Understanding Key Events and Concepts of World War I
Photo of the Map: What is the map representing? Plan Schlieffen – What was its main objective? Occupy France quickly through Belgium – Was it a success? Why? No, because it took much longer than expected and the Germans couldn’t occupy France. Photo of the Ship: What is the picture representing? The sinking of the Lusitania – What was the objective of that ship? The Americans sent supplies to help the Triple Entente – What was the consequence of that situation? The intervention of the USA. Photo of the Trench: What is the picture representing? Trench warfare – What was its main purpose? To defend the soldiers from enemy attacks. – What were the living conditions like? Rats, wet, floods, not enough food, cold, etc.
1) Austro-Hungarian Empire 2) Serbia 3) Russia 4) Alliances 5) France 6) Belgium 7) Great Britain 8) France 9) Movement 10) France 11) Movement 12) France 13) Russia 14) Germans 15) Trench Warfare 16) Position 17) Brest-Litovsk 18) USA 19) Central
1) Political System 2) Savoy 3) Bourbon 4) Papal State 5) Austrians 6) Cavour 7) Garibaldi 8) Lateran 9) Parliamentary Monarchy 10) Victor Emmanuel II
World War I in Chronological Order: a. Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, b. Germany attacked France through Belgium, c. The USA entered the war and Emperor William II abdicated, proclaiming the Weimar Republic, d. The war spread to other parts of the world, e. Riots and mass desertion attempts among the troops began to occur due to the harsh conditions of trench warfare, f. Austria-Hungary threatened to annex Serbia, g. Woodrow Wilson proposed a peace plan known as the Fourteen Points, and the armistice was signed.
The Liberal Revolutions of the 19th Century: Rev. Wave 1820: Spain, Portugal, Naples, and Piedmont revolutions inspired by the Constitution of Cádiz. Portuguese revolutionaries established a constitutional regime. Greece declared its independence from the absolutist power of the Ottoman Empire. Rev. Wave 1830: France established a parliamentary monarchy under Louis Philippe of Orleans. Belgium proclaimed its independence from the Kingdom of Netherlands + parliamentary monarchy. The Russian Empire stopped the uprising in Poland. Rev. Wave 1848: France declared the Second French Republic.
Photo of the Woman Holding a Flag: a) What is the name of the painting? Liberty Leading the People b) Who is the author of the painting? Delacroix c) What type of people can we see? What do they represent? What are they defending? The woman holding the French flag in one hand and a rifle in the other represents liberty. The man in the top hat represents the middle class. The boy with the cap and two pistols represents the workers. The dead soldiers represent Charles X’s troops. The soldiers represent the defeat of the absolutist regime since they are the kings’ soldiers and they have been defeated by the rest of the population who represent liberty in terms of having a different political system than the absolutist regime.
The Expansion of Industrialization: 1) Financial 2) Closely 3) Banks 4) Competition
Triple Alliance: – Germany, Italy, and Austro-Hungary – Italy abandoned this bloc – The Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined. The Triple Entente: – Russia, France, and Great Britain – Italy abandoned – Its rivalry was with the Ottoman Empire.
Autocratic Monarchy: Type of monarchy in which the tsar exercised absolute power with divine right. Bolsheviks: Division of the RSDWP that defended the seizure of power by a committed working-class minority. Their leader was Vladimir Lenin. Mensheviks: Division of the RSDWP which was more moderate and favored an alliance with reformist liberalism. Soviets: Workers, peasants, and soldiers’ organization that played a fundamental role in the revolution by coordinating the strikes. Ration Cards: Document that allowed families to acquire a small quantity of provisions to subsist in times of scarcity. Sovnarkom: Name given to the Congress of Soviets chaired by Lenin that signed the first decrees on Peace, Land, or the right of self-determination among others. Treaty of Brest-Litovsk: Treaty signed by Germany and Lenin which meant the immediate end of the war for Russia in exchange for the loss of important territories. War Communism: Economic policy in which the state militarized industry, seized food, and imposed forced labor. Inflation: General increase in prices of goods and services that rose in 1923. Protectionism: The theory or practice of shielding a country’s domestic industries from foreign competition by taxing imports. This measure was taken by countries like Italy and Germany to overcome the effects of the Great Depression. Totalitarianism: A system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state.
Consequences of the Great Depression: 1) Reduction in the value of stock markets. 2) Decline of industrial production. 3) Bankruptcy of small and medium firms. 4) Fall of prices and salaries. 5) Alarming increase in unemployment. Factors of the New World War: The peace treaties of World War I. Harsh conditions were imposed on the defeated countries, especially Germany, and some victorious countries were dissatisfied, as in the case of Italy. This generated a feeling of humiliation and frustration in these countries, increasing nationalist sentiment in the masses. 2) The Great Depression. The economic crisis made many people poor and millions of workers became unemployed. 3) European nations applied protectionist measures and tried to gain access to new markets to get out of this situation. This was even more complicated for the Germans as they had to pay reparations after the Great War. 4) Rise of fascist regimes. Fascist parties that established totalitarian dictatorships in Germany and Italy emerged and rose to power. This was influenced by the economic depression and the expansion of revanchist nationalism. 5) Militarism and rearmament. One of the ideological principles of the fascist powers was imperialist expansion. To do this, they needed to build powerful armies. In addition, the policy of rearmament helped stimulate economic growth. Nazi Germany organized powerful armed forces, disobeying the Treaty of Versailles on disarmament. 6) An aggressive foreign policy. The aggressive speeches and defiant rearmament of Nazi Germany and fascist Italy were accompanied by an aggressive foreign policy. They wanted to end the international framework to follow their imperialist aspirations. They also wished to test their new weapons and tactics to defeat the democratic powers and the Soviet Union in a future conflict. 7) The policy of appeasement. Faced with these challenges from the Nazis and fascists, the diplomatic response was to look for a compromise to prevent a new and devastating war. Violations of international agreements by Italy and Germany between 1933 and 1939 were therefore tolerated, and agreements were made that legitimized them.