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Home , Alexander Samsonov, Causes of World War I, Leonida Bissolati, Mikhail Tereshchenko, Paul von Rennenkampf

Liceo Scientifico Statale “Niccolò Copernico” Pavia

THE

Project CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning)

Class 5^C and Prof. Monica Migliorini Years 2016-2017

Class 5^C Project: CLIL

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Chierico & Codena

CHAPTERS

WHAT EVENTS LED TO WORLD WAR I? Pag. 4-5 (Chierico & Codena) HOW DID THE WAR BREAK OUT? Pag. 6-7 (Merighi & Pacchiarini) THE FRONTS Pag. 8-9-10-11 (Bossio & Decanis) ITALY BEFORE WORLD WAR I Pag. 12-13 (Bergamaschi & Dordolo) ITALY IN WORLD WAR I Pag. 14-15-16 (Paravella, Tarantola & Zhegra) IN WORLD WAR I Pag. 17-18-19 (Giretti & Giorgio) HOW DID THE WAR END? Pag. 20-21-22-23 (Bianchini & Duse) HOW WEAPONS CHANGED DURING WORLD WAR I? Pag. 24-25-26-27 (Moscardini & Restelli)

Class 5^C: Bergamaschi Andrea, Bianchini Riccardo, Bossio Davide, Chierico Daniele, Codena Beatrice, Decanis Alessandro, Dordolo Luca, Duse Maddalena, Giretti Alex, Giorgio Ettore, Merighi Filippo, Moscardini Marta, Pacchiarini Luca, Paravella Ottavia, Restelli Andrea, Tarantola Greta, Zhegra Alba.

Professor and Coordinator: Monica Migliorini

Class 5^C Project: CLIL

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WHAT EVENTS LED TO WORLD WAR I?

There were many factors that led up to the start of World War I in Europe: a lot of these factors were rooted in the deep history of the old powers of Europe (including Russia, Germany, , Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Britain) but the real causes of World War I included politics, secret alliances, , and nationalistic pride. However, there was one single event, the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, which started a chain of events leading to war.

GERMAN IMPERIALISM

Some of the origins of World War I can be seen in the results of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870–71 and the concurrent . Germany had won decisively and established a powerful Empire, while France went into chaos and military decline for years. A legacy of hostility grew between France and Germany following the German annexation of Alsace-Lorraine, which caused widespread resentment in France, giving rise to the desire for revenge. Through his policy, Bismarck kept a balance (of power) among European nations that had weakened Germany, but when the chancellor was replaced, a new economical policy, known as Neu Kour, was introduced. This policy promoted the exportation and the conquest of foreign markets through an economic strategy, called dumping.

BRITISH ALIGNMENT TOWARDS FRANCE AND RUSSIA 1898–1907: THE

Britain abandoned “”, the policy of holding aloof from the continental powers and concluded agreements, limited to colonial affairs, with her two major colonial rivals, the with France in 1904 and the Anglo-Russian Entente of 1907. Some historians see Britain's alignment as a reaction to the German foreign policy and the buildup of its navy from 1898, which led to the Anglo-German naval . Other argue that Britain chose France and Russia over Germany because Germany was a too weak ally to provide an effective counterbalance to the other powers.

FIRST MOROCCAN CRISIS, 1905–06: STRENGHTENING THE ENTENTE

Chierico & Codena

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The was an international crisis between March 1905 and May 1906 over the status of Morocco. The crisis worsened German relations with both United Kingdom and France, which had obtained the protectorate of the Morocco, and helped ensure the success of the new Anglo-French Entente Cordiale.

SECOND MOROCCAN CRISIS, 1911: THE HOLDS AGAIN

The Second Moroccan Crisis or began when France brought troops into Morocco to prevent rebellion. On July 1911 Germany sent a gunboat, called Panther, to the port of Agadir in Morocco to scare France. Her intent was to separate the alliance between France and Great Britain and to maintain Germany as a strong European power. The result was that France would be allowed to continue her activity in Morocco without Germany intervening and Germany got parts of the French Congo in Africa.

BALKAN WARS

The of 1912–1913 increased international tension between the and Austria-Hungary. It strengthened Serbia and weakened the and Bulgaria. Russia initially agreed to avoid territorial changes, but later in 1912 supported Serbia's demand for an Albanian port. After an international conference in 1912–1913 it was agreed to create an independent ; at the beginning, Serbia refused to comply but finally it backed down. Serbia and Greece allied against Bulgaria, which responded with a preemptive strike against their forces, beginning the . The Bulgarian army crumbled quickly when Turkey and Romania joined the war.

Chierico & Codena

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HOW DID THE WAR BREAK OUT?

ASSASSINATION OF ARCHDUKE FRANZ FERDINAND

Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, a great friend of Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany, met with him in mid-June 1914 to discuss the tense situation in the . Two weeks later, on June 28, Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, were in Sarajevo to inspect the imperial armed forces in Bosnia- Herzegovina. When 19-year-old and his fellow members of the nationalist Young Bosnia movement learned of the archduke’s planned visit, they took action: supplied with weapons by a Serbian terrorist organization called the , Princip and his cohorts travelled to Sarajevo in time for the archduke’s visit.

The royal couple was touring the city in an open car, with surprisingly little security; one of the nationalists threw a bomb at their car, but it rolled off the back of the vehicle, wounding an army officer and some bystanders. Later that day, the imperial car took a wrong turn near where Princip happened to be standing. Seeing his chance, Princip fired into the car, shooting Franz Ferdinand and Sophie at point-blank range. He then turned the gun on himself, but was tackled by a mob of bystanders who restrained him until the police arrived. The archduke and his wife were rushed away to seek medical attention, but both died within the hour.

FIRST STEPS TOWARDS THE WAR

In order to maintain its credibility as a force in the Balkan region (let alone its status as a great power), Austria-Hungary needed to enforce its authority in the face of such an insolent crime. However, with the threat of Russian intervention looming and its army unprepared for a large-scale war, it required Germany’s help to back up its words with force. Emperor Franz Josef wrote a personal letter to Kaiser Wilhelm requesting his support, and on July 6 German Chancellor Theobald Bethmann Hollweg informed Austrian representatives that Vienna had Germany’s full support. On July 23, the Austro- Hungarian ambassador to Serbia delivered an ultimatum: The Serbian government had to take steps to wipe out terrorist organizations within its borders, suppress anti-Austrian propaganda and accept an independent investigation by the Austro-Hungarian government into Franz Ferdinand’s assassination, or face military action. Merighi & Pacchiarini

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These are five of the ten points of the Serbian Ultimatum:

The Royal Serbian Government will furthermore pledge itself:

1. to suppress every publication which shall incite to hatred and contempt of the Monarchy, and the general tendency of which shall be directed against the territorial integrity of the latter; 4. to remove from the military and administrative service in general all officers and officials who have been guilty of carrying on the propaganda against Austria-Hungary, 5. to agree to the cooperation in Serbia of the organs of the Imperial and Royal Government in the suppression of the subversive movement directed against the integrity of the Monarchy; 6. to institute a judicial inquiry against every participant in the conspiracy of the twenty-eighth of June who may be found in Serbian territory 10. to inform the Imperial and Royal Government without delay of the execution of the measures comprised in the foregoing points.

After Serbia appealed to Russia for help, the Tzar’s government began moving towards mobilization of its army, believing that Germany was using the crisis as an excuse to launch a preventive war in the Balkans. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28. On August 1, after hearing news of Russia’s general mobilization, Germany declared war on Russia. The German army then launched its attack on Russia’s ally, France, through , violating Belgian neutrality and bringing Great Britain into the war as well.

Merighi & Pacchiarini

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THE FRONTS

EASTERN FRONT

The Eastern Front, one of the main theaters of battles of the First World War, opens on August 6, 1914, when Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia. The latter will invade a few days later, on August 17. The Russian attack, also facilitated by the advance towards that committed the to the other side, and from an unexpected rapidity of general mobilization, culminated successfully on 19- 20 August, when the Russians got their first win at Gumbinnen.

The defeated sides then decided to strengthen their presence in the East, recalling divisions from the Western Front and, due to good logistics management of the railways, could in a few days concentrate the forces under the command of General von Hindenburg, defeating the Russians heavily in Tannenberg, between August 27 and August 30, and the Masurian Lakes, between September 9 and September 14, resulting in the Russian retreat from the Prussian territory. Following these two victories, the German army gained the occupation of .

Bossio & Decanis

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Meanwhile the Russians were launching, one after the other, three offensives against the Austro- Hungarians on the Galician front, in September and October-November 1914 and March-April 1915, obtaining several victories and advancing deep into enemy territory without being unable to resolve the conflict.

Contrary to what was happening on the Western Front, on the Eastern Front the war of position alternates with the operational level maneuvers. This is also due to the geography of the combat zone: the forests of Lithuania and the vast plains and marshes of Poland, and Russia prove too large to be occupied by men and weapons.

THE

WESTERN FRONT Bossio & Decanis

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The war plan drawn up by the Germans envisaged a massive attack against France, which would have to be defeated in a few weeks. Then, most of the forces would have been used against Russia. To achieve this goal, the German troops would have had to go through Belgium, neutral nation. The invasion of a neutral country, plus overlooking the English Channel, caused the British reaction. So on August 5, Britain declared war on Germany. The Germans initially obtained a series of resounding successes: in the last two weeks of August the German armies advanced into the north-east of France forcing opponents into a hasty retreat. In early September they stopped along the course of the Marne, a few dozen kilometers from Paris.

On September 6, the French suddenly launched a counter-attack that caught the Germans by surprise. After a week of fierce fighting, the invaders were forced to retreat at the Aisne and Somme rivers. In four months of war, only on the western front, there had been 400,000 deaths and nearly a million wounded, and all this with neither side being able to achieve results. The war of movement thus became a war of position.

In February 1916, the Germans regained the initiative on the western front by attacking the French fortress of Verdun. The aim of the offensive was the bleeding of the French forces. However, the battle proved too costly for the attackers, who had more losses than those of the French. They managed to hold out until June, when the British organized a counter-offensive on the Somme. It turned into a frightful carnage: more than one and a half million men died in the following five months.

Bossio & Decanis

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The beginning of 1918 saw the two sides in a balanced situation militarily. The Germans tried a last desperate attack in the final days of March, failing to break through Saint Quentin and Arras and to advance into French territory. The attack continued in the following months until the German army again reached the Marne.

However, in mid-July, a final attack on the Marne was stopped by the Anglo-French troops, with the help of the United States. At the end of July, the Entente's forces, now greater in men and equipment, managed to counterattack inflicting the first major German defeat in the Battle of Amiens. Given that Germany's allies were falling one after another, the Germans were forced to sign the armistice of Rethondes, on November 11.

Bossio & Decanis

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ITALY BEFORE WORLD WAR I

ITALY BACKS OUT OF

At the beginning of the 20th century Italy was officially a member of the Triple Alliance with Germany and Austria-Hungary. Despite this, in the years before the war, Italy had improved its diplomatic efforts towards United Kingdom and France. The causes of this change were linked to the Italian government’s certainty that support of Austria (the traditional enemy of Italy during the 19th century) would not have gained Italy the territories it wanted: Trieste, Istria, Zara and , all Austrian possessions.

A few days after the outbreak of the war, on 3 , the government, led by the conservative Antonio Salandra, declared that Italy would not have committed its troops, maintaining that the Triple Alliance had only a defensive stance and Austria-Hungary had been the aggressor. In reality, both Salandra and the minister of Foreign Affairs, Sidney Sonnino, began to probe which side would have given the best reward for Italy's entrance in the war.

FROM NEUTRALITY TO INTERVENTION

The majority of the cabinet (including former Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti) was firmly against intervention, as well as numerous intellectuals, including socialists such as and Leonida Bissolati. More importantly, a radical nationalist political movement, called “Unredeemed Italy” (“Italia irredenta”), founded in the 1880s, started claiming the Italian- inhabited territories of Austria Hungary, especially in the Austrian Littoral and in the County of Tyrol.

In favour of intervention there were and nationalist and liberal parties. Also Pro-interventionist socialists were supporters of intervention and believed that, once weapons had been distributed to the people, they could have transformed the war into a revolution.

ITALY JOINS THE TRIPLE ENTENTE

The diplomatic moves led to the Pact (26 April 1915), signed by Sonnino without the approval of the Italian Parliament. According to the Pact, after victory Italy was to get Trentino and the South Tyrol up Bergamaschi & Dordolo

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to the Brenner Pass, the entire Austrian Littoral (with Trieste), Gorizia and Gradisca (Eastern Friuli), Istria (but without Fiume), north-western Dalmatia with Zara and most of the islands.

Under the London Pact, Italy joined the Triple Entente. 3 May 1915 Italy officially revoked the Triple Alliance. In the following days Giolitti and the neutralist majority of the Parliament opposed declaring war, while nationalist crowds demonstrated in public areas for it. (The nationalist poet Gabriele D'Annunzio called this period “le radiose giornate di Maggio” —"the sunny days of May"). On 13 May Salandra offered his resignation to King Victor Emmanuel III, but Giolitti, fearful of nationalist disorder that might have broken into open rebellion, declined to succeed as prime minister, and Salandra's resignation was not accepted. On 23 May 1915, Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary.

At the opening of the campaign, Austro-Hungarian troops occupied and fortified high ground of the Julian Alps and Karst Plateau, but the Italians initially outnumbered their opponents three-to-one.

Bergamaschi & Dordolo

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ITALY IN WORLD WAR I

Following the secret promises made by the Allies in the , Italy entered the war in order to annex the Austrian Littoral and northern Dalmatia, and the territories of present-day Trentino and South Tyrol. Although Italy declared war against Austria, it was not ready for a lasting conflict (which Giolitti had previously stated) because of the disorganization of the country, the officers’ inexperience, lack of technical knowledge and of military equipment. Luigi Cadorna was an Italian General and Marshal of Italy, remembered for his harsh discipline and punishment during World War I. Cadorna launched four offensives in 1915, all along the Isonzo River. The goal of these offensives was the fortress of Gorizia. All four battles were unsuccessful and led to the death of more than 250,000 Italians. Cadorna would ultimately fight eleven battles on the Isonzo between 1915 and 1917. Additional forces were arrayed along the Trentino salient, in order to attack Rovereto, Trento, and Bolzano. These attacks also failed. Verdun was the site of a major battle of the First World War. It exemplified the policy of a "war of attrition" pursued by both sides, which led to an enormous loss of life and a very large casualty list. At the beginning of 1916, Germans attacked the French base of Verdun. The battle resulted in being way too expensive also for the Germans. The French army managed to resist until June, when the English troops organized a counter-offensive on the Somme. This resulted in a tragedy where more than 600,000 men died. As soon as the ended on June 1916, the Austrian armies tried to penetrate the Venetian valley.

STRAFEXPEDITION

The Battle of Asiago or the Trentino Offensive, nicknamed Strafexpedition ("Punitive expedition") by the Austrians, was a counteroffensive launched by the Austro- Hungarians on the Italian front on May 15, 1916, during World War I. It was an unexpected attack that took place near Asiago in the province of Vicenza (now in northeast Italy, then on the Italian side of the border between the and Austria-Hungary) after the Fifth Battle of the Isonzo (March 1916). The Asiago War Memorial commemorates this battle and the soldiers killed in World War I. The Russians unexpectedly took the initiative in Galicia. With that, the Strafexpedition could no longer be sustained and the Austrians retired from many of their positions. Italian troops in the region were increased to 400,000 to counter the Austrian positions. Although the Strafexpedition had been checked, it had political consequences in Italy: the Salandra Cabinet fell, and became the new Prime Minister.

BATTLE OF CAPORETTO, THE TWELFTH BATTLE OF ISONZO

Paravella, Tarantola & Zhegra

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The (also referred to as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo) saw combined Austro-Hungarian and German forces that decisively broke through the Italian line along the northern Isonzo, catching the Italian defenders entirely by surprise. Caporetto marked the first occasion in which the Germans had decided to give assistance to their Austro- Hungarian allies on the Italian front. The retreat of the Italian troops was a rout and the enemies entered Italy for 150 kilometers causing the loss of 400.000 men. The defeat had immediate political consequences: a new government led by Vittorio Emanuele Orlando was formed; General Cadorna left the supreme command of the army to General Armando Diaz who decided to set up a new defence line on the river Piave where in November the Austrian attack was blocked. The new commander decided for less strict discipline and better training for the soldiers, who were tired and lacked motivation. Moreover he avoided all direct attacks that could lead to a useless sacrifice of his men. The military reasons for the defeat of Caporetto lay in the well-led Austrian attack in the mistaken defence tactics and in the lack of control by the Italian supreme command during the retreat. But the defeat had also been determined by deeper reasons: the climate of mistrust and unrest in the nation and at the front. The soldiers were physically and mentally torn apart by the massacres and by the harassment they were subjected to by the commanders.

Luigi Cadorna Paolo Boselli

Armando Diaz = POSITION WAR

Paravella, Tarantola & Zhegra

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Trench warfare is a kind of war in which opposing armed forces attack, counterattack, and defend from relatively permanent systems of trenches dug into the ground. The opposing systems of trenches are usually close to one another (400-500 meters). Trench warfare reached its highest development on the Western Front during World War I (1914–18), when armies of millions of men faced each other in a line of trenches extending from the Belgian coast through northeastern France to Switzerland. It was a really heavy war since the soldiers always stood in the same position with the agony of fighting lost battles in which they were most likely to die. SHELL-SHOCK

Shell shock is a term coined during World War I used to describe the reaction of many soldiers during the war. It is a reaction to the intensity of the bombardment and fighting that produced a helplessness appearing as panic and being scared, or flight, an inability to reason, sleep, walk or talk. Cases of 'shell shock' could be interpreted as either a physical or psychological injury. The men afflicted by shell shock were: 80,000 in Germany, 32,500 in Denmark, 58,000 in the U.S.A, 48,000 in Italy.

Paravella, Tarantola & Zhegra

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RUSSIA IN WORLD WAR I

In 1914 the Russian government considered Germany to be the main threat to its territory. This was reinforced by Germany's decision to form the Triple Alliance. Under the terms of this military alliance, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy agreed to support each other if attacked by either France or Russia. In 1907 Russia joined Britain and France to form the Triple Entente. In 1914 the Russian Army was the largest army in the world. However, Russia's poor roads and railways made the effective deployment of these soldiers difficult.

In 1914 the Russian Navy had 4 battleships, 10 cruisers, 21 destroyers, 11 submarines and 50 torpedo boats. On the outbreak of the First World War General was given command of the Russian Second Army for the invasion of East Prussia. He advanced slowly into the south western corner of the province with the intention of linking up with General advancing from the north east. The commander of the German Eighth Army, General Maximilian Prittwitz, was dismissed for ordering the retreat when faced with the Russian Second Army. General and General were sent forward to meet Samsonov's advancing troops. They made contact on 22nd August, 1914, and for six days the Russians, with their superior numbers, had a few successes. However, by 29th August, Samsanov's Second Army was surrounded. General Alexander Samsonov attempted to retreat but now in a German cordon, most of his troops were slaughtered or captured. The lasted three days. Only 10,000 of the 150,000 Russian soldiers managed to escape. Shocked by the disastrous outcome of the battle, Samsanov committed suicide. The Germans, who lost 20,000 men in the battle, were able to take over 92,000 Russian prisoners. By December, 1914, the Russian Army had 6,553,000 men. However, they only had 4,652,000 rifles. Untrained troops were ordered into battle without adequate arms or ammunition. In 1915 Russia suffered over 2 million casualties and lost Kurland, Lithuania and much of Belorussia. Agricultural production slumped and civilians had to endure serious food shortages.

U.R.S.S.

Giretti & Giorgio

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Lenin, leader of the , was appalled by the decision of most socialists in Europe to support the war effort. Living in exile in Switzerland, Lenin devoted his energies to campaign to turn the "imperialist war into a civil war". This included the publication of his book, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism. Along with his close collaborators, Gregory Zinoviev and Lev Kamenev, Lenin arranged for the distribution of propaganda that urged Allied troops to turn their rifles against their officers and start a socialist revolution. In September 1915, Nicholas II replaced Grand Duke Nikolai as supreme commander of the Russian Army fighting on the Eastern Front. This failed to change the fortunes of the armed forces and by the end of the year there were conscription riots in several cities. Nicholas II, as supreme commander of the Russian Army, was now closely linked to the country's military failures and during 1917 there was a strong decline in his support in Russia. On 13th March, 1917, the Russian Army High Command recommended that Nicholas abdicate in favour of a more popular member of the royal family. Attempts were now made to persuade Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich to accept the throne. He refused and on the 1st March, 1917, the Tsar abdicated.A Provisional Government, headed by Prince George Lvov, was formed. Members of the Cabinet included Paul Miliukov, leader of the Cadet Party, was Foreign Minister, Alexander Guchkov, Minister of War, , Minister of Justice, Mikhail Tereshchenko (a beet-sugar magnate from the Ukraine, became Finance Minister), Alexander Konovalov (a munitions maker Minister of Trade and Industry), and Peter Struve (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Lvov attempted to maintain the Russian war effort but he was severely undermined by the formation of a soldiers' committee that demanded "peace without annexations or indemnities". In May, 1917, Alexander Kerensky was appointed as Minister of War. He toured the Eastern Front where he made a series of emotional speeches where he appealed to the troops to continue fighting. On 18th June, Kerensky announced a new war offensive. Encouraged by the Bolsheviks, who favoured peace negotiations, there were demonstrations against Kerensky in Petrograd.

Soldiers on the Eastern Front were dismayed at the news and regiments began to refuse to move to the front line. There was a rapid increase in the number of men deserting and by the autumn of 1917 an estimated 2 million men had unofficially left the army.Some of these soldiers returned to their homes and used their weapons to seize land from the nobility. Manor houses were burnt down and in some cases wealthy landowners were murdered. Kerensky and the Provisional Government issued warnings but were powerless to stop the redistribution of land in the countryside.

Giretti & Giorgio

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Kerensky now became the new Supreme Commander of the Russian Army. His continued support for the war effort made him unpopular in Russia and on 25th September, Kerensky attempted to recover his left- wing support by forming a new coalition that included more Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries. However, with the Bolsheviks controlling the Soviets, and now able to call on 25,000 armed militia, Kerensky was unable to reassert his authority.

On 25th October, Kerensky was informed that the Bolsheviks were about to seize power. He decided to leave Petrograd and try to get the support of the Russian Army on the Eastern Front. Later that day the Red Guards stormed the and members of the Kerensky's cabinet were arrested. After failing to rally the troops against the new government, Kerensky fled to France

Lenin, the new leader of the Russian government, immediately announced an armistice with the . The following month, he sent , the people's commissar for foreign affairs, as head of the Russian delegation, to Brest- Litovsk to negotiate a peace deal with Germany and Austria.Trotsky had the difficult task of trying to end Russian participation in the First World War without having to grant territory to the Central Powers. By employing delaying tactics Trotsky hoped that socialist revolutions would spread from Russia to Germany and Austria-Hungary before he had to sign the treaty. After nine weeks of discussions without agreement, the German Army was ordered to resume its advance into Russia. On 3rd March 1918, with German troops moving towards Petrograd, Lenin ordered Trotsky to accept the terms of the Central Powers. The Brest- Litovsk Treaty resulted in the Russians surrendering the Ukraine, Finland, the Baltic provinces, the Caucasus and Poland. Almost 15 million served in the Russian Army during the First World War. Casualties totalled an estimated 1.8 million killed, 2.8 million wounded and 2.4 million taken prisoner.

Giretti & Giorgio

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HOW DID THE WAR END?

PARIS PEACE CONFERENCE, 1919

The Paris Peace Conference, also known as The Versailles Peace Conference, was the meeting of the Allied victors, following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris during 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities. The five major powers (France, Britain, Italy, the U.S. and Japan) controlled the Conference. In practice Japan played a small role and the "Big Four" leaders were the dominant figures at the conference. The conference came to an end on 21 January 1920 with the inaugural General Assembly of the .

Five major peace treaties were prepared at the Paris Peace Conference:

-The was the most important of the peace treaties that brought World War I to an end. The Treaty ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. Of the many provisions in the treaty, one of the most important and controversial required "Germany to accept the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage" during the war. The treaty forced Germany to disarm, make substantial territorial concessions, and pay reparations to certain countries. In 1921 the total cost of these reparations was assessed at 132 billion marks.

-The Treaty of Saint-Germain and the . These treaties officially registered the breakup of the Habsburg empire, recognizing the independence of Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary and the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Yugoslavia). Austria also had to cede one part of Dalmatia, Trento, southern Tirol, Trieste and Istria to Italy.

-The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine required Bulgaria to lose their supremacy over the Aegean sea, to pay reparations of £100 million, to recognize the existence of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.

-The Treaty of Sèvres with Turkey: Syria, Palestine and Iraq were created and the Dodecanese was annexed to Italy. In 1923 this treaty had been replaced by the Treaty of Losanne which gave again to Turkey the straits’ control.

Bianchini & Duse

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Europe in 1914, before the outbreak of the war

Europe in 1918, after the World War I

U.S. PRESIDENT 'S FOURTEEN POINTS

On January 18, 1918, President Woodrow Wilson gave a speech to Congress that outlined Fourteen Points for peace and the end to World War I. Wilson wanted lasting peace and for World War I to be the "war to end all wars."

I. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at, after which there shall be no private international understandings of any kind but diplomacy shall proceed always frankly and in the public view.

II. Absolute freedom of navigation upon the seas, outside territorial waters, alike in peace and in war, except as the seas may be closed in whole or in part by international action for the enforcement of international covenants.

III. The removal, so far as possible, of all economic barriers and the establishment of an equality of trade conditions among all the nations consenting to the peace and associating themselves for its maintenance. Bianchini & Duse

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IV. Adequate guarantees given and taken that national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety.

V. A free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims, based upon a strict observance of the principle that in determining all such questions of sovereignty the interests of the populations concerned must have equal weight with the equitable claims of the government whose title is to be determined.

VI. The evacuation of all Russian territory and such a settlement of all questions affecting Russia as will secure the best and freest cooperation of the other nations of the world in obtaining for her an unhampered and unembarrassed opportunity for the independent determination of her own political development and national policy and assure her of a sincere welcome into the society of free nations under institutions of her own choosing; and, more than a welcome, assistance also of every kind that she may need and may herself desire. The treatment accorded Russia by her sister nations in the months to come will be the acid test of their good will, of their comprehension of her needs as distinguished from their own interests, and of their intelligent and unselfish sympathy.

VII. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored, without any attempt to limit the sovereignty which she enjoys in common with all other free nations. No other single act will serve as this will serve to restore confidence among the nations in the laws which they have themselves set and determined for the government of their relations with one another. Without this healing act the whole structure and validity of international law is forever impaired.

VIII. All French territory should be freed and the invaded portions restored, and the wrong done to France by Prussia in 1871 in the matter of Alsace-Lorraine, which has unsettled the peace of the world for nearly fifty years, should be righted, in order that peace may once more be made secure in the interest of all.

IX. A readjustment of the frontiers of Italy should be effected along clearly recognizable lines of nationality.

X. The peoples of Austria-Hungary, whose place among the nations we wish to see safeguarded and assured, should be accorded the freest opportunity to autonomous development.

XI. Rumania, Serbia, and Montenegro should be evacuated; occupied territories restored; Serbia accorded free and secure access to the sea; and the relations of the several Balkan states to one another determined by friendly counsel along historically established lines of allegiance and nationality; and international guarantees of the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of the several Balkan states should be entered into.

XII. The turkish portion of the present Ottoman Empire should be assured a secure sovereignty, but the other nationalities which are now under Turkish rule should be assured an undoubted security of life and an absolutely unmolested opportunity of autonomous development, and the Dardanelles should be permanently opened as a free passage to the ships and commerce of all nations under international guarantees.

XIII. An independent Polish state should be erected which should include the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be assured a free and secure access to the sea, and whose political and economic independence and territorial integrity should be guaranteed by international covenant.

XIV. A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.

Bianchini & Duse

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U.S. President Woodrow Wilson

Bianchini & Duse

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HOW WEAPONS CHANGED DURING WORLD WAR I?

SOLDIERS’ EQUIPMENT

The new twentieth-century army troops were much better equipped than any previous army: everyone had automatic rifles and hand-to-hand weapons. However the most important innovation was the introduction of machine guns: powerful and manageable weapons that could shoot plenty of bullets per minute. Another important change was due to the more frequent use of the heavy artillery; they were powerful cannons that could shoot from very far.

CHEMICAL WEAPONS AND THE GAS MASK

World War I also introduced chemical weapons to warfare. Germany first used chlorine gas to poison unsuspecting Allied troops. Later, the more dangerous mustard gas was developed and used by both sides. The former attacked the eyes and respiratory system; the latter did the same but also caused blistering on any exposed skin. By the end of the war, troops were equipped with gas masks and the weapon was less effective. Two other types of gas were also introduced: tear gas (which was not lethal) and phosgene (even more dangerous than chlorine gas). Moscardini & Restelli

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AVIATION AND AIRCRAFT

The airplane was invented by the Wright Brothers in 1903, just 11 years before the start of World War I. When the war first began, aircraft played a small role in warfare, but, by the end of the war, the air force had become an important branch of the armed forces. The first use of airplanes in World War I was for reconnaissance. The airplanes would fly above the battlefield and determine the enemy's movements and position. As the war progressed, both sides began to use aircraft to drop bombs on strategic enemy locations. The first planes used for bombings could only carry small bombs and were very vulnerable to attack from the ground. With more planes taking to the skies, enemy pilots began to fight each other in the air. At first, they tried throwing grenades at each other or shooting with rifles and pistols. This didn't work very well. Pilots soon found that the best way to shoot down an enemy plane was with a mounted machine gun. However, if the machine gun was mounted at the front of the plane, the propeller would get in the way of the bullets. An invention called an "interrupter" was invented by the Germans that allowed the machine gun to be synchronized with the propeller. Soon all fighter planes used this invention. Engineers learned from experience, leading to the development of many specialized types, including fighters, bombers and ground-attack aeroplanes. However they played a more important role only in the World War II. TANKS

The purpose behind the birth of tanks was to create a new powerful weapon. The result was a machine that could boast a minimum speed of four miles per hour, climb a five foot high obstacle, successfully span a five foot trench, and - critically - be immune to the effects of small- arms fire. Furthermore, it possessed two machine guns, had a range of twenty miles and was maintained by a crew of ten men. The first tank was called "Little Willie" and needed a crew of only 3 men. The first country that introduced tanks was Britain (which had produced about 2500 units), followed by France (which had produced about 4000 units). The Germans, never convinced of its merits, and despite their record for technological innovation, produced just 20. Italy and the U.S. produced their own tank designs as well, even if they were barely used in WW1.

Tank Production 1916-18

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YEAR UK FRANCE GERMANY ITALY USA

1916 150 - - - -

1917 1.277 800 - - -

1918 1.391 4.000 20 6 84

SUBMARINES

By the eve of World War I all of the major navies included submarines in their fleets, but these craft were relatively small, were considered of questionable military value, and generally were intended for coastal operations. The most significant exception to the concept of coastal activity was the German Deutschland class of merchant U-boats, each 315 feet long with two large cargo compartments. When they were equipped with torpedo tubes and deck guns, they served in a combat role during the latter stages of the war. Although Germany produced just a few units, the underwater war became quickly an effective weapon. However the use of submarines was limited by the continuous American protests, which became very energetic after the sinking of the English ocean liner Lusitania.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

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With the passage of the war new technologies were discovered. Radio, which grew quickly, let even the distant units communicate important news almost immediately. This also allowed for more efficient troop coordination.

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