World War I: Policies, Consequences, and March to War
The Policies and Treaties After WWI
With the war’s great empires disappeared in Europe: the Russian Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the German Empire, and the Ottoman (Turk) rule. Respecting the principles of Wilson, new nations were created to satisfy nationalist aspirations: Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Hungary. In 1928, 28 European states had at least two parliamentary democracies.
The Consequences of WWI
Population Implications
Estimates suggest 9 million dead and several million wounded and maimed, in addition to civilian casualties. The Spanish flu of 1918 killed 6 million Europeans and 22 million people in the rest of the world. The birth rate and overall population were reduced.
Economic Implications
The war’s effects were felt throughout the entire production system. The destruction was enormous, especially in regions where the fronts were located. The financial costs were staggering, reaching over $300,000 million at the time. Domestic public debt increased dramatically, and large loans were requested from abroad. All of this caused the final loss of European hegemony, and the U.S. became the world’s hegemonic power, doubling its industrial and Gross Domestic Product and replacing the pound sterling with the dollar as the international currency. Japan also experienced large industrial and economic growth and occupied German territories in the Pacific and spread throughout Asia.
Social Impact
The postwar period was marked by opposition between the “new rich” (who had amassed a fortune from the war) and the “new poor” (middle class and peasants who had been depleted), which increased social tensions. The massive incorporation of women into the workforce during the war, up to 35%, strengthened women’s struggle for emancipation, and women obtained the right to vote.
The March Toward War: The July Crisis of 1914
On June 28, 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife were assassinated while visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia. The assassination was prepared by the secret society the “Black Hand,” supported by the Serbian police, who provided weapons and transport. The assassination was carried out by the Bosnian Serb nationalist student Gavrilo Princip, although there were other attacks the same day executed by other murderers who failed.
On July 23, the Austrian government, supported by Germany, sent an ultimatum to Serbia demanding an investigation of the bombing. Serbia accepted all but one demand. England tried to mediate the conflict, but on July 28, Austria declared war on Serbia, and Russia ordered general mobilization in support of Serbia. Germany demanded the neutrality of Belgium. England also declared war on the Central Powers, while Italy betrayed its allies and remained neutral.
Features of the War
World War I was the first war with the use of all human, economic, and engineering resources of the belligerents. 70 million soldiers were mobilized and provided with technical advances and lethal modern weaponry.
A war economy led by the U.S. was imposed to produce weapons and munitions, while the civilian population suffered rationing and hardships. Women had to replace men in factories. To pay the costs of war, states resorted to the emission of public debt and foreign borrowing, especially from the United States. There was massive use of propaganda to maintain patriotism and resilience of soldiers and civilians.