AMSCO 7.2 Key Terms

Archduke Franz Ferdinand:

  • heir of Austria-Hungary that was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip while visiting Bosnia-Herzegovina

    • set off WWI

Immediate Causes of the Great War

Great War:

  • war from 1914 to 1918 that was global and had large scale fighting

  • had extremely high casualties and weakened Western European powers

  • treaties signed at end paved path for WWII

Gavrilo Princip:

  • man who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on June 28, 1914

    • Serbian

    • member of the Black Hand

Black Hand:

  • nationalist organization that wanted to end Austro-Hungarian rule in the Balkans

    • thought of as a terrorist group

How War Started and Spread:

  • Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia July 28, 1914 after Serbia refused to end Austrian hate

    • Austria-Hungary looked for Germany for military assistance, and Serbia looked to Russia for help

  • Germany declares war on Russia August 1 and on France August 3

  • Britain declares war on Germany August 4

  • Austria declares war on Russia August 6

  • Japan enters end of August

Long-Term Causes of the Great War

Militarism:

  • aggressive military preparedness that celebrates war and the armed forces

    • countries such as Britain and France built up militaries to show dominance

    • mass produced weapons after Industrial Revolution

Secret Alliances:

  • groups whose members secretly agree to protect and help one another when attacked

    • explains Russia and Germany’s involvement in WWI

Triple Entente:

  • Alliance between Britain, France, and Russia

    • All hated Germany

      • France did since they lost the Franco-Prussian War from 1870-1871 and Alsace-Lorraine

      • Britain competed for colonies in Africa

Allies:

  • Name for Triple Entente when Italy, Japan, China, US, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, and Greece joined

    • 27 Allies

    • also called “Associated Powers”

Triple Alliance:

  • Rival of the Allies made up of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy

    • Italy was in alliance, remained neutral, and joined Allies in 1915

Central Powers:

  • New name for Triple Alliance when Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined

Neutral States:

  • Spain

  • Norway

  • Sweden

  • Denmark

  • Netherlands

  • Switzerland

  • Albania

Imperialism:

  • Became an issue since European powers started fighting over colonies, since all the land available had been colonized

Self-Determination:

  • the idea that people of the same ethnicity, language, culture, and political ideas should be united and should have the right to form an independent nation-state

    • Serbs and Arabs wanted to get this from Austria-Hungary and Ottomans

      • fought for Allies

Consequences of the Great War

  • Four world powers fell: Austria-Hungary, Germany, Ottoman Empire, and Russia

  • New technologies made war devastating

  • Led to rise of communism and fascism

  • power was in hands of US

  • Germany had to pay reparations for the war