WWI Alliances, Causes, and U.S. Involvement: Key Concepts and Events

The German Empire

A powerful Central European nation led by Kaiser Wilhelm II; a major member of the Central Powers in WWI.

Triple Alliance

A pre-WWI alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (though Italy later switched sides).

Triple Entente

A pre-WWI alliance between Britain, France, and Russia.

Why did European nations form alliances during this period?

To protect themselves and maintain a balance of power. Nations believed alliances would prevent war by creating strong partnerships—but they actually helped turn small conflicts into large ones.

Militarism

The belief in building up strong armed forces and being willing to use them. European nations competed to expand armies and navies.

Why was the Triple Entente formed?

To counter the growing power of Germany and the Triple Alliance.

Nationalism

Strong pride or loyalty to one's nation or ethnic group.

Self-determination

The idea that people of the same ethnic group should have the right to form their own nation.

Serbian nationalism

Serbian nationalists wanted to unite all Slavic people in the Balkans, including those in Austria-Hungary—creating tension.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne; assassinated in 1914 by a Serbian nationalist. His death triggered WWI.

Allies

Britain, France, Russia, later Italy and the U.S.

Central Powers

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria.

The Western Front

The line of trenches and battlefields stretching through Belgium and northern France—site of most of the war's deadly stalemate.

Propaganda

Posters, movies, speeches, and messages used to influence public opinion or gain support for the war.

Why did the war in Europe matter to the United States?

The U.S. traded heavily with the Allies. German submarine attacks threatened American ships and lives. American investments in Allied victory were at risk.

Lusitania

A British passenger ship sunk by a German U-boat in 1915; 128 Americans died, turning U.S. public opinion against Germany.

1916 Election

Woodrow Wilson was re-elected with the slogan 'He kept us out of war,' though the U.S. entered the war soon after.

Zimmermann Telegram

A secret German proposal encouraging Mexico to join a war against the U.S. It angered Americans when revealed.

What events motivated the U.S. to join the war on the Allied side?

German unrestricted submarine warfare, sinking of American ships, the Zimmermann Telegram, economic ties to the Allies.

War Industries Board (WIB)

Government agency that coordinated production of war materials, set prices, and increased industrial efficiency.

Food Administration and Herbert Hoover

Hoover encouraged Americans to conserve food ('meatless Mondays,' 'wheatless Wednesdays') so more could go to soldiers.

Victory gardens

Homegrown gardens that helped increase food supply for the war.

How did the U.S. fund the war effort?

Liberty Bonds / Victory Bonds, higher taxes.

Bond

A loan to the government that would be repaid with interest.

National War Labor Board (NWLB)

Helped prevent strikes by improving working conditions and wages for workers in war industries.

The Great Migration

Movement of African Americans from the rural South to northern cities for industrial job opportunities.

How did the war effort impact the makeup of the workforce?

More African Americans and women hired in factories, labor shortages due to men leaving for war.

Committee on Public Information (CPI) and George Creel

Government group that used propaganda to build support for the war and shape public opinion.

Espionage Act of 1917

Punished people for aiding the enemy or interfering with the draft.

Sedition Act of 1918

Made it illegal to criticize the government or war effort.

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Supreme Court decision that ruled speech can be limited during wartime if it creates a 'clear and present danger.'

What was the war's impact on German-Americans?

They faced harassment, discrimination, and pressure to prove their loyalty; many German cultural traditions were suppressed.

Selective Service Act of 1917

Required men 21-30 (later 18-45) to register for the draft.

Reasons for Americans fighting in WWI

Patriotism, sense of duty, adventure, to defend democracy.

Influenza Epidemic (1918-1919)

A global flu pandemic that killed millions worldwide, including many American soldiers.

What minority groups served in the war?

African Americans (often in segregated units), Native Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans, some immigrants.

How did women contribute to the military?

Served as nurses, clerks, switchboard operators, liberated men for combat roles.

How did progressive ideals impact the U.S. mobilization for war?

Progressive belief in efficiency, government planning, and moral improvement shaped how the government organized the economy and society.

Trench Warfare on the Western Front

Soldiers fought from long trenches; conditions were muddy, dangerous, and caused stalemates.

What 'old-fashioned strategies' and 'new technologies' caused WWI to be so devastating?

Old strategies: mass infantry charges, cavalry tactics, outdated battle commands. New technologies: machine guns, poison gas, tanks, airplanes, long-range artillery, barbed wire.

'Doughboys'

Nickname for American soldiers in WWI.

Convoys

Groups of ships traveling together, protected by warships, to defend against U-boats.

Vladimir Lenin and the Bolshevik Revolution

In 1917, Lenin and the Bolsheviks took over Russia and withdrew it from the war.

What impact did the Russian Revolution have on WWI?

Germany could move its troops from the Eastern Front to the Western Front, increasing pressure on the Allies.

General John J. Pershing

Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF); insisted U.S. troops fight as a separate army.

Chateau-Thierry

One of the first major battles where American troops helped stop the German advance.

Battle of the Argonne Forest

A massive Allied offensive in 1918; helped break German lines and led to the end of the war.

Armistice

Cease-fire agreement; WWI armistice took effect on November 11, 1918.

Wilson's Fourteen Points

President Wilson's plan for peace, emphasizing diplomacy, self-determination, and preventing future wars.

National self-determination

The right of ethnic groups to create their own nations—one of the key ideas in the Fourteen Points.

Alsace-Lorraine Territory

A disputed region between Germany and France; returned to France after WWI.

League of Nations (14th Point)

An international organization meant to prevent future wars through collective security and diplomacy.

Treaty of Versailles

The peace treaty that ended WWI; punished Germany heavily, redrew borders, and included the League of Nations.

Reparations

Payments Germany was forced to make to the Allies for war damages.

Why were the Senate's objections to the Treaty of Versailles?

Many senators opposed joining the League of Nations, feared it would drag the U.S. into foreign wars, and wanted to protect U.S. sovereignty and avoid entangling alliances.

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