History Spring Semester Final

First World War

1914-1918.

Major powers involved

Allied Powers: Britain, France, Russia, later U.S. Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire.

Main causes of the war

M.A.I.N. = Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism.

Militarism

Germany and Britain building up navies.

Alliances

Triple Alliance and Triple Entente.

Imperialism

Germany and Britain competing for African colonies.

Nationalism

Slavic pride in the Balkans.

Significant motives of imperialism

Economic gain and political power.

Balkans as a 'powder keg'

Many ethnic tensions, nationalistic rivalries, and interests from major powers.

Two opposing sides

Allies vs. Central Powers.

Four fronts of war

Western, Eastern, Italian, Middle Eastern.

Trench warfare

Digging long trenches for fighting; led to stalemates.

Unrestricted submarine warfare

German U-boats sank ships without warning—including civilian ones.

Battles of Somme and Verdun

Extremely deadly, high casualties with little land gained.

Discrimination towards minorities

Internment, forced labor, and genocides like the Armenian Genocide.

Objectives of propaganda

Recruit, raise money, demonize enemy, unify people, conserve resources.

Effect of Russian Revolution

Russia exited the war; weakened the Allies temporarily.

Events that brought U.S. in

Sinking of the Lusitania and the Zimmermann Note.

Last offensive

Hundred Days Offensive (1918).

Treaty of Versailles

Punishment? Blamed Germany, forced reparations, limited military, took territory.

Triple Alliance

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy (pre-war).

Triple Entente

France, Russia, Britain.

July Crisis

Events after assassination of Franz Ferdinand.

Franz Ferdinand

Archduke of Austria; his death sparked WWI.

Sarajevo

City where Franz Ferdinand was killed.

Arms race

Countries competing to build more weapons.

Alsace-Lorraine

Region contested between France and Germany.

Balkans

Southeastern Europe, area of ethnic tension.

Pan-Slavism

Belief in uniting all Slavic people.

Schlieffen Plan

German plan to invade France quickly.

Race to the Sea

Trying to outflank enemy in northern France.

Total war

All of society involved in war effort.

Rationing

Limiting use of goods for war.

Propaganda

Media used to influence public opinion.

Russian Revolution

1917 overthrow of Tsar; Russia exits war.

Sinking of the Lusitania

British ship sunk by Germans; Americans killed.

Zimmermann Note

Germany asked Mexico to attack U.S.

Paris Peace Conference

Meeting to end WWI and create peace terms.

Armistice

Agreement to stop fighting.

Mobilization

Preparing army and resources for war.

Annex

To take over territory.

Sykes-Picot Agreement

Secret deal to divide Middle East.

Armenian Genocide

Mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman Empire.

Casualty

A soldier who is killed, injured, or missing.

Spanish Flu

Global flu pandemic in 1918-1919.

Issues Russia faced before the Revolution

Food shortages, military defeats in WWI, poor working conditions, and dissatisfaction with Tsar Nicholas II.

Significance of the February and October Revolutions

February: Overthrew Tsar Nicholas II. October: Bolsheviks (communists) seized power under Lenin.

Opposing sides in the Russian Civil War

Reds (Bolsheviks/Communists) vs. Whites (anti-Communists).

Winner of the Russian Civil War

The Reds (Bolsheviks).

Political ideology of the Soviet Union

Communism—a government where the state controls the economy and property is shared.

Examples of internationalism

League of Nations, United Nations—countries working together.

Technological inventions (1920s-1930s)

Radio, airplanes, tanks, atomic weapons.

Communism

No private property; economy run by the state.

Fascism

Dictatorship with nationalism and no personal freedom.

Nazism

A form of fascism associated with Adolf Hitler's regime in Germany.

Totalitarianism

Government has total control over life.

Socialism

Government involvement in economy for fairness.

Great Depression

Worldwide economic collapse in the 1930s.

D-Day

Allied invasion of Normandy, France.

The Blitz

German bombing of Britain.

Operation Barbarossa

German invasion of Soviet Union.

Appeasement

Giving in to avoid conflict.

Munich Agreement

Let Hitler take part of Czechoslovakia.

Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

Non-aggression pact between Germany and USSR.

Allies

U.S., Britain, Soviet Union, France.

Axis

Germany, Italy, Japan.

Partisans

Resistance fighters behind enemy lines.

Espionage

Spying.

War crime

Violating rules of war (e.g., genocide).

The Holocaust

Nazi genocide of Jews and others.

Nuremberg Trial

Nazi leaders tried for war crimes.

Tokyo Trial

Japanese leaders tried for war crimes.

Terror bombing

Bombing civilians to scare them.

Benito Mussolini

Fascist dictator of Italy.

Adolf Hitler

Nazi leader of Germany.

Josef Stalin

Communist leader of the Soviet Union.

Hideki Tojo

Military leader of Japan during WWII.

Casablanca Conference

WWII meeting where Allies planned final defeat of Axis.

United Nations

Global peacekeeping organization formed after WWII.

Cold War

Period of tension and competition between U.S. and Soviet Union (no direct war).

Proxy wars

Fighting indirectly through other countries.

Ideological conflict

Struggle between communism and capitalism.

Buffer zone

Friendly governments created by the Soviet Union to prevent future invasions.

Containment

U.S. strategy to stop the spread of communism.

Berlin Wall

Wall separating communist East and democratic West Berlin.

NATO

Military alliance of Western democracies.

Warsaw Pact

Soviet military alliance with Eastern bloc.

Iron curtain

Symbolic division between communist East and democratic West Europe.

Domino effect

Belief that if one country became communist, neighbors would follow.

Truman Doctrine

U.S. promise to help countries resisting communism.

Marshall Plan

U.S. economic aid to rebuild Western Europe after WWII.

Berlin Blockade/Airlift

Soviets blocked access to West Berlin; U.S. airlifted supplies.

Proxy war

Conflict where superpowers supported opposite sides (e.g., Vietnam).

Mao Zedong

Communist leader of China.

Chiang Kaishek

Leader of Chinese Nationalists (fled to Taiwan).

Guatemalan Coup d'état

U.S.-backed overthrow of leftist leader.

Iranian Coup d'état

U.S./UK-backed overthrow of Iran's prime minister.

Space Race

U.S. and USSR competing in space exploration.

Korean War

1950-53 conflict between North (communist) and South Korea (democratic).

U2 Spy Plane Incident

U.S. plane shot down over USSR; worsened tensions.