Causes of the WarHere we see Archduke Ferdinand and his wife Sophia about ready to start the parade in Sarajevo

• Imperialism-European nations competed for colonies• Militarism-Using conscription, between 1890-1914 European

armies had doubled in size… Russia had the largest with 1.3 million men…. United States and GB did not use conscription before WWI….Great Britain and Germany had a naval rivalry.

• Nationalism-Germany and Italy had just recently become unified countries….Many countries were torn by tensions of different nationalistic groups (Poles in the Russian Empire, Serbs in the Balkans and Irish in the British Empire)

• Alliance System-Triple Alliance-Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy.

• Triple Entente-France, Great Britain and Russia.

War Breaks OutThis map outlines the pre-war alliance system that contributed to the outbreak of the war.

• Russia and Austria-Hungary competed for control of new nations

• Archduke Francis Ferdinand is assassinated in June of 1914 by Gavrillo Princip a member of a Serbian nationalist group called the Black Hand.

• German “Blank Check” to Austria-Hungary• Austria-Hungary ultimatum to Serbia-Serbia refuses to

let the A-H officials run the investigation in Serbia.• A-H declares war on Serbia on July 28, 1914.• Alliance system led to global conflict.

New Weapons of WarMany new weapons were used in the war making it the most destructive war to date. It was the

worlds first modern war.

• Machine Gun (British machine gun fired 8 rounds per second)

• 75 different types of poison-gas bombs used, Flame throwers, Tanks, Airplanes, Zeppelins…

• Trench Warfare didn’t work against modern weapons.

• Total losses for WWI were more than 10 million.

Alliances and Fronts of the War

• Triple Alliance becomes the Central Powers: Germany, A-H, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire

• Triple Entente becomes the Allied Powers: GB, France and Russia-Italy in 1915

• 4 Major Fronts-Eastern front, Western front, Italian front and Balkan front.

Reality of Soldiers LivesHere we see a soldier toward the middle to the end of the war. He is realizing that the war is not what

it was made out to be.

• Many soldiers were excited to go off to war, but attitudes soon changed as the horrors of the battlefield became evident.

• The return home offered no hero’s welcome as anticipated.

• All thought they would be home by Christmas

Trench WarfareHere we see a trench. Most of the war was fought in the trenches and it was because of this that the

war turned into a war of attrition.

• The race to the sea: 475 miles of trenches were dug across northern France and the British troops used over 10 million shovels during the war.

• Life in the Trenches: soldiers were ordered to charge “over the top”, crossing no man’s land to reach the enemy trench

• Trench life could be very boring, terrifying and cause shell shock.

Tragedies of War: The Home FrontHere we see a Belgium woman holding her new born son. She is faced with the reality that her

husband is dead, her home is gone and she has no way to raise her children.

• Most of Europe was left in chaos and torn apart by years of war.

• Most families lost Husbands/Fathers, Sons etc…

• Most homes and factories were destroyed.

The Paris Peace ConferenceHere we see the Big 4 (Wilson, USA-Clemenceau, France-Lloyd George, Great Britain-Orlando, Italy) at

the Paris Peace Conference at the Palace of Versailles.

• Woodrow Wilson led the peace conference. He wanted a “Peace without victory” and a lasting and just peace.

• 14 points and to treat the defeated nations fairly.• France and GB wanted to punish Germany and make them

pay for the cost of the war.• Germany had to:• -Return Alsace-Lorraine region to France• -Keep area near France, called the Rhineland demilitarized.• -Pay war reparations $33 billion• -Sign article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles “War Guilt

Clause”