The First World War (WWI)

The First World War fought from 1914 to 1918 was one of the largest and most brutal catastrophes fought in the 20th century. With nearly the entire European continent fighting a barbaric and everlasting war, the U.S. had eventually to get involved in order to reinitiate stability to Europe. Ultimately, the U.S. taking involvement in World War I had a profound political, economic, and social impact on the country. It increased government powers and solidified the nation’s leadership role in foreign politics. The U.S. emerged as the world 's greatest industrial power with increasing financial opportunities for minorities. At the same time anti-immigrant and anti- communist sentiments arose among many American citizens. And finally the war contributed to the massive migration of African Americans from the Southern to Northern states looking for employment and freedom and, first time allowed women to participate in jobs that were traditionally reserved for men.

World War I (1914-1918) was one of the most gruesome wars in American history. It consisted mostly of trench warfare, war fought from trenches, and an estimated 30 million casualty count. It was hoped that this would be the "end to all wars", however the armistice signed sparked World War II.

The following paper gives insights on various issues; Firstly, why the First World War started, its effects and lastly how and why America got involved in the First World War

World War 1 or the Great War was one of the most brutal if not the most war the world has faced so far. It originated in Europe which quickly went global, the war started on the 28th of July 1914 and ended November 11th 1918. The war consisted of many weapons and deadly gases. The weapons include;

The first world war was one of the most brutal and remorseless events in history; ‘the global conflict that defined a century’. Over nine million soldiers and a large amount of innocent civilians lost their lives. Empires crumbled, revolution engulfed Russia and America rose to become a dominant world power. Huge armies deployed new weapons of devastating effect from rifles and pistols to torpedoes and flame throwers. These weapons were used not only in the trenches but by tanks too. This was an advantage to those who were able to access such machinery as they could easily launch bullets and missiles at nearby enemy bases. The downfall of the tank was the fact it was unable to cross the trenches. Tanks were not the only pieces of equipment that could access this machinery but U boats and planes too. The British carried ‘bolt action rifles’ in which fired 15 rounds per minute at a minimum range of 1,400 metres away. This allowed the British to take out foes at a far greater range. By using machinery in which rules out the need for getting up close to the enemy was a great advantage during world war one. Soldiers ran from trench to trench attacking with all that they had. This resulted in a massacre as the soldiers running toward the trenches were shot down. Machinery such as machine guns and heavy artillery were the weapons used in the trenches. In modern day society, machine guns are the main weapons used by soldiers. This wasn’t the case around the 1914s. They took four

World War I (WWI) had many main events from 1914 – 1918. It was known as the Great War and the war to end all wars. It also introduced us to many new technology to including Barbed wire, machine guns, artillery, poison gas, airships, aircraft 's, new naval vessels and tanks. All these wartime machines and equipment resulted in unprecedented carnage and destruction, with more than 9 million soldiers killed by the end of the war. This First World War or the Great War, was a global war centered in Europe. This global conflict pitted 2 groups against each other “The Allied Powers” and “The Central Powers”. The Allied Powers was made up of Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy and The United States. Important people that were known for the Allied Powers were Herbert Henry Asquith, Prime Minister (UK), Woodrow Wilson (U.S. President), Aristide Briand, Prime Minister (France), and Prime Minister (France). The Central Powers was made up of Germany, the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Important people that were known for the Central Powers were Prince Max Von Baden, Chancellor (Germany), Heinrich Von Clam-Martinic, and Prime Minister (Austria).

​Throughout the history of the United States, the American government has employed many propaganda techniques, usually during times of war and hardships, to evoke an intended reaction from Americans. "Propaganda is the deliberate, systematic attempt to shape perceptions, manipulate cognitions, and direct behavior to achieve a response that furthers the desired intent of the propagandist.” To control the public during difficult times, the government heavily utilized propaganda. The wars that propaganda was most prominently employed in were World War I and World War II. Propaganda, specifically in World War I and World War II, has had far more negative effects on American society than positive effects.

World War One was a big and horrible thing. It was the war where Britain,France, Russia, Italy, and eventually the US fought against Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. World War One ended up killing over 38 million people from all around the world. It was a terrible thing and it had ruined people, businesses, and even countries themselves. There were many reasons behind World War One and there were also many different impacts it had on America.

Following World War I, America turned inward and began to focus on itself. Yet, coming home from war Americans were also fearful of communism due to the recent Bolshevik Revolution where Lenin and the Bolshevik party gained control of Russia and made it communist. This scare led to drastic changes within our nation’s borders as America fought to keep communist influence out of its borders. This was such an impactful event that even the Attorney General of the time, A. Mitchell Palmer, set up a section in the Justice Department to handle issues relating to radicals, this sect of the Justice Department would be very active as, “More than ten thousand people were arrested—some for membership in Communist or left-wing groups, others on no greater pretext than that they looked or sounded foreign—and then jailed and interrogated with little regard for their right to due process” (Lehman, Phelps 260). This severe response to the scare of Communism demonstrates an inward focusing of America. Similarly, in the post-World War I time period America would demonstrate its interest in nativism which it would demonstrate through multiple acts being passed on immigration primarily, the Immigration Act of 1924. During this period of nativism, “Through the whole movement, from 1921 on, for more drastic curbs on the new immigration ran an increasingly assertive racial nativism” (Higham 313). That is America had

World War I left a lasting impression on the world. New weapons such as tanks and poison gas turned the war into a “war of attrition.” Trench warfare was primarily used in this war and the conditions there were part of the reason why millions of people died. The war remained a stalemate between the opposing sides until the United States made the decision to join the war on the side of the Allies. This changed the course of the war and the Allies beat the Central Powers. Many factors in Europe contributed to the start of the war. Later, other reasons forced America to join the war which would leave drastic results.

World War I (WWI) brought unprecedented change to the world. Never before had the entire world engaged in such brutal conflict. World War I brought about great pain and sorrow for the whole world. Even countries who were not directly involved in front line combat bore the suffering of financial and social limitations that affected the entire world during this time.

A state of isolationism was a goal too great for America to handle. America and its leaders had sought to stay out of both World War I and World War II only to be pulled in by intense happenings that inflicted chaos on the nations people. World War II would be a time in American history that would bring many fresh war tactics and developments, that helped to pull a depraved nation from the depths of a depression as well as pledge the freedom and prosperity of its opposing nations. Dangerous discoveries will be made in the world would be left to be governed by two world powers.

World War 2 was a huge turning point in history, that fixed most of the things related to wars that World War 1 was supposed to do but did not. There were many differences between the attitude of the US in World War 1, and their attitude in World War 2, mainly due to what happened in between the wars. Unlike World War 1, the second World War, was not about proving a point in the American’s case, but instead revenge for what had happened in between. In the process, the attitude of the American people towards war changed dramatically from the end of World War 1, to the end of World War 2.

World War I is one of the most devastating wars of all time due to the prior industrialization, imperialism, and most of all nationalism. World War I was the first war that stretched across the globe, and it lead to a great loss in money and life. There were many factors that led to the war, but the spark that set it off was the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The assassination of Franz Ferdinand was induced by growing tensions across Europe, the subject nationalities of the East, and Gavrilo Princip; grossly altering the world.

Leading up to the First World War (WWI) was a series of crises -- Serbian unification efforts, the Ten-Point Ultimatum from Austria to Serbia, the Kruger Telegram, the Dreadnought Race, the Moroccan Crises of 1905 and of 1911, the Balkan Wars, and the Bosnian Crisis -- that generated significant conflict and division among the countries of Europe, all of which seemed to lay the foundation for the start of WWI. With concern for its own power and security in a rapidly changing Europe, Germany set out to undermine the power of as well as the alliances between other European countries. In his book The Sleepwalkers: How Europe went to War in 1914, Christopher Clark points out that, while ‘not one of the great powers has escaped the