World War I Begins

1. What are the four main causes of World War I? Give an example for each as to why it was a cause.
Nationalism: There was much competition between the countries of the world to gain more land and have a bigger military than their neighbors. This constant battle to be on top led to high tensions and short tempers, especially around Europe, where the fear of invasion (especially by Germany) was a constant.

Imperialism: Many of the European countries were striving to colonize all over the world; colonies provided financial support and power. As Germany became more and more powerful, England and France began worrying about competing with it for colonies.

Militarism: During this time period, a sort of arms race launched in Europe. As each country tried to defend its empire, they began to stockpile men and weapons, trying to get more than their neighboring countries. Germany, although it had the strongest army at the time, was not seen as a threat by England until it started building up its navy; at that point, England became worried.

Alliances: Europe split into two alliances: The Allies (France, Britain, and Russia) and the Triple Allies (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). The countries were so concerned with keeping power balanced and protecting their allies that it caused tensions to rise exponentially; what seemed a safe back up plan actually caused a blow up that resulted in all out war.

2. How did the June 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand become the spark for WWI?
Since Ferdinand's assassinator was Serbian, Austria-Hungray declared war on Serbia. This sparked a massive response from the two allied groups: Russia offered aid to Serbia, which led Germany to declare war on Russia, and then France; soon after, England declared war on Germany.

3. What happened within the first few months of fighting?
Within the first few months of fighting, the Schlieffen plan was put into action. German troops marched through neutral Belgium; Allied troops tried to stop them but could not. However, Allied troops flocked to Paris to defend it from German attack. Soon, vast arrays of trenches spread throughout the land around France - no one was moving anywhere.

4. Generally, why did the United States want to stay out of the war?
The war was so far away that it did not threaten any American property, or put American lives at risk.

5. Specifically, Why did the following groups of Americans tend to oppose U.S. participation in the war? Naturalized citizens; socialists; pacifists; parents.

Naturalized citizens opposed U.S. participation in the war because they still closely sympathized with their home countries; they could not condone fighting against their motherlands. Socialists were opposed to U.S. involvement in the war because they thought it was simply a struggle for capitalist markets in the Eastern world. Pacifists could not condone the US going to war because they thought war was inherently evil; parents were opposed because they did not want to send their children off to die in what they knew was a bloody war.

6. How did Germany respond to the British naval blockade of Germany’s ports? What was the U.S. response?

Germany responded to the British naval blockade of Germany's ports by sending U-Boats to form a counter blockade that would blow up any ship that entered Great Britain's waters, whether it was armed or not. The U.S. was shocked; Americans were being killed in these explosions. The US threatened to end all diplomatic communications with Germany if Germany did not revoke its policy.

7. What forced the United States into the war?

Germany ignored President Wilson's call for peace; in fact, they issued a statement saying that they would sink ALL boats in British waters without hesitation. Wilson, waiting for an open act of hostility, soon got it: the Zimmerman note, sent from Germany to a German ambassador in Mexico, proposed an alliance with Mexico and promised to help Mexico regain land in Texas if Germany's side won. After this, Germany sunk four American merchant ships. After this, the Russian government changed over to a representative government (it was formerly a monarchy), which gained much support from Americans.