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Buildup of WWI, Militarism
In Europe and nations around the world, every country strived to collect and build powerful armaments and armies. Every country was racing to expand its army, attileries, weapons, and navy ships. One country in particular, Germany, had been building their army rapidly and pressured other countries to do the same in order to maintain the balance of power. After Germany built one of the strongest armies worldwide, they competed with the British Navy to conquer the seas. -
Buildup To War, Imperialism
Way back prior to the Great War, European countries competed in conquering foreign overseas territories for their resources and great commerce opportunities. Africa was a continent rich in gold, diamonds, minerals, and ivory and was fiercely fought over by all of Europe. -
Buildup to WWI, Nationalism
Prior to World War One, the three empires (Russia, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman) dominated Europe. Many nations felt resentment towards their country being ruled by foreigners and wanted to be an independent, free, and politically independent country. All countries felt an intense loyalty towards their culture and people and showed this by viciously participating in WWI, wanting to win their country a powerful reputation. -
Formation of The Triple Alliance
Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy form the Triple Alliance. Each country promised to support one another in the event of an invasion from another country. -
Formation of The Triple Entente
Pressured by the formation of the Triple Entente, France, Britain, and Russia joined to form an alliance. Each country promised to support one another in the event of an invasion from another country. -
Women Gain Rights
During World War One, Woman played a key role in running a country while their fathers, brothers, sons, and husbands were away fighting in the war. They began to expand their power as they got jobs in ammunition factories, became nurses, contributed in labor forces, and ran farms. By the end of the Great War, women played a much larger role in society and had many more freedoms. -
Assanination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
VIDEO: Franz Ferdinand Assasination Movie On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assasinated by Gavrilo Princip who was part of a Serbian nationalist group called the Black Hand. Ferdinand was on a political visit to Sarajevo after Austria-Hungary claimed that Bosnia was a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on Serbia was the spark to World War One. -
The Schlieffen Plan
VIDEO: The Failure of The Schlieffen PlanPrior to the Great War in 1905, Germany developed a strategy that was intended to avoid two front war. "The Schlieffen Plan" was a plan for the German army to invade Belgium, then France, capture Paris, and then invade Russia last. Germany almost followed through with The Schlieffen Plan in August 1914, as they were only 35km away from Paris. However, the German army ran out of stamina and was forced retreat to France where they built defensive trenches. The Schlieffen Plan ended in a stalemate. -
The War Measures Act
Claimed effective by Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden on August 4, 1914, The War Measures had 6 sections which granted the Canadian government to do anything necessary for the "defense, peace, order, welfare of Canada." The Canadian government had absolute authority and could directly affect the economy, censor mail, control transportation, control the trading. Agricultural, and the manufacturing industry, strip Canadians of their civil liberties, suspend habeas corpus, and arrest anyone. -
The Second Battle of Ypres
Located at the Belgian city of Ypres in the Flanders District, French, British, and Canadian soldiers fought against the Germans in 1915. Even though the use of gas was prohibited since 1907 because of an international agreement, Germans introduced 160 tons of chlorine gas to the battle. Allied defense lines crumbled as the yellow green gas violently choked, killed, and suffocated. In the end, neither side gained much ground although there were 6000 Canadian casualties. -
The Battle of Vimy Ridge
Located in France, Vimy Ridge was considered Germany's essential strategic and defensive location. In 1916, Canada and Germany battled to gain control of the ridge. Canada put months of preparation into the battle; maps were handed out to every soldier. On Easter Monday morning, Canada attacked Germany and conquered Hill 145 by noon. In the end, Canada won after 2 days with 10500 casualties. This battle was a significant victory and proved Canada strong, as they did not rely on allied forces. -
The Battle of Somme
British (including Canadian) and French Forces were under the command of General Douglas Haig during the Battle of Somme in July 1916. Also known as, "The Butcher of The Somme", Commander Haig used old-fashioned strategies that were useless in trench warfare. He ordered wave after wave of troops to leap over the trenches to march across open fields, only to be shot down by the constant firing of German machine guns. Although Haig won on Nov 18, the battle resulted in 24,000 Canadian casualties. -
The Conscription Crisis
Because Canadians expected the war to end by the Christmas of 1914 when World War One just started, over 30,000 men volunteered to enlist themselves. However, in 1917 Canadian Prime Minister Borden knew that there were too few men in the army to ensure a victory. He then passed The Military Service Act, which requested every able man to join the army. Farmers, industrial workers, and French Canadians widely protested against The Military Act with riots, protests, and defaming newspapers. -
The Battle of Passchendaele
Also known as the 3rd battle of Ypres, the battle of Passchendaele took place in Belgium in a small village called Passchendaele. British commander Douglas Haig launched this offensive in Flanders with the initiative to break German submarine bases on the coast of Belgium. 20,000 members of the Canadian corps entered the battle in October under the command of Arthur Currie - resulting in 15,000 Canadian casualties when the allies won Passchendaele on November 6th. -
Canadian Women Gain the Right to Vote!
VIDEO: History of Women and VotingWhen Canadian Prime Minister Borden introduced the Military's Service Act where enlistment was mandatory, he knew that he would lose his popularity and probably wouldn't get re-elected. He therefore introduced the Wartimes Elections Act, giving women the right to vote if they were directly related to servicemen. In 1918, Borden passed a bill that allowed all women over 21 to vote. -
The Halifax Explosion
VIDEO: Halifax Explosion FactsOn December 6th, 1917, a deadly explosion caused by the collision of two ships at the Halifax Harbor resulted in over 13,000 casualties. The "Mont Blanc" was a French Vessel carrying more than 2500 tons of dynamite along with pitric acid and was hit by Belgium's "IMO" ship at 7am. The "IMO" was empty but thirty minutes after the collision, the ships exploded and caused the biggest man made explosion in the world at the time. 10,000 were injured and 3,000 were killed. -
Operation Michael
Operation Michael was a German military operation launched from the Hindenburg Line in France on the 21rst of March, Operation Michael was led by German General Erich Ludendorff with a goal to divide the French and British forces on the Western Front so that they were too loosely scattered to launch a combined counter-attack. In a few weeks and 75km from Paris, the Germans won back ground that had been lost but ended up running out of fresh troops, food, and supplies and could not continue. -
Removal of The Military Service Act
On April 20, 1918, an order-in-council was passed that removed exemptions from the Military Service Act, leaving a huge need for farmers to run their fields in Canada -
The Armistice is Signed
(very long) VIDEO: The Last Day of War On November 11, 1918 in a railway car in France, an armistice was signed ending World War One at 11am. Germany was forced to give up their ammunitions and allow Allied forces to occupy some of their areas. -
The Paris Peace Conference
After the armistice was signed on November 11, 1918, 32 nations, met in Paris to discuss the new terms of peace for the future. Canada had two seats at the Paris Peace Conference and was not just represented by Britain. Russia, Austria-Hungary, Germany, and its former allies were not allowed to attend the conference until the terms of the peace treaties had been elaborated and agreed upon. -
The Treaty of Versailles
VIDEO: Treaty Of Versailles Summary After 6 months of discussion at the Paris Peace Conference, the terms of The Treaty of Versailles were finally signed. Germany had to agree to a war guilt clause where they had to accept responsibility for starting the war. Germany also had to pay $30 billion for reparations, restrict the size of their army to 100,000 men, and divide their territory by two and give a chunk to Poland. The League of Nations, made of many nations around the world was also a term of the Treaty. -
The League of Nations
The League of Nations was the brainchild of the Paris Peace Conference. The League of Nations is made up of many nations in the world that states if one member of the league is attacked; all members of the league would try to suppress the aggressor. This was the first international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. However, the League of Nations couldn't do anything except impose economic sanctions and trade restrictions against the aggressor
