The First World War

1
The First World War
2
The outbreak of the war

• 28 June 1914 assassination of Austrian
  Crown-Prince Franz-Ferdinand, July-Crisis
• Ultimatum against Serbia, Russian support for
  Serbia
• 28 July Austria declares war on Serbia, Germany
  on Russia France (August)
• Germany takes initiative in the West, breaks
  Belgian neutrality

3
The minor powers

• Turkey enters war after Russian declaration of
  war as reaction to Turkish provocations
• Italy joins Entente against Austria and Germany
  in 1915/16
• Bulgaria joins Central Powers in 1915 (hope for
  Macedonia)
• Rumania declares neutrality, declares war on
  Austria in 1916
• Greece joins Entente in 1917

4
The war goals

• Great Britain German colonies, large parts of
  Turkey
• France German territories west of the Rhine
• Russia access to the Mediterranian Sea
• Germany control on Belgium and economic
  integration of Central Europe (Mitteleuropa),
  additional colonies

5
Military Developments

• Germany confronted with two-fronts-war
• Germany operates according to Schlieffen-Plan
• August 1914 French attack on Alsace-Lorraine,
  stopped
• German attack through Belgium
• Sept. 1914 battle at the Marne, German advance
  stopped
• From fall 1914 onwards trench war without major
  decisions

6
The Western Front
7
The Trench War in the West

• April/May 1915 Battle of Ypern, first use of gas
• February-July 1916 Battle of Verdun, dominated
  by artillery, more than 300.000 killed
• June-November 1916 Battle at the Somme
• Spring 1917 German retreat to Siegfried
  position
• Leading commanders Ludendorff, Hindenburg
  (Germany), Nivelle, Joffre (France)

8
The Eastern Front

• August 1914 Russian advance in East Prussia
• August/September 1914 Battles of Tannenberg and
  the Masurian Lakes, Russian defeat and retreat
  from East Prussia
• July 1915 major German-Austrian offensive in
  Poland and Baltics, 1916 failure of Russian
  Brusilov-Offensives, Russian army demoralized

9
The Eastern Front
10
Southeast Europe
11
Other developments

• North Italy first Alpine war, 1916 Battles at
  the Isonzo river
• Turkey Battle of Gallipoli
• 1916 conquest of Bucharest by Central Powers
• No major naval battles
• US efforts (Wilson) for compromise peace
  without victory (1917)

12
Inner Developments

• Britain 1916 war cabinet under Lloyd George
• France 1917 cabinet George Clemenceau
• Austria 1916 Emperor Franz Joseph dies,
  successor Charles I.
• Germany 1916/17 Supreme Command factual
  government
• Russia Revolutions of 1917

13
Developments 1918

• German victory against Russia, peace of
  Brest-Litovsk and Bucharest
• German collapse on the Western Front, cease fire
  November 1918
• Outbreak of revolutions in Germany and Austria
• Bulgaria collapse after allied offensive in
  Macedonia, cease fire September 1918
• 1919/20 peace treaties

14
1918