WWI- Lesson 2 Presentation (PDF), Summaries of History

Download WWI- Lesson 2 Presentation (PDF) and more Summaries History in PDF only on Docsity! Naval Warfare & The Sinking of the Lusitania Blockades, U-Boats, and International Provocations Drawing the United States into WWI Europe at War The British declared war on Germany in August 1914 after German troops invaded Belgium. Utilizing the world’s most powerful Navy, the British declared the entire North Sea area a war zone in November 1914, signaling that any ship to enter those waters would be destroyed, especially any ships that might be carrying war munitions or contraband (which included food). The Germans objected to the nature of the blockade, which had an expanded definition of "war materiel" and items that would support the war effort, and by early 1915 the Germans were starting to feel the effects of restricted trade. The blockade against the Central Powers had major implications over the course of the war. As the European war continued, Germany and Austria-Hungary began rationing food (1,000 calories/day). By 1918 more severe rationing programs led to mass malnutrition and starvation and upwards of 900,000 German and Austrian civilian deaths. The Allies Blockade the Central Powers Submarine Warfare German naval forces did not match the strength of the British Navy. To prevent other countries from trading with Britain, Germany employed submarine warfare tactics. U-Boats (short for the German word Untersee-boots meaning submarine) were primitive vessels that could submerge beneath the water and send torpedoes into any boats traveling in open water. A New and Significant Use of Force Arises During WWI Library of Congress German U-Boats Silent Footage of German Submarines Sinking Merchant Vessels During WWI Run Time: 30 Minutes Video🔗 Interactive Map: U-Boat Attacks in World War I🔗 Submarine Warfare A New and Significant Use of Force in War Library of Congress Last Voyage Silent Footage of the RMS Lusitania Leaving New York City on May 1, 1915 Run Time: 5 Minutes Video🔗 The use of submarines led to a merciless form of warfare that increased the sinking of merchant and civilian ships such as the Lusitania. When it came to capturing merchant ships during wartime, ships that traveled on the surface were required to adhere to specific rules set by international treaties. Any merchant ship that was stopped and discovered to be holding contraband cargo could be captured, boarded, and escorted to a designated harbor. Enemy merchant ships could also be sunk if the crew was allowed an opportunity to use lifeboats. At this time, Germany was practicing unrestricted submarine warfare. Civilian Casualties National Archives The Lusitania was not granted this courtesy. After the torpedo hit, the 1,959 passengers and crew scrambled to the lifeboats with survival taking precedence over custom and law as those aboard discovered that many lifeboats were impossible to launch resulting in mass casualties. An Affront to Maritime Custom National Archives &heWahfngtonCime HOME EDITION FRIDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 5, 1015. PRICE ONE CENT. Rumor Puts Higher May Be Officials heels of rumors that will attempt grain shct today. Uoard of May wheat The next ressulon in May speculation has situation. Fed- when ask- corner, now. I will the nay." TO 1PPING BILL Resolution to Committee From Bill. made a the ship- some of the get the new ship- referred to the was really the sub-stan- amendments. Introduced a Committee consideration of will call big light. minds of the motion It seemssaving the If this if the hill Chance Avenue Department Is Scheme for Retrenchment. given by fullest con- Pennsyl-vanl- a foi the es- postal sta- Department GERMANS TAKE CAPTIVE 6,000 RUSS IN NEW WARSAW DRIVE Czar's Forces Counter-Attackin- g With Great Fury to Halt Further Advances by Mack- ensen's Army. Muscovites Attempt to Renew Offensive Near Tilsit in East Prussia Berlin Claims Re- pulses of French. BERLIN (via wireless to Say-ville- ), Feb. 5. Six thousand Rus- sian prisoners have been taken by Gen. Von Mackensen's army in its new drive on Warsaw, it was officially announced here this aft- ernoon. This report includes only prisoners taken in the last four days' fighting. Among the captives arc twenty-si- x officers. To halt further advances by Mackensen's army, the Russians are counter-attackin- g with great fury. Their efforts to retake posi- tions east of Bolimow recently oc- cupied by the Germans have broken under heavy artillery fire. Rubs Resume Offensive. In Kost Prussia, near Tils!, '.here are indications that the Kusslang arc at- tempting to lesume tho offensive.- - The Get mans have repulsed "strong Rus- sian attacks" along the Niemeii river. Pi event lighting in Flanders and France Is legarded as unimportant by the war office. The Flench made anIsolated attack against thu German po- sitions northwest of Perthes, but wererepulsed. Elsewhere artillery duels are in progress. Germany's Defi Answered Germany's announcement of the proposed establishment of a "paper blockade" about Great Britain and Ireland has met with prompt action by England and the United States. Strenuous protest will be made by the United States through Ambassador Gerard at Berlin. The issue was discussed at length at the meeting of the Cabinet today, and it is understood that prompt action will follow. England has answered the characteristic fashion. a special meeting of admiralty officials it is understood that it wa aecmea to order tne riotuia or destroyers back from the North Sea to sweep the seas clean of the submarine menace. America Faces Gravest Peril of WarAs Result OfGermany's Blockade Declaration Making Waters Surrounding the British Islands, North of France, and Holland a War Zone Causes Perplexing Foreign Com- plicationAct an Experiment. By JUDSON C. WELLIVER. Never since the present war began has the danger of for- eign complications involving the United States been so serious as it is now, following the German admiralty's declaration that the waters surrounding the British Islands, the north of France, and neutral Hol- land, will after February 18 constitute a "zone of war." The owner or commander of an American ship sailing from New York to Rotterdam, for instance both being ports of neutral powers will seek in vain for exact information as to what constitutes a zone of war. If it were a question of transacting commerce by land the ques- tion would not be so difficult. The zone of war in land campaigning is a definitely understood affair. Anybody who enters it does so at his peril. He may'be hit by a bullet, or regarded as a spy. But such "an Institution as a zone of war on the seas, which three miles from land are esteemed the property of no nation, is unknown. NOT SAME AS BLOCKADE. A zone of war cannot be equivalent to a blockade, for two reasons. One Is that If Germany had meant to declare a blockade, she would have said so. There vvas no need to Invent a new term for It. The other Is that no actual defi in At this war zone, "as a consequence of the misuse of neutral flags ordered by the BriUsh government on Jenuary 31." What that statement means Is not very clear. No such orders from the Hrlttsh government have been announced to II S. PREPARES TO PROTEST BLOCKADE OF f BB COAST State Department Understood To Be Working on Represen- tations Now To Be Sent to Berlin. President Calls Meeting of Cabinet, and Matter Is Threshed Out Germany . Desperate, is Belief of Many Vigorous protests will be for warded by this Government to Berlin against the action of Ger- many in establishing a "paper blockade" around the coasts of England, Scotland and France, and a portion of Holland. These rep- resentations, it is understood, arc now being prepared in the State Department and soon will be sent to Ambassador Gerard at Berlin. It is the contention of many of- ficials that the German decree, violates every principle of inter- national law, set up and fought for by this country in behalf of the, rights of neutral commerce, by threatening destruction to every neutral ship which fails to observe the blockade. The belief grows ap- parently in the minds of many of- ficials that Germany, made des- perate, is trying to drag the United States into the war. Drop In Wheat Expected. It is expected that one of the lu.--l effects of the decree will be to cu, a heavy break in the wheat market A Test of Neutrality An Implicit Connection to the Allies President Wilson demanded an apology from the Germans for the sinking of the Lusitania and assurances that there would not be similar incidents in the future. Not wanting the United States to enter on the side of the Allies, the Germans complied with Wilson’s requests in September 1915 by agreeing not to attack passenger ships. The United States was able to stay out of the war for another two years. Library of Congress A Stern Condemnation From the May 18, 1916, edition of the Chicago Daily News, a satirical portrayal of President Woodrow Wilson getting tough with his foreign policy toward Germany. While most of Europe was involved in war, the United States had long tried to maintain a policy of neutrality. Library of Congress A Fatal Voyage The Historical Significance of the RMS Lusitania’s Transatlantic Voyage Run Time: 7 Minutes Video🔗 The Draft In previous conflicts such as the Civil War, the United States had utilized conscription. World War I, however, marked the first time the nation's military raised its army primarily through a draft. To balance federal power with state autonomy, local civilian draft boards administered the selective service system. A national campaign utilizing posters, printed materials, films, and music helped the government convey the legal requirement for men to register with the selective service or to enlist. It was a struggle for officials to forge a unified fighting force from a segregated military consisting mostly of native-born whites, American Indians, and African Americans, along with large numbers of immigrants. The draft raised questions about patriotism and the obligations of citizenship, especially the duty to serve. The U.S. War Department created the status of "conscientious objector" for Americans who viewed military service as a violation of their religious, ethical, or political beliefs. Conscription, Enlistment & Conscientious Objectors in the U.S. Military ! Dimnog fue Enlistment COME ON Or DO VC) IR Patriotic Duty The Committee on Public Information was created as an independent government agency to influence public opinion supporting U.S. participation in World War I. Enlistment posters were intended to rouse American audiences against the German militarism threat to American liberty. Specific imagery was used to appeal to local populations by using regional language and distributed in targeted geographic regions to prompt immigrants to join the military. President Wilson and his advisers believed the war was an opportunity to reconstruct America domestically to better benefit average Americans while also reshaping international relations into a durable peace. Uncle Sam asks: “What are YOU doing for Preparedness?” Library of Congress The sinking of the Lusitania was used as a stirring military recruitment tool The haunting image of a mother and infant sinking into the sea is based on news accounts from the time of the recovered dead: “Most of the bodies there are women…. At the Cunard Wharf lies a mother still clasping in her arms the body of her 3-month-old baby.” Raising an Army Library of Congress WL 12 1919 Ociesss260 THE LUSITANIA Library of Congress Garsasscs LUSITANIA Powerful Propaganda Music as a Motivator and form of Protest Library of Congress World War I Era Sheet Music🔗 World War I Era Sheet Music 🔗 Image Resources Lusitania Extra—No. 3—Lusitania is Sunk: Giant Liner Blown Up—Report All Saved. 7 May 1915. Serial and Government Publications Division, Library of Congress. In Sinking of the Lusitania. By Boston American. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/exhibitions/world-war-i-american-experiences/online-exhibition/arguing-over-war/for-or- against-war/sinking-of-the-lusitania/. Moody, Charlie. The Lusitania. [Monographic. Delmar Music Co., Chicago:, 1919] Notated Music. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/2013567927/. New-York Tribune. (New York [N.Y.]), 05 Feb. 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1915-02-05/ed-1/seq-1/ New York Tribune. (New York [N.Y.]), 01 May 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. <http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1915-05-01/ed-1/seq-3/> New York Tribune. (New York [N.Y.]), 08 May 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. <http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1915-05-08/ed-1/seq-2/> Piantadosi, Al, and Alfred Bryan. I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier. [Leo Feist, New York, monographic, 1915] Notated Music. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/2002600251/. Preissig, Vojtěch, Artist. Come on, boys! Do your duty by enlisting now!. United States, 1917. Original Print. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/00650097/. Report of the Loss of Steamship Lusitania. 13 June 1917. National Archives, New York. Record Group 21: Records of the Southern District Court in New York, National Archives, New York City. Accessed 17 July 2017. https:// www.archives.gov/nyc/press/2015/lusitania-lecture-april-30.html and https://catalog.archives.gov/id/5753076 . Richards, William Henry, Collector. 5th Provisional Company officers reserve training Camp Ft. Des Moines Ia. Fort Des Moines Iowa, 1917. Photograph. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/2016652396/. R.M.S. Lusitania, hit by Torpedoes off Kinsale Head, Ireland. North Atlantic Ocean, 1915. Photograph. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/2006677520/. Spear, Fred, Artist, and Willard Dickerman Straight. Enlist/Fred Spear. United States, 1915. [New York: Sackett & Wilhelms Corporation, or 1916] Original Print. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/ 00651156/. S.S. Lusitania Lifeboat Drawing. Digital image. National Archives Hosts Special Daytime Programs in May, 2017. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/17369675. Territory of Hawaii Registration Day July 31. United States, 1917. [or 1918] Original Print. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. https://www.loc.gov/item/00651736/. The Washington Times. America Faces Gravest Peril of War. (Washington [D.C.]), 5 February 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/ sn84026749/1915-02-05/ed-1/seq-1/ The Washington Times. Neutral Nations to Resist German War Zone Decree: Ask United States to Lead. (Washington [D.C.]), 06 Feb. 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. Accessed 17 July 2017. http:// chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84026749/1915-02-06/ed-1/seq-1/. Image Resources Video Resources Der Magische Gurtel, 1917–1918. U.S. National Archives. 27 August 2014. Accessed 14 July 2017. https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoA1wOrmTLk&feature=youtu.be. The Baltimore Sabotage Cell: German Agents, American Traitors, and U-Boats in the Deutschland During World War I. U.S. National Archives. 18 May 2015. Accessed 14 July 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=lwpMNvVL19g&feature=youtu.be. Real History: Lusitania. The Blaze. Internet Archive. 15 June 2012. Accessed 14 July 2017. https:// archive.org/details/rth_22302231_1200K. S.S. Lusitania Leaves New York City on Last Voyage. U.S. National Archives. 5 May 2015. Accessed 14 July 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIVHiAizhgI&feature=youtu.be. United States Army World War 1 Films. U.S. National Archives. Internet Archive. 19 November 2013. Accessed 14 July 2017. https://archive.org/details/WorldWarIFilms.