In 1914, the first total war in human history began in Europe. New weapons and tactics caused unprecedented casualties and fundamentally changed the world order.
Basic Knowledge
At the beginning of the 20th century, the European powers were divided into two rival camps: the Triple Alliance (Germany・Austria-Hungary・Italy, 1882) and the Triple Entente (Britain・France・Russia, 1907). The Balkan Peninsula was called the “powder keg of Europe,” as Pan-Germanism (Germany and Austria-Hungary) and Pan-Slavism (Russia and Serbia) clashed there. On June 28, 1914, a Serbian youth, Princip, assassinated Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife (the Sarajevo Incident). When Austria declared war on Serbia, the alliance system was activated in a chain reaction, and the First World War broke out in July–August 1914. It was fought between the Central Powers (Germany・Austria-Hungary・Ottoman Empire・Bulgaria) and the Allied Powers (Britain・France・Russia・Japan・Italy from 1915・the United States from 1917). Ultimately, more than 30 countries entered the war.
June 28, 1914 Sarajevo Incident
July 28, 1914 Austria declared war on Serbia
September 1914 Battle of the Marne→trench warfare on the Western Front
1915 Italy joined the Allied side
1916 Battle of Verdun, Battle of the Somme
April 1917 United States entered the war
November 1917 Russian Revolution→separate peace the following year
November 11, 1918 Germany surrendered→war ended
Further Study (Background and Effects)
The war was fought as total war, mobilizing all of the human and material resources of the nations. New weapons such as machine guns, poison gas (first used by Germany at Ypres in 1915), tanks (first used by Britain at the Somme in 1916), airplanes, and submarines (U-boats) sharply increased casualties. About 10 million soldiers died, and 20 million were wounded. The Western Front became deadlocked in trench warfare, and hundreds of thousands were killed or wounded at Verdun (1916) and the Somme (1916). Women entered society and the workforce in greater numbers, providing a basis for women’s suffrage after the war (Britain 1918・United States 1920). In April 1917, after Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare and the sinking of the Lusitania, the United States entered the war under President Wilson. This determined the Allied victory. At 11 a.m. on November 11, 1918, Germany signed the armistice in the Forest of Compiègne.
- Triple Alliance＝Germany・Austria-Hungary・Italy (1882)
- Triple Entente＝Britain・France・Russia (1907)
- Balkan Peninsula＝“powder keg of Europe”
- Sarajevo Incident＝June 28, 1914
- Outbreak of the war＝July–August 1914
- New weapons＝machine guns・poison gas・tanks・airplanes・submarines
- U.S. entry＝April 1917 (Wilson)
- End of the war＝November 11, 1918
Points of Caution (Easily Confused)
① Distinguish the member countries of the Triple Alliance (Germany・Austria-Hungary・Italy・1882) and the Triple Entente (Britain・France・Russia・1907). Italy was initially on the alliance side but moved to the Allied side in 1915, seeking to acquire Italia irredenta. ② Distinguish the Sarajevo Incident (1914) from the Sarajevo Olympics (1984). ③ The terms Central Powers (Germany・Austria-Hungary, etc.) and Allied Powers (Britain・France, etc.) refer to the names used at that time. They are different from the “Allied Powers (United Nations)” of the Second World War. ④ Unrestricted submarine warfare meant sinking ships without distinguishing between combatant and neutral countries; it triggered U.S. entry into the war.
Practice
- What event on June 28, 1914, triggered the First World War?
- What region was called the “powder keg of Europe”?
- On what month and day did the war end in 1918?