Russia, designed to prevent a two-front war.

By the spring of 1915, what characterized the Western Front in France?

Two parallel systems of deep trenches crossed France from Belgium to Switzerland.

What was "no man's land"?

The area between enemy trenches, pockmarked with shell craters and filled with barbed wire.

What was the Battle of the Somme?

A major battle that began on July 1, 1916, with enormous casualties and little ground gained, exemplifying bloody trench warfare.

What position did the majority of Americans take at the start of WW1?

Neutrality due to not wanting to get involved in a stuggle 3000 miles away.

What was the Lusitania Disaster?

The sinking of a British passenger liner by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915, killing 128 American tourists and turning public opinion against Germany.

What was the Zimmerman Note?

A telegram from the German foreign minister to the German Ambassador in Mexico, proposing an alliance and the return of their “lost territory” in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona

When did the U.S. declare war on Germany?

April 2, 1917

What was the Selective Service Act?

Passed in May 1917 to draft men into military service, eventually leading to 2 million American troops in Europe.

What nickname was given to American infantrymen?

Doughboys

Name three important new weapons used in World War I.

Machine guns, tanks, airplanes, and poison gas

When did Germany surrender, ending World War I?

November 11, 1918

What was the War Industries Board (WIB)?

An organization that encouraged companies to use mass-production and increased industrial production and wages

What were "victory gardens?"

Gardens planted by homeowners and schoolchildren to conserve food during the war

What was the purpose of Liberty Loans and Victory Loans?

To raise money for the war effort by selling war bonds to the public

What was the Committee on Public Information (CPI)?

The nation’s first propaganda agency, created to popularize the war

What were the Espionage and Sedition Acts?

Acts passed by Congress designed to prevent anti-war protests but compromised Civil Liberties.

What were the main points of Wilson’s Fourteen Points plan?

No secret treaties, freedom of the seas, more free trade, reduction of arms, less colonialism, and a League of Nations to promote peace.

Who were the Big Four leaders who worked out the Treaty of Versailles?

Wilson (U.S.), Clemenceau (France), Lloyd George (England), and Orlando (Italy)

What new nations were established by the Treaty of Versailles?

Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia

What were the main requirements imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles?

Germany lost all her colonies, barred from maintaining an army, lost Alsace-Lorraine back to France, and was forced to pay $33 billion in reparations.

Why did the U.S. Senate reject the Treaty of Versailles?

Many senators, especially conservative senators like Henry Cabot Lodge, were suspicious of the League of Nations' joint economic and military commitments and wanted the U.S. Congress to maintain the right to declare war.

What was a legacy of World War I?

Strengthening of the u.s. government and the military, creation of political instability in many countries, and a widespread feeling that it was the war to end all wars.