GUIDED READING ACTIVITY ANSWERS

Americans at War, 1917 - 1918

As of April, 1917, 844 Allied vessels had been sunk by German U-Boats.

The German Blockade of England, WW I

Germany was able

to set up an

effective blockade

of England during

World War I by

using its U-Boats to

sink trade vessels

approaching or

leaving England.

Unable to receive

food and supplies

from abroad, the

English population

suffered and the

war effort seemed

doomed.

In 1917, Germany had just forced the Russians to quit the war, and seemed to be close to victory.

The Convoy System – large groups of merchant vessels accompanied by cruisers and destroyers for safety – was used with great effect starting in 1917.

Ships were also painted with “Dazzle Camouflage” which made them more difficult targets for German U-boats.

General John J. “Blackjack” Pershing

General John Pershing had gained fame for his role in subduing Mexican Revolutionary “Pancho” Villa during the early 1910s. During World War I, he was the commander of the American Expeditionary Force – and cooperated closely with the French Commander Ferdinand Foch.

At the start of

American

participation in the

war effort, Pershing

was opposed to any

American troops

serving under

foreign

commanders. Soon,

however, he had

relinquished

African-American

soldier to French

commanders, and by

the end of the war,

Americans routinely

served under French

commanders.

Americans Fighting under French Command

The US Troops Arrived in France, June, 1917

World War I started in

Europe in the fall of

1914. Americans were

resolved to stay out of

the war – which they

considered a European

affair – but were

eventually dragged in.

Even after President

Woodrow Wilson asked

Congress for a

declaration of war in

April of 1917, it took

several months to

mobilize the AEF

(American

Expeditionary Force)

to join the fight.

Doughboys

Because most

American soldiers

were

inexperienced

farm boys out in

the world for

their first time –

and perhaps a

little pudgy until

they had been

through basic

training – they

were referred to

as “Doughboys.”

The Bolshevik Party: Russian Communism

Communism is an economic and political system based on the idea that social classes and the right to private property should be eliminated.

The Bolshevik Party in Russia, led by Vladimir Lenin, used violent force to take over the government of Russia, then seized and redistributed land to collective farmers.

During a murderous, bloody Civil War between 1917 and 1923, the Tsar and hundreds of thousands of citizens who opposed the Bolsheviks’ plans were killed in the fighting.

COMMUNISM:

Vladimir Lenin

and the

Bolsheviks were

so busy fighting a

Civil War at home

that they could

not fight against

the Germans – and

therefore quit the

war. In the Treaty

of Brest-Litovsk,

Russia ceded

hundreds of

thousands of

square miles of

land to Germany.

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Forty Divisions of German Soldiers Moved to the Western Front.

When fighting

against Russia

came to an end,

virtually the

entire Eastern

Front collapsed

and military

confrontation

ceased. German

Soldiers were

redeployed to the

Western Front,

and the Allies

braced

themselves for a

massive assault.

The Battle of Chateau-Thierry

The Spanish

Influenza

More men and

women died of

the Spanish Flu

during the winter

of 1918-1919

than died during

all of World War I.

The epidemic hit

German and

Allied Soldiers so

hard during 1918

that it interfered

with troop

movements

during World War

I.

The Battle of Argonne Forest

In September of 1918,

the weakened German

lines were forced to

retreat by Allied

Soldiers who had been

reinforced by

American

“doughboys.” Crossing

the Meuse River, over

1 million American

soldiers pressed

forward through

heavily fortified

regions of the Argonne

Forest. German

soldiers continued to

retreat all the way

back into Germany.

An armistice is an agreement to halt fighting between enemy combatants so that peace talks can begin.

Germany asked for an armistice, or cease-fire, during the fall of 1918 so that peace talks could begin between their nation and the Allied Powers.

Allied leaders, however, were not willing to halt their progress right way. Germany would have to endure more brutal punishment before the Allies would acquiesce.

ARMISTICE -

Kaiser Wilhelm Abdicates his Throne.

Kaiser Wilhelm II, the monarch

who was considered the leader of

Germany throughout World War

I, was forced to abdicate his

throne, or give up leadership,

before the Allies would accept a

cease fire with Germany. He left

Germany to live in exile in

Holland. The once proud

emperor, pictured to the left,

would live in exile for the rest of

his life, and watch Germany

descend into madness under

Adolf Hitler before the nation

was destroyed again during the

Second World War.

The leaders of the Allied Powers wanted for the war to end dramatically, and thus chose the memorable date we now know as Armistice Day.

The war ended at exactly 11 O'clock AM on November the 11th: The Eleventh hour of the Eleventh day of the Eleventh month.

Why? For no reason at all. And the killing continued until that date and that hour, although it might have stopped days earlier.

Armistice Day: November 11, 1918

“In Flanders Fields,” by Lt. Col. John McCrae of the Royal Canadian Army

“In Flanders Fields”

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

France 1.3 Million Men

Britain 900,000 Men

Russia 1.7 Million Men

Germany 1.6 Million Men

The United States 50,000 (less than 1 yr.)

The Dead: World War I

By the end of World War I, there were entire villages in France whose populations were wiped out. These cities simply disappeared from the map in the aftermath of the war.

Uncounted Millions died of disease (especially Influenza), starvation, and other war related causes.

Soldiers were frequently blinded, dismembered, or the victims of poison gassing that left their lungs permanently scarred.

Psychological trauma plagued men and women after the war – as it does the participants of all wars.

Other Implications of World War I