Transcript The First World War 1914- 1918

The First World War 19141918
The Outbreak of War
The Outbreak of War
Aims:
• Examine Britain’s reasons for going to
war.
• Identify why the Schlieffen Plan failed
Treaty of London 1839
• In 1839, Britain, Germany and other
European countries signed the Treaty of
London.
• This agreement stated that Belgium was
to be a neutral country – no other
country was to invade Belgium.
Why Did Britain Enter the War?
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To defend Belgium
To stop Germany dominating Europe
To stop Germany controlling the seas
To settle old rivalries with Germany.
To help her allies in the Triple Entente
The Schlieffen Plan
The plan was based on a
number of assumptions:
The Russian army would
take 6 weeks to mobilise.
France could be defeated
in 6 weeks.
Belgium would not resist
any German attack.
The British would remain
neutral.
However things didn’t quite go according to plan……..
The Russians
mobilised quicker than
expected – the
Germans had to send
troops to the East to
fight the Russians.
The Belgian army put
up a strong fight and
slowed down the
German advance
Why
WhyDid
Didthe
the
Schlieffen
SchlieffenPlan
Plan
Fail?
Fail?
The BEF arrived in
Belgium and also
helped to slow down
the German advance
The German troops
had to cover a huge
distance in a short
space of time – troops
were exhausted and
short of supplies
Bravo Belgium Cartoon
• Cartoons can be very useful to the historian
when looking at past events.
• Most daily newspapers had a cartoon which
commented on events that were happening the
time.
• Cartoonists would often poke fun at a
situation or criticise what is happening.
• Therefore cartoons often contain
exaggeration and bias.
• They can also help us to see what people’s
opinions were at the time.
This cartoon was
produced in the
British magazine,
‘Punch’ and was
drawn on 12th
August 1914.
It was drawn by FH
Townsend
Bravo Belgium Cartoon
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5.
Which country does the young boy
represent? How do we know this?
Which country does the old man represent?
How do we know this?
What does it say on the gate? How does
this reflect what was happening at the
time?
What is the caption of the cartoon and what
does this mean?
Using your answers to q 1-4 which country
does the cartoonist support?
The War of Movement 1914
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The first few months of the war were
known as the ‘War of Movement’.
Both sides tried to secure a quick
victory against the other to bring the
war to an end.
The Battle of the Marne 1914
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Most of the French army was positioned
along its border with Germany.
The French had to move quickly or they
would be unable to defend Paris.
Along with the BEF the French army fought
the Germans at the River Marne.
By Sept 19th, the Germans retreated and
Paris was saved.
The Schlieffen Plan was in ruins – Germany
now had to face WAR ON TWO FRONTS.
The Race to the Sea 1914
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Despite losing the Battle of the Marne the
Germans still occupied most of north-east
France.
Both sides tried to outflank each other and
surround their enemy.
The British were concerned they would be
cut off from important French ports like
Dunkirk and Calais – this would prevent
supplies and reinforcements from reaching
France.
In October 1914 the British and Germans
fought in a bloody battle at Ypres – 20,000
Germans were killed and 8,000 British. But
the town was saved and the Race to Sea
won.
Ypres
Calais and
Dunkirk
Winter 1914
• Despite a hectic few months with high
casualties the war had reached a ‘stalemate’ –
no one was wining.
• With winter approaching it would be
impossible to fight large scale battles on flat
land.
• Both sides dug trenches to defend
themselves during the winter months.
• Soon a line of trenches stretched from the
English Channel through Belgium and France
to the Swiss border in the south.
• This line of trenches became known as the
WESTERN FRONT.