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World War I

History — The Great War, from Sarajevo to Versailles, 1914-1919

HistorySecondary, Sixth Form
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Revise the First World War: the alliances, the Sarajevo assassination, trench warfare, Verdun, the US entry, Russia's exit and the Treaty of Versailles. Multiple-choice exam for secondary school.

📖 Summary

In the early 20th century the European powers competed for colonies and markets and armed themselves. Two blocs formed: the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy) and the Triple Entente (France, the United Kingdom and Russia). On 28 June 1914 a Serbian nationalist assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to Austria-Hungary, in Sarajevo, and the alliance system turned the conflict into a European war.

Germany tried to defeat France quickly by going through Belgium, but was stopped at the Marne. The Western Front became a trench war with huge and largely futile battles, such as Verdun and the Somme in 1916. Gas, tanks, aircraft and submarines were used on a large scale for the first time. Spain stayed neutral.

In 1917 the United States entered the war and Russia, after the Bolshevik revolution, left it. Exhausted, Germany signed the armistice on 11 November 1918. The Treaty of Versailles (1919) imposed territorial losses and huge reparations. Four empires disappeared and the League of Nations was created, but it could not prevent another war twenty years later.

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History · Secondary, Sixth Form

🧠 Pedagogical Benefits

Long- and short-term causes

Imperialism, nationalism, the arms race and alliances, plus the Sarajevo spark. Telling them apart is key in any exam.

The phases of the war

War of movement, trenches and the turning point of 1917. The questions cover the whole war, not just the start and the end.

The consequences

Versailles, the end of the empires and the League of Nations: the bridge to understanding the Second World War.

💡 Practical Example

"For example, one question offers 'the German invasion of Poland' as the cause of the 1914 war. The explanation points out that this invasion started the Second World War in 1939, while the 1914 war began with the Sarajevo assassination."

📝 Study Tips

Tricks and techniques to master this topic faster:

  1. 1

    Dates: 1914-1918. Sarajevo assassination, 28 June 1914; armistice, 11 November 1918.

  2. 2

    Triple Entente: France, the United Kingdom and Russia. Central Powers: Germany and Austria-Hungary, with the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

  3. 3

    1917 is the turning point: the United States comes in and Russia drops out.

  4. 4

    Don't confuse the League of Nations (1920) with the United Nations (1945).

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