History Test - WW1 (1914-1918) Started in Serbia in the Balkans

Test #3; 10/24/25

What was the spark of WW1?

• June 28, 1914: Assassination of Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand

  • Shot by 19 year old - part of the black hand group

  • Austria Hungary wants the guy who killed him; will declare war on Serbia if this does not happen - Serbia says bring it on

  • Serbia has Russia, England, France, Poland, Guatemala, etc. to help them

  • Austria Hungary has Germany, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria, Thailand, etc. to help them

Who were the original Central Powers?

• Germany, Austria Hungary, and Italy

• They become this minus Italy and plus the Ottoman Empire

• Italy switched to an ally

Central Powers

• Germany

• Austria-Hungary

• Ottoman Empire

Allied Powers

• England

• France

• Russia

• U.S.A.

What are the 4 underlying causes of World War 1?

• Nationalism

• Imperialism

• Militarism

• Alliance / Balance of Power System

What is Nationalism?

• Identification with one's own nation and support for its interests, especially to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations.

• National groups in Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) wanted independence

What is Imperialism?

• A policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force.

• European nations divided much of Africa into colonies in order to obtain raw materials and sell goods

What is Militarism?

• The belief or desire of a government or people that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests.

• Early 20th century - industrialized nations engaged in a frantic arms race

What is the Alliance / Balance of Power System?

• Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy formed the Triple Alliance in 1882

• Great Britain, France, and Russia formed the Triple Entente in 1907

Von Schlieffan Plan

• Take German army and take the lesser of two evils - counterclockwise attack

  • Swing down from Germany into Belgium, then to France (Paris - the heart / head of France; DID NOT GET IT), then to Russia

  • Belgium stayed neutral

  • This is good for the allied powers, but VERY bad for the central powers

  • Germany implements this plan

• U.S. also stays neutral - Woodrow Wilson kept them out of the war (not for long)

What was World War 1 known for?

• Trench Warfare

• Area between trenches - “No mans land” - nobody wanted to go there

Major battles of World War 1

• Marne (First Battle in France) - 1914

• Verdun (Longest Battle in France) - 1916

• The Somme (France) - 1916

• Gallipoli (Ottoman Empire) - 1915-1916

  • ANZAC disaster - 100,000 killed and ¼ wounded

• Passchendael (Belgium) - 1917

  • Men drowned in puddles

  • 235,000 killed

  • “I died I hell - they call is Passchendaele”

The Lusitania

• The Lusitania was a British ocean liner sunk by a German U-boat during World War I, leading to a high death toll and contributing to the United States' eventual entry into the war

• Launched in 1906, the ship was luxurious and fast, but during the war, it was suspected by Germany of secretly carrying military cargo.

• Germany had issued warnings about travel in the war zone, and the ship was sunk on May 7, 1915, resulting in the deaths of 1,198 people, including 128 Americans

• Big push to why the U.S. entered the War

The Zimmermann Note / Telegram

• Pushed U.S. to war

• Written by the head of Germany to Mexico

• Wanted them to join Germany as a central power to attack america

• This note was intercepted by the British and given to Woodrow Wilson; this was published in the newspapers (1917)

  • People were OUTRAGED

• Mexico never attacked the U.S

American Neutrality

• Woodrow Wilson; Neutrality vs. Freedom of the Seas

• Unrestricted Submarine Warefare / P-rules

  • Sinking of the Lusitania, Arabic (1915)

  • Sussex (1916, Sussex Pledge)

• Allied Propaganda, Hostility towards Germany

  • Hamburger - Victory Steak

  • Sourcrout - Liberty Cabbage

  • Meatless Mondays, wheatless Wednesdays

• American Economic Interests

• America Idealism

• American Security

• 3Ps and Wilson (Peace, Prepardness, and Prosperity)

American U.S Entrance into World War 1

• Unrestricted Submarine Warfare by Germany 

• Freedom of the Seas (one of Woodrow Wilson’s 14 points)

• Allied Propaganda

• Mounting Hostility towards Germany

• USA Economic Interests

• USA Idealism / Democracy

• USA security

• Sinking of Lusitania

• Sussex Pledge by Germany

• Unrestricted Submarine Warfare again (1917)

• The Zimmerman Note (MAIN THING THAT SENT US TO ENTERING WW1)