WWI History Q&As

Pre-WW1 the Triple Alliance was made up of

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy

Pre-WW1 the Triple Entente was made of

Great Britain, France, Russia

Why were the members of the triple entente mostly brought together?

Their mutual hatred for Germany

 How might the naval arms race between Germany and Britain have caused the outbreak of war?

Both empires spent the years before the war building expensive fleets of super battleships called ‘dreadnoughts.’ This naval arms race built up international tensions and made hostilities much more likely.

What were the primary German interests leading up to the war?

• Secure its place as a dominant world power by matching Britain’s naval strenth

• Avoid a two front war with France and Russia

What were the primary Russian interests leading up to the war?

• Protecting fellow Slavs (esp. Serbia from AH)

• gain access to the Mediterranean via Ottoman territory

What were the primary French interests leading up to the war?

Gain back the territory they lost to Germany in the Franco-Prussian War in 1871

Why did Gavrilo Princip assassinate Franz Ferdinand of Austria on June 28, 1914?

He was part of a movement that wanted to end Austrian rule over Serbians in the Balkan area

Who assassinated Franz Ferdinand?

Gavrilo Princip

Who was Franz Ferdinand?

Archduke of Austria who was assassinated which contributed to sparking the war

What terrorist organization did Gavrilo Princip work for with ties to the Serbian government?

The Black Hand

How did Austria respond to the assignation of the archduke?

Demanded that Serbia end anti Aus-Hun propaganda and demanded to participate in the investigation of assassination

Who did Austria make sure to get support from and why?

They made sure to get support from Germany because they were afraid that Serbia’s ally, Russia, may attack them if a war was started.

What happened when Serbia would not allow Austria to join the investigation of the assassination?

Austria declared war (July 28, 1914)

Following A-H declaring the war, what did Russia do?

Russia mobilized troops on Austrian and German borders

Why did Germany declare war on Russia?

Germany did not want Russia to have time to fully mobilize

On Aug 2, 1914 Germany demanded that __ allow them passage through to France, but they refused

Belgium

What was the main purpose of Germany’s Schlieffen Plan?

To avoid a 2 front war with Russia and France

On Aug 3, 1914 Germany declared war on ___ and invaded the next day

France

On Aug 4, 1914  ___ declared war on Germany for violating Belgian neutrality

Britain

Which side did Italy join right when the war broke out?

Neither. They stayed neutral in the beginning. (they later joined Allied Powers)

Which side of the war did the Ottoman Empire join?

Germany + Austria-Hungary

Who were the Allied Powers during the war?

Britain, France, Russia, Belgium (and others)

Who were known as the Central Powers during the war?

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey/Ottomans (and others)

In what ways was nationalism a cause of the war?

• Serbian nationalism promoted attacks on Austria-Hungary

• Slavic nationalism united Russia and Serbia (—> Russia goes against AH)

• nationalism motivated many European powers to compete with one another for power

The major powers involved in WWI were not merely nations but ____, and a significant reason for the outbreak of war was _____

Empires; Colonial competition between empires

People in 1914 generally thought the war would be ____

Glorious and quick

People in 1914 based their notions of war on ______

Napoleonic Wars and Colonial Wars

WWI was the first major ________ war

Industrial

What technologies made defense much stronger than offense in WWI, especially the Western Front?

Machine guns + improved artillery —> made it near impossible to cross “no mans land”, get shot down, trenches bombed

The Western Front occurred mostly in _________________

Belgium and France

Why did trench warfare become common in WW1 on the Western Front and other fronts?

After huge daily casualties in the early months of the war, both sides developed trench complexes to protect soldiers from improved artillery and small arms

Trench warfare led to a “static war of attrition” or stalemate which means what?

A style of fighting in which neither side can gain a real advantage very far, so it becomes a competition of who can last the longest in terms of supplies and manpower

“Total war” means

• more government control over society (propaganda and censorship)

• drafting soldiers (conscription)

• borrowing money from citizens

• rationing resources

• calling women to work in factories

Technological responses to trench warfare include:

• use of poison gas

• use of tanks

• coordinating artillery attacks using air reconnaissance

What 3 phases can WW1 be divided into?

1. Mobile (1914)

2. Static (1915-17)

3. Semi-mobile (1918)

Reasons why the German ‘Schlieffen plan’ didn’t work:

• Germany’s troops were divided between the Eastern and Western fronts

• German commanders retreated prematurely

• The French and British armies had function rail and telegraph lines while Germany did not

How many colonial subjects served the Allies in WWI?

2.2 million (almost half from India alone)

What must the Allies accomplish in order to end the war on favorable terms after 1914?

They have to dislodge/get Germany out of France/Belgium

What was a U-boat?

A German submarine

In an attempt to break Britain’s blockade and cut of their supplies, Germany eventually allowed ___

Unrestricted submarine warfare

Unrestricted submarine warfare led to the sinking of many passenger ships including the ___ which had over 100 Americans on it

Lusitania

The sinking of passenger ships infuriated GB and the United States, but Germany kept it up, hoping that ___

They could put Great Britain out of the war before America fully joined the fight

What was the significance of the Chantilly Conference?

It was the start of coordinated offensives by the Allies that put more pressure on Germany

When did the US officially enter WW1?

April 1917

Key contributions of the US to the Allied war effort?

• Economic assistance

• Raw materials (especially oil and steel)

• Eventually troop reinforcements, though they did not arrive until later

Why did Russia drop out of the war and sign peace with Germany?

They were weakened by two revolutions in 1917 -> after the second one in October, Bolsheviks led by Vladimir Lenin refused to carry on the war. They signed w/ Germany to stop attacking them

Two major effects of Russia leaving the war:

1. Russia gave up lots of territory in Eastern Europe

2. Germany was able to move large numbers of troops to the West (that were previously in the Eastern front)

What did Germany do March-July 1918?

Attempt a series of offensives (Ludendorff Offensives) to try to end the war in their favor before they ran out supplies and the US got too involved

The last German offensives failed because

1. Germany was out of tanks, trucks, horses, fuel, rubber

2. Supplies couldn’t keep up with the advances

3. Troops are tired and demoralized (lost confidence/hope) by summer 1918

4. Germany can’t replace the 1 million casualties

An armistice is

an agreement to stop fighting

Because of their hopeless military situation in late 1918 the German navy ______ , which sparked a wider __ in Germany and the Kaiser ____

Mutinied (refused to obey authority), sparked revolution, abdicated (renounced his thrown)

Why did the Allies win WWI?

• greater manpower

• boost from American materials, money, and troops

• abundant weapons/munitions mostly produced by Britain and France

• developed convoy system to defend against U-boats (travel in packs)

• errors of the Central Powers

Why didn’t the Allies invade and conquer Germany?

Allied leaders knew how close and costly the fighting had been and were hesitant to continue to bring the fight into Germany once the new German leadership was willing to negotiate a peace

What was the main agreement that ended WW1?

The Versailles Treaty (June 1919)

The ‘war guilt clause’ of the Versailles Treaty blamed ___ entirely for the war

Germany

The Versailles Treaty was dictated almost entirely by what 4 countries?

US, Great Britain, France, Italy

As a result of the Versailles Treaty, Germany (3 things)….

1. lost territory

2. had to disarm the military

3. had to pay billions in reparations to Allied nations

As a result of the other treaties both ___ and ___ were dismantled and divided either into independent states or put under the control of Allied powers

Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire

One of Woodrow Wilson’s ‘14 Points’ was “self determination of peoples,” which meant

Ethnic nationalities should get their own states if they want one

Instead of allowing “self determination,” places like Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Iraq were made into ___

Mandates

The League of Nations was ultimately powerless because

neither US or Russia ever joined it