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Course of World War One Slide 2 Slide 3 Slide 4 Schlieffen Plan Plan was devised by General Alfred Von Schlieffen in anticipation of a two-front war Considering the slowness of Russian mobilization, Germany would ignite a lightning-quick attack on France, through its unprotected border with Belgium. This would secure a victory against France before Russia was even ready to fight. German soldiers could then head east to meet the eventual Russian threat The plan failed as Britain surprised Germany by coming to the aid of Belgium, France put up a strong defense, and Russia mobilized more quickly than anticipated Slide 5 Battle of the Marne French and British attack German lines northwest of Paris on the Marne River Germans defeated and forced to retreat back 40 miles Was the first major clash on the western front. A quick German victory in the west would not be realized 263,000 French/British casualties; 220,000 German casualties Slide 6 French infantry charge at Battle of the Marne Slide 7 Slide 8 Battle of Marne youtube video?? Slide 9 Stalemate on Western Front & Trench Warfare After Battle of the Marne, fighting on the western front settled into a stalemate By early 1915, both sides had settled into an elaborate system of tunnels, shelters and trenches that stretched for 600 miles A key reason for the onset of trench warfare were substantial advancements in firepower that were not matched by advancements in mobility The introduction of automatic machine guns necessitated that soldiers find protection in trenches The introduction of poison gas added unpredictability and the need to defend oneself with a gas mask Tanks were invented but had many technical difficulties and were mostly ineffective until later in the war Slide 10 Diagram of a typical trench Slide 11 Slide 12 Slide 13 Slide 14 Slide 15 10% of all fighting soldiers in WWI were killed (compared to 4.5% in WWII) The greatest killer in WWI, like many wars before it, was disease and infection. With sanitary conditions in the trenches quite poor many suffered from dysentry, cholera and thyphus Poor hygiene also led to fungal infections. One of the most common was trench foot which occurred as a result of consistent foot exposure to cold, wet, and unsanitary conditions. Exposure from the elements was another major cause of death Slide 16 Slide 17 Slide 18 Battles of Verdun & Somme In February, 1916, the Germans launched a significant attack on the French near Verdun. The Germans attacked from a strategic position on some high land overlooking the Meuse River. Still, the French defenses held over five months of fighting and nearly 300,000 men lost on both sides To take pressure off the French at Verdun, the British attacked German positions nearby at the valley of the Somme River. At the end of 1916, the Germans had advanced about 4 miles near Verdun, and the British about 6 miles in the Somme Valley. Slide 19 The Eastern Front Most fighting was Russians and Serbs battling Austrians, Turks (Ottomans) and Germans The Eastern front was more a war of movement than the western front Slide 20 Russia never fully recovered from their major loss at the Battle of Tannenberg against the Germans in 1914 However, by hurling massive numbers of soldiers at Germany, Russia kept the Germany army occupied and unable to commit the numbers they wanted to over on the western front Slide 21 The Ottoman Front The British and French fought against the Ottoman Turks in an attempt to take control of the Dardanelles and Bosporus, the straits leading into the Black Sea and to Russia. The Gallipoli Campaign (1915-1916), as it was called, lasted a year and was unsuccessful. Slide 22 Slide 23 British fleet approaching the Dardanelles Slide 24 The allies had more success against the Ottomans in the Middle East campaigns where they organized Arab nationalists to overthrow Ottoman control. As a result, the allies would take control of Baghdad, Jerusalem and Damascus Slide 25 Slide 26 Rise of Arab Nationalism Ottoman Empire enters WWI on German side in August, 1914. Motives were to regain Egypt from Britain and Caucasus Mountain region from Russia. Ottoman Sultan officially declared a jihad against Britain, France and Russia Ottoman armies put pressure on British in Egypt. Britain forced to commit 100,000 soldiers there British attempt to plot against Ottoman Empire by creating an anti- Ottoman alliance with Husayn, the current leader of Hashemites in Mecca. Husayn is supposedly a direct descendant of MH Slide 27 Husayn McMahon Correspondence Husayn = amir of Mecca Henry McMahon = British leader in Egypt In agreement between the two: Britain pledged that if Husayn proclaimed an Arab revolt against Ottoman rule, it would provide military and financial aid during the war and would then help to create independent Arab governments in Fertile Crescent and Arabian Peninsula Husayn does not accept this initial deal Husayn bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca Slide 28 Arab Revolt In Syria, Ottoman governor (Jemal) forces peasants into military service. Life deteriorates there, creating rise of Arab nationalists. Jemal has 22 Arab nationalists publicly hanged in Damascus Husayns son, Faysal, who was working with nationalists in Syria, returns to Mecca to convince his father that the time had arrived to revolt against the Ottomans On June 5 th, 1916, Husayn declares Arabs under Ottoman rule to be independent. Arabs in the Hejaz, Syria, and Palestine take up arms against the Turks Slide 29 Arabs begin working in tandem with Egyptian Expeditionary Force, and march north into Palestine, taking Jerusalem and Amman In 1918, Arabs enter Damascus and establish it as seat of a provisional Arab government Arab force carrying the Arab National Flag Slide 30 Ottomans, also being attacked by joint Anglo-Indian force in Iraq, retreat. In October, 1918, Ottoman Empire signed an armistice with the allies. The Arabs, promised self-government by the British, were jubilant Slide 31 HOWEVER. Slide 32 Sykes Picot Agreement .the jubilance of the Arabs would not last for long. The British had promised France and Russia a piece of the pie in the secretive Sykes Picot Agreement drawn up in May, 1916 Sykes Picot: 1.Direct French rule in much of Syria 2.Direct British rule in lower Iraq 3.Indirect British rule from Egyptian border eastward 4.Enclave around Jaffa & Jerusalem under international rule Slide 33 TO FURTHER ANGER THE ARABS.. Slide 34 Balfour Declaration Announced on Nov. 2nd, 1917, it is a British delcaration that they intended to set up a Jewish state in Palestine. The Arabs had not been consulted. Slide 35 The Italian Front The Italians join the Allies in 1915. Their participation was limited but they divert Austro-Hungarian troops from the east to fight them in the mountains between Austria and Italy. Italian Alpini troops Slide 36 Asia & Africa Japanese joined the allies and overran German possessions in China, namely Shandong Province In Africa, the British and French took over many German possessions but Germany held onto German East Africa Slide 37 Russian Revolution 1917 Discontent with the authoritarian government of the czar had been brewing for decades. Russian revolutionaries, inspired by Marxism, overthrew the czarist government in 1917. A provisional, coalition government was set up in March Russians had been fighting with a lack of weapons, ammunition, warm clothing and food. Under the new government, the people were no longer forced to fight. Russia continued fighting, but less ferociously. To further encourage the Russians to relent, the Germans supported the Bolshevik (Communists) Party who were clearly for ending the war. With German support, the Bolsheviks wrested power in November, 1917. They installed Vladimir Lenin as their leader and forged a peace treaty with Germany Slide 38 Treaty of Brest Litovsk (1918) 1.Russia must cede all Baltic lands to Germany 2. Russia must recognize the independence of Ukraine 3.Russia must pay $6 billion gold marks in reparations to Germany However, in the Versailles Treaty at the end of the war Germany is forced to renounce Brest-Litovsk effectively annulling the treaty Slide 39 With their war against Russia now to a close, Germany was able to focus all resources on the war in the west and was hopeful for victory, however Slide 40 The United States Enters the War - 1917 As a result of unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic ocean, and the Zimmerman Telegram, the United States joins the allies in 1917. Hundreds of Americans had been killed on some of the merchant vessels destroyed by the Germans From the Zimmerman Telegram, the U.S. government learned that Germany was secretly trying to persuade Mexico to join them in the war and that Germany would help them regain their lost lands in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Slide 41 With the initial influx of troops from the east, Germany scored a number of victories and once again moved on the Marne River. However, in the Second Battle of the Marne and the Battle of Amiens the allies scored huge victories on the now stretched out German supply lines French troopers at the Second Battle of the Marne Slide 42 In the summer of 1918, the Axis began to crumble. The Bulgarians, Ottomans sued for peace and in November the Austrian- Hungarian Empire was overcome by a revolution and split apart. On November, 11 th, 1918 Germany signed an armistice with the allies ending WWI Churchill: Victory was bought so dear as to be indistinguishable from defeat Slide 43 Death Toll Allies: 9.4 million Russia 3.5 million France 1.6 million Italy 1.2 million Britain 995,000 Serbia 725,000 Romania 700,000 USA 117,000 Axis: 16.5 million Ottoman Empire 2.9 million Germany 2.4 million Austria Hungary 1.5 million Slide 44 Planes were initially used by both sides for scouting and taking photographs. Soon they were also used in battle. The German U-Boats (above) were used to attack British merchant ships in the Atlantic Slide 45 Notes from Chapter 4 of the The First World War MOBILIZATION OF ARMIES Upon being called into military service it seems many men were jubilant and nave of what lie ahead Mobilization, no matter which country, created massive upheaval all in the aura of an exciting time. Inefficient uniforms, especially for the French, proved burdensome Infantrymen of every army were also burdened by the heavy weight of their equipment no man carried less than 60 pounds of weight. The French shiny cooking pots on top of pack were giveaways in the bright sun.. Keeping shoes together was essential for people and horses! MOVEMENTS French movement was northeastward Germanys movement was first west into Belgium, and then south into France The strength of the Belgian forts had alarmed Schlieffen Slide 46 MOVEMENTS (cont) Belgium was neutral. With the German advance they hoped to resist such aggression while at the same time maintaining its integrity and neutrality The German advance turned out to be brutal with the death and destruction of many people and villages. As German military leader Moltke said, Our advance in Belgium is certainly brutal, but we are fighting for our lives and all who get in the way must take the consequences. The brutality got worse with numerous massacres of civilians in Belgian towns. By the end of August, 1914, Germany successfully had overrun the majority of the Belgian army and forts and was positioning itself among the French frontiers BATTLE OF THE FRONTIERS There was for some senior officers on both sides a certain familiarity about the preliminary events. They resembled those of the first days of the Franco- Prussian War forty-years earlier with the difference being that everything was working now with greater efficiency Slide 47 BATTLE OF THE FRONTIERS (CONT) By the wars 3 rd week, the Germans had achieved significant victories in two sectors (Alsace-Lorraine and the Ardennes). They now looked to a victory on the Belgian border to achieve the quick end to the war they had envisioned