-
The Triple Alliance
Alliances in World War 1 were very important. The Triple Alliance, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy made up one side of the war. Alliances made countries reckless becuase they knew allies had to join them if they went to war. Also no one wanted to be seen as a bad ally which made it even more mandatory to stay loyal. -
The Triple Entente Forms
The Triple Entente was the other side of the war also formed before 1914. This alliance consistied of France, Russia, and Great Britain. The Triple Entente later became very significant in World War 1. -
Period: to
Imperialism and Nationalism
Nationalism and Imperialism were big parts of World War 1. Nationalism was the intense pride people felt for their own countries. This created high tensions between nations as they all felt that they were the best. People also began to colonize weak nations for natural resources and land for naval bases. This was called Imperialism and it further heightened tensions and created competition between nations. -
Period: to
Militarism
Due to the high tension some European Nations began to strongly aticipate war. This led to an arms race to get the upper hand on other nations. Leaders began to build their armies and navies and aquired as much artilery as possible.
The war was an inevitability at this point and everyone was on edge. Just at the drop of a hat world war was about to break out. -
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sofie were going on a trip to Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. Little did he know that a group of conspirators were plotting to kill him. The driver who was one of the conspirators took a wrong turn and a Serb named Garvrilo Princip shot the both of them. The news of their murder shocked and appauled the world though no one else was more shocked then Ausrtia-Hungary. The murder of Franz Ferdinand was the pebble to tip the scale sending the Europe into world war. -
Germany's Blank Check
After Franz Ferdinand was killed Germany's leader, Wilhelm Kaiser, assured that they will stand with Austria-Hungary. Whether they decide to got to war with Serbia or not was the deciding factor of World War 1 becoming reality. Although Russia was a definite threat if Germany became involved in the war, Germans were willing to align themselves with Austria-Hungary. This new alliance gave Austria-Hungary confidence and what came next was no surprise. -
Austria Declares War on Serbia
Ausrtria was appauled by the act of war displayed by Serbia. WIth Germany's promise of alliance Austria confidently proposed an ultimatum to Serbia. The ulitimatum demanded that Serbia be cooperative while the murder of Franz was investigated. Serbia refused and in response Austria declared war on them. This led to a chain reaction of many different allies also jumping into the conflict. -
Germany Invades Belgium
When Russia declare war on Germany their ally France did so as well. Germany declare war on the neutral country of Belgium the very next day to invade France. This alarmed some Americans who then wanted to join the war agianst Germany. Belgium's alliy Britain then quickly declared war on Germany. Germany was soon stopped 30 miles from Paris by their opponents. -
The Sinking of The Lusitania
In Febuary of 1915 Germany began to sink Allied ships to combat Britain's naval force. Eventually a German U-boat attacked a passenger ship named the Lusitania without warning. This outraged many people and caught America's attention. They argued that the ship was not resisting or armed and should not have been attacked. Germany pledged to not sink another unarmed ship but broke that pledge sinking the passenger ship Sussex. Again Germany pledged to not sink unarmed ships but were untrustworthy. -
The Zimmerman Note
The Zimmerman Note was a telegram sent to Mexico by Germany requesting an alliance. It stated that if the US declared war on Germany Mexico must declare war on the US. If Germany won then in return Mexico would get land that they lost in the Mexican-American War. The note was intercepted and given to America ruining any chance Germany had with Mexico. In response President Wilson finally asked Congress for a declaration of war on Germany. On April 6, 1917 America had officially entered the war. -
Germany Resumes Unrestricted Warfare
Germany broke another pledge for sinking the passenger ship Sussex. The Sussex Pledge was put into place after a previous pleadge for the same reason. This proved Germany to be a country that couldn't be trusted. When Germany broke this pleadge it swayed many Americans to want to join the war. Later that year that's just what they did. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles marked a clear end to the war. The treaty was very harsh on Germany as they took all the blame for starting the war. They were forced to pay for the entire cost of the war and reconstruction. Germany also had most of it's military force reduced to prevent any backlash later on. After the death of 5 million Allied, 8 million Central Power troops, and 6.5 million civilians, Germany finally surrended on November 11 1918. -
Period: to
The Great Depression
During the Great Depression America's economy was going in a terrible downward spiral. Unemployment jumped up 20%. Farmers began losing money and land due to overproduction and crop price drops. There was also an incredibly uneven distribution of money. While farmers struggled, industrial workers were making enough to sustain themselves and corporate was getting rich. Because they had all the money no one could afford their products so the economy was in a rut.
