The Great War: Origins, Timeline, and Aftermath

Posted on Apr 4, 2025 in History

World War I: A Summary

Causes of World War I

  • Power Rivalry: Competition among European powers.
  • Nationalism and Arms Races: A period of armed peace.
  • Triple Alliance and Triple Entente: Complex web of alliances.
  • Conflicts: Ongoing tensions between nations.
  • England / Germany: Naval and economic rivalry.
  • France / Germany: Historical animosity and territorial disputes.
  • Russia / Austria-Hungary: Conflicts over influence in the Balkans.

Immediate Cause

  • Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: June 14, 1914, in Sarajevo, Bosnia by Gavrilo Princip of the Black Hand.
  • Trialism: A political movement.

The War

  • The Austro-Hungarian Empire declares war on Serbia.
  • France, Russia, and England enter the conflict.
  • Germany violates the neutrality of Belgium.
  • Western and Eastern Fronts emerge.
  • War of Movement (1914-1915).
  • Trench Warfare (1915-1918).
  • Use of asphyxiating gases.
  • Submarine warfare.
  • 1917: U.S. joins the war.
  • Russian Revolution: Russia signs peace with Germany (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk).
  • War of Movement (1918).

Consequences of the War

  • Europe’s map changes from 24 to 32 countries.
  • Disappearance of Russian, German, Austro-Hungarian, and Turkish Empires.
  • 14 million deaths.
  • Inflation and unemployment.
  • Rise of nationalism.
  • Decline of British leadership; rise of the U.S. and Japan.
  • Changes in the lives of women.

End of the Great War

  • November 11, 1918: Germany signs the armistice in Paris.
  • June 28, 1919: Peace Treaty signed. Meeting of the victors.
  • Key figures:
    • Woodrow Wilson (USA)
    • Georges Clemenceau (France)
    • David Lloyd George (British Crown)
    • Victor Emmanuel Orlando (Italy)
  • Wilson’s 14 Points (January 1918): Aimed for a just peace for all.
  • Self-determination.
  • Hatred and resentment of European nations against Germany.
  • Treaty of Versailles: New regulations and territorial political situation in Europe.

Punishments Imposed on Germany

  • Dismantling of armed forces.
  • Reduction of war industry.
  • Payment of war reparations.
  • Loss of colonial empire.
  • France regained Alsace-Lorraine.
  • Italy gained Trento, Trieste, and Fiume.
  • Disappearance of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
  • Creation of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.
  • Poland gained independence and access to the Baltic Sea through the Danzig corridor.

The League of Nations

  • Established to enforce the Treaty of Versailles.
  • Came into force on January 10, 1920.
  • Aimed for peacekeeping and international security.

Structure

  • General Assembly
  • Council: 13 members, 5 permanent with veto power.