Year 9 History Assessment

The Causes of the First World WarThe First World War

Source ReliabilityThe Russian RevolutionThe Treaty of Versailles

Britain and France were keen empire builders. They owned countries around the world. Between them they owned some of the countries with the most resources in the world.

In 1870, when Germany was formed, there was a war with France. France lost the war and had to give up two regions of the country to Germany; Alsace and Lorraine.

Germany was jealous of Britain and France’s empires. Germany wanted it’s own empire but all the countries with the most wealth were already owned by France or Britain.

Germany was a proud military nation and always kept a strong army. After it became a country in 1870 Germany increased its army and navy – this is in part because Germany thought France and Britain wanted to keep Germany weak.

France found out about Germany secretly building up her army, France worried that if they didn’t started building up their army then Germany would beat them easily in a fight. France started building up the army.

Britain found out about Germany secretly building up her navy and army, so Britain started to build up hers – especially the navy.

Germany realised that France, Britain and Russia were all building up their military. This made Germany really worried because Germany felt surrounded. They thought they were about to be attacked.

Russia, Austria-Hungary and Italy found out about the other countries building up their militaries. They didn’t want to be the weak ones so they too started to build up their armies.

Germany signed secret alliances with Austria-Hungary and Italy. The alliances said that they would come to the defence of each other if they were attacked.

When France found out Germany was building up it’s army France worried that Germany would attack, so they had to build up their own army.

France and Russia worried that Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary had signed a secret alliance in order to attack them. So Russia and France agreed to their own secret alliance. The alliance said they would help each other if either of them were attacked.

Britain had the most powerful battleships in the world in her navy: The Dreadnoughts. These ships could destroy any other ship in a fight at sea.

Germany wanted to be able to compete for an empire and to be able to defend itself if attacked so Germany decided to build its own Dreadnoughts.

When Britain heard that Germany was building its own Dreadnoughts, Britain was worried and started building more of their own. Britain also signed a secret alliance with France and Russia that said if any of them were attacked then they would help each other.

The Triple AllianceGermany, Italy, Austria-

Hungary

The Triple EntenteFrance, Britain, Russia

Causes of Tension Pre-WW1 (Sheet 1)

Belgium and Serbia were the two weakest countries involved in this crisis. They couldn’t hope to win a war against any of the stronger countries.

Austria-Hungary had taken control of Bosnia, which the Serbians thought should be part of their country. Serbia couldn’t hope to fight Austria-Hungary so it had to accept that they couldn’t have Bosnia.Britain had signed a treaty in

1839 that said it would defend Belgium if it was ever invaded. Russia and Serbia were full of

a race of people called the Slavs. Russia and Serbia were friendly to one another and Serbia would look to Russia if it needed support.

Germany had a plan in case there was a war in Europe. Germany guessed that if there was to be a war then they would have to fight France and Russia at once, and they were on either side of Germany.

The plan was to march through Belgium and easily beat the Belgian army if it tried to fight back, then to invade France in an area that the French wouldn’t expect them. When the German army had beaten the French it would then get into trains and travel across Germany to attack the Russian army.

Causes of Tension Pre-WW1

1. Dear Lizzie, Out here, we’re all pals. What one hasn’t got the other has. We try to share each others troubles get each other out of danger. You wouldn’t believe the humanity between men out here. Poor little Shorty that one of the fellows that came out with me, he used to tell me all about his Hilda, that was the young lady’s name, about his home he had already bought and when he got home he would get married and come over to see me and introduce her to you. He used to make me laugh with his talk how he loved his Hilda but unfortunately, he will never see her again poor fellow he would give me half of everything he had. I often think of him, yet poor fellow I don’t think he even has a grave but lies somewhere in the open,Your Faithful Husband Jack xxxxxxxxx

The Experience of Fighting WW1

2. Dear Lizzie, I have just received a letter from you, the first for about 6 weeks. I am so sorry to hear you have been ill. I wish I could have been at home to comfort you. You mention dear about me getting a blighty. I hope God spares me some of the blightys. I have seen men that will never be any use again. I know you wouldn’t like that. I always pray to return safe and sound. They can keep their blightys. Well darling I don’t think I can say any more at present.Goodnight love God bless you and my children and my He soon send me back to those I love is the wish of your Faithful Husbandxxxxxxxxx Jack

Note from Mr Otway A ‘blighty’ is a wound that isn’t bad enough to injure you seriously or kill you but is bad

enough to mean that you get to go back to England to recover, away from the war.

The Experience of Fighting WW1

Bonus Letter - Dear Lizzie, I suppose you have already read about our boys, the good work they done on 2 or 3 occasions. I was not with them at the time but just behind them. I am sorry to say that nearly all the boys from the 7th that came out with me have gone under poor fellows.You know who they were at that club at Farnboro, poor little French he is either killed or taken prisoner. I am afraid it’s the former but say nothing to his relatives if you see them. There was 9 of us went to a job at a soup kitchen getting tea or soup for the boys going in and out of the line yes there was 9 of us and when we came out here was 3 so you see dearest, I am to consider myself lucky.Your loving husband, Jack.

The Experience of Fighting WW1

Teacher in city of Moscow

I am an educated man. I teach generations of young Russians and I have never been in trouble with the Okhrana. However, I don’t think I am paid very well and I don’t really agree with all of the things I have to teach. I think our country could be ruled better than it is but I don’t get a say. I would love to have a vote so that I could help to decide who gets to be in charge.

Autocracy is not the right way forward, that is why none of the modern, wealthy European countries have an autocracy like Russia does.

A Peasant Farmer

My sons have been drafted into the army, all four of them. Three are dead already and all we ever hear is rumours of men deserting the army and the enemy victories. Our Tsar is in overall command of our armed forces, he is the Commander-in-Chief so if we are winning it is down to him. If we are losing it is also down to him.

We are clearly losing and the lives of three of my sons have been wasted. I know who I blame.

A Petrograd Baker

I live in the capital city of Russia baking bread for Russian citizens. Well, I used to bake bread for them anyway. These days I am rarely able to open my shop doors and when I do there is a queue for my bread so long that I can’t even see where it ends.

The problem is that the ingredients from the farms around Russia are not reaching the cities. The railways cannot cope, there aren’t enough of them built, the enemy have captured some and the army have taken some of the trains to use for the troops.

The people in the queue are always furious when I am forced to shut my doors because I have run out of ingredients, again.

The Russian Revolution

A Bolshevik

I am a member of a political party that hates the Tsars. I did not used to be part of this political party but I was once overheard saying something critical about Tsar Nicholas.

The next evening my door was broken down, I was dragged from my bed, punched, kicked and thrown in a police cell by the Okhrana. I wasn’t Tsar Nicholas’ biggest fan before that incident but the cruel treatment I received at the hands of the Okhrana made me hate the Tsar and all he stands for.

A Factory Worker

Russian factory workers have to endure the worst working conditions of any factory workers in any modern country in Europe.

We are beaten if we make mistakes. There is no safety equipment. If we are injured at work and can no longer work, we are fired. The pay is appalling.

When we leave work we return to our homes but because we aren’t paid much we can’t afford much. I live in a tiny flat of just one room, with my wife and our baby.

I have absolutely no say in the running of this country but I have joined a workers ‘Soviet’ this is a group of factory workers who discuss the problems with Russia.

A Rich Man Who Works for the Tsars

I believe that autocracy is the right thing for Russia. The country is simply too big and the peasants are too uneducated for us to give everybody the vote.

However, I am upset and concerned about our current Tsar Nicholas II. He has taken charge of the army and left the running of the country in the hands of his German-born wife, Queen Alexandra.

We are fighting the Germans and I suspect that the Queen is not whole-heartedly behind the war effort. I also don’t trust Rasputin. He is a weird man who seems to have mysterious powers of healing and he also seems to have huge influence over the queen.

I think Nicholas needs to step down and name his brother Alexander as King.

The Russian Revolution

Why did the Russians remove their Tsar?In any order, ready for you to put them in order and/or link them:

Food shortages

First World War

Rasputin and Queen Alexandra

Autocracy

OkhranaPoor working

conditions

The Treaty of Versailles

1. Germany should pay $6,600 million in reparations for the war – this is compensation for the countries they drove to war.

2. Germany should not be allowed to have an army bigger than 100,000.

3. Germany should have to accept and acknowledge that the war was entirely their fault.

4. Germany should not be allowed to have submarines or an air force.

5. Germany shouldn’t be allowed to put any of their troops anywhere near France. The district of Germany next to France is called the Rhineland.

A. We should set up a group in which all the world leaders have to get together each year to talk about the world. They should also meet in the event of any emergency to stop any wars from happening. The League of Nations.

Also see http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/standard/history/1890_1920/treaty_of_versailles/revision/1/ for further details.