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Triple Alliance
Germany, Austira-Hungary, and Italy formed the Triple Alliance, agreeing to support one another in the event of an invasion by another country. -
Triple Entente
Feeling isolated and threatened, France, Russia, and Britian all joined together in an opposing alliance called the Triple Entente. -
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated by Gavrilo Pinrcip, who was part of a Serbian nationalist group called The Black Hand, while visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia. The assassination was the event that brought on World War 1. -
The Beginning To The War Continued
The assassination was only the spark of WW1. There were 5 key events that caused the war. Alliances: countries had no option but to fight if one of their allied country was under attack. Imperialism: There was a race between Germany and Britian to claim territories in Africa, which was rich in gold. Militarism: Competition of mastery of the seas. Nationalism: Allies decided upon a new Europe without Germany or Italy. Crisis: Austira took over Bosnia,
and Austria and Serbia became tense. -
The War Measures Act
After the war was declared, Prime Minister Borden introduced the War Measure Act. This gave the Canadian government the authority to do anything neccessacry for the security of Canada. The government however, became drunk with power. They would strip Canadians of their civil liberties, intervene with the economy, transportation, agricultural production, trade ect. Anyone suspected of being an enemy or a threat could be imprisoned or deported. -
Shlieffen Plan
In December 1905, the Schlieffen Plan was created by General Count Alfred von Schlieffen. By August 1914, Germany put the plan into action. The plan was to invade Belgium and France to capture the capital city of Paris. Germany would then turn to Russia. The plan would have worked only if the German troops weren't exhausted from the fast pace of it. Because of this, France and Britian were able to push Germany back into northern France. This started trench warfare and ended in a stalemate. -
The Second Battle of Ypres
The Battle of Ypres was the first time the Germans ever used chlorine gas. It would blind, burn, and kill many French and Canadian troops. Close to 10,000 soldiers would be killed whenever the gas was let out. Clouds of gas would drift across the battlefield, destroying lungs and suffocating many men. However, over the next month, neither side gained much advantage. -
The Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme took place in northern France near the Somme River. Because General Douglas Haig, who was the commander for British and French forces, insisted on using strategies from previous wars, 700 men were killed or wounded within half an hour. The strategies he was using were useless in trench warfare. After the 5 months, around 1.1 million soldiers died. It was a battle of attrition which ended in a stalemate. -
The Battle of Vimy Ridge
In 1914, the Germans had controlled Vimy Ridge in northern France. In 1916, Canadian troops were chosen to try to win Vimy back. On April 9, 1917, Canadian troops moved into position. The Canadians started using blistering gas, better weapons and grenades. They also came up with a new attack formation, which was called a rolling barrage. They would advance 100 yards every 3 minutes with shells exploding infront of them. Canada won after 3 days. -
The Conscription Crisis
When Prime Minister Borden visited England, he was shocked to learn how many men were needed to win Vimy Ridge. David Lloyd George, the British Prime Minister, had told Borden that he enlisted conscription upon Britian. George told Borden that victory would require many more troops and war had to be won at all costs. Borden then introduced the Military Service Act which enlisted compulsory. However, the gov. needed to call an election to enlist conscription. -
Passchendaele
In the Battle of Passchendaele, General Haig, who was the leader in Somme, led Canada to victory. The win came with a price however. 3/4 of the Canadians and nearly hlaf a million soldiers from both sides died in Passchendaele. -
The Military Voters Act
When Borden called an election over the issue of conscription, he passed 2 pieces of legislation. They were the Military Voters Act and the Wartime Elections Act. The Military Voters Act allowed men and women overseas vote in the election. The Wartime Elections Act allowed women who were related to servicemen to vote as well. This was the beginning of women's right to vote. -
The Halifax Explosion
On December 6, 1917, the Imo hit the Mont-Blanc, which was carrying picric acid, TNT, gun cotton, and benzol. When the ships collided, the crew brought out the life boats and headed to Halifax's harbour. At 9:05 am, the Mont-Blanc exploded and devastated Halifax's harbour and much of the city. Around 1900 people died and 250 bodies were never found. -
Operation Michael
On March 14, 1918, the German armies were planning to divide the French and British forces on the Westen Front. The Germans wanted to capture the important area of Amiens. They wanted to divide the Allied armies and weaken them where a counter-attack would be possible. 63 German divisons attacked over 60 miles of the front held by 23 British divisons. In 5 days, they recaptured the land around Somme. The Allies prevented the Germans from Amiens by the help of the Australian divisions. -
Suffragists
World War 1 changed the roles of women signigicantly. Becanse so many men went off to fight in the war, industries needed to hire women to keep up the production. Canada's wartime economy would have collapsed if it weren't for the women. This then strengthened the campaign for women's sufferage. In 1918, all Canadian women won the right to vote. -
Armistice
On November 11, 1918, at 11:00AM, There was a truse signed in a railway car in France. Austria-Hungary, and then Germany, surrendered. The Allies demanded Germany to surrender its weapons and allow Allied occupation of some areas. -
Paris Peace Conference
The Paris Peace Conference began on January 12, 1919, with leaders representing 32 nations or about 3/4 of the worlds population. However, Germany and the Central Powers were not invited to attend. The representatives arrived at the Conference with needs and desires. They wanted a better world, revenge from Germany, and independence. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of the war. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. Because the French and Belgian leaders wanted compensation from Germany, there were terms Germany had to follow. However, after the war Germany's economy was in ruin so it was unable to meet the payments. -
The Leauge of Nations
The League of Nations was established by the Treaty of Versailles and was made up of many nations throughout the world. The Great Powers did not welcome the league and Britain and France had doubts. However, the leaders realized it would gain them publicity and support. The League proved to be more idealistic and it required the nations to cooperate. The Americans refused to join, which undermined its effectiveness to resolve disputes.
