Test #1 Flashcards
What was the immediate cause of WWI?
On June 28, 1914, a young Serbian patriot shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire (Austria), in the city of Sarajevo.
What were contributing factors to the start of WWI?
- European expansionism.
- Serbian nationalism.
- Conflicts over alliances.
- Militarism.
Explain the Schlieffen Plan and how it went.
The Schlieffen plan was a plan by the Germans to quickly defeat France. However, it failed leading to sustained trench warfare on the Western Front.
Who is John McCrae?
A physician and poeist who cared for the wounded and performed surgery on Canadian and Allied troops. After the death of a close friend, he composed In Flanders Fields during a brief rest.
What happened in Ypres?
In the battle of Ypres, 1915, the Germans used their new weapon: chlorine gas. They used this on the French, cutting a hole in the Allied line. Fortunately however, the Germans had not planned enough, only advancing 3.25 km.
What happened in the Battle of Somme?
The British launched the largest battle of the war on the Western Front against the Germans. Over the course of five months, approximately 1.2 million men were killed or wounded at the Somme. The Canadian Corps was involved in the last three months of fighting. The Battle of the Somme produced little gains and has long been an example of senseless slaughter and the futility of trench warfare.
What was the Conscription Crisis?
On the 29th of August, 1917, a politically explosive and controversial law called the Military Service Act bitterly divided the country along French-English lines. This law made all male citizens aged 20-45 subject to conscription for military service, through the end of the First World War.
What was the Halifax Explosion?
On the morning of December 6th, 1917, the French cargo ship SS Mont-Blanc collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in the harbour of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Mont-Blanc, laden with high explosives, caught fire and exploded, devastating the Richmond district of Halifax.
What was the battle for Vimy Ridge?
The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of the German 6th Army.
What was the battle of Passchendaele?
This was the Third Battle of Ypres, which was a campaign of the First World War fought by the Allies against the German Empire between July 31, 1917, to November 10, 1917.
What is trench warfare?
Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising military trenches, in which combatants are well-protected from the enemy’s small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery.
