Conflict and Tension Flashcards
Why was Germany one of the most powerful states by 1914?
- Germany had many smaller states inside it
- Had control Alsace-Lorraine in France - Rich industrial area
- twice as much steel as britain
- 1/3 of electronics produced in world was here
When did AH and Italy join alliance?
- AH - 1872
- Italy - 1882
What was the alliance and why did they form an alliance?
- Known as central powers - secret agreement
- AH was a huge empire
- Italy wanted to build the empire
What was the problem with AH joining the alliances?
- Serbia was nationalistic and wanted freedom
- Russia backed Serbia in this
What was the Dual Alliance and why was it made?
- Agreement between Russia and France - 1892
- France wanted Alsace-Lorraine
- Russia was largest in Europe with big Army
- Russia was agrarian
- Russia wanted to defend serbs - meant they had support
What was the Tripple entente and why was it made?
- France and Russia had long been biggest threats to briatin
- Germany was seen as a threat
- BRIT and FRANCE - 1904
- BRIT and RUSSIA - 1907
What are the three probelms that threatened wars?
- Morocco 1905
- Balkans 1908
- Morocco 1911
What happened in the Morocco Crisis?
- Kasier made speech about Moroccan Independance
- Angered France
- Conference was held to settle dispute
- Made matters worse
- Germany worried about how Britain and France supported each other
- Reason why the entente was formed
What happened in the Balkans?
- Balkans was a large area with an area that was infulenced by
- Russia
- AH
- AH was becoming unstable - independance
- 1908 - Austria annexed Bosnia - Made serbs angry
- Germany supported AH - forced Russia and Serbia to back down
- Russia promised to never do so again
What happened in Morocco Crisis 1911?
- Germany sent a gunboat to the port of AGADIR
- This was because France were moving to take over Morocco
- War was avoided
- Britain and France became closer to use navies to contain Germany
-What was the policy of Splendid Isolation
-stopping permenment Allies
-Why did Britain follow the policy of Splendid Isolation?
-Didn’t want to get dragged in
What was Germany’s foreign policy?
- Aggressive
- Kasier wanted “place in sun”
- Weltpolitik
- Authorotarian - militeristic
What was the Naval arms race and what was the cause?
- Germany and Britain batteling for big navy
- Caused by the German aggressive foreign policy
What where the naval laws?
- Set of laws that Kasier made to increase navy
- Dreadnaught was produced
- 1914
- Germany had 17 dreadnaughts
- Britain had 29
What was the idea of Militerism?
- Major powers increased army sizes
- 1910 - France+Britain+Russia+Gerdog had 1 Mil + men
Why were nations doing due to militerism
- Making plans for war
- Schliffen Plan - German quick war at East then mobilise to west
- Plan 17 - French planned quick war
- BEF - British Expeditory Force - force to send to France if Germany attacked
Explain the Assasination of Franz Ferdinand
- Franz Ferdinand was the heir to the AH throne
- Black Hand Gang assasinated him
- Serbian Nationalist views
What was AH reaction to assasination?
- AH dealt with Serbia harshly
- Serbia was already strong due to balklan wars and had Russia backing
What was the July Crisis
- 10 demand ULTIMATIUM sent to Serbia from AH
- Accept or face war
- Accepted 9 out of 10
- Germany gave blank cheque
- Russia moblised troups
- Germany declared war 1st August
What was the Schefflen plan?
- attack western front qucikly - six weeks
- attack eastern front after Russia had moblisied
Why had Britain been dragged into war?
- Treaty of London
- Germany invaded Belgium on 4th August
Why did the war turn to stalemate?
- Russia mobilised quick - German troups had to split
- BEF meant strong resistance - had to stop - stalemate
Why did both sides dig trenches?
- defencsive techniques
- Reduced effectiveness of cavalry
How did technology develop during the war?
- new tactics
- Artillery
- Machine guns
- Chlorine Gas
- Planes used for reconnaissance
- Tanks
What was the policy of unrestricted warfare
-Attacking anyships that was thought to be bringing in supplies
Why did the unresreticted warfare policy become cancelled in 1915
- USA ship Lusitiana was sunk - 1,000 people on board died
- worried that USA may join
What did Germany do with unrestricted warfare in 1917?
-out of desperation, they resumed the unrestricted
warfare
-very very effective short term
What was the ZIMMERMAN TELEGRAM?
-Telegram which promted Mexico join Germany in attacking USA
What did the zimmerman telegram lead to
-USA joining the war
How many troups were in europe by 1918 that were from USA
1 million
Why did Russia leave the war?
- Russian Revolution in 1917
- Bolsheviks wanted to focus on themselves, and therefore left the war
What was the treaty signed that let Germany take control over huge areas of land in russia
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
What did the treaty mean for Germany
They could send mass amounts of troups to the Western Front
What was the Ludendorff Offensive
-Planed named after general Lundendorff that was going to win the war for Germany by a final push
Why was germany forced to do the Ludendorff Offensive
- 50,000 US troups arriving every month
- Blockade meant people in Germany were suffering
- They had STORM TROUPERS that could easily penentrate the defences
How was the offensive a fail
- Bombardments were to concentrated
- small groups of storm troupers were too fast - had no back up
- 400,000 German casualties
- Germans stopped to loot - poor dicipline
What did the allies do in response of the offensive
Counter attack
How was the counter attack a success
- creeping barrage - smokescrean for infantry
- tanks punched holes in the german lines
What was the impact of the Blockade
- 500,000+ citizens died of starvation
- Supplies of food had ran out by 1918
- In berlin there were riots
- Mutinies in naval base of KIEL
What did the riots do to the kasier
- Force to abdicate
- Abdicating helped with better ToV
What was Wilson’s views on armitice?
- Fourteen points
- kind - no future war
What did Germany want
-Wilson’s points
What did Germany get?
-Very harsh points
