Causes of the Great War

Causes of the Great WarOrigins of World War IL. Ferrington, American HistoryThis presentation would be used in my ninth grade American History classroom when beginning the study of World War I. This presentation is a visual aid for a lecture I would give, quite possibly, one of the first lectures of the year. It would be used in conjunction with a series on effective note-taking that I do in my class, where I ask my ninth graders to exercise different note-taking strategies over a series of lectures. I feel that the students, being forced to take notes in different ways, have the opportunity to find a style that works for them, whether it be using graphic organizers, lists or outline forms. For this particular lecture students would be ask to take notes in outline form. I came up with this note-taking series when I got to college lecture classes and realized that I did not have many strategies for effective note-taking. Since many of the students of my school expect to go to college or take Advanced Placement courses, it is important to teach them these strategies in the beginning of their ninth grade year so that they may use these tools throughout high school. A follow-up assignment to this lecture would be comparing their notes in groups and discussing the benefits and drawbacks of this style of note-taking. You may also see that I have put discussion questions in the speaker notes that I intend to ask the students as the I conduct the lecture. Through this lecture and the use of this presentation, the goal is to expose students to different strategies they may not have seen before while gaining content knowledge.1Causes of WWI

AlliancesAgreements between nations to provide aide & protect one otherCan you think of an alliance youve made in you life?2Alliances1871: Prussia unites 39 Germanic states into German EmpireTook Alsace-Lorraine territory from FranceGermany allied with Italy and Austria-Hungary1882: Triple Alliance

3AlliancesTriple Alliance wanted influence in Southeast EuropeRussia supported SlavsRussia worried about invasion1894: Franco-Russian Alliance4Alliances

5Causes of WWI

MilitarismAggressive build-up of armed forces to intimidate or threaten other countries7MilitarismBritain had traditionally been the premiere naval power in the world1898: Germany builds large, modern navy

8MilitarismEarly 1900s, Germany and Britain raced to build warshipsan entente cordiale a friendly understandingBritain, France, & Russia become Triple Entente

9Militarism

1910 1914Increase in Defense SpendingFrance10 %Britain13 %Russia39 %Germany73 %600, 000 new troops400, 000 new troopsWhat are the risks of this amount of military build-up? 10Militarism & AlliancesTriple Alliance

Triple Entente

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12Causes of WWI

ImperialismPolitical and economic takeover of a country by a stronger one.Where had the U.S. been involved during their Imperialist era? Britain? Germany?What are the benefits of Imperialism?13ImperialismAll great powers were competing for colonies/territoryBritain, France, and Germany needed foreign resources to compete during the Industrial Revolution. All battling for control of Africa.

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15ImperialismRussia and Austria-Hungary were in a battle for control of the falling Ottoman Empire (Balkan states)

16Causes of WWI

NationalismFeeling of intense pride in ones homelandThink-pair-share: What is the difference between nationalism and patriotism?17NationalismAustria-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires had ruled the BalkansGroups pushed for independence:Serbs, Bosnians, Croats, SlovenesSerbia gains independence1908: Bosnian crisisTensions between Austria-Hungary and Serbia were highCan you think of any countries or regions that exhibit nationalism today?18Causes of WWIThe Spark

19The Assassination

Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary assassinated by a member of a Serbian nationalist group called the Black Hand

20July 28, 1914: Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia21Alliances Are Triggered

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23Domino EffectEurope is at War

Austria-Hungary blames Serbia for Ferdinands death and declares war on SerbiaAustria-HungarySerbiaGermanyGermany pledges support for Austria-HungaryRussiaRussia pledges support for Serbia

Germany declares war on RussiaFranceFrance pledges support for RussiaGermany declares war on France and invades Belgium

BritainGreat Britain declares war on Germany

Italy joins Allies in exchange for Austria-Hungary when war endsItalyBulgariaOttoman Empire (Turkey)Bulgaria and Ottoman Empire join to form Central Powers

and the fighting goes on for years.

24Lets recapMAINNationalismImperialism &Alliances &Militarism, were the causes of World War I.Think-pair-share: How did these causes lead to a World War? How is this war different from other wars youve studied? How is it similar?25ResourcesAppleby, J., A. Brinkley, A. Broussard, J. McPherson, and D. Ritchie. The American Vision Modern Times. New York, NY: McGraw Hill Glencoe, 2008. Print.Explosion Montage." youtube.com. Web. 23 Jul 2010. ."Images." World War I. Web. 23 Jul 2010. .Uboats in Kiel." uboat.net. Web. 23 Jul 2010. .British Grand Fleet." cityofart.net. Web. 23 Jul 2010. .

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