World War I Comprehensive Review

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering causes, military tactics, major Canadian operations, home front developments, and the peace settlements of World War I.

MAIN

An acronym representing Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism, the four long-term causes that increased tensions in Europe before 1914.

Militarism

Building up armed forces and prioritizing military strength, resulting in an arms race that made rival powers more prepared to fight.

Alliances

Agreements between countries to cooperate or provide support, which in 1914 helped turn a regional conflict into a wider war.

Imperialism

Expanding a country's power over other territories, where competition for colonies, markets, and resources fueled rivalries.

Nationalism

Strong loyalty to a nation that fueled rivalries and drove movements in the Balkans that challenged Austria-Hungary.

Triple Alliance

A prewar alliance composed of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (which remained neutral in 1914 before joining the Allies in 1915).

Central Powers

The wartime coalition consisting of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.

Triple Entente

A prewar alignment consisting of Britain, France, and Russia.

Allies

The wartime coalition that included Britain and its empire, France, Russia, and Belgium, later joined by Italy and the United States in 1917.

Franz Ferdinand

Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne who was assassinated in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, by Bosnian Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip.

Germany’s “blank cheque”

Germany's promise of strong support to Austria-Hungary following the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, encouraging a hard-line stance against Serbia.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany's two-front war strategy aimed at quickly defeating France by invading through neutral Belgium before shifting forces east against Russia.

Trench warfare

A form of combat in which soldiers fought from fortified ditches across no man's land, resulting in high casualties and stalemate due to machine guns, artillery, and barbed wire.

Attrition

A military strategy focused on wearing down an enemy's troops, supplies, and capacity to fight over time through sustained losses.

Arthur Currie

Canadian general who commanded the 1st Canadian Division at Vimy Ridge and took overall command of the Canadian Corps in June 1917, leading it at Passchendaele and during Canada's Hundred Days.

U-boat

A German submarine used to disrupt Allied supply lines by attacking military and merchant vessels.

Lusitania

A British passenger liner sunk by a German U-boat in May 1915, causing American deaths that intensified anti-German sentiment in the United States.

Unrestricted submarine warfare

Germany's policy of sinking all vessels, including neutral ships, in designated war zones without warning; its resumption in 1917 brought the United States into the war.

Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF)

The Canadian military force organized for overseas service during WWI, initially made up of volunteers and later augmented by conscripts.

Creeping barrage

An artillery tactic where shells were fired in advancing stages just ahead of attacking infantry to keep enemy defenders pinned under cover.

Second Battle of Ypres (April 1915)

A battle in Belgium marked by Germany's deployment of chlorine gas; Canadian forces held the line despite severe gas exposure and heavy losses.

Battle of the Somme (July–November 1916)

A massive Allied offensive that yielded minor territorial advances at the cost of immense casualties, including devastating losses for the Newfoundland Regiment at Beaumont-Hamel on July 1.

Vimy Ridge (April 1917)

A battle in France where all four Canadian divisions fought together for the first time, using meticulous planning and artillery coordination to capture a key fortified position.

Passchendaele (October–November 1917)

A battle in Belgium fought under extreme mud and heavy shelling; Canadians captured the ridge at a cost of roughly 16,000 casualties.

Canada’s Hundred Days (August–November 1918)

The final Allied offensive where the Canadian Corps advanced from Amiens through battles including Canal du Nord and Cambrai, helping force Germany to seek an armistice.

War Measures Act (1914)

Canadian legislation giving the federal cabinet sweeping emergency powers, permitting censorship, arbitrary detention, and internment on the home front.

Robert Borden

Canadian prime minister during WWI who enacted conscription and secured separate Canadian representation at the Paris Peace Conference.

Sam Hughes

Canada’s minister of militia and defence during the early war period who oversaw mobilization at Valcartier and championed the Ross rifle.

Ross rifle

A Canadian-manufactured rifle known for target accuracy that frequently jammed in muddy trench conditions, leading to its replacement by the British Lee-Enfield.

“Enemy aliens”

A Canadian wartime classification for residents holding citizenship or ancestral ties to enemy nations, leading to mandatory registration, travel restrictions, and internment.

Halifax Explosion (December 6, 1917)

A disaster in Halifax Harbour caused by the collision of the munitions vessel Mont-Blanc and the Imo, killing approximately 2,000 people and injuring thousands.

Victory Bonds

Government-issued savings bonds sold to Canadian civilians to finance the war, guaranteeing principal repayment with accrued interest.

Military Service Act (1917)

The Canadian statute establishing mandatory military service (conscription) for eligible men to address declining enlistment rates and mounting casualties.

Khaki Election (1917)

A contentious Canadian federal election focused on conscription, in which Robert Borden's pro-conscription Union government defeated anti-conscription opposition centered in Quebec.

Wartime Elections Act (1917)

Canadian legislation that gave voting rights to certain female relatives of military personnel while stripping it from conscientious objectors and naturalized citizens from enemy nations.

Military Voters Act (1917)

Legislation that allowed all Canadian military personnel, including serving overseas nurses, to cast ballots in federal elections.

Armistice of November 11, 1918

The agreement that brought an immediate halt to combat operations on the Western Front.

Paris Peace Conference (1919)

The postwar gathering of Allied leaders to establish peace terms, redraw international boundaries, and found the League of Nations.

Woodrow Wilson

U.S. president whose Fourteen Points proposed national self-determination and the establishment of the League of Nations at the Paris Peace Conference.

David Lloyd George

British prime minister at the Paris Peace Conference who sought financial reparations from Germany while maintaining European balance and British interests.

Georges Clemenceau

French prime minister at the Paris Peace Conference who demanded severe reparations and security guarantees to prevent future German invasions.

Treaty of Versailles (1919)

The primary peace treaty with Germany, containing severe military restrictions, territorial cessions, financial reparations, and the League of Nations covenant.

War Guilt Clause (Article 231)

A provision in the Treaty of Versailles requiring Germany and its allies to accept sole responsibility for all Allied losses and damages, establishing the legal basis for reparations.

League of Nations

An international body established after WWI to resolve diplomatic disputes and prevent conflict through collective action; Canada joined as a charter member, while the United States never joined.

Collective security

The concept that a coalition of nations will jointly confront any aggressive state to maintain international peace.