world war i

Learning Objectives

In this lesson, you will learn

1. The origins of World War I
2. The two sides in the war including allied power and central power
3. The two fronts where the majority of the fighting took place in Europe
4. The entry of the United States in the war
5. Battle of Somme
6. The sinking of the Lusitania
7. Use of chemical weapons
8. The end of the war with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles

WORLD WAR I

World War 1 (which is often abbreviated as WW1 or WWI), also known as the great war or the First World War, was a global war that originated in Europe and lasted from 28^th July 1914 to 11^th November 1918. It is contemporaneously described as “the war to end all wars”, it was responsible for the mobilization of very many military personnel (more than 70 million), including 60 million Europeans. This made it one of the biggest wars in history. It is also among the deadliest conflicts in the history of mankind, with an estimated seven million civilian deaths and nine million combatants deaths as a direct cause of the war. The 1918 influenza pandemic as well as resulting genocides lead to another 50 to 100 million deaths throughout the world.

DATE

Below is a list of treaties that were signed after the period of the First World War. This is between the dates, 28^th July 1914 to 11^th November 1918. This represents a period of 4 years, 3 months and 2 weeks.

• Treaty of Versailles. This was signed on 28^th June 1919.
• Treaty of Saint-Germain-enLaye. This was signed on 10^th September 1919.
• Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine. This was signed on 27^th November 1919.
• Treaty of Trianon. Signed on 4^th June 1920.
• Treaty of sevres. Signed on 10^th August 1920.
• United States-Austria Peace Treaty. Signed on 24^th August 1921.
• United States-Germany Peace Treaty. Signed on 25^th August 1921.
• United States-Hungary Peace Treaty. Signed on 29^th August 1921.
• Treaty of Lausanne. Signed on 24^th July 1923.

LOCATION

Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, the Pacific Islands, North and South Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean.

There were two sides in the war:

• Allied Powers including France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, and Japan.
• Central Powers including Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria.

The United States also fought on the side of the Allies after 1917.

The majority of the fighting took place in Europe along two fronts: the western front and the eastern front.

• The Western Front was a long line of trenches that ran from the coast of Belgium to Switzerland. A lot of the fighting along this front took place in France and Belgium.
• The Eastern Front was between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Bulgaria on one side and Russia and Romania on the other.

CAUSES OF THE WORLD WAR I

There were a number of causes for the war.

The assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the main catalyst for starting the war. After the assassination, Austria declared war on Serbia. Then Russia prepared to defend its ally Serbia. Next, Germany declared war on Russia to protect Austria. This caused France to declare war on Germany to protect its ally Russia. Germany invaded Belgium to get to France which caused Britain to declare war on Germany. All this happened in just a few days.

RESULT

Allied powers victory

• The victory of the Central Powers on the Eastern Front was nullified by defeats on the other fronts.
• There was the fall of all the European continental empires, including Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Russia.
• The Russian Civil War and the Russian Revolution- the Russian Empire collapsed as well as the subsequent Soviet Union’s formation.
• Widespread revolutions and unrest all over Europe and Asia.
• Creation of the League of Nations.

Note that there were many more results of World War 1.

TERRITORIAL CHANGES

• There was the formation of new countries in Europe as well as the Middle East.
• The transfer of German territories and colonies, regions of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, former Ottoman Empire as well as the Soviet Union territories to other countries.

On June 28, the year 1914, a Bosnian Serb Yugoslav nationalist, Gavrilo Princip, was assassinated in Sarajevo, resulting in the July crisis. On 23^rd July, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum in response to Serbia. The reply of Serbia failed to satisfy the Austrians, opting the two to move to a war footing.

A network of interlocking alliances made the crisis larger from a bilateral issue in the Balkans to one involving most of Europe. The great European powers were divided into two coalitions by July 1914. The two coalitions were: The Triple Entente (it consisted of Britain, Russia and France- and the Triple Alliance which was made up of Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary.

The First World War was a significant turning point in the cultural, political, economic as well as social climate of the world. The immediate aftermath of the war sparked many revolutions and uprisings. The Big Four (Italy, France, Britain and United States) imposed their terms on the powers that they defeated in a series of treaties that were agreed upon at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. The most known is the German peace treaty- the Treaty of Versailles.

UNITED STATES IN WORLD WAR I

Although World War I began in 1914, the United States did not join the war until 1917. When war broke out in 1914, the United States had a policy of neutrality. Many people in the U.S. saw the war as a dispute between "old world" powers that had nothing to do with them. 

In 1915, Germany declared the waters surrounding the British Isles to be a war zone, and German U-boats sunk several commercial and passenger vessels, including some US ships. One of those ships was Lusitania, a British luxury cruise ship, traveling from New York to Liverpool in England carrying passengers and cargo.

The sinking of the Lusitania was an important event in World War I. The death of so many innocent civilians at the hands of the Germans caused widespread protest and turned the American public opinion against Germany.

The United States didn't become an official member of the Allies, but called itself an "associated power".

BATTLE OF THE SOMME

The Battle of the Somme was the largest battle of World War I. It is known as one of the bloodiest battles in history. It was fought by the French and British against the Germans on both sides of the River Somme in France and lasted for more than five months. Over a million men were killed or wounded, and it was the first time that a tank was used in combat.

MODERN USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS

The modern use of chemical weapons began with World War I when both sides of the conflict used poisonous gas to inflict agonizing suffering and to cause significant battlefield casualties. The Germans were the first to use lethal gases when they used a chlorine gas attack. Later they also developed and used the most effective gas of World War I – mustard gas. Chemical weapons basically consisted of well-known commercial chemicals put into standard ammunitions like grenades and artillery shells. Chlorine, phosgene (a choking agent) and mustard gas (which inflicts painful burns on the skin) were among the chemicals used.

Over 8 million soldiers died in World War I and another 21 million injured. In 1918 the German citizens began striking and demonstrating against the war. The people were starving and the economy was collapsing because British navy boats were blocking all the German ports. This led to the people protesting to try and end the war.

The fighting ended on November 11, 1918, when a general armistice was agreed to by both sides. The war officially ended between Germany and the Allies with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles