December 14th- 18th (WWI Notes)

[3Jenny]

Monday- WWI Notes 

The Homefront 

• Refers to what people did back in the US to help win the war
• Every country has their own Homefront 

War Industries Board

• Headed by Bernard Baruch
• Regulated industry in US
• Encouraged mass production
• Under the War Industries Board, industrial production in the US increased 20%
• Conserving resources for troops and war

Food Administration 

• Headed by Herbert Hoover
• Urged people to conserve food
• Had "meatless days" and "wheatless days"
• "Victory gardens" were planted by schools and homes
• Prevented hoarding of food by people
• "Food is Ammunition-Don't waste it" 

Propaganda

• Getting people to join the military
• donate money
  • giving loans to the government to help for war
  • investment 
• nationalism
• Women working in factories

Committee On Public Information

• Influence US public opinion to support WWI in their own way
• George Creel 
• Huge propaganda campaigning
  • newspapers, posters, radio, telegraph, movies, broadcasts
• Americanized German words:
  • German Measles- Liberty measles
  • Hamburger- liberty steak
  • Sauerkraut- liberty cabbage 

National War Labor Board

• Settle disputes between workers and employers
• Discouraged strikes 
• "Work or fight"
• Headed by William H. Taft

WWI Casualties

• Both Military and Civilian 
  • Deaths: 16.5 million
  • Wounded: 20 million
  • Total WWI Casualties: 35 million+
• Military
  • Deaths: 9.7 million
  • Wounded: 21.2 million
  • Prisoners of War and Missing Soldiers: 7.5 million 

Tuesday- WWI notes Peace Process 

The Paris Peace Conference

• The meeting of Allied victors following the end of WWI to set the peace terms for Germany and other defeated nations
• In Paris in 1919 with over 29 countries
  • 3 or 4 major countries
• Came up with Series of treaties  that reshaped the map of Europe and imposed penalties on Germany 
• Versailles Palace
  • Great Britain, France, Italy, US 

Wilson's 14 points

• Speech to Congress on Jan 8, 1918
• Basis terms of German surrender, negotiated at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919
• Allied countries didn't like 14 points - thought it was too easy on Germany
• Treaty of Versailles had little to do with the 14 points and was never ratified by the Senate
  • 1. End to secret treaties 
  • 2. Freedom of the seas
    • No more sinking ships
  • 3. Free trade for all countries
    • Open Door Policy for around the world
  • 4. Disarmament 
    • withdraw of military forces and weapons 
  • 5. End to colonial claims
    • to Great Britain and France
    • taking land from the losers
  • 6. Self-Determined for all countries- Russia
    • Letting them decide their fate (communism or democracy, Ect. )
  • 7. Restoring of Belgium
  • 8. Restoration of France
  • 9. Readjustment of Italy's boundaries
  • 10. Austria- Hungary would be given opportunity for autonomous development
  • 11. Romania, Serbia, Montenegro should be evacuated and restored
  • 12. Turkey should be independent
  • 13. Poland would be given their independence
  • 14. The "League of Nations" would be developed 
    • United Nations- a Peace organization for around the world

Treaty of Versailles

• Territorial Losses
  • The following land was taken away from Germany:
    • Germany lost a lot of land and was given to other countries
    • All the places that Hitler tried to take over (countries), land was taken from Germany and to them
    • Took control of Germany's overseas colonies 
• Military Losses
  • Germany's army was reduced to 100,00 men and army tanks weren't allowed
    • trained them, and then sent them out
  • Not allowed an air force
    • but trained outside of Germany
  • Allowed only 6 capital naval ships and no submarines 
  • No Germans were allowed soldiers or weapons in the demilitarized zone (DMZ)
    • Allies were to keep an army of occupation on the west bank of the Rhine for 15 years
• Financial Losses
  • The loss of viral industrial territory would be a sever blow to Germany's economy
    • Coal from Saar and Upper Silesia in particular was a vital economic loss
  • Germany had to pay $33 billion in war reparation 
  • Germany was also forbidden to unite with Austria to from one country 

Wednesday- WWI Notes

• General
  • Germany had to admit full responsibility for starting the war 
    • Clause 231- the infamous "War Guilt Clause"
  • Germany had to accept the "war guilt clause" and take blame for WWI
  • A League of Nations was set up to keep world peace

League of Nations

• Five Permanent members
  • G.B, France, Italy, US, Japan
• Four non-permanent members that rotated
• All members must submit disputes for investigation, arbitration and settlement 
• If a member nation ignored, League could take action
  • Like Economic sanctions (like not trading to a country that is aggressive) 
• France wanted an international army but US and GB didn't
• Germany and the Soviet Union were not allowed to join right away
  • US never joined- wanted to be alone
  • Then GB backed out
  • France was the only one left so never started
    • 1.) Republicans thought it would pull US into European wars
    • 2.) Congress was concerned it would lose it's power to declare war if we joined 

US Never Passes the Treaty of Versailles

• 1. Concern over the League of Nations
• 2. Politics
• US signed the US-German Peace Treaty in 1921

Thursday- Working on Semester Test blog

Friday-  Working on Semester Test blog