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1914-1995

Benchmark D: Connect developments related to World War I with the onset of World War II.

Grade Nine
20th Century Conflict

7. Analyze the causes and effects of World War I with emphasis on:
a. Militarism, imperialism, nationalism, and alliances;
b. The global scope, outcomes and human costs of the war;
c. The role of new technologies and practices including the use of poison gas, trench warfare, machine guns, airplanes, submarines and tanks;
d. The Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations.

World War I was triggered by the archduke and archduchess of Austria-Hungry. The assassination triggered alliances and declarations of war between European nations. The mix of militarism (which meant that the European countries were cocky because of so many new weapons and technological advances and thought they could not lose), Nationalism (which is extreme pride in a group's country), Imperialism (when countries wanted to expand there power), and Alliances (agreements between countries saying that they have there back). The main fighting happened at the western front and the eastern front. The western front consisted of France, Belgium, and Netherlands. The Eastern front consisted of Prussia, Poland, and Russia. There has been numbers suggesting that there were as much as 8 million military deaths and 6.6 million civilian deaths. The approximate cost in today's money is about $2.8 trillion. As I mentioned in the beginning the new technology and tactics made countries cocky, these new weapons and tactics also hurt countries too. A perfect example is trench warfare. Trench warfare caused many people to die because of the many dieses that were consumed by the soldiers from being in them for so long. The machines guns were newly created and many did not understand the workings of such weapons. There were allies and central powers, the allies consisted of Britain, France, Belgium, Russia, Italy, and the U.S. The Central powers consisted of Germany,...