LESSON TEMPLATE

• History
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 3

1.2: World War 1: Europe goes to war

9. The Time of World Wars

What is this lesson about?

The assassination of the Archduke of Austria-Hungary became the direct cause of World War I. The Allies fought against the Central Powers on two fronts. In Eastern Europe, the Russians battled the Germans and Austrians. The war in the Western Front quickly turned into a stalemate in which both sides dug defensive trenches. The living conditions of the soldiers in the trenches were terrible.

people in this lesson

Wilhelm II

emperor

German Empire

Franz Joseph II

emperor

Austria-Hungary

Gavrilo Princip

assassin

Serbia

Franz Ferdinand

crown prince

Austria-Hungary

Word Duty

mobilisation: preparing the army for battle and moving the soldiers to the borders

neutrality: policy of a nation not supporting or helping either side in a conflict, war etc.

Battle of the Marne: battle in 1914, in which the advance of the German troops through France was halted

stalemate: situation in which neither side can make a winning move (the term comes from the game of chess)

trench war: a war in which both sides build a heavily defended frontline

trenches: long, narrow ditches defended with bunkers, machineguns and barbed wire

artillery: long range guns or missile launchers used in warfare on land

WORD DUTY

Important dates in this lesson:

1914

June 28:       assassination of Franz Ferdinand

August 3:     Germany invades Belgium

Sept. 5 - 12: Battle of the Marne

Dec 24:        Christmas Truce

What you will learn in 

this lesson

• What happened in Sarajewo
  
• Why the murder of Franz Ferdinand was the direct cause of the war
  
• Why the Schlieffenplan failed
  
• What trench warfare is
  
• What life in the trenches was like

Use these questions to make your own summary

Introduction

On 28th June 1914, the 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip stood along the road in the Bosnian city of Sarajevo. He was a member of The Black Hand, a secret Serbian military organisation. Princip and his companions were waiting for Franz Ferdinand, the Austrian crown prince, who was about to visit the Bosnian capital. They were instructed to kill him…

Archduke Franz Ferdinand arrives at the townhall of Sarajevo, after he survived the first assessination attempt

Nation states and nationalism

Last school year, you learned that European countries became more nationalistic during the nineteenth century. While this feeling of nationalism united the population within the borders of their own country, it also made them feel superior towards other nation states. The strongest hatred was felt between France and Germany. France wanted to take revenge for the Franco-Prussian War in 1870-1871. The Germans had humiliated France by proclaiming the creation of the German Empire in Versailles and had claimed land, the fossil fuel rich area of Alsace-Lorraine, for themselves. From the moment of defeat, the French were looking for a way to get revenge. Children at school had to learn about the war and the areas Germany had taken. An almost impenetrable defence line was built on the border with Germany and France built up its army. Because of this dark-side of the Belle Époque, this era is also called The Armed Peace. It would result in the horrors of The Great War.

Before 1871 Germany consisted of several German states. Of these, Prussia (Pruissen) was the biggest and most powerful.

After the war with France the king of Prussia became the emperor of the united German empire.

THE FIRST MARATHON

The Greeks won the battle of Marathon; 6,400 Persians were killed but only 192 Greeks died.

The Persians ran to their ships and tried to escape. They tried to go to Athens to capture the Greek women, children and old people waiting there.

A soldier called Pheidippides was sent to warn the Athenians. He ran 40 kilometres to Athens to tell the Greeks that they had

won and to tell them that the Persians were coming.

He arrived at the city gates very tired. ‘Rejoice, we conquer!’ he shouted. Then he died.

‘Rejoice, we conquer!’

Alexander the Great

Alexander III, king of Macedonia, is known as Alexander the Great. In his short life he conquered almost all parts of the world that were known to his people.

The Alexander Mosaic, dating from circa 100 BC, is a Roman floor mosaic originally from a villa in the Roman city Pompeii. It depicts a battle between the armies of Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia and measures 2.72 by 5.13 metres. The original is preserved in the Naples National Archaeological Museum. The mosaic is believed to be a copy of an early 3rd-century BC Hellenistic painting.

Lesson 3.6: Alexander the Great

Alexander conquers the Persian Empire

Here is the order of his conquests:

• First he moved through Asia Minor and what is today Turkey. 
• He took over Syria defeating the Persian Army at Issus and then laying siege to Tyre.
• Next, he conquered Egypt. Near the Nile River he founded the city of Alexandria.
• After Egypt came Babylonia and Persia, including the city of Susa.
• Then he moved through Persia and began to prepare for a campaign in India.

Alexander leads his army into the battle at the Granicus river. Modern illustration

11. Put the events in the correct chronological order

Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia.

The Triple Entente is formed.

The Schlieffen Plan failed.

Franco-Prussian War

The First World War turns into a trench war.

Franz Ferdinand is assassinated.

Finally, here you can write down a question about
something from this lesson that you don't fully understand yet.

congratulations

congratulations