World+War+1

=World War I =

Overview
In this activity, you will explore three important issues that all played a role in triggering World War I, which lasted from 1914 to November 11th, 1918 and took more than 17 million lives. As human beings, we often look for the reasons why events happen or what caused something to happen. We want to know what caused the fire in the dance hall that killed one hundred people. We want to know why, because we are naturally curious and because we wish to avoid a similar tragedy occurring in the future. We also want to know why a young person ran away from home, why a friendship was broken, and why someone was expelled from school. On the other hand, it is also important to know why good things happen. If you have low-vision, check out the following resource LINK TO WW1 INTERACTIVE MAP

Task
1. How long did WWI last? 2. About how many people died in WWI?

Reasons for WWI
There are many reasons for the start of World War I. Students will examine three of the reasons: 1. Nationalism is a great love for your country. The word comes from the word "nation", which means the same as "country." Many people in Europe showed extreme nationalism. If you believe that your country is the best, how do you show your belief? For some people, it meant fighting in a war to see who was number one. 2. Alliances are agreements or “deals” between countries, to back each other up in case of trouble. The word “alliance” comes from the word “ally” or friend. In today’s society, a young person may join astreet gang for protection against people in another gang. Before the start of World War I, countries joined alliances for protection. During the war, Britain, France and Russia formed an alliance which was known as the “Triple Entente”. Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy, on the other hand, had formed the “Triple Alliance”. 3. An arms race is a competition between two or more countries to see who can produce the most “arms”, or weapons. Before World War I, the country of the United Kingdom (also known as Britain) and the country of Germany were involved in an arms race. 4. Imperialism is the idea that your country should go out and actively take other countries for your own country. In the early 1900's, the U.S. and many European countries were in a race to gain territory. The U.S. attacked Cuba, the Philippines and Haiti. European countries were trying to take as much of African for themselves as they could. This caused a lot of tension between European countries. One of the largest empires was the British Empire, of which Canada was a part of. The four factors mentioned above, nationalism, alliances, the arms race, and imperialism led to great tension between the countries of Europe prior to 1914. Many countries were ready for war, and in June 1914, something happened that set off the spark which would start the Great War.

Task <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">3. Use five words to give four reasons for the start of World War I. <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">4. Name three countries that belonged to the Triple Alliance in 1914.

<span style="background-color: #e7b6b6; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Archduke Franz Ferdinand <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">On June 28, 1914, in the city of Sarajevo, Bosnia, a terrorist killed the man who was to be the next king of Austria- Hungary (this person is called the heir to the throne, and in this case his name was Franz Ferdinand). <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Franz was in a car with his wife Sophie, when the terrorist jumped on the running board of the open car and fired a bullet into the neck of Franz and another bullet into the stomach of Sophie. Both were killed. The assassin, 18-year-old Gavrilo Princip, was arrested, tried, and later died of cancer in prison. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">The "Showdown" <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">An act of terrorism is an act of violence, usually performed for political reasons. Gavrilo Princip belonged to a terrorist group called the "Black Hand". This group was based in the country of Serbia and they wanted to take Bosnia away from Austria-Hungary. In order to threaten Austria-Hungary, the "Black Hand" killed Franz Ferdinand and his wife. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Next, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia. An ultimatum is a statement of serious consequences if certain conditions are not met. For example, a teacher may say, “Be quiet, or get out of this class Sizzle Pimp!” In 1914, Austria-Hungary’s ultimatum to Serbia was: “Hand over the Black Hand, or we attack!” <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">In the “showdown,” Serbia was backed by its friend Russia. Austria-Hungary was backed by its ally Germany. Serbia stood its ground. To back up Serbia, Russia moved troops to the borders of Germany. Germany told Russia to remove the troops from the border. Russia refused and then Germany declared war on Russia.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Task
<span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">5. Who was killed on June 28, 1914 at Sarajevo, Bosnia? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">6. What ultimatum did Austria-Hungary give to Serbia in 1914? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">7. What country backed up Serbia in the showdown with Austria-Hungary? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">8. What was Germany’s reaction when Russia moved troops to the German border? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">9. What did Germany do next?

<span style="background-color: #e7b6b6; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">The Outbreak of War <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Germany knew that Russia was allied with France, and therefore Germany decided to attack France. The German attack went through the neutral country of Belgium. A neutral country is a country that is on neither side in an argument. When Germany went through the neutral country of Belgium, Britain entered the war against Germany. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">In 1914, Canada was a colony belonging to Britain. A colony is a country that is controlled by another country. Therefore, Canada, like Australia (another British colony), quickly volunteered to help the “mother country” of England (a part of Britain). At this time, a large percentage of Canadians had connections to England - by birth or family - and the decision to help England was a popular one.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">You can refer to an Interactive Map of World War I at: Interactive Mapin order to get a better understanding of the geography of World War 1.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;">Task
<span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;">10. What two European countries were allied with (were friends with) Russia? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;"> 11.What neutral country was attacked by Germany in 1914? <span style="background-color: #d4ecec; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;"> 12. Why did Canada enter World War I?