Essential Question:
How did World War I change
Europe and the world?
Standards:
SS6H6d. Explain the impact of European
empire building in Africa and Asia on the
outbreak of WWI.
SS6H7a.Describe major developments
following World War I: the Russian
Revolution, the Treaty of Versailles,
worldwide depression, and the rise of
Nazism
Activator: Based on European exploration, what are
some conflicts might occur?
What is an empire?
An empire is a group of
countries or regions that are
controlled by one ruler or
one government.
Can you think of any examples?
Look at the Roman Empire
below as an example.
The countries of Portugal, Spain, England,
and France led the exploration and
colonization movement and built individual
empires across the Americas, Africa, Asia,
and Australia.
European Empires Map Activity
Use the European Empires Student
Map to shade the different empires
Empire of Portugal
Empire of Spain
British Empire
[England or United Kingdom]
Empire of France
Look specifically at Africa and North
America. What do you think happened to
the people already living in these areas?
Distributed/Summarizing
Strategy
You are the King / Queen of a
European country and have been
able to established a large empire.
What would you do if another
country tried to take the land you
control?
World
War I
Causes of World War I
"The Great War was without precedent ... never had so many
nations taken up arms at a single time. Never had the
battlefield been so vast…never had the fighting been so
gruesome..."
Causes of
World War I
Activity
Use the MAIN Graphic
Organizer to take notes
Causes of World War I
• Militarism – building up armed forces, getting
ready for war
• Alliances – agreements or promises to
defend and help another country;
pact / promise
• Imperialism – trying to build up an empire
(powerful country that controls
several less powerful countries)
• Nationalism – having pride in your country,
willing to defend it (no matter the cost)
Militarism
Countries had built strong armies and navies to defend
their own countries and their colonies. Tensions built as
countries watched each other build up military power.
Militarism
Can you think of any recent
examples of militarism?
Alliances
European countries had joined alliances to better
protect themselves. If one member was attacked,
the others were obligated to help that country.
How could Germany’s location in
Europe be a problem for them?
Germany’s problem was that it was in the
middle of Europe. Being in the middle made it
vulnerable if it came to war.
To solve its problem, Germany and other
countries formed alliances.
By 1914, Europe was divided
into two massive alliances.
Distributed
Summarizing
With a seat partner, discuss a time
in your life when an alliance (with a
friend, family member, or someone
else) has caused problems.
Imperialism
Rivalries developed as countries tried to grab
colonies. Conflicts had occurred over control of
colonies in Africa and Asia. European countries
resented and distrusted each other.
Nationalism
Pride in one’s country; nations sought their own
interests over others. Many groups wanted to be
free from the control of other nations.
Distributed
Summarizing
Could World War I have been
prevented? Why or why not? Would
we have had the technological
advances without WWI?
Ckpt: Causes of World War I
1.
2.
3.
4.
Imperialism
Militarism
Nationalism
Alliances
a. agreements or promises to defend and help
another country
b. trying to build up an empire (powerful country
that controls several less powerful countries
c. building up armed forces, getting ready for war
d. having pride in your country, willing to defend it
The next slides can be used for
differentiation / remediation of
MAIN issues of WWI
Militarism
Building up of armed forces
Getting ready for war
Alliances
Agreements or promises to
defend and help another
country.
Imperialism
Trying to build up an empire
and control more land
Powerful country that
controls several less
powerful countries
Nationalism
Having strong (fierce) pride
in your country
Willing to defend your
country no matter the cost
Major Developments
Following World War I
Use the Major Developments in
Europe Following WWI Timeline
Cartoon Video Clip about
the Russian Revolution
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=KZbho6AsBOc
Why did the Russian
Revolution occur?
• For many years before World
War I, Russian citizens had
suffered under the rule of
Tsar (leader) Nicholas II.
• The ruling class held the country’s wealth, and
the people barely had enough food to eat.
• Russia fought on the side of the Allies in World
War I and suffered terrible losses.
• By 1917, Russians were tired of food shortages,
freezing from coal shortages, and exhausted by
war.
What happened to Russia after the
Russian Revolution?
• Workers united
against the Russian
ruler, overthrew the
monarchy, and
killed Nicholas and
his family.
• A revolutionary
group seized power
and established the
Soviet Union as a
communist country.
Distributed
Summarizing
With a partner, describe in
your own words the Russian
Revolution and how it
changed Russia.
The War is Over!
The Treaty of Versailles
officially ended World War I.
What is a treaty?
Examining the Treaty of
Versailles Activity
In small groups, students will examine
components of the real treaty to
determine the actual decisions that
were made. Other groups will examine
Germany’s response to the treaty.
Examining the Treaty of
Versailles Activity
If you could use one word to describe
the Treaty of Versailles, what would the
word be and why? Share your word
with an elbow partner.
Do you agree with the Treaty of
Versailles? Explain why. Share your
thoughts with an elbow partner.
Treaty of Versailles Requirements
(add requirements of the treaty to the Major Developments sheet)
• It forced Germany to accept responsibility for
causing the war
• It required Germany to pay reparations
(payments) to other countries for their losses
and damage
• It required Germany to give up 1 million
square miles of land (size of Alaska and
Texas combined) much of which was rich in
natural resources (Why does this matter?)
• It required Germany to limit its armed forces
Treaty of Versailles Effects
(add requirements of the treaty to the Major Developments sheet)
• Germans greatly resented the
restrictions put on it by the Treaty
of Versailles.
• Germans began to rise up in protest
• economic conditions worsened.
• Germany also became isolated from
and distrusted by other countries.
Look at the political cartoons
below. With an elbow partner,
discuss how these represent the
Treaty of Versailles.
Indemnity means reparation or payment.
Activating Strategy
Based on our activating strategy,
we know there were significant
changes in Europe following 1914.
What happened?
The World
After World War I
After World War I
• After World War I, the world economy
slipped into a worldwide depression.
• A depression is a time where
business is bad and people lose their
jobs.
• Soldiers came home needing jobs,
but there were not enough.
Unemployment skyrocketed.
(Listen to “Stony Broke in No Man’s Land”)
Worldwide depression
• European countries were in bad shape because
they had suffered great loss of life and property
damage.
• Additionally, European countries had borrowed
money to pay for war costs and now had no
money to repay their debts.
• Countries experienced Inflation where their money
couldn’t buy as much as it used to buy because it
had lost value. How did that affect people?
• In 1929, the stock market crash in the United
States crippled the already struggling economies.
After WWI and
Worldwide Depression
• Industry, shipping, and trade between
countries were affected
• Unrest and nationalism grew, people
wanted strong leadership to make their
countries rich and powerful again
Image you are living in Germany after World War I. The
world is in the middle of a depression. You do not have
enough food, you do not have a job, and you do not
believe the leaders of your country can improve the
situation. On top of that, your country, the place where
you were born and have lived all of your life is being
blamed and punished for World War I.
Now, read Adolf Hitler’s speech on the
Treaty of Versailles in 1923.
Watch a video clip of Hitler delivering a
speech years later.
Why do you think the German
people followed Hitler?
Rise of Nazism Background:
• The democratic government in Germany after
World War I (Weimar Republic) faced major
problems
• A political party called the Nazi Party attracted the
attention of dissatisfied Germans
• The Nazi Party’s leader, Adolf Hitler, described
ideas to strengthen Germany
• Hitler also believed that Aryans (Germans) were the
“master race”; he had racist feelings about Jews,
Slavs, gypsies, and blacks
• The Nazi Party believed in a strong central
government controlled by the military and run by a
dictator
Why Nazism grew
• Nazis offered solutions for Germany’s
economic problems
• Nazis appealed to German nationalism by
calling for a larger military and an increase
in German territory (violation of Treaty of Versailles)
• Nazis united Germans against Jews by
blaming them for the problems
• Nazis assured Germans they could protect
them from enemies
• Nazis organized groups to threaten anyone
who opposed them so few spoke out
Distributed Summarizing:
The political cartoon
shows Adolf Hitler
“climbing out” of the
Treaty of Versailles.
Turn to a seat partner
and discuss what is
meant by the cartoon.
Listen to the National Public
Radio story about Germany
making its last reparation
payment in September 2010.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/
story.php?storyId=130232809
Summarizing Strategy
Imagine that you are living in Europe
during the 1900s, but you have other family
members living on another continent. Write
a postcard to your relatives describing the
events that you have witnessed from 1913
to 1920. Include World War I and its MAIN
causes, the Russian Revolution, economic
depression, and the rise of Nazism.