IB+History

= = =Paper 1:=

World War I took place between 1914 and 1918. Although the conflict began in Europe, it ultimately involved countries as far away as the United States and Japan. At the time, the English-speaking world knew it as the “Great War”—the term “World War I” was applied decades later. Historians still actively disagree over the fundamental causes of the war. The period leading up to the war was a complex tangle of diplomacy and political maneuvering—many countries debated over strategies and alliances until nearly the last minute—and the first few weeks of the conflict were similarly chaotic and confusing. However, historians agree nearly unanimously about the war’s consequences: World War I led almost directly to World War II and set the stage for many other important events in the twentieth century.  By conservative estimates, around 9 million soldiers died in battle—many of them defending entrenched front lines that were so stalemated that they rarely moved even a few yards in either direction. Civilian loss of life totaled an additional 13 million. Epidemics of influenza and other diseases, either induced or exacerbated by the toc

war, raised the death toll by at least an additional 20 million. In total, counting battle casualties, civilian deaths, and victims of disease, the loss of life worldwide surpassed 40 million. Political tensions ran high in early twentieth-century Europe. Abroad, Europe’s great powers were increasingly coming to impasses over the acquisition of new colonies. As the unclaimed lands of the earth ran short, the race to claim them became fiercely competitive. At the same time, the Turkish-ruled Ottoman Empire, which had existed for hundreds of years, was slowly decaying. Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, and other southern European nations that had been under Ottoman rule became independent, changing the balance of power in Europe. The many ethnic groups of Austria-Hungary, inspired by these new southern European nations, began to agitate for their own independence. Furthermore, Serbia wanted back the territory of Bosnia-Herzegovina, lost to Austria in a previous war. At the same time, technological and industrial developments in Europe were advancing with unprecedented speed. Military technology was at the forefront of this trend, and a horrible war using these new weapons was both feared and seen as inevitable. Indeed, World War I turned out to be a showcase of new technologies that would change the nature, speed, and efficiency of warfare in the century to come. Tanks, airplanes, and submarines changed the way wars were fought. Other types of motorized vehicles, such as trucks, cars, and especially trains, vastly improved the speed with which troops and supplies could be deployed and increased the distance over which they could be transported. Guns in all categories, ranging from pistols to major artillery, greatly improved in accuracy and range of fire, enabling armies to fire upon each other across long distances and in some cases without even having to see each other. The machine gun made it possible for a single soldier to effectively take on multiple opponents at once. Chemical warfare was seen on a large scale for the first time, with results so gruesome that most countries vowed never to use such weapons again. By war’s end, the map of Europe began to resemble the one we know today. The German and Austro-Hungarian empires ceased to exist. Much of eastern Europe, in particular, was redivided along ethno-linguistic lines, and Hungary, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland all became independent countries. Several other nations were awkwardly combined into the countries of Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. A major reorganization of the Near and Middle East also took plac e following the war, establishing the forerunners of the countries we know today as Armenia, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq. The aftermath of World War I also marked the practical end of monarchy on the continent and of European colonialism throughout the rest of the world. Most European nations began to rely increasingly upon parliamentary systems of government, and socialism gained increasing popularity. The brutality of the conflict and the enormous loss of human life inspired a renewed determination among nations to rely upon diplomacy to resolve conflicts in the future. This resolve directly inspired the birth of the League of Nations.

**Time line for the causes of the world war 1:**

> principle to begin on July 29.
 * June 28, 1914: Serbian irredentists assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
 * July 23: Austria-Hungary, following their own secret enquiry, sends an ultimatum to Serbia, containing several very severe demands. In particular, they gave only forty-eight hours to comply. Whilst both Great Britain and Russia sympathised with many of the demands, both agreed the timescale was far too short. Both nevertheless advised Serbia to comply.
 * July 24: Germany officially declares support for Austria's position.
 * July 24: Sir Edward Grey, speaking for the British government, asks that Germany, France, Italy and Great Britain, "who had no direct interests in Serbia, should act together for the sake of peace simultaneously.
 * July 25: The Serbian government replies to Austria, and agrees to most of the demands. However, certain demands brought into question her survival as an independent nation. On these points they asked that the Hague Tribunal arbitrate.
 * July 25: Russia enters a period preparatory to war and mobilization begins on all frontiers. Government decides on a partial mobilization in
 * July 25: Serbia mobilizes its army; responds to Austro-Hungarian démarche with less than full acceptance; Austria-Hungary breaks diplomatic relations with Serbia.
 * July 26: Serbia reservists accidentally violate Austro-Hungarian border at Temes-Kubin.
 * July 26: Russia having agreed to stand aside whilst others conferred, a meeting is organised to take place between ambassadors from Great Britain, Germany, Italy and France to discuss the crisis. Germany declines the invitation.
 * July 27: Sir Edward Grey meets the German ambassador independently. A telegram to Berlin after the meeting states, "Other issues might be raised that would supersede the dispute between Austria and Serbia…as long as Germany would work to keep peace I would keep closely in touch."
 * July 28: Austria-Hungary, having failed to accept Serbia's response of the 25th, declares war on Serbia. Mobilisation against Serbia begins.
 * July 29: Russian general mobilization is ordered, and then changed to partial mobilization.
 * July 29: Sir Edward Grey appeals to Germany to intervene to maintain peace.
 * July 29: The British Ambassador in Berlin, Sir Edward Goschen, is informed by the German Chancellor that Germany is contemplating war with France, and furthermore, wishes to send its army through Belgium. He tries to secure Britain's neutrality in such an action.
 * July 30: Russian general mobilization is reordered at 5:00 P.M.
 * July 31: Austrian general mobilization is ordered.
 * July 31: Germany enters a period preparatory to warrt.
 * July 31: Germany sends an ultimatum to Russia, demanding that they halt military preparations within twelve hours.
 * July 31: Both France and Germany are asked by Britain to declare their support for the ongoing neutrality of Belgium. France agrees to this. Germany does not respond.
 * August 1 (3 A.M.): The King of Great Britain personally telegraphs the Tsar of Russia.
 * August 1: French general mobilization is ordered.
 * August 1: German general mobilization is ordered.
 * August 1: Germany declares war against Russia.
 * August 1: The Tsar responds to the king's telegram, stating, "I would gladly have accepted your proposals had not the German ambassador this afternoon presented a note to my Government declaring war."
 * August 2: Germany and The Ottoman Empire sign a secret treaty. entrenching the Ottoman-German Alliance
 * August 3: Germany, after France declines its demand to remain neutral, declares war on France. Germany states to Belgium that she would "treat her as an enemy" if she did not allow free passage of German troops across her lands.
 * August 3: Britain, expecting German naval attack on the northern French coast, states that Britain would give "…all the protection in its powers."
 * August 4: Germany invades Belgium according to the modified Schlieffen Plan
 * August 4 (midnight): Having failed to receive notice from Germany assuring the neutrality of Belgium, Britain declares war on Germany.
 * August 6: Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
 * August 23: Japan, honouring the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, declares war on Germany.
 * August 25: Japan declares war on Austria-Hungary.

German domestic politics:
Left-wing parties, especially the Social Democratic Party of Germany(SPD) made large gains in the 1912 German election. German government at the time was still dominated by the Prussian Junkers who feared the rise of these left-wing parties. Fritz Fischer famously argued that they deliberately sought an external war to distract the population and whip up patriotic support for the government. Russia was in the midst of a large-scale military build-up and reform that they completed in 1916–17. Other authors argue that German conservatives were ambivalent about a war, worrying that losing a war would have disastrous consequences, and even a successful war might alienate the population if it were lengthy or difficult.

French domestic problems:
The situation in France was quite different from that in Germany as going to war appeared to the majority of political and military leaders to be a potentially costly gamble. It is undeniable that forty years after the loss of Alsace-Lorraine a vast number of French were still angered by the amputation of their country, as well as by the humiliation of being compelled to pay a large tribute to Germany in 1870. The diplomatic alienation of France orchestrated by Germany prior to World War I caused further resentment in France. Nevertheless, the leaders of France recognized Germany's strong military advantage against them, as Germany had nearly twice as much population and a better equipped army. At the same time, the episodes of the Tangier Crisis in 1905 and the Agadir Crisis in 1911 had given France a strong indication that war with Germany could be inevitable if France wanted to oppose Germany's ambitions. More than a century after the French Revolution, there was still a fierce struggle between the left-wing French government and its right-wing opponents, as socialists like Jean Jaurès pushed for peace against nationalists like Paul Déroulède who were inclined to go to war. Recent social reforms created a climate of insecurity which some right-wing politicians thought could be resolved by the nationalistic spirit of war. France in 1914 had never been so prosperous and influential in Europe since 1870, nor its military so strong and confident in its leaders, emboldened by its success in North Africa and the overall pacification of its vast colonial empire. Indeed, if France had attempted for more than forty years to appease bellicose Germany, a majority of the Frenchmen now believed it could face the German threat with more tranquility than before. The //Entente Cordiale// with Great Britain signed in 1904 seemed to last, being aided by mutual interests abroad and strong economic ties. Russia had fled the //triple crown alliance// with Germany and Austria-Hungary because of disagreements with Austria-Hungary over policy in the Balkans. Russia also hoped that large French investments in its industry and infrastructures coupled with an important military partnership would prove themselves profitable and durable. France ultimately perceived it could face the German provocation to war and attempt to gain back the francophile provinces of Alsace-Lorraine. It is important to note however, that France never could have permitted itself to initiate a war with Germany, as its military pact with Great-Britain was only purely defensive. The misperception that Germany wouldn't commit a //crime on peace// as prepared by the Schlieffen Plan with the invasion of neutral Belgium would find itself lethal to the defensive French military doctrine on the eve of the first worldwide conflict.

International relations:

Imperialism
Map of the world with the participants in World War I prior to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The Allies are depicted in green, the Central Powers in orange and neutral countries in grey. Some scholars have attributed the start of the war to imperialismCountries such as the United Kingdom and France accumulated great wealth in the late 19th century through their control of trade in foreign resources, markets, territories, and people.Other empires, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, and Russia all hoped to do so as well in economic advantage. Their frustrated ambitions, and British policies of strategic exclusion created tensions. In addition, the limits of natural resources in many European nations began to slowly alter trade balance, and make national industries seek new territories rich in natural resources. Commercial interests contributed substantially to Anglo-German rivalry during the scramble for tropical Africa. This was the scene of sharpest conflict between certain German and British commercial interests. There have been two partitions of Africa. One involved the actual imposition of political boundaries across the continent during the last quarter of the 19th century; the other, which actually commenced in the mid-19th century, consisted of the so-called 'business' partition. In southern Africa the latter partition followed rapidly upon the discoveries of diamonds and gold in 1867 and 1886 respectively. An integral part of this second partition was the expansion in the interior of British capital interests, primarily the British South Africa Company and mining companies such as De Beers. After 1886 the Witwatersrand goldfields prompted feverish activity among European as well as British capitalists. It was soon felt in Whitehall that German commercial penetration in particular constituted a direct threat to Britain's continued economic and political hegemony south of the Limpopo. Amid the expanding web of German business on the Rand, the most contentious operations were those of the German-financed N.Z.A.S.M. or Netherlands South African Railway Company, which possessed a railway monopoly in the Transvaal. Rivalries for not just colonies, but colonial trade and trade routes developed between the emerging economic powers and the incumbent great powers. Although still argued differently according to historical perspectives on the path to war, this rivalry was illustrated in the Berlin-Baghdad Railway, which would have given German industry access to Iraqi oil, and German trade a southern port in the Persian Gulf. A history of this railroad in the context of World War I has arrived to describe the German interests in countering the British Empire at a global level, and Turkey's interest in countering their Russian rivals at a regional level. As stated by a contemporary 'man on the ground' at the time, Jastrow wrote, "It was felt in England that if, as Napoleon is said to have remarked, Antwerp in the hands of a great continental power was a pistol leveled at the English coast, Bagdad and the Persian Gulf in the hands of Germany (or any other strong power) would be a 42-centimetre gun pointed at India." ] On the other side, "Public opinion in Germany was feasting on visions of Cairo, Baghdad, and Tehran, and the possibility of evading the British blockade through outlets to the Indian Ocean." Britain's initial strategic exclusion of others from northern access to a Persian Gulf port in the creation of Kuwait by treaty as a protected, subsidized client state showed political recognition of the importance of the issue. If outcome is revealing, by the close of the war this political recognition was re-emphasized in the military effort to capture the railway itself, recounted with perspective in a contemporary history: "On the 26th Aleppo fell, and on the 28th we reached Muslimieh, that junction on the Baghdad railway on which longing eyes had been cast as the nodal point in the conflict of German and other ambitions in the East." The Treaty of Versailles explicitly removed all German ownership thereafter, which without Ottoman rule left access to Mesopotamian and Persian oil, and northern access to a southern port in British hands alone. Rivalries among the great powers were exacerbated starting in the 1880s by the scramble for colonies, which brought much of Africa and Asia under European rule in the following quarter-century. It also created great Anglo-French and Anglo-Russian tensions and crises that prevented a British alliance with either until the early 20th century. Otto von Bismarck disliked the idea of an overseas empire, but pursued a colonial policy to court domestic political support. This started Anglo-German tensions since German acquisitions in Africa and the Pacific threatened to impinge upon British strategic and commercial interests. Bismarck supported French colonization in Africa because it diverted government attention and resources away from continental Europe and revanchism. In spite of all of Bismarck's deft diplomatic maneuvering, in 1890 he was forced to resign by the new Kaiser (Wilhelm II). His successor, Leo von Caprivi, was the last German Chancellor who was successful in calming Anglo-German tensions. After his loss of office in 1894, German policy led to greater conflicts with the other colonial powers. The status of Morocco had been guaranteed by international agreement, and when France attempted to greatly expand its influence there without the assent of all the other signatories Germany opposed it prompting the Moroccan Crises, the Tangier Crisis of 1905 and the Agadir Crisis of 1911. The intent of German policy was to drive a wedge between the British and French, but in both cases produced the opposite effect and Germany was isolated diplomatically, most notably lacking the support of Italy despite Italian membership in the Triple Alliance. The French protectorate over Morocco was established officially in 1912. In 1914, there were no outstanding colonial conflicts, Africa essentially having been claimed fully, apart from Ethiopia, for several years. However, the competitive mentality, as well as a fear of "being left behind" in the competition for the world's resources may have played a role in the decisions to begin the conflict.

1.) Franco-Prussian war :
2.) [|Balkan crises:]

These are the supplement documents which would support the students:






Paper 2:
//**"War does not determine who is right - only who is left. ”**//

//**- Bertrand Russell**// Much as Russell surmised, the course of World War I culminated in loss. A study of the treaties, battles, technology, and ideological grounds shows much about the political, military, and diplomatic conditions that prevailed during World War I.  Major Treaties Signed The major alliances of World War I centered around two treaties: > >  The armistices of Compiègne and Villa Giusti marked the end of the war on the Western Front and on the Italian Front. These were followed by a number of historically significant peace treaties including: > > > > > These peace treaties were drafted at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. Principal Theaters Of Battle The principal theaters of battle of World War I were: > > > > > Major Battles The battles of World War I were costly in terms of causalities. The top ten battles of World War I noted for their magnitude were:
 * The Triple Alliance
 * The Triple Entente
 * **Treaty of Versailles**
 * **Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye**
 * **Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine**
 * **Treaty of Trianon**
 * **Treaty of Sèvres**
 * Western Front: Major battles fought along the Western Front include the Battle of the Marne, the Battles of Ypres, the Battle of the Somme, the Battle of Verdun, and the Battle of Passchendale.
 * Eastern Front: Major battles fought along the Eastern Front include the Battle of Tannenberg, the Battles of Masurian Lakes, and the Battle of Riga.
 * Italian Front: Major battles of this theater include the twelve battles of the Isonzo River, including the Battle of Caporetto.
 * Gallipoli Peninsula: Operations in Gallipoli lasted from February 1915 through January 1916. This was the result of a failure on the part of the British Navy to force a route through the Dardanelles.
 * Naval Warfare: Britain and Germany were long involved in a race for the supremacy of their respective navies. The naval wars of World War I were the outcome of their fierce rivalry. The Battle of Jutland was the most important naval battle fought in World War I.
 * **Battle** || **Casualities** ||
 * Hundred Days Offensive || 1,855,369 ||
 * Ludendorff Offensive || 1,539,715 ||
 * Battle of the Somme || 1,219,201 ||
 * Battle of Verdun || 976,000 ||
 * Battle of Passchendaele || 848,614 ||
 * Serbian Offensive || 633,500 ||
 * First Battle of the Marne || 483,000 ||
 * Battle of Gallipoli || 473,000 ||
 * Battle of Arras || 278,000 ||
 * Battle of Tannenberg || 182,000 ||

Technology used in World War I World War I saw the development of war technology in an unprecedented fashion. Among the weapons used were: > > > > > > >  The development of newer and better weapons dominated government expenditure of the nations involved. Trench warfare dominated the Western Front. Over 200,000 soldiers are estimated to have died in the trench warfare of World War I.   While the Allies concentrated on the development of bombers such as the Farman MF-7, MF-II, Voisin III, and Voisin IV, the Germans devised better antiaircraft missiles. Radical development of ordinances dominated the course of the war. Major Turning Points A number of events that proved to be major turning points of World War I were marked by political and diplomatic developments. > > > > End of the War  The outbreak of the Russian Revolution forced Russia to withdraw from World War I. Russia signed an armistice with Germany in December 1917. This made it very important for both the Allied and Central Powers to win the battle at the Western Front. After a prolonged campaign, the Allied troops won and Germany signed an armistice on November 11, 1918. The Armistice of Villa Giusti marked the end of war on the Italian Front. Following the end of war, the Treaty of Versailles was drawn up at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. The economic and social devastation of World War I was unprecedented. Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points On January 8, 1918, President Wilson addressed the U.S. Congress and put forth Fourteen Points. These points became the basis of the armistice signed by the Central Powers and formed the terms of surrender for Germany. President Wilson’s Fourteen Points were the ideological grounds for justification of the United States' participation in World War I and were a great motivation to the Allied troops. The Treaty of Versailles was divergent in its aims from President Wilson’s Fourteen Points because President Wilson’s European counterparts, Georges Clemenceau, Vittorio Emanuele Orlando, and David Lloyd George were not in agreement with its ideological ends FOR MORE REFERENCE: [|WORLD WAR 1 Course of the war] [|**http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu**] [|**http://www.historyguide.org/**] [|**http://www.uweb.ucsb.edu/~zeppelin/originsww1.htm**] [|**http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook.asp**] [|**http://www.besthistorysites.net/**] [|**http://wars.pppst.com/ww1.html**] [|**http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/rotogravures**] [|**URL:**][| http://www.the-great-war-society.org/] [|**/**] media type="facebooklike" key="http%3A%2F%2Fsbalearnhistory.wikispaces.com%2FIB%20History" width="450" height="80"
 * Machine guns
 * Rifles
 * Tanks
 * Poison Gas
 * Submarines
 * Battleships
 * Bomber Planes
 * Italy, having signed the Triple Alliance, was expected to support the Central Powers. However, when Italy joined the war in 1915, it was on the side of the Allies.
 * The Race to the Sea of 1914 turned out to be extremely significant as it marked the beginning of a long-drawn-out and costly trench warfare on the Western Front. The frustrating stalemate of the war here was one of the reasons that World War I lasted over four years.
 * The United States' decision to join World War I cinched the war for the Allied powers. The United States entered the war following Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare and significant losses of American passenger and merchant navy vessels.
 * Russia withdrew from World War I following the October Revolution and signed an armistice with Germany in December 1917. The battle thereafter was fought primarily on the Western Front and in Italy.