World War I Flashcards
Who was Billy Bishop?
A “flying ace” (5 kills) Canadian WWI pilot, credited with 72 kills–30 challenged–, and awarded the Victoria Cross and Distinguished Flying Cross, served in both world wars.
What was “No Mans Land”?
A narrow, muddy, treeless stretch of land separating the two warring armies.
What were trench mouth/foot?
Medical conditions caused by prolonged exposure to damp, unsanitary and cold conditions. The British army alone treated 20,000 cases.
What are “dugouts”?
Shelters dug on the side of a trench in the ground and used as living quarters, for the storage of supplies or protection.
What is “shelling”?
Artillery fire.
Explain the term “over the top”.
Looking over the top of the trenches to assault the enemy.
Define “digging in”.
Digging a trench to hold land.
What is militarism?
An arms race; policy of building up military forces and threatening armed aggression.
What is imperialism?
The belief in the necessity of building up an empire by dominating other nations and by establishing colonies.
What are alliances?
Agreements or treaties to ensure the cooperation between two countries, intended to keep Peace in Europe.
What is nationalism?
Having pride in your country; willingness to defend it and the belief that it is destined for greatness.
Who was General Ludendorff?
The German General who created the Schlieffen plan.
Explain the Schlieffen plan and what went wrong.
Germany would send forces in a claw like motion in a surprise attack against France through Belgium. The Generals misread the maps and turned south too soon, Belgium resisted, Britain joined the fight, and the Germans were caught at Marne River. This began 4 years of trench warfare.
What did war artists do?
They depicted life and death in warzones.
What were “u-boats”?
German submarines.
What was “mustard gas”?
Chemical warfare first used by the Germans in the second Battle of Ypres.
What was the “Paris gun”?
A German long-range siege rifle?
What was the “Ross rifle”?
A rifle that originated in Canada.
What was the Western front?
An area of military operations which ran through Belgium, Northern France, and to the Swiss border.
What was propaganda?
Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, intended to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view, mostly through posters.
Who was the Arch Duke Ferdinand?
The heir to the Austria-Hungary throne, assassinated June 14, 1914 by Gavrilo Princip of the Black Hand Serbian terrorist group.
What happened in the Conscription Crisis?
Conscription was drafting soldiers to fight.
Borden (C PM) promised not to at the beginning of the war, but needed the 500,000 Canadians he promised Britain, and soldiers were dying before they could be replaced.
He called an election to prove it was the will of the people, but French Canadians were strongly opposed.
Winifred Laurier (L OO) urged them to volunteer, but was against conscription.
What was the Treaty of Versailles? (8)
The treaty that ended WWI, signed in June 1919 in Versailles.
Germany lost all its colonies, part of eastern Germany was given to Poland, they had to pay for war damages, not allowed to have an air force, tanks or artillery, army restricted to 100,000 men, and they had to admit the war was their fault.
Explain the assassination of Franz Ferdinand.
June 14, 1914, Ferdinand and his wife went to Sarajevo in Bosnia.
After one failed assassination attempt, the car stopped and Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Black Hand Serbian terrorist group, shot and killed him and his wife, thus starting the war.
What happened to women’s voting rights during the first world war? (4)
1917- Borden passed the Wartime Elections Act.
Allowed army nurses, sisters and wives of soldiers to vote, in an effort to pass conscription.
1918- all women were allowed to vote, but not run for Parliament.
1920- were allowed to run for Parliament.
1921- Agnes MacPhail was elected to the HoC.
Who were the three countries of the Triple Entente?
England, France and Russia.
Who were the three countries of the Triple Alliance?
Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy.
What were victory bonds?
The government sold them to Canadian citizens, corporations, and organizations to raise funds to pay for the war. They could be redeemed with interest after 5, 10, or 20 years.
What were the four main causes of WWI?
Militarism (Germany in an arms race against England, France and Russia).
Alliance System (Triple Entente/Allies vs Triple Alliance/Central Powers).
Imperialism (Britain felt threatened by German expansion in Africa).
Nationalism (Slavs, aided by Serbia and Russia, wanted to be free of Austrian rule).
What were some policies in the WWI wartime economy? (6)
Taxes were put in place, wage and price controls, control inflation, people grew crops for war, extra food/clothing sent overseas, propaganda used to earn money.
How did women change during WWI? (5)
They began working in munitions factories, nursing (3000 Bluebirds, 46 killed), took over farming, sent over care packages, supported the Red Cross.
What were four technological changes in WWI?
War fought in the sky and ocean with fighter planes and submarines, and the development of tanks and machine guns.
What was an armistice and when was it called in WWI?
A ceasefire. WWI armistice was on November 11, 1918, and marked the end of the war.
When and where was the Battle of Vimy Ridge?
April 9-12, 1917 in Vimy, Northern France
What the significance of Vimy Ridge for Canadians?
The first time all four Canadian divisions worked together. They spent the winter planning and preparing, went in a creeping barrage across No Man’s Land. Earned Canada a spot on the Treaty of Versailles, and four Canadians won the Victoria Cross for bravery.
How many Canadian casualties were there in Vimy Ridge?
4,000
When and where was the Battle of the Somme?
July 1 - November 18, 1916, near the River Somme in Northern France.
What was the significance of the Battle of the Somme?
It was the bloodiest battle in WWI, because of trench warfare, and underestimating the power of German artillery fire.
How many casualties were there the first day in the Battle of the Somme? How many at the end?
Nearly 60,000 casualties the first day, and over 1.2 million altogether by the end.
When and where was the Battle of Paschendaele?
July 1 - November 16, 1917, in the village of Paschendaele, Belgium.
What was the significance of the Battle of Paschendaele?
The third Battle of Ypres.
The worst conditions of WWI, muddy, lots of rain, bodies everywhere, and the morale of soldiers were low.
How many casualties were there in the Battle of Paschendaele?
495,000
When was the first Battle of Ypres?
October 30 - November 24, 1914
When was the second Battle of Ypres?
April 22 - May 25, 1915
When was the third Battle of Ypres?
July 1 - November 16, 1917
When did the Germans first use mustard gas?
The second Battle of Ypres.
How many casualties were there in the Battle of Ypres?
Over 850,000
When was the Halifax Explosion?
On December 6, 1917
What caused the Halifax Explosion?
The Belgian Imo was travelling on the wrong side of the channel and crashed into the French Mont Blanc, which was carrying 2,500 tons of explosives.
What were the consequences of the Halifax Explosion?
Explosion spread more than 25 acres, killing 1,600, injuring 9,000 and leaving 25,000 without shelter.
The sinking of what ship brought the USA into WWI?
The Lusitania.
Who were the Central powers countries?
Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy
Was Canada on the side of the Central Powers, or Triple Entente?
Triple Entente
