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Immediately after the Franco-Prussian War, Germany starts to create alliances to surround itself with friends and expand its economy.
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France lost their colonies Alsace and Lorraine to Germany. France had wanted to take it back from Germany and this was one reason France had gone against Germany. 4
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Germany creates the Three Emperor’s League in order to isolate France because of their political disputes over the past decade. 2
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The Triple Alliance was formed with Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy due to Germany’s manipulation of Italy’s rivalry with France. 2
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Russia’s tension with Austria-Hungary grew as both countries became suspicious of each other due to conflicts in the Balkans. 2,3
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After the second Balkan War, Serbia wanted to attack Austria-Hungary to create a Slavic Empire, leading to the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. 3
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Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia after a Serbian nationalist that was a part of a secret organization assassinated Archduke Ferdinand. This would motivate the population to go to war. 1,3,5
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Russia mobilizes its army to help defend Serbia from the threat of Austria-Hungary because of the assassination. 1
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Germany declares war on Russia because of their alliance with Austria-Hungary, mobilizes their army to help Austria-Hungary. 1
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France declares war on Germany who have advanced through the neutral territory of Belgium to attack the French. 1
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Britain declares war on Germany because of the advancement in Belgium, which could potentially take away Britain’s trade ports on the coast of Belgium. 1
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After the race for expansion in Africa, Britain, France, and Germany all needed to compensate for the Industrial Revolution so they battled over foreign markets. 2
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A plan made by German Imperial Chief Alfred Von Schlieffen to win an offensive war in one large attack on the French in just 42 days before the Russian army could help. This made the population excited to go to war but the plan quickly failed because of the instant Russian mobilization, causing a shift in the war. 5,7
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Airplanes fight in the air in the first dogfight during the war. Airplanes originally were used for dropping supplies to allies or to spot the enemy, now the airplanes were battling for airspace. 6
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The French wanted the war to come sooner because they feared the war would be imminent. Germany’s army being stopped by Belgium turned the tides because it allowed for France to mobilize its army. 7
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The Europeans were very confident in their individual countries’ power over other nations and the propaganda that was produced was very much an example of that. 5
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Propaganda was used in a variety of ways from newspapers and posters to radio talk shows trying to convince the population that their cause was just and that the other country’s cause was evil. 5
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Some of the propaganda gave the population feelings of being unpatriotic, and some of the propaganda simply lied to the population to get them to go to war. 5
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Most of the war was fought on the western front which is mostly in France and goes all the way to Germany. These rivers made the soil horrible for digging trenches due to all of the diseases. 6
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The Marne river was the site of 3 major battles during the war, where the allies held their ground and stopped the German advance into Paris. 7,8
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Troops who had pretty much lived in trenches suffered from trench foot when there feet were in the mud for long periods of time. The mud had deteriorated their feet, so the soldiers had put bodies under themselves to stand on. 8
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The first Zeppelin air raid happened by Germany on Britain. The Zeppelins were easy targets to be shot down due to the amount of helium it took to raise them off the ground. 6
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This was a very hard fought campaign and casualties had reached to over 500,000 on both sides combined. 11
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Armenians in the army were disarmed, after that they were placed in labor battalions in which they were killed. 12
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Armenian political official and leaders are killed following the second step of the Turks Genocide. 12
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In Constantinople five thousand of the poorest Armenians were massacred in their homes and on their streets. 12
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The Turks had tried to justify their acts against the Armenians through contentions, saying they joined the Russians or the Armenians were planning revolt. Most of these were found to not be true. 12
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The Turks searched for the Armenians house by house, to which they were gathered up and taken to camps, or killed. 12
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This hospital was founded in order to help wounded soldiers who had come back from the war. 11
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Czar Nicholas II took control of the Russian army after many fatal defeats, notably the Battle of Tannenberg in 1914. After this Nicholas was responsible for every battle lost. 9
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The Russian war effort was criticized for its food shortages and it's massive losses. The Czar is put under blame. 3,9
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During the Battle of Jutland the Royal Navy was able to take control of the North Sea beating the German Navy. 8
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This quickly became one of the bloodiest battles in history with every side losing many troops. This battle was held along the Somme river and ended in a German retreat. About 1.5 million men were lost in this battle alone. 11
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Britain had cut the undersea cable connecting them to other countries. Therefore news went through Britain because of how cheap it was. 4
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Because Britain had printed many issues of propaganda in multiple languages, the Chinese government received issues of this propaganda and said it had such a massive effect, they were able to declare war on Germany. 4
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The Russian Revolution sparked when constant food shortages occurred, and civil unrest broke out, causing the people of Russia to revolt against the elite. This further disrupted Russia's economy. 3,9,17
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The United States formally enters the war mostly due to unrestricted submarine warfare. In the course of the war over 2 million American soldiers would be deployed to France to help in the war effort. 6,7,10
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The US deployed fresh troops once they entered the war, this brought new life to the front and helped win moral for the Allies. 10
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The President had permitted giving war loans to Allies, helping them greatly. without these loans Britain and France would have left the war in 1917. 10
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When communism had taken over in Russia, many people were afraid there would be revolutions in their own countries, causing people to favor fascism. 19
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Extreme leftists revolutionaries led by Vladimir Lenin started a bloody coup d'etat against the government. The leftists had occupied government buildings and sought out a new system with Lenin at the head. This had put an end to Czarist Russia and gave birth to socialism. 9
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When Russia withdrew, their losses had reached well over 1,700,000. More than any other Nation in the war. 7,8,11
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Russia signs Armistice with Germany, allowing Germany to only fight on one front giving them and advantage in the war. 9
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Woodrow Wilson had written this in mind of the world at an attempt for peace. He had called for this because Europe had been in war for 4 years and felt peace was right at the time. 19
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Woodrow Wilson had ordered that the territory of Alsace and Lorraine should be transferred back to France, he said that it was a main reason for the disruption of peace in the world. 14
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Woodrow Wilson also ordered that economic barriers on trade should be brought down allowing all countries to trade with each other so long as they acknowledge the peace. 14
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Hollywood released two new movies, The Kaiser, and The Beast of Berlin. These movies attempted to persuade the population against Germany. 4
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British propaganda was under complete control of the Ministry of Information. This department oversaw domestic, military, and foreign propaganda. 4
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This completely ends the Russians involvement in the war, but they give up territory and lose some of their population. 16
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Germany was not allowed to enter the League of Nations because Germany was said to have started the war. 15
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Second Battle of the Marne, with the help of the French, the Americans had pushed back the Germans to the Hindenburg line. 10
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Germany’s last major line of defense was located at the Rhine River because it was the closest river to Germany’s border that they could defend easily. 6
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An American infantry battalion had pushed through German lines and for 5 days held off their attacks. Only around 200 of the 600 soldiers made it out. 10
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The US had issued their declaration claiming their independence. Czechoslovakia had been given some land previously owned by the Bohemian kingdom. 16,18
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The French take back their colonies of Alsace and Lorraine, This had upset Germany, who would later seek to take back the colonies in WWII. 19
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Austria and Hungary had split away from each other, Austria formed to the left of Hungary, still touching Germany, while Hungary formed to the left touching Romania. 18
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After the war had ended British losses were around 1 million. Mostly due to battles such as the Somme and Gallipoli. 11
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Yugoslavia formed touching the Adriatic sea, right across from Italy, when Yugoslavia was officially formed, their were two main groups in the country. This started to cause tension. 16,18
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The British wanted control of Germany's colonies in the Middle East and wanted the Germans to pay for what they did, so they fined them 30 billion dollars. 13
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The US wanted to end secret treaties by forming the League of Nations, but they don't join it themselves. 13
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The French were given the coal mines in Saar basin and also took control of German colonies in the Middle East. 13
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The Germans had their army disarmed, and were only allowed to have 100,000 troops. Also the Germans were not allowed to attend the Treaty of Versailles. 13
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Italy simply wanted to be involved in the Treaty because of their efforts during the war. But were not allowed because they had switched sides. 13
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The Germans had their military shrink to just 100,000 troops in order to stop them from waging war against France. 14
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Because of their big involvement in the war against the allies the British had them pay war reparations. 14
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The League of Nations had never gone into place because the US, the country that started it, did not join. Possibly causing countries to lose trust in the U.S. 14,15
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Austria-Hungary had become two separate countries, and was given no port access to trade worldwide or across sea, this would ruin their economy. 16,17
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The US rejected the League of Nations because the country felt it did not want to give up any of its sovereignty. The rejection of the league had less to do politically with the world that it did in the US. 15
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F. Scott Fitzgerald writes about an American soldier who lost the woman he loved to a wealthier man, and is left in the end with nothing. This is a story about how the American dream isn't possible. 20
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Hungary gives up Transylvania, giving up all citizens who had been living in that area. 16
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When Britain had gained control of Germany's colonies in the Middle East it had taken away some of Germany's economic power. 17,18
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Because of the reparations from the war, and low economic growth Germany suffered from hyperinflation. 19
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When the economies did suffer, this made it easier for extremist parties to take control, most notably the Nazi Party in Germany. 19
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After the Treaty of Versailles, France was given a mandate of Syria, which had previously been owned by Germany. Causing Germany to lose some of its raw resources. 17,18
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F. Scott Fitzgerald has The Great Gatsby published, a book showing that not everything is about money, and that being rich does not generate happiness. 20
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Ernest Hemingway writes The Sun Also Rises which shows the flaws of the American dream, and how no one’s dreams can become a reality. 20
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The stock market crashes which faded The Lost Generation away and ended the roaring 20s. 20
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Italy had left the League of Nations and made deals with France and Britain to acquire Ethiopia. This had given the League of Nations a bad reputation and moved Italy closer to fascism. 15
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The League of Nations is too fragile to acknowledge the disruption and revolt going on in Spain, and cannot help with Germany and Italy intervening. 15
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Pablo Picasso painted one of the most famous paintings ever, Guernica, depicting the bombing of a small town in Spain, and showing the horrors of war. 20
