World War I Learning Guide
World War I Learning Guide
Teacher: Pedro Jara Vergara
Learning guide:
Background and consequences of the First World War
Objective : Analyze the main antecedents of the First World War, measuring the magnitude of its social,
cultural and political impact.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Read the Learning Guide carefully
- Develop each of the indicated activities
- Share results to the class.
World War I is the name commonly used for
the military conflict that took place between
1914 and 1918. It affected all five continents and
involved a large part of humanity. Other names it
has received are: “Great War”, “European War”
or “War of 14”.
What began as a war limited to the old
European powers spread to the rest of the world
thanks to colonial possessions. In addition, other
countries such as the United States of America, Japan, China and some Latin American countries
intervened.
“Many veterans of this war have spoken about what they remember 1.- What is a War for you?
about the wounded. But what made as deep an impression as this
was another, less frequent, aspect of the conflict: the constant
presence of the dead. In previous wars, the conflict had lasted a few
days, at most. It had had a beginning and an end, after which the
bodies of both contenders had been buried. But this war was
different: the fighting lasted months; The artillery fire dismembered
the men in an instant; and the front line was barely moving. Thus, in
the line of trenches that stretched from Switzerland to the English
Channel were scattered the remains of perhaps a million men. The
soldiers ate alongside them, joked at their expense and stripped
them of everything they had. (...)
The soldiers had to press on in the presence of countless corpses,
some known, most anonymous. Those who were buried often
reappeared during bombing raids and were sometimes reburied to
literally defend the trenches in which they themselves had fought.
Many remember the stench of decomposition and flies flying over
the corpses in large numbers, especially during the summer months.
Everyone hated rats. It's hard to imagine what such a horrible place
must have been like. Even today human bones can be found around
Verdun.”
J. M. Winter. The first World War
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Teacher: Pedro Jara Vergara
2.- In relation to the fragment of J. M. Winter, What differences does the author see
between traditional wars and the 1st G. World?
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3.- Relate and analyze the following elements as part of the causes of the War.
Imperialism – Armed Peace – Nationalism – Question of the Balkans – Death of Franz
Ferdinand – Alliances.
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Map Europe 1914
4.- Application : Identify the following elements on the map.
Triple Alliance - Triple Entente - Great Britain – France – Germany – Russia - Imp. Austro-Hungarian -
Serbia – Italy - Switzerland - Greece - Imp. Ottoman Turkish - Balkan Peninsula - Black Sea -
Mediterranean Sea - Belgium - Tyrrhenian Sea - Ionian Sea - Aegean Sea - Adriatic Sea - Istria Peninsula.
Map Europe 1919
Teacher: Pedro Jara Vergara
5.- What happened to the Empires after the War? What new countries emerged?
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Trenches ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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6.- What Role Did the Trenches Play in the War?
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7.- Refer to and analyze the
underlined phrase in the text. "Unlike previous wars, driven by limited and concrete motives, the
First World War pursued unlimited objectives. In the imperialist era
there had been a fusion of politics and economics. International
political rivalry was established based on the growth and
competitiveness of the economy, but the characteristic feature was
precisely that it had no limits (...) More specifically for the two main
belligerents, Germany and Great Britain, the limit had It had to be
heaven, since Germany aspired to achieve a global political and
maritime position like that held by Great Britain, which would
automatically relegate a Great Britain that had already begun its
decline to an inferior level. It was all or nothing (...)
It was an absurd and destructive goal that ruined both the victors
and the vanquished. “It plunged the countries defeated in the
revolution and the victors into bankruptcy and material exhaustion.”
Eric. J. Hobsbawm. History of the 20th century, 1914-1991.
Teacher: Pedro Jara Vergara
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8.- What were the consequences of the First World War?
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9.- What did President W. Wilson of the USA in his 14 points?
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10.- What was the League of Nations?
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11.- Who signed the Treaty of Versailles? What did this Treaty propose?
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