Unit 18: US in WWI

American Expeditionary Force

US military forces in Europe during World War I

Allied Powers (WWI)

Britain, France, Russia, and the United States

Central Powers (Triple Alliance)

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire

John J. Pershing

Commander of American Expeditionary Force of over 1 million troops who insisted his soldiers fight as independent units so US would have independent role in shaping the peace

Lusitania

British boat that was sunk by the German U-boats; made America consider entering WWI

Zimmerman Note

Message proposing an alliance between Germany and Mexico, made America consider entering WWI

Eddie Rickenbacker

Famous "ace" pilot who downed 26 enemy fighters in WWI

Espionage & Sedition Acts

Two laws enacted to impose harsh penalties on anyone interfering with or speaking against U.S participation in WW1

Alvin York

killed 25 machine-gunners and captured 132 German soldiers when his soldiers took cover; won Congressional Medal of Freedom

Spanish Flu

Pandemic that spread around the world in 1918, killing more than 50 million people

Treaty of Versailles

the treaty imposed on Germany by the Allied powers in 1920 after the end of World War I which demanded exorbitant reparations from the Germans

League of Nations

An organization of nations formed after World War I to promote cooperation and peace.

Wilson's Fourteen Points

President Wilson's Peace proposal in 1918 stressed national self-determination, the rights of the small countries, freedom of the seas, and free trade.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany's military plan at the outbreak of World War I, according to which German troops would rapidly defeat France and then move east to attack Russia.

No Man's Land

A strip of land beween the trenches of opposing armies along the Western Front during WW1

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

the use of submarines to sink without warning any ship (including neutral ships and unarmed passenger liners) found in an enemy's waters.

Doughboys

nickname for American troops in Europe

Armistice

An agreement to stop fighting

Harlem Hell Fighters

African American infantry unit that fought with the French Army in World War I

War Industries Board

US agency established during WWI to increase efficiency & discourage waste in war-related industries.

Eddie Rickenbacker

Famous "ace" pilot who downed 26 enemy fighters in WWI, most highly decorated soldier of war

Alvin York

killed 25 machine-gunners and captured 132 German soldiers when his soldiers took cover; won Congressional Medal of Honor

MAIN causes of WWI

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism

Trench Warfare

A form of warfare in which opposing armies fight each other from trenches dug in the battlefield.

Committee on Public Information

It was headed by George Creel. The purpose of this committee was to mobilize people's minds for war, both in America and abroad. Tried to get the entire U.S. public to support U.S. involvement in WWI.

4 minute men

several thousand people that went around giving 4 minute speeches in favor of the war

Liberty Loans

government bonds sold to the public to raise money to pay for the war

Victory Gardens

Backyard gardens; Americans were encouraged to grow their own vegetables to support the war effort

Propaganda

Ideas spread to influence public opinion for or against a cause.

Great Migration

Movement of African Americans from the South to the North for jobs.

Harlem Hell Fighters

The African American infantry unit that fought with the French Army in World War I