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The United States Acquires the Panama Canal Zone
Imperialism was fairly new to the United States but they were acquiring many small territories and countries. The Republic of Panama elected a new leader, Bunau-Varilla, a French engineer. The new leader negotiated a deal which gave the United States a ten-mile wide strip of land for the canal, and a ten-million-dollar payment to Panama. The United States agreed to this proposal in 1903 and completed the canal in 1914. The canal was a major foreign policy and engineering achievement. -
The World’s Most Powerful Countries Increased their Militaries
Militarism is when nations believe they should have a very powerful military to aggressively defend and promote their countries interests. Militarism was one of the main causes of World War I. Many of the world leaders in Europe and Asia during the early 1900’s were determined to mass-produce new weapons and increase the number of men they had, and not even discuss diplomatic solutions. President Wilson’s advisor, Col. House said, “The situation is extraordinary. It is militarism run stark mad.” -
Assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his Wife
On June 28, 1914, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb. This event started a snowball effect that led to the beginning of World War I. The government of Serbia did not take any responsibility for the attack. Austria-Hungry thought Serbia was looking to take the territories in the Balkans. Having a “blank check” for retaliation from Germany, Austria-Hungary was in the middle of the conflict. From this event, alliances were formed -
The beginning of World War I
World War 1 really began with the murders of the Archduke of Austria and his wife. That incident was small, on a world-wide scale, but it began a chain of events that continued to a World War. Finally, on August 4, 1914, Britain's Prime Minister Herbert Asquith declared war on Germany. The prime minister had told Germany to get out of Belgium by midnight on August 3, 1914. The prime minister felt he had no choice. He was fearful of Britain being surrounded by Russia, France, and Germany. -
Germany gives Austria-Hungary blank check assurance
Kaiser Wilhelm, on July 5, 1914, pledged Germany's unconditional support for whatever Austria-Hungary wanted to do about Serbia. A few weeks before, the Archduke of Austria and his wife were killed by a Serbian nationalist on a visit to Sarajevo, Bosnia. No historical documents survived at this meeting, but it is said that Germany told Austria-Hungary they had a "blank check" to avenge the murderers. Wilhelm stated that this was not a hasty decision, but had been reviewed and discussed. -
Germany Declares Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
In 1915, Germany introduced unrestricted submarine warfare. Germany declared that the area near the British Isles was a war zone, and all merchant ships, even if they were from neutral countries, would be attacked. President Wilson sent a note to the German Government demanding that these attacks stop. By September, the German Government was persuaded to suspend U-boat warfare temporarily. However, the German Navy commander's did not accept this suspension and continued use of the submarines. -
The Sinking of the Lusitania
On May 7, 1915, the British ocean liner Lusitania was sunk by a torpedo from a German submarine within 20 minutes of being hit. 1,959 passengers and crew were on the ship that day. 1,198 people were drowned, and that included 128 Americans. Britain and the United States were outraged. Germany said that they had issued warnings that they intended to attack all ships whether they were neutral or not. The captain of the Lusitania did not take this advice and was hit by an exploding torpedo. -
Zimmerman Telegram between Germany and Mexico
The Zimmerman telegraph was a secret communication between Germany and Mexico. It proposed that Germany would support Mexico to join with them in fighting America. The telegram was intercepted by British intelligence and they decoded. On March 3, the foreign secretary publicly announced what the telegram said, and Arthur Zimmerman, the German foreign secretary, admitted that it was accurate. Deciphering the code is described as Britain's most significant intelligent triumph of World War I. -
The U.S. enters into WW1
On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson spoke to Congress and urged them to declare war on Germany. Wilson said, “The world must be made safe for democracy.” Four days later Congress did declare war on Germany. U.S. citizens wanted to go to war because Germany was attacking neutral ships, trying to help Mexico regain Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, and already in war with Britain, France and Russia. -
Nationalism: U.S. Congress Passes the Selective Service Act
Although the United States did not enter war at the beginning in 1914, the spirit of nationalism in America was very high. In 1917, when President Wilson, felt the United States could no longer stay neutral and declared war on Germany, nationalism was still very high. Wilson quickly realized that with a volunteer army there would not be enough men to fight efficiently. So, on May 18, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Selective Service Act, which drafted men into the war. -
Complicated web of World War I Allies
The different alliances are probably the main cause of World War I. The local assassination of the Archduke started an alliance between Germany and Austria – Hungary. Turkey then joined in, creating the Central Powers. On the other side, the Allies made up of Russia, Britain, France, Japan, Italy, and eventually the United States. In the early 1900's, Britain, France, and Russia overcame all their conflict and formed a Triple Entente. This alliance ended the British isolationism and neutrality. -
The Creation of Nine New Nations
The Treaty of Versailles was very long and had 440 articles in it. One of those articles was the creation of nine new nations. Those nations were Finland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Poland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Estoni, Germany was required to give back land to France that they had won in the Franco-Prussian war. Germany also had to give land back to Poland, that once belonged to Russia and Austria. The treaty also split Austria-Hungary into several countries. -
The Treaty of Versailles impacted Germany
The Treaty of Versailles was the treaty that brought World War I to an end. The treaty was signed on June 28th. 1919. The German people thought the treaty was very unfair; they called it a "Diktat." Which meant "dictated peace'" and the Germans felt that it was not a negotiation but an execution. The Germans had not been allowed to take part in the negotiations of the treaty, they were just told to sign it. The Germans criticized the treaty and tried to send a counter proposal. -
The Dawes Plan and Young Plan
The Dawes Plan of 1924, and Young Plan of 1928, were designed to help Germany meet their repayments from World War 1 and stabilize Germany’s economy. Charles G. Dawes led a committee from five countries to design a plan to return Weimar’s Germany to a stable economy.Young Plan named after the committee chairman Owen D. Young. The Young Plan reduced the amount Germany had to repay by $29 billion. The Young Plan also created a bank for international settlements. -
Adolf Hitler’s Autobiography Mein Kampf was Published.
Mein Kampf was a book about Hitler’s agenda for a Third Reich. Hitler wrote the book when he was in prison. He was convicted of treason for his part in the Beer Hall Putsch, which is when he and others tried to stage a coup in Bavaria. Hitler was sentenced to five years but he only served nine months. In prison, he was treated like a hero and allowed guests and gifts. The first part of the book Mein Kampf, is a 400-page list of what he thought were problems with Germany. -
The 1929 Crash of the Stock Market
In the 1920s, the stock market increased greatly. It reached its peak in August of 1929. This was called a wild period of speculation. In September 1929, stock prices began to decline, and on October 18th, the fall began. By October 24, Black Thursday, full panic had set in and over twelve million shares were traded. Several of the causes that led up to this collapse were low wages, individual and corporate debt, a weak agriculture market, and many large loans that could not be liquidated.
