WW1 Flashcards
Allied Powers
consisted of france, russia, and great britain during WWI
the alliance was created in 1907 and was called the triple entente.
Battle of Chateau Thierry
in 1918 the american troops fought with the french to turn back a determined german offensive
shortly after this battle, the allies ended the german advance and were ready to start their own offensive
Battle of Meuse Argonne
offensive that sought to cut the german railroad lines feeding the western front
lasted 47 days
Central Powers
consisted of germany, austria hungary, and italy
they formed prior to the triple entente and were called the triple alliance
Chicago Race Riot, 1919
in chicago a black teenager swimming in lake michigan happened to drift toward a white beach where white people stoned him unconscious and he sank and drowned
angry black people gathered in crowds and marched into white neighborhoods to retaliate so the white people formed a even larger crowd and roamed into black neighborhoods
overall 120 people died in these racial outbreaks
Committee on Public Information
was created to rally public support of war
it was headed by George Creel
his job was to sell america on the war and sell the world on wilsonian war aims
the creel organization employed thousands of workers around the world to spread war propaganda
the entire nation was as a result swept into war fever
David Lloyd George
british prime minister who wanted germany to face harsh decisions from the paris peace conference and he had just returned to power after his party had promised to hang the kaiser
he was the british representative at the paris peace conference
Doughboys
a nickname for the inexperienced but fresh american soldiers during WWI
Espionage Act 1917
gave the government new tools with which to combat spying, sabotage, or obstruction of the war effort
Fourteen Points
the war aims outlined by President Wilson in 1918 which he believed would promote lasting peace
called for self-determination, freedom of the seas, free trade, end to secret agreements, reduction of arms and a league of nations
George Creel
head of the committee on public information 1917 which was allegedly formed to combat wartime rumors by providing authoritative info
it served as propaganda agency proclaiming the governments version of reality and discrediting those who questioned that version
Great Migration
when nearly half a million people migrated from the rural south to industrial cities in search of factory jobs that the war was rapidly creating
Henry Cabot Lodge
senator of massachusetts who was the powerful chairman of the foreign relations committee and who loathed the president
he used every possible tactic to obstruct the treaty
HMS Lusitania
a british passenger ship that was sunk by a german u boat in 1915
128 americans died
the sinking greatly turned american opinion against the germans
helped the move towards entering the war
Industrial Workers of the World / “Wobblies”
a former international labor union and radical labor movement in the US
this radical labor organization was founded in 1905
they advocated revolution and massive societal reorganization that would put the working class in control of government and the economy
led by eugene debs
the organization faded away around 1920
Influenza pandemic 1918
global outbreak of a deadly type of flu
the movement of soldiers during WWI helped to spread the virus
20-40% of people in the world are estimated to have become ill with the virus that attacked the young and healthy as well the weak
people sometimes felt fine in the morning and were dead by night
an estimated 675,000 people died in the US and 50 million worldwide
Kaiser Wilhelm
was the kaiser of germany at the time of WWI reigning from 1888-1918
he pushed for a more aggressive foreign policy by means of colonies and a strong navy to compete with britain
his actions added to the growing tensions in pre-1914 europe.
League of Nations
an organization of nations formed after WWI to promote cooperation and peace
National War Labor Board
helped resolve labor disputes that might slow down war production
Pittsburgh Steel Strike 1919
greatest strike in history
250,000 strike to get owners to recognize their right to organize, owners brought in 30,000 african americans to break strike
Reparations
as part of the treaty of versailles, germany was ordered to pay fines to the allies to repay the costs of the war
opposed by the US, it quickly lead to a severe depression in germany
Sedition Act
expanded the the meaning of the espionage act to make illegal any public expression of opposition to the war
they allowed officials to prosecute anyone who criticized the president or the government
Schenck vs. United States
the supreme court rules against freedom of speech, if it presents “clear and present danger”… when such speech posed a danger to the nation
Schlieffen Plan
german plan to take paris before the brits could land an army
assumed russia would take a year to mobilize
assumed they could invade france from belgium in 3 days
Selective Service Act
1917 law provided for the registration of all american men between the ages of 21 and 30 for a military draft
by the end of WWI, 24.2 million had registered; 2.8 million had been inducted into the army
age limit was later changed to 18 to 45
Self Determination
the right of a people to assert its own national identity or form of government without outside influence
Treaty of Versailles
created by the leaders victorious allies nations: france, britain, US, and signed by germany to help stop WWI
the treaty 1) stripped Germany of all army, navy, airforce, 2) germany had to repair war damages (33 billion), 3) germany had to acknowledge guilt for causing WWI, 4) germany could not manufacture any weapons
Trench Warfare
a form of warfare in which opposing armies fight each other from trenches dug in the battlefield
Unrestricted submarine warfare
with so many US arms sneaking across the atlantic to allied powers, germany eventually declared unrestricted submarine warfare because they couldn’t distinguish certainly enough from merchant and armed vessels
this plan drew the US into war
U-Boats
german submarines
shortened from unterseeboot
they changed irrevocably the manner in which maritime warfare was waged, because a ship could be torpedoed and destroyed without sighting the opposition
originally germany made a distinction in military and non-military vessels, and later in warning ships, but it was quarrels over these boats that brought america and germany to the brink of war
War Hawk
members of congress that pushed for joining WWI
Zimmerman Note
a telegram from germany’s foreign secretary arthur zimmermann to Mexico
in return for mexico joining the central powers, germany would help recover the territories that mexico had lost to the US (guadalupe hidalgo)
the telegram was intercepted by the US and caused them to join the allied powers
