4.1 Introduction

The First World War (28th July, 1914 – 11th Nov, 1918) had a profound effect on the European continent as well as the rest of the world. Millions of people died during the war and many were displaced. The economies of the warring states were destroyed.

Prior to the war, Europe had already established its dominance as the political, economic, and military power of the world, with Britain, France, Russia, and Germany being the most powerful countries. Long-term factors that led to the war were rooted in the political and economic changes that followed the Industrial Revolution.

4.1.1 The Opposing Sides of the War

The war was fought between two major alliances:

  1. The Allies (Entente Powers):
    • Britain and her Empire (Australia, India, Canada, New Zealand)
    • France
    • Russia (Left Dec. 1917)
    • Italy (Entered May 1915)
    • Serbia, Belgium, Romania (Aug 1916)
    • USA (Entered April 1917)
    • Japan
  2. Central Powers:
    • Germany
    • Austria-Hungary
    • Turkey (Nov 1914)
    • Bulgaria (Entered Oct 1915)
# Get world map data
world_map <- map_data("world")

# Define groups (Using modern borders to approximate historical empires)
central_powers <- c("Germany", "Austria", "Hungary", "Turkey", "Bulgaria")
allies <- c("UK", "France", "Russia", "Italy", "USA", "Belgium", "Serbia", "Romania", "Greece", "Portugal", "Japan", "Montenegro")

# Create dataset for plotting
europe_data <- world_map %>%
  mutate(Alliance = case_when(
    region %in% central_powers ~ "Central Powers",
    region %in% allies ~ "Allies (Entente)",
    TRUE ~ "Neutral/Other"
  )) %>%
  filter(lat > 30 & lat < 70, long > -25 & long < 45) # Zoom in on Europe

# Plot Map
ggplot(europe_data, aes(x = long, y = lat, group = group, fill = Alliance)) +
  geom_polygon(color = "white", size = 0.2) +
  scale_fill_manual(values = c("Allies (Entente)" = "#3498DB", 
                               "Central Powers" = "#C0392B", 
                               "Neutral/Other" = "#ECF0F1")) +
  theme_void() +
  labs(title = "European Alliances at the Outbreak of WWI",
       subtitle = "Blue: Allies | Red: Central Powers") +
  theme(legend.position = "bottom", plot.title = element_text(face = "bold", size = 16))
Map 1: The Geopolitical Divide in Europe (1914)

Map 1: The Geopolitical Divide in Europe (1914)

4.2 Causes of the War

The causes of the war can be divided into long-term factors and the immediate trigger.

1. Economic Rivalries

European powers required cheap industrial raw materials. This fueled tariff wars (taxes on imports). The most serious rivalry was between Germany and Britain, as Germany speeded up her industrial growth and overtook Britain in industrial production by 1914.

2. Colonial Rivalry

European powers sought colonies for raw materials and prestige. Germany, a latecomer (joining in 1871), became aggressive. This led to naval rivalry.

3. The Moroccan Crisis

  • First Crisis (1905-1906): Germany challenged French occupation of Morocco. Solved by the Algeciras Conference.
  • Second Crisis (1911): French troops occupied Fez. Germany sent a gunboat, the Panther, to Agadir. Britain supported France (Lloyd George’s speech), and Germany backed down after receiving a piece of the French Congo.

4. Arms Race

Influenced by American writer Alfred Mahan, Germany built a large navy to challenge Britain’s sea power. This led to a massive increase in armaments.

# Data for Naval Strength
naval_data <- data.frame(
  Country = c("Great Britain", "Germany", "France", "USA", "Japan", "Austria-Hungary"),
  Dreadnoughts = c(29, 17, 10, 10, 4, 3),
  Alliance = c("Allies", "Central", "Allies", "Allies", "Allies", "Central")
)

ggplot(naval_data, aes(x = reorder(Country, Dreadnoughts), y = Dreadnoughts, fill = Alliance)) +
  geom_col(width = 0.6) +
  coord_flip() +
  scale_fill_manual(values = c("Allies" = "#3498DB", "Central" = "#C0392B")) +
  theme_minimal() +
  labs(title = "The Naval Arms Race (1914)",
       subtitle = "Number of Dreadnought Battleships ready for war",
       y = "Number of Ships", x = "") +
  theme(text = element_text(size = 12))
Chart 1: The Naval Arms Race (Dreadnoughts Built)

Chart 1: The Naval Arms Race (Dreadnoughts Built)

5. Alliance System

Started by Otto Von Bismarck (Dual Alliance 1879). * Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy. * Triple Entente: Britain, France, Russia.

6. Nationalism

Nationalism destabilized empires. * Balkans: Greeks, Bulgarians, and Serbs wanted freedom from the Ottoman Empire. * Austria-Hungary: Slavs (Czechs, Poles, Croats) wanted independence.

7. The Balkan Wars (1912-13)

  • First War: Balkan League (Serbia, Greece, Montenegro, Bulgaria) attacked Turkey.
  • Second War: Bulgaria attacked Serbia over spoils of war. These wars worsened relations between Austria and Serbia.

8. The Immediate Cause: Assassination in Sarajevo

On 28th June, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand (heir to Austrian throne) was assassinated in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip (backed by the Black Hand).

The Chain Reaction: 1. Austria sent an ultimatum to Serbia. 2. Serbia rejected the demand to let Austrian police enter Serbia. 3. Austria declared war (July 28). 4. Russia mobilized. 5. Germany declared war on Russia and France. 6. Britain declared war on Germany (Aug 4) after Germany invaded Belgium.

4.3 Course of the War

The war was fought on two main fronts.

4.3.1 Western Front (France & Belgium)

Germany aimed to defeat France quickly (Schlieffen Plan) by going through Belgium. They were stopped. Both sides dug trenches from Belgium to Switzerland. * Result: Stalemate (very little movement) for four years.

4.3.2 Eastern Front (Russia)

Russia mobilized quickly but made the mistake of invading Austria and Germany simultaneously. * Battle of Tannenberg & Masurian Lakes: Russia suffered heavy defeats against Germany. * Turkey: Entered in Nov 1914, blocking Russian supplies in the Black Sea. * Outcome: Russia collapsed due to the 1917 Revolution and signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (March 1918), exiting the war.

4.3.3 The War at Sea

Britain blockaded Germany to starve them of food. Germany retaliated with Unrestricted Submarine Warfare (sinking any ship). * Turning Point: The sinking of the Lusitania (128 Americans died) and continued attacks brought the USA into the war in April 1917.

timeline_data <- data.frame(
  Event = c("Assassination\nof Ferdinand", "War Starts", "Lusitania\nSunk", "USA Enters\nWar", "Russia\nExits", "Armistice\nSigned"),
  Date = as.Date(c("1914-06-28", "1914-07-28", "1915-05-07", "1917-04-06", "1918-03-03", "1918-11-11")),
  Type = c("Trigger", "Start", "Naval", "Turning Point", "Eastern Front", "End")
)

ggplot(timeline_data, aes(x = Date, y = 0, color = Type, label = Event)) +
  geom_hline(yintercept = 0, color = "gray") +
  geom_point(size = 4) +
  geom_text(vjust = -1, size = 3.5, fontface = "bold") +
  scale_x_date(date_labels = "%Y", date_breaks = "1 year") +
  theme_void() +
  theme(legend.position = "bottom") +
  labs(title = "Key Events Timeline: 1914 - 1918") +
  ylim(-1, 2)
Chart 2: Timeline of the Great War

Chart 2: Timeline of the Great War

4.4 The Treaty of Versailles

Germany signed the Armistice on 11th Nov, 1918. The peace treaty was signed in Versailles on 28th June, 1918. US President Woodrow Wilson proposed 14 Points for peace (including the League of Nations and Self-Determination).

4.4.1 Terms of the Treaty (Punishing Germany)

  1. War Guilt: Germany accepted blame for starting the war.
  2. Reparations: Germany to pay £6,600 million.
  3. Territories: Overseas colonies taken away (became Mandates).
  4. Disarmament:
    • Army limited to 100,000 men.
    • No submarines, aircraft, or armored vehicles.
    • Rhineland demilitarized.
  5. League of Nations: Created to preserve peace.

Other Peace Treaties

treaties <- data.frame(
  Treaty = c("St-Germain (1919)", "Trianon (1920)", "Sevres (1920)", "Lausanne (1923)"),
  Country = c("Austria", "Hungary", "Turkey (Ottoman)", "Turkey (Republic)"),
  Outcome = c("Separated Austria & Hungary; Lost Bohemia/Galicia.", 
              "Lost Transylvania to Romania; Slovakia to Czechoslovakia.", 
              "Lost Smyrna to Greece; Syria to France (Mandate).", 
              "Returned Smyrna to Turkey; Abolished Ottoman Empire.")
)

treaties %>%
  kbl(caption = "Table 1: The Other Peace Treaties") %>%
  kable_styling(bootstrap_options = c("striped", "hover", "condensed"), full_width = F)
Table 1: The Other Peace Treaties
Treaty Country Outcome
St-Germain (1919) Austria Separated Austria & Hungary; Lost Bohemia/Galicia.
Trianon (1920) Hungary Lost Transylvania to Romania; Slovakia to Czechoslovakia.
Sevres (1920) Turkey (Ottoman) Lost Smyrna to Greece; Syria to France (Mandate).
Lausanne (1923) Turkey (Republic) Returned Smyrna to Turkey; Abolished Ottoman Empire.

4.5 Review Exercise

Multiple Choice

  1. The first alliance between Germany and Austro-Hungary was against:
      1. Britain
      1. Italy
      1. France
      1. Russia
  2. By the end of winter 1915, Germany defeated Russians at:
      1. Tannenberg
      1. Lemberg
      1. Masurian Lakes
      1. Caporetto
  3. The first country overran by Germans at the beginning of FWW:
      1. France
      1. Belgium
      1. Poland
      1. Britain
  4. The immediate cause of WWI was:
      1. Tariff wars
      1. Arms race
      1. Alliances
      1. Assassination in Sarajevo

Structured Questions

  1. Identify the factors that led to the First World War.
    • Answer: Economic rivalries, Colonial rivalries, Moroccan crisis, Arms race, Alliance system, Nationalism, Balkan Wars, Assassination of Franz Ferdinand.
  2. Explain the Alliance system.
    • Answer: It divided Europe into two hostile camps (Triple Alliance vs Triple Entente). It meant a small conflict between two nations would drag all other major powers into a global war.
  3. Describe the Arms Race.
    • Answer: A competition for military supremacy, especially the naval rivalry between Britain and Germany (building Dreadnoughts), which increased tension and readiness for war.
  4. To hold the Allies on the Western Front, what strategy did Germans use?
    • Answer: They dug extensive defensive trenches from Belgium to the Swiss border (Trench Warfare).

Reference: Al-Bahrain Schools History Text Book - Form Three ```