Transcript Chapter 33 The Great War: The World in Upheaval 1917 Canadian Recruitment Poster Immediate Origins of World War I   June 28, 1914: Assassination of Archduke.

Chapter 33
The Great War:
The World in
Upheaval
1917 Canadian Recruitment Poster
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Immediate Origins of World War I
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June 28, 1914: Assassination of Archduke Francis
Ferdinand (1863-1914)
Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina
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Former Ottoman province was
occupied by the Austro-Hungarian
Empire 1878, and was formally
annexed in 1908
Ferdinand was in favor of greater
Serbian autonomy in the province

Not enough for Serbian extremists, who
wanted to annex it to the Kingdom of Serbia
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Immediate Origins of World War I
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Gavrilo Princip
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Bosnian Serb (1894-1918)
One of six assassins stationed
along the route of the Archduke’s motorcade
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First two assassins fail to act; third succeeds in throwing the a
bomb, but it bounces of the back of the Archduke’s car and
explodes on the street, injuring twenty people but not the targets;
the assassin swallows a faulty cyanide capsule and jumps off a
bridge, but is captured alive.
Next three assassins—including Princip—fail to act because the
motorcade drives by at a high speed.
All six assassins were trained by Serbian military intelligence;
some had been members of the nearly defunct “Black Hand”
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The Assassination
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The Archduke gives a speech at the Town Hall with the
Mayor of Sarajevo and is visibly shaken.
Franz Ferdinand and the expectant Sophie decide to go as
a couple to the hospital to visit victims of the bomb.
Princip sees Ferdinand’s car backing up after making a
wrong turn; it stalls, and he sees his opportunity.
Shoots Ferdinand and Sophie from a distance of five feet.
Princip swallows an ineffective cyanide capsule; he is
captured by mob and beaten senseless.
Prncip was too young to be executed, and is sentenced to
twenty years in prison; dies of tuberculosis in jail in 1918.
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The Assassination
Automobile in which Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were assassinated
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Outcome of Princip’s Bullet
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First global “total” war; nearly every inhabited
corner of the earth is affected
Conservative estimates of 15 million dead
(5 million non-combatants), 20 million injured
End of four empires (Germany, Russia, AustroHungary, and Ottoman), and rise of nine new
countries
Massive global human and economic dislocations
Beginning of the end of Europe’s domination of
globe
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Larger Causes of World War I
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Culmination of competing nationalisms
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Rivalry among empires
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Especially in Central and Southeastern Europe
Especially between Britain and Germany
Triggered by inflexible diplomatic alliances
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Germany, France, England, Russia
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Competing Nationalisms
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Outcome of French revolution, which spread nationalist
ideologies across the continent and then the world.
Self-determination and independence movements
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Belgium: Achieved independence form Spain in 1830.
Greece: Independence recognized by Ottomans in 1832.
Unification of Italy: Achieved under Kingdom of Piedmont in 1861,
known by Italians as il Risorgimento (“the Resurgence”).
Unification of Germany: accomplished under King Wilhelm of
Prussia and Otto von Bismarck after Franco-Prussian War in 1871.
Complete Serbian Independence: Acknowledged by Ottomans in
1878 after violent revolution (1804-1815) and gradual consolidation
of autonomy.
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Nationalism in Multi-National Empires
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Austro-Hungarian Empire
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Russian Empire
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Germans
South Slavs: Bulgarians, Serbs, Croats, ethnic Macedonians, Slovenes,
Bosniaks, Montenegrins (growing “Yugoslav movement”— meaning
“South Slav”—among intelligentsia)
Other Slavs: Czechs, Hungarians, Poles, Slovaks, Romanians, Ukranians,
etc.
Russians, Poles, Ukrainians, Jews (Yiddish speakers), Uzbeks, Tatars,
Germans, Baltic peoples (Estonians, Latvians & Lithuanians), etc.
Ottoman Empire
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Turks, Arabs, Persians, Jews, Greeks, Serbians, Armenians, Romanians,
Bulgarians, Kurds, etc.
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Nationalism in Multi-National Empires
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Rivalry Among Empires
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Economic Dominance of British Empire declining
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1870: 32% of world’s industrial output is from Great Britain,
and only 13% from pre-unification Germany
1914: 14% from Great Britain, roughly same as Germany
Imperial Competition
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German Empire is a latecomer, but aggressive: it grabbed
colonies and concessions in Africa, China, and the South
Pacific
Small-scale disputes around the globe, especially intense in
the Balkans between Ottomans, Austrians, and national ethnic
groups
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Naval Competition
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Arms race between United Kingdom and Germany to
control seas; Britain holds upper hand
Decisive for control of trade routes in case of war
Construction of dreadnoughts:
H.M.S. Benbow in 1914
large battleships
Germans build their own
dreadnoughts and develop
U-Boats to counter British
superiority
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Role of Public Opinion
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Effects of mass media age becoming widespread
Availability of cheap newspapers, pamphlets, and
colorful lithographic posters
Newspaper editors have little public accountability:
tend toward sensationalism and national chauvinism
Awkward pressure on politicians and diplomats

Sacrifice diplomatic expediency for public support; longterm goals displaced by short-term ones that make big
headlines
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Inflexible Diplomatic Alliances
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Both sides are party to agreements for mutual defense
Chain reaction leads to a global war
Triple Alliance (later known as “Central Powers”)
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Mutual defense pact between Germany and Austro-Hungarians
made in 1879; joined by Italians 1882
Triple Entente (later known as “Allies”)
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Russia and France enter into the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1892
United Kingdom and France enter into the “Entente Cordiale” in
1904
Russia and the U.K. enter into Anglo-Russian Convention in
1907, ending their rivalry in Central Asia (“The Great Game”)
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Inflexible Diplomatic Alliances
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Bonds between Triple Alliance Powers
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Bonds between Germany and Austro-Hungary: linguistic,
cultural, and political
Worries over two-front war: Eastern and Western
Worries over British domination of the sea and control of
global trade
Worries over possibility of French attack in revenge for
Franco-Prussian defeat; also concerned about Russian
interference with Austrian Balkan policies
Italians concerned about French colonial expansion in North
Africa: Italians want colonies there as well. Italians actually
end up witching sides in 1915 since they hope to gain
territory from Austria-Hungary.
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Concerns of the Triple Entente Powers
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Russia worried about strong German-AustroHungarian alliance
United Kingdom concerned with maintaining
balance of power on the Continent
France worried about hostilities with Germany
Secret naval and army pacts signed betwene the
powers in the summer 1914

Each power had reciprocal treaty obligations: must
come to the aid of each other in time of war
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Mutually Threatening War Plans
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French “Plan XVII”
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German Schlieffen Plan
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Heavy emphasis on rapid offensives, with big
concentration of forces on Alsace-Lorraine
Fear of encirclement from France and Russia
France to be defeated swiftly by northern route
through Belgium, then attention turned to Russia
Plans triggered by mobilization of enemy forces
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Mutually Threatening War Plans
The Schlieffen Plan
vs.
Plan XVII
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The Chain Reaction
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23 July: Austrians issue ultimatum to Serbs, but get no
response
28 July: Austrians declare war on Serbia
29 July: Russia mobilizes to defend Serbia
31 July: Germany issues ultimatum to Russia to stop
mobilizing, and issues one to France not to do so.
1 August: Germany declares war on Russia; France starts
its mobilization
3 August: Germans declare war on France and invade
Belgium
4 August: Britain comes to defense of Belgium
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War of Attrition
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West: three years of stalemate
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Trenches from English channel to Switzerland
East: More movement and earlier end to fighting
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Much longer front (from St. Petersburg to Black Sea)
made troop densities too thin for trenches to develop
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918: Withdraws
Bolshevik Russia from fighting and allows Central
Powers to occupy Poland, the Ukraine, and the Baltic
countries.
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War of Attrition
German soldiers relaxing in trenches during a lull in fighting
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New Military Technology
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Barbed Wire: Developed in American West to contain cattle in 1870s;
used militarily in Spanish-American and Boer Wars, but most
extensively in World War I
Machine Gun: Gatling guns used in American Civil War, but first
modern machine gun was the Maxim gun; the first used in colonial
wars in the 1880s and 1890s. World War I was the first war where both
sides made extensive use of machine guns.
Poison Gas: Top chemists in Europe work to create nasty weapons.
 Chlorine Gas: First used on a mass scale by Germans as canisters fired
as artillery shells into enemy trenches in late January 1915. British first
use first it in September 1915, yet it becomes ineffective as gasmasks
are introduced. Also blew back on Allied troops as wind shifted.
 Phosgene: Deadliest gas in the war introduced by French in 1915, often
mixed with chlorine. Caused 85% of the 100,000 chemical warfare
deaths during the war. Symptoms could take 24 hours to manifest.
 Mustard Gas: Most famous but least deadly. First used in 1917.
Designed to incapacitate rather than kill. Blistered skin, burned eyes,
and mucous membranes of the respiratory system.
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New Military Technology
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New Military Technology
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Tanks
 Introduced by British in 1916 to break through trench
stalemate
 Initially effective, but infantry could not hold ground
gained; quickly lost to counterattacks
Aircraft
 Early planes did some limited bombing and strafing,
but used primarily for reconnaissance
 Dirigibles: German zeppelins conducted nighttime
raids over England, at altitudes beyond range of aircraft
until the end of the war. Bombs were highly inaccurate.
Submarines: Germans developed them in 1890s and early
1900s. Had a fleet of 48 “U-boats” by the start of WWI.
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New Military Technology
British Mark V Tank introduced in 1918
British Sopwith Camel fighter
plane introduced in 1917
German Zeppelin used on bombing run of
England in 1915
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Brutality of New Warfare
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Unprecedented casualties: industrialized warfare
Battle of Verdun (February-December 1916)
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362,000 French casualties
336,000 German casualties
Less than 160,000 bodies recovered
The Somme Offensive: British gain few thousand
yards (July-November 1916)
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420,000 casualties
No significant strategic advantage gained
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The Great War in Europe and Southwest
Asia, 1914-1918
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Total War: The Home Front
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Implications of modern industrial war: concept
of a “home front”: strength of whole nation tested
Government takes command of economies
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Women in the workforce
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Wage controls
Price controls
Planning boards control raw materials and manufacturing
Women take traditionally “male” jobs with men at war
TNT poisoning among workers at armament factories: yellow
skin, orange hair
Bombing of civilian areas by zeppelins
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War Propaganda
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Maintenance of Public Support for War: Rallying men to enlist,
demonizing the enemy, and appealing to national honor.
Media: Recruitment posters, newspaper stories, pamphlets and
books, silent films
Untruths: British authorities greatly exaggerate the extent of
German atrocities in so-called “atrocity propaganda”: 1915 Report
on Alleged German Outrages, a widely disseminated pamphlet that
relayed accounts of systematic killing and raping of Belgian
civilians by German soldiers. Doubts about its validity still persist.
Irony: By the end of the war no one believes the “official truth.”
Skepticism of WWI propaganda makes belief in the WWII atrocities
more difficult.
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War Propaganda
British
Recruitment
Posters
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War Propaganda
German Propaganda Posters
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War Propaganda
American Recruitment Posters
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Global Involvement
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Importation of troops from colonies
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United Kingdom: Troops from Australia, New Zealand,
Canada, India, and Africa involved
France: Troops from Algeria, Senegal, Tunisia involved
Tirailleurs Senegalais
in World War I France
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Global Involvement
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Japanese pushes its designs on China while
European powers are distracted
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On August 15, 1914, Japan issues an ultimatum to Germany to
withdraw from its concession in Jiaozhou, China, and to remove
its warships from Far East waters. The Germans refuse.
Japanese take German concession port at Qingdao and seize
German-held islands in the South Pacific
Twenty-One Demands: Japan secretly presented the Chinese
government with demands in January 1915 that would essentially
make China a Japanese protectorate. Chinese leaked the demands
to British diplomats, who prevented China’s capitulation.
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Global Involvement
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Battles in Africa and Southwest Asia
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German Colonies in Africa: The Allies sought to capture the German
colonies of Togoland, the Cameroons, German Southwest Africa, and
German East Africa. Togoland fell relatively easily, but the rest required
sustained campaigns.
Gallipoli: Savage campaign from April 1915 to January 1916 by British
and French against the Ottomans to open up the entrance to the Black
Sea. “Anzac” troops—from Australia and New Zealand—were used to
storm well-defended Ottoman positions on higher ground and took
devastating losses: roughly 250,000 on each side. Gallipoli was the
Turks’ greatest victory. This campaign triggered cries for more
independence in both Australia and New Zealand. The Turkish hero of
the campaign, Mustafa Kemal, would play a key role in founding the
modern Turkish state.
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Global Involvement
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Ottoman Empire
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Armenian Massacres: The war provided the cover for Ottoman authorities to
attempt to purge the last non-Muslim ethnic group within the empire’s
boundaries: two million Armenian Christians. New policies of Turkish
nationalism went against older traditions of toleration. Forced evacuations
killed tens of thousands of Armenians, while massacres organized by the
government between 1915 and 1917 also claimed many lives. Roughly a
million died, although the Turkish state still will not use the term “genocide.”
Gallipoli: Savage campaign from April 1915 to January 1916 by British and
French against the Ottomans to open up the entrance to the Black Sea. “Anzac”
troops—from Australia and New Zealand—were used to storm well-defended
Ottoman positions on higher ground and took devastating losses: roughly
250,000 on each side. Gallipoli was the Turks’ greatest victory. This campaign
triggered cries for more independence in both Australia and New Zealand. The
Turkish hero of the campaign, Mustafa Kemal, would play a key role in
founding the modern Turkish state.
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Collapse of the Russian Empire
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The March Revolution of 1917: Revolutionaries forces the Romanov
family to abdicate and brings in a liberal democratic government of the
Mensheviks under Alexander Kerensky, who looks to western liberal
countries as models.
Bolsheviks: Germans smuggle Bolshevik leader Lenin from
Switzerland into Russia in a sealed train car since they know he will
stop the fighting if he gains power. “Peace, Land, and Bread” is the
effective Bolshevik slogan.
November Revolution of 1917: “Ten Days that Shook the World”—
Lenin and the Bolsheviks create the world’s first Communist state, the
Soviet Union. Bolsheviks execute the Tsar and his family in July 1918.
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk: Signed on March 3, 1918. Soviets end the
Russian war effort and allows the Central Powers to occupy Poland, the
Baltic countries, and the Ukraine. Soon a civil war breaks out in Russia.
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U.S. Enters the War
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U.S. Economy Boosted by the War
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German blockade of British overseas trade
U-boat patrols in the North Atlantic and attack cargo vessels
Sinking of Lusitania, May 7, 1915
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Sells huge quantities of goods and supplies to the Allies
Europeans incur huge debts to U.S. banks: world financial capital
moves from London to New York City
U.S. neutrality a mirage: does not offer same help to Central Powers
1,198 lives lost (128 U.S.); ship was carrying munitions
Germans call off submarine attacks on U.S. shipping to prevent U.S.
entry into the war
U.S. declares war April 1917 after Germans resume U-Boat
attacks out of desperation; Germans would sink 14.5 million
tons of Allied shipping during the war using U-boats.
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U.S. Enters the War
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Defeat of the Central Powers
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U.S. Troops: Influx of fresh U.S. troops by May 1917 energizes Allies.
By June 1917, there were 14,000 U.S. troops, and by May 1918 there
were over one million. Called “Doughboys,” they began to fight on the
front by Fall 1917.
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African American Troops: Roughly 350,000 served on the Western Front in
segregated units; only 20 percent of these fought in combat.
Spring 1918: Germans attempt one last massive offensive in France
that initially succeeds, but ultimately collapses due to strained supply
lines and worn out troops.
Summer and Fall 1918: Central Powers troops are at the point of
exhaustion and have little manpower left. Allies mount the “100 Days
Offensive” starting in August that pushes Germans back across their
line of defense established in France and almost back to the German
frontier.
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Defeat of the Central Powers
Typical U.S. “Doughboy”
African American in World War I
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Defeat of the Central Powers
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Separate Peaces: Some of the other Central Powers begin to sign
peace agreements over the fall: Bulgaria (Sept. 29), Ottoman
Empire (Oct. 30), and Austria-Hungary (Nov. 3). Hungary
separates from Austria.
Germany: Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates and Germany declared a
republic on November 9. Power struggle between Communists
and Social Democrats begins in Berlin.
Armistice: Western Front forces agree to cease fighting on
November 11, 1918 at 11:00 am. Germans allow western portions
of Germany to be occupied by British and U.S. forces.
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The Paris Peace Conference
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Dominated by France, Great Britain, and the United States
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Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points
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George Clemenceau and Lloyd George are more vehement in demanding
that Germans pay; Woodrow Wilson wants to temper terms to create a
stabile system of world peace.
No Central Powers Are Represented: The terms of the peace are dictated to
the Germans and Austrians. Italians are given little.
No secret treaties; idea of self-determination for nations within former
empires; freedom of navigation on the seas; Belgium and Poland restored;
Alsace-Lorraine given back to France; creation of a general association of
nations to guarantee independence of small and large nation-states alike
Peace Treaties Harsh on Central Powers: Heavy reparations
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Territorial Changes in Europe after the Great War
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The End of the Ottoman Empire
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Treaty of Sèvres (1920): Removes Balkan
and Arab provinces, and allows for
European occupation of south and east
Anatolia.
Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk): Leads uprising
against sultanate, and ends Ottoman
dynasty in November 1922.
Allies recognize new republic in Treaty of
Lausanne (1923).
The Republic is intensely secular
government and recognizes many
women’s rights
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Territorial Changes in Southwest Asia after the
Great War
The “Mandate
System” in the
Middle East
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The League of Nations
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League of Nations created by diplomats in Paris
Forty-two original member-states, twenty-six nonEuropean
Application of Wilson’s concept of “self-determination”
League of Nations mandate system created to control
formerly colonized areas: Syria, Lebanon, Palestine,
Mesopotamia, British Togoland, French Togoland,
British Cameroons, French Cameroun, Ruanda-Urundi,
Tanganyika, and South-West Africa
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