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Triple Alliance
Otto von Bismarck, formed the Dual Alliance in 1879, an alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary, but it was not called the Triple Alliance until Italy joined the two countries three years later. Bismarck took another ally away from France by making a treaty with Russia. -
Triple Entente
Kaiser Welhelm II began a huge shipbuilding program to make the German navy as strong as the British fleet. Great Britain felt threatened, so they formed an entente, or alliance, with France. Later in 1907, Great Britain made another alliance with both France and Russia. However, it did not ensure that Britain would fight for France or Russia. -
Rise of Nationalism, Imperialism, & Mitilarism
Germany, Austria-Hungary, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, and France all had a strong sense of nationalism, or deep devotion to one’s country. The quest for colonies sometimes pushed European nations to the brink of war. As European countries continued to compete for overseas empires, their sense of rivalry and mistrust of one another deepened. These countries believed that they needed to have a powerful military to be great. This policy glorified military power and kept an army prepared for war. -
Western Front
Sir Edward Grey predicted that the war was going to last a very long time, while everyone else thought it would be short. As the summer of 1914 turned to fall, the war became a long and bloody stalemate, or dead lock, along the battlefields of France. This deadlock region in northern France became known as the Western Front. -
Schlieffen Plan
Germany developed a battle strategy for facing war on two fronts. This strategy was named after its designer, General Alfred Graf von Schlieffen. The plan called for attacking and defeating France in the west and rushing back to the east to fight Russia. The Germans thought this was a good plan because Russia was far behind the rest of Europe in its railroad system and it would take longer to supply its front line. -
Battle of Marne
It was the first major battle on the Western Front and probably on of the most important battles in the war. The Germans defeat left the Schlieffen Plan in ruins. A quick victory in the west was no longer possible. Russian forces already invaded Germany in the east. Realizing that they were going to have to fight a long war on two fronts, the German high command sent thousands of troops from France to aid its forces in the east. -
Gallipoli Campaign
This was a battle in a region of the Ottoman Empire known as the Dardanelles. By taking control of this narrow sea straight, the Allies' goal was to take Constantinapole and defeat the Turks so they could have a supply line to Russia. This bloody battle lasted a year and the allies finally gave up the battle after suffering 250,000 deaths. -
Trench Warfare
Armies on each side of the Western Front prepared for war by digging miles of parallel trenches which they would hide in to protect themselves. Soldiers fought each other from trenches by firing artilary at each other. In order to advance, lines of soldiers would leave their trenches and enter "no man's land" where they were often killed by machine gun fire. -
Battles in Africa and Asaia
Germany had colonies in parts of Asia and Africa. As a result of the war, these colonies came under attack from the Allies. The Japanese seized German colonies in China and Pacific Islands. The English and French attacked Germany's African colonies. The Allies were able to recruit native people from these colonies to support them in their fight against the Germans. -
Eastern Front
The Eastern Front covered an area stretching over 1,000 miles which became a battle field along the German and Russian border. It was on this front that Russians and Serbs fought against Germans and Austro-Hungarians. Due to the large area of the front, attackers were able to cross into enemy land for 50 or 60 miles before being stopped. There were hundreds of thousands of casualties along the Eastern Front. -
Battle of Somme
This was a battle where the Allies launched an offensive attack to push the Germans back from the Western Front. The Germans had the advantage of being on higher ground and were well prepared with lots of artillery and troops. The Allies suffered huge casualties and the German machine gun was a key weapon. However, the British introduced the use of tanks which was a more dominant offensive weapon. -
Big Four
The "Big Four" were leaders of Allied powers who were to decide Germany's punishment and fate following WWI. The Big Four consisted of Britain (Prime Minister David Lloyd George), France (Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau), Italy (Prime Minister Vittorio Orlando), and the USA (President Woodrow Wilson).
Their negotiations began in January 1919 at the Paris Peace Conference. Beyond preparing a blueprint for maintaining peace, each of the Big Four had their own agendas for Germany. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles negotiations began in January 1919 at the Paris Peace Conference and utimately signed on June 28th 1919 between Germany and the Allie powers. The Allied powers participating in the treaty were Britain, USA, France, and Italy. These countries and it's leaders were known as the "Big Four". The treaty created the League of Nations, meant to be an international peace keeper. The treaty also punished Germany for it's role and the destruction it caused in WWI.
