Lesson 1 Introduction to WW 1 To list

Lesson 1: Introduction to WW 1 To list some of the causes of WW 1 To explain the different reasons why men joined the army.

When Was the First World War? The first World War began on July 28 th 1914. It ended on 11 th November 1918. What makes November 11 th still special today? We celebrate the end of the First World War every year with an observed silence on 11 th November at 11 am. This is a time to remember all those who fought in the war and the millions of people who lost their lives.

Read through the information on the following slides to find out some of the reasons why WW 1 started.

Why Did the First World War Start? This is Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In 1914, he was due to become the king of Austria-Hungary. However, before he was able to take throne, he was assassinated by a Serbian group called The Black Hand. This event was seen as the main cause of the First World War. However, there were several other events that led to the battle.

The Colonisation of Africa Western Sahara Morocco Tunisia Algeria Libya Niger Chad Egypt Sudan The early 1900 s in Europe was a relatively peaceful time, with lots of countries growing in wealth. Many European countries colonised countries in Africa, as shown on the map above. Only Ethiopia and Liberia were free from European control.

The Early 1900 s in Europe Britain and France were considered very powerful because they owned lots of countries in other parts of the world, which were mainly in Asia and Africa. At this time, Germany did not own any other countries and were not considered as powerful as Britain and France. They wanted to become more powerful so began building large warships and creating a strong army. This led lots of other countries to do the same.

Alliances Between Countries Many countries began to set up alliances with each other. This meant that the countries would support one another and defend each other in case of war. There were two main alliances: The Triple Entente: This was an agreement between Britain, France and Russia. The Central Powers - This was an agreement between Germany and Austria-Hungary.

The Early 1900 s in Europe Some countries grew nervous of the larger armies and warships that others had available to them, and they decided they needed to defend each other if there ever was a war. If one of the countries was attacked, the others in the alliance would have to go in to conflict to help them.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was visiting armies in Serbia in June 1914 when a Serbian group called The Black Hand assassinated him during his visit. After a number of attempts from members of Black Hand, Gavrilo Princip finally shot and killed the Archduke.

Why Did Britain Enter the War? Because of the Triple-Entente Alliance between Britain, France and Russia, Britain had to enter the war when France was invaded by the German army. The war began for Britain at the Battle of the Mons in Belgium in August 1914.

What are these sources showing us? Source 1 Source 2

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Understand the different reasons why men joined the army Why did you join the army? The government created ‘Pals’ regiments to encourage people to join up. These were regiments made up of people from the same place, so that friends could be together when they fought. Whole villages, factories or even football teams joined up together and fought together. Many men joined up because all the men they knew were joining up. They felt they had no choice! Because of all this, the government was able to recruit tens of thousands of soldiers in the early part of the war.

Write a letter to your family explaining why you joined the army. Think about: • What convinced you to join the army. • How you feel about fighting a war. • How you hope other people will think of you.

Reflection: a) Who is the main ‘audience’ for this recruitment poster? b) What do you think is the main message of this poster? c) How is this poster trying to make people feel?