WWI Lesson Study Guide

Key Concepts

Military Alliances

• Triple Alliances: A pre-war alliance consisting of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire.

• Allied Powers (Triple Entente): This alliance included France, Great Britain, and Russia.

Causes of WWI

• Nationalism: Intense national pride and loyalty that contributed to tensions between countries.

• Imperialism: Competition for colonies and global dominance.

• Assassination: The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was a significant precursor to the war.

The Assassination That Sparked WWI

• Country Responsible: Serbia

• Victim: Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne.

• Location: Bosnia

• Assassin: Gavrilo Princip, a 19-year-old member of the terrorist organization known as the Black Hand, sentenced to 20 years of hard labor.

• The Black Hand: A Serbian nationalist group aiming to gain independence for Serbia from Austro-Hungarian rule.

WWI Technology

• Aircrafts: Introduced as a new way to travel and drop bombs.

• Machine Guns: Provided a faster method to kill enemies.

• Artillery: Used for long-range bombardment, destroying land and people (also called shelling).

• Barbed Wire: Placed in No Man's Land to impede enemy advancement.

• Tanks: Mobile artillery designed to traverse difficult terrain and support infantry attacks.

The Western Front

• Location: Primarily in France and Belgium.

• Trench Warfare: Soldiers would fight from trenches, which served as defensive positions.

  • Front Lines: The areas where actual fighting occurs.

  • No Man's Land: The dangerous territory between opposing front lines.

  • Dugouts: Sheltered areas in trenches used for eating and sleeping.

  • Trench Foot: A medical condition from prolonged exposure to wet conditions, often affecting the toes and feet.

  • SIWs (Self-Inflicted Wounds): Methods used by soldiers to injure themselves (e.g., cutting arms or legs) to escape the front line.

Chemical Warfare

• Mustard Gas: A toxic agent affecting skin, eyes, and respiratory systems.

Warfare Dynamics

• A War of Inches: Refers to the deadlock situation on the Western Front where front lines rarely moved, resulting in high casualties for small territorial gains.