WWI and the 1920s Flashcards
What did President Wilson establish right before World War One?
The Federal Reserve – the government managed the “central bank” (essentially a better national bank than Hamilton’s had been)
18th amendment (and when?)
1919, the 18th Amendment instituted prohibition
19th amendment (and when?)
1920, the 19th Amendment gave women “suffrage” (the right to vote)
World War I was a war between:
the major powers of Europe, Japan, and eventually the US
The Triple Entente: France, Britain, Russia
The Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy
How WWI started
1914
Serbian Nationalist assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand (Austria-Hungary)
Franz Joseph I, emperor of Austria-Hungary, suspected Serbia was involved
Activated web of allianced in Europe
What happened after the web of alliances sprung up, separating the war into two sides?
Both sides asked the US to get involved
What did President Wilson say about both sides of the war asking the US to get involved?
US citizens should stay neutral in thought and action
US geography helped but trade would change this
What was U.S. non-involvement encouraged by?
American Political Tradition
(avoid foreign alliances, but not commerce -Washington)
What was the “Schlieffen Plan”?
German goal: try to quickly defeat France before Russia could get involved
What were the 2 problems with neutrality?
Money and Attitudes
European war demand for US products rose spectacularly
American Economic Boom
Wilson wanted to promote democracy around the world
Wilson’s democratic idealism
prompted interference in the Mexican Revolution (which began in 1910)
interfered economically in WWI before fighting
What was the Triple Entente seen as?
“Anglo Saxon” medieval English ancestors (why would that matter?)
also more obviously democratic
What was Germany/Austria-Hungary/Turkey seen as?
authoritarian
(favoring or enforcing strict obedience to authority, especially that of the government, at the expense of personal freedom.)
How much money did the US give Germany during the war?
$27 million
How much money did the US give the allies during the war?
$2 billion
What was Germany conducting around Britain?
Unrestricted submarine warfare (attack civilian ships)
What was Wilson’s reaction to Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare?
Protest: subs broke US natural rights
What did the Germans do to England and the US in 1915?
In 1915, the Germans sunk the British passenger ship the LUSITANIA
(carrying war supplies)
128 Americans on board
Wilson and American public angry
Immediate cause of American entry to WWI
January 1917: Zimmerman Telegram
Germany suggested that Mexico should attack US
February 1917: Germany resumed unrestricted sub warfare
US declared war in April
New types of war
Global war (inclusion of colonies; every continent involved)
Total war (unrestricted weapons)
countries devoted all resources enlisting citizens (rationing drafts, financial contributions)
T or F: probably the best war to be a soldier
FALSE: it was probably the WORST war to be a soldier
What was one of the main flaws of WWI?
19th-century ideas (tactics, strategies, attitudes) about warfare ran into 20th-century technology
20th century war technology
Machine Guns
large artillery
barbed wire
poison gas
flamethrowers
airplanes
Trench warfare developed
Why did Russia leave the war in 1917?
Feb. 1917 - Tsar deposed, provisional gov’t takes control. Russia is still at war.
Germany sent Russian exile VLADIMIR LENIN into Russia to foment revolution
Led to a Communist Revolution in October 1917, beginning of USSR (made peace with Germany)
Why was the stalemate broken in 1918?
TANKS
The War’s End
American Troops arrived in force 1918
Battle of Meuse – Argonne, Sept. to Nov. 1918
Armistice signed November 11, 1918
Where did women work during WWI?
Factories and in the US military (driving trucks, nurses)
Major event with African Americans during WWI
African Americans contributed significantly to the war effort but had to move out of the South to do so
Start of WWI (1914): moved to Northern cities in exceptional numbers “THE GREAT MIGRATION”
resulted in more competition for jobs and greater racial and social tension
The Temperance Movement
(Ban alcohol) gained support in WWI (beer is a German drink)
Prohibition amendment passed in 1919 and went into effect in 1920
Lacked sufficient general citizen support
Repealed 1933
The Treaty of Versailles
German civilian government insisted on signing armistice based on Woodrow Wilson’s 14 points
(armistice = cease-fire, not surrender)
- nations should have “self determination”
- there should be an international organization for collective global security
- league of nations ineffective (US didn’t ratify)
In what way did Germany lie to their people about the end of WWI?
No Allied troops entered the main parts of Germany, so German citizens could believe that Germany had not actually been defeated
Who dictated the non-negotiable “Treaty of Versailles” to Germany?
The “BIG 4”
- The UK
- France
- US
- Italy
When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?
June 1919
What did the Treaty of Versailles entail?
Britain and France wanted Germany punished
“War Guilt Clause”: Germany designated solely responsible for the war
Germany had to pay massive war reparations
Germany lost 10% of land and overseas colonies
None of this was not in the “14 points”; Germans furious, felt betrayed
Economic Results of the Treaty of Versailles
German economy devastated by war
significant economic hardships through 1924
Great depression
Germans conflated economic hardships in 1923 with the Great Depression 5 years later
Viewed as a single unit of hardship caused by the Treaty of Versailles
Germans VERY ANGRY
1920s overview
US at peace
Industry grew
more technology and consumer goods
stable politics
What were the various sources of tension right after WWI?
1919 - Labor unrest (many strikes, some violence)
1919 - Red Scare
Anarchists sent mail bombs to public figures
“Palmer Raids”
almost all prominent foreign-born socialists and anarchists radicals were imprisoned and deported without a trial
Result: US socialism died as important political force
Who was president in 1920 and what did he promise?
Warren G. Harding
Promised “return to normalcy”
- General American orientation for the decade, but meant different things for different groups
Who became president after Harding died in 1923 and what did this mean for America?
Vice President Calvin Coolidge became president
Economic Policy
- lower taxes to create more investment in business
“Laissez-Faire” (hands off, loosely)
What did WWI make the US?
WWI made US a major creditor nation
- promoted peace and made throughout the 1920s
Major industries in the 1920s:
Automobile
Consumer Products replaced heavy industry
Airline
Radio (created unifying national culture)
Consumer Society
grew rapidly
- more mass advertising and more credit
- shift in view of debt - no longer seen as shameful
Effects of Prohibition
Speakeasies - “secret” illegal bars
Selling illegal alcohol = growth in organized crime
- Al Capone - most famous organized crime boss
Changes in American Female Culture
Women got jobs, went to college
- changed fashions
Who were the flappers?
Women who broke with the social norms of the time
Racism and Nativism in 1920s
Outgrowth of WWI
- Racism: resurgence of the KKK - membership close to 4 million by 1924
- race riots 1919-1924
- Nativism: anti-immigration laws
