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allies
The Triple Entente, later known as the Allies, consisted of France, Britain, and Russia -
central powers
Germany and Austria-Hungary, together with the Ottoman Empire an empire of mostly Middle Eastern lands controlled by the Turks—were later known as the Central Powers. -
1914 assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand
He was the heir the Austrian throne, visited the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. As the royal entourage drove through the city, Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip stepped from the crowd and shot the
Archduke and his wife Sophie. -
Schlieffen Plan
On August 3 Germany invaded Belgium which led to the Schlieffen plan. This plan called for a holding action against Russia, combined with a quick drive through Belgium to Paris; after France had fallen, the
two German armies would defeat Russia -
Sinking of the British liner Lusitaniaa
a U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania off the southern coast of Ireland. Of the 1,198 persons lost, 128 were Americans. -
Sinking of the British liner Arabic
A U-boat sank another British liner, the Arabic, drowning two Americans. Again the United States protested, and this time Germany agreed not to sink any more passenger ships. -
Sinking of the french passenger liner Sussex
Germany broke its promise and torpedoed an unarmed
French passenger steamer, the Sussex. The Sussex sank, and about 80 passengers, including Americans, were killed or injured. Once again the United States warned that it would break off diplomatic relations unless Germany changed its tactics. -
Battle of the Somme
During the First Battle of the Somme— which began on July 1, 1916, and lasted until mid-November—the British suffered
60,000 casualties the first day alone. -
Trench warfare
Armies fought for mere yards of ground, continued for over
three years. Elsewhere, the fighting was just as devastating and inconclusive. -
Wilson's "Peace without victory speech"
Wilson called for “a peace without victory. . . . a peace between equals,” in which neither side would impose harsh terms on the other. Wilson hoped that all nations would join in a “league for peace” that would work to extend democracy, maintain freedom of
the seas, and reduce armaments. -
Zimmermann note
a telegram from the German foreign minister to the German ambassador in Mexico that was intercepted by British agents. The
telegram proposed an alliance between Mexico and Germany and promised that if war with the United States broke out, Germany would support Mexico in recovering “lost territory in Texas, New
Mexico, and Arizona.” -
Germany Blockades the North Sea
Britain blockaded the German coast to prevent weapons and other military supplies from getting through. Americans had been angry at Britain’s blockade, which threatened freedom of the seas and prevented American goods from reaching German ports. However, Germany’s response to the blockade soon outraged American public opinion. -
369th infantry regiment
The all-black 369th Infantry Regiment saw more continuous duty on the front lines than any other American regiment. Two soldiers of the 369th, Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts, were the first Americans to receive France’s highest military honor, the Croix de Guerre—the “cross of war.” -
convoy system
German U-boat attacks on merchant ships in the Atlantic were a serious threat to the Allied war effort. American Vice Admiral William S. Sims convinced the British to try the convoy system, in which a heavy guard of destroyers escorted merchant ships back and forth across the Atlantic in groups. By fall of 1917, shipping losses had been cut in half. -
second battle of the Marne
The tide had turned against the Central Powers. In September, U.S. soldiers began to mount offensives against the Germans at Saint-Mihiel and in the Meuse-Argonne area. -
Selective Service Act of 1917
The act required men to register with the government
in order to be randomly selected for military service. By the end
of 1918, 24 million men had registered under the act. Of this
number, almost 3 million were called up. About 2 million troops
reached Europe before the truce was signed, and three-fourths of them saw actual combat. Most of the inductees had not attended high school, and about one in five was foreign-born. -
second battle of the Marne
In July and August, U.S. troops helped win the Second Battle of the Marne. The tide had turnedagainst the Central Powers. In September, U.S. soldiers began to mount offensives against the Germans at Saint-Mihiel and in the Meuse-Argonne area -
Bolshevik Revolution
The Bolsheviks, led by Lenin and Trotsky, overthrew the provisional government. They set up a Communist state and sought peace with the Central Powers. -
Wilson's Fourteen Points
The points were divided into three groups. The first five points were issues that Wilson believed had to be addressed to prevent another war -
National war labor board
Workers who refused to obey board decisions could lose their draft exemptions. “Work or fight,” the board told them. However, the board also worked to improve factory conditions. It pushed for an
eight-hour workday, promoted safety inspections, and enforced
the child labor ban -
Victor Berger
The House of Representatives refused to seat Victor
Berger, a socialist congressman from Wisconsin, because of his antiwar views. -
War Industries Board
The main regulatory body was the War
Industries Board. It was established in 1917 and reorganized in 1918 under the leadership of Bernard M. Baruch, a prosperous businessman.The board encouraged companies to use mass-production techniques to increase efficiency. It also urged them to eliminate waste by standardizing products—for instance, by making only 5 colors of typewriter ribbons instead of 150 -
Food Administration
To help produce and conserve food, Wilson set up the Food Administration under Herbert Hoover. Instead of rationing food, he
called on people to follow the “gospel of the clean plate.” He
declared one day a week “meatless,”another “sweetless,” two days “wheatless,” and two other days “porkless.” Restaurants
removed sugar bowls from the table and served bread only after
the first course -
Espionage and sedition acts
Under the Espionage and Sedition Acts a person could be fined up to $10,000 and sentenced to 20 years in jail for interfering with the war effort or for saying anything disloyal, profane, or abusive about the government or the war effort -
Austria-Hungary surrenders to the allies
Austria-Hungary surrendered to the Allies. That same day, German sailors mutinied against government authority. The mutiny spread quickly.Everywhere in Germany, groups of soldiers and workers organized revolutionary councils. -
Establishment of the German republic
Socialist leaders in the capital, Berlin, established a German republic. The kaiser gave up the throne.Although there were no Allied soldiers on German territory and no truly decisive battle had been fought, the Germans were too exhausted to continue fighting. -
Cease-fire and armistice
Germany agreed to a cease-fire and signed the armistice, or truce,
that ended the war. -
American Expeditionary Force and General John J. Pershing
The American Expeditionary Force (AEF), led by General John J. Pershing, included men from widely separated parts of the country. American infantrymen were nicknamed doughboys, possibly because of the white belts they wore, which they cleaned with pipe clay, or “dough.” -
Shell shock, trench foot, and trench mouth
Shell shock, a term coined during World War I to describe a complete emotional collapse from which many never recovered.
Trench foot, caused by standing in cold wet trenches for long periods of time without changing into dry socks or boots.
A painful infection of the gums and throat, called trench mouth, was also common among the soldiers. -
Conscientious objector
a person who opposes warfare on moral grounds, pointing out that the Bible says, “Thou shalt not kill.” -
Emma Goldman
The anarchist Emma Goldman received a two-year prison sentence and a $10,000 fine for organizing the No Conscription League. -
Anti German sentiment in america
Americans changed the name of German measles to “liberty measles.” Hamburger—named after the German city
of Hamburg—became “Salisbury steak” or “liberty sandwich,” depending on whether you were buying it in a store or eating it in a restaurant. Sauerkraut was renamed “liberty cabbage,” and dachshunds turned into “liberty pups.” -
Eugene V. Debs Arrest
Eugene V. Debs was handed a ten-year prison sentence for speaking out against the war and the draft. -
Big Bill Haywood and the IWW
“Big Bill” Haywood and other leaders of the Industrial Workers of
the World (IWW) were accused of sabotaging the war effort because they urged workers to strike for better conditions and higher pay. Haywood was sentenced to a long prison term -
Raising money for the war
The government raised about one-third of this amount through taxes, including a progressive income tax (which taxed high incomes at a higher rate than low incomes), a war-profits tax, and higher excise taxes on tobacco, liquor, and luxury goods. It raised the rest through public borrowing by selling “Liberty Loan” and
“Victory Loan” bonds. -
Committee on public information and the "four minute men"
To popularize the war, the government set up the nation’s first propaganda agency, the Committee on Public Information. George Creel recruited some 75,000 men to serve as “Four-Minute Men,” who spoke about everything relating to the war: the draft, rationing, bond drives, victory gardens, and topics such as “Why We Are Fighting” and “The Meaning of America.” -
Agreements made in the treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles established nine new nations—including Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia—and shifted the boundaries of other nations. It carved five areas out of the Ottoman Empire and gave them to France and Great Britain as mandates, or temporary colonies. Those two Allies were to administer their respective mandates until the areas were ready for self-rule and then independence. -
Reparations and the war Guild clause
First, the treaty humiliated Germany. It contained a war-guilt clause forcing Germany to admit sole responsibility for starting WW! . Although German militarism had played a major role in igniting the war, other European nations had been guilty of provoking diplomatic crises before the war. Furthermore, there was no way Germany could pay the huge financial reparations. Germany was stripped of its colonial possessions in the Pacific, which might have helped it pay its reparations bill.
