history ww1

M.A.I.N. Causes

The four long-term underlying causes of World War I: Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism.

Militarism

The aggressive buildup of weapons, military budgets, and standing armies by European powers in the decades leading up to 1914.

Triple Alliance

A pre-WWI defense agreement formed by Germany, Austria-Hungary, and later Italy.

Triple Entente

An alliance formed by France, Russia, and Great Britain to counter the growing power of the Triple Alliance.

Balkan League

An alliance composed of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro, and Bulgaria created to push Ottoman imperial influence out of the Balkan region.

Imperialism

Competition among European empires to acquire overseas colonies for wealth, raw materials, trade, and strategic influence.

Nationalism

Intense national pride and self-determination that fueled European rivalries and independence movements in the Balkans.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne whose assassination in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, sparked the outbreak of WWI.

Gavrilo Princip

The Bosnian Serb nationalist and Black Hand member who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie.

Blank Check

Germany's unconditional pledge of full military backing to Austria-Hungary following the Sarajevo assassination.

Central Powers

The wartime alliance primarily consisting of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany's military strategy to avoid a two-front war by rapidly invading France through neutral Belgium before redirecting forces to face Russia.

Battle of the Marne

A pivotal September 1914 battle where British and French forces stopped the German advance outside Paris, establishing the Western Front stalemate.

Battle of the Frontiers

A series of heavy early engagements in August 1914 between French and German forces along their border.

Trench Warfare

A deadly form of defensive combat where opposing armies fought from fortified trenches separated by "No Man's Land," resulting in high casualties and disease.

Battle of Verdun

A massive 1916 battlefield stalemate resulting from poor military leadership that claimed over 700,000 total casualties.

Christmas Truce of 1914

Unofficial ceasefires and spontaneous acts of fraternization between British and German troops along the Western Front on Christmas Day 1914.

General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien

British commander who strictly prohibited friendly interactions with enemy troops, warning that a "live and let live" mindset destroyed morale.

Development of Tanks

The introduction of armored vehicles designed to crush barbed wire, cross trenches, and shield advancing foot soldiers, despite early speed and reliability issues.

Creeping Barrage

A synchronized artillery tactic where high-explosive shells exploded continuously just ahead of advancing infantry and tanks.

Siege of Liège

Early 1914 battle demonstrating how heavy German howitzer artillery could easily destroy modern concrete fortresses.

President Woodrow Wilson

The 28th US President who maintained initial US neutrality before asking Congress to declare war in 1917 to "make the world safe for democracy".

Initial US Neutrality

The official stance declared by President Wilson on August 4, 1914, to keep the nation impartial and prevent domestic ethnic conflict.

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

Germany's policy of using U-boats to attack merchant and civilian passenger vessels without warning to block Allied supplies.

RMS Lusitania

A British passenger liner sunk by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915, killing 128 Americans and causing widespread anti-German outrage.

Sussex Pledge

A May 1916 agreement in which Germany promised to stop targeting civilian passenger ships with U-boats.

Arthur Zimmerman

The German Foreign Secretary who authored the encrypted Zimmerman Telegram offering Mexico an alliance against the United States.

Zimmerman Telegram

A secret 1917 message intercepted by British intelligence proposing a German-Mexican alliance to return lost territory to Mexico.

Kaiser Wilhelm II

The Emperor of Germany whose aggressive leadership style and foreign policy were widely blamed for escalating WWI.

Russian Revolution

The 1917 political uprising that overthrew Tsar Nicholas II, removing an autocratic barrier for the US to frame the war as a fight for global democracy.

Selective Service Act of 1917

US legislation enforcing draft registration for men aged 21-30, raising the military from 120,000 to over 2.8 million troops.

General John J. Pershing

Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF), nicknamed "Black Jack," who led the Meuse-Argonne Offensive and maintained independent US military command.

Congressional Funding (WWI)

Allocations of \$3 billion authorized by the US Congress to build, equip, train, and supply a million-man army.

Training Camps

Facilities like Camp Jackson and Camp Gordon where raw American recruits were quickly trained in trench warfare by Allied officers.

Newton D. Baker

US Secretary of War who managed the national draft fairly using a public lottery system.

American Expeditionary Forces (AEF)

The independent US military force sent to Europe that expanded to 4 million personnel and helped tip the balance toward Allied victory.

100 Days Offensive

A rapid series of Allied offensives in 1918 that pushed back German forces and forced the collapse of the Central Powers.

Meuse-Argonne Offensive

The largest battle in US military history, led by General Pershing, which cost 300,000 total casualties but broke German lines and ended the war.

Battle of Belleau Wood

A fierce 1918 battle where US forces successfully halted the German army's advance toward Paris.

Liberty Bonds

Government bonds purchased by American civilians that raised billions of dollars to finance US war expenses.

Propaganda / CPI Posters

Visual artwork designed to encourage military enlistment and raise public financial support for the war effort.

Committee of Public Information (CPI)

A federal propaganda agency created to rally domestic support for the war through speeches, films, pamphlets, and posters.

Role of Women in WWI

Millions of women entered the workforce during WWI to manufacture heavy weapons, run farms, and conserve resources.

Rationing & Shortages

Voluntary resource conservation programs led by Herbert Hoover, including "Meatless Mondays," to handle wartime food supply strains.

War Industries Board (WIB)

Federal agency formed to streamline industrial production, coordinate factory output, and eliminate material shortages during WWI.

Espionage Act of 1917

Federal law making it a crime to gather, share, or lose national defense information.

Sedition Act of 1918

An amendment to the Espionage Act prohibiting profane, disloyal, or abusive language against the US government or military.

Women's Suffrage Movement

The political campaign for women's voting rights, which gained President Wilson's endorsement in 1918 due to women's wartime contributions.

Harlem Hellfighters

The 369th Infantry Regiment, an all-Black US combat unit that served 191 days under fire under French command without losing ground or prisoners.

Private Henry Johnson

A Harlem Hellfighter who earned the nickname "Black Death" for single-handedly repelling 20-30 German raiders using grenades, a rifle stock, and a bolo knife while sustaining 21 wounds.

SICBAT

"Secret Information Concerning Black American Troops," a racist pamphlet issued by the US military advising French forces not to treat Black soldiers as social equals.

James Reese Europe

Bandleader of the 369th Regiment's marching band who popularized early American jazz music across Europe during WWI.

Schenck v. United States

Supreme Court case establishing that free speech can be restricted during wartime if it creates a "clear and present danger".

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson's post-WWI plan for global peace, outlining rules for international conduct, self-determination, and the League of Nations.

League of Nations

An intergovernmental peace organization proposed by Woodrow Wilson to resolve international disputes, though the US Senate rejected joining.

Senator Henry Cabot Lodge

Republican Senator who led domestic political opposition against ratifying the Treaty of Versailles and entering the League of Nations.

Georges Clemenceau

Prime Minister of France who insisted on strict security guarantees, heavy financial reparations, and demilitarization for Germany at Versailles.

David Lloyd George

Prime Minister of Great Britain who sought to punish Germany while preserving European balance of power.

Vittorio Orlando

Prime Minister of Italy who demanded foreign territories promised to Italy in secret pre-war treaties.

Treaty of Versailles

The post-war agreement dictated by the "Big Four" that placed full war blame and heavy financial reparations on Germany.

The Roaring Twenties

An era of rapid economic growth and cultural transformation in the US fueled by war-driven industrial expansion and shifting global finance to New York.

Spanish Flu (1918 Pandemic)

A global influenza pandemic that killed between 50 and 100 million people worldwide, spread rapidly by World War I troop movements.

Armenian Genocide

The Ottoman government's systematic mass murder and forced desert deportation of 1 to 1.5 million ethnic Armenians starting in April 1915.

Asians on the European Front

Nearly 2 million Asian soldiers, laborers, and workers (including Indian sepoys, Chinese Labour Corps, and Vietnamese workers) deployed by Allied powers during WWI.

Chinese Labour Corps

Over 140,000 Chinese workers brought by Britain and France to perform heavy logistics, shell clearance, and trench repairs under severe conditions.

Easter Rising (1916)

An armed rebellion in Dublin against British rule by Irish nationalists frustrated by postponed home rule during WWI.