World War One

Question 1

Why was WW1 known as the ‘Great War’?

Answer 1

The world had never experienced such a big war before.

Question 2

Give a brief description of WW1.

Answer 2

Millions of men split into two sides, known as alliances, and spent over four years brutally fighting each other using the deadliest weapons the world had ever seen.

Question 3

In total, how many people were killed?

Answer 3

Around 9 million people were killed, and on average, over 5000 deaths every day for four years.

Question 4

What was WWI known as due to its enormous death toll?

Answer 4

The war to end all wars.

Question 5

World wars begin for several reasons, so what two categories do historians divide these reasons into?

Answer 5

Long-Term and Short-Term Causes

Question 6

What is the abbreviation used to remember the four main long-term causes?

Answer 6

M.A.I.N
(Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism)

Question 7

What is Militarism?

Answer 7

Building up Armed Forces

Question 8

What are Alliances?

Answer 8

Countries on the same side agree to fight together.

Question 9

What is Imperialism?

Answer 9

Expansion of an Empire

Question 10

What is Nationalism?

Answer 10

The thought that your country is the best.

Question 11

What were the two alliances in WWI?

Answer 11

Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia)

Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy)

Question 12

What are allies?

Answer 12

People who are on the same side, i.e: in war.

Question 13

What is an arms race?

Answer 13

A race between countries to build up the biggest armed forces.

Question 14

What is a death toll?

Answer 14

The number of people who died during a particular event.

Question 15

What is a long-term cause?

Answer 15

A reason that built up over several years.

Question 16

What is a short-term cause?

Answer 16

A recent reason which triggers an event.

Question 17

What caused militarism to take place?

Answer 17

People and countries across Europe wanted the biggest armies and navies as they took great pride in their armed forces, so to ensure theirs was the best, they spent more money on bigger and bigger armies, as no one wanted to have the smallest one. This caused an arms race to start. Many citizens felt there was no point in having a big, expensive army if they weren’t going to use it, so if countries fell out (collapsed), the temptation was most likely to use their weapons.

Question 18

Why were alliances created?