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The First World War

Interactive Timeline

Life on the Western Front - an interactive decision making exercise

Causes of the First World War

The Schlieffen Plan

War Poetry

The Role of Britain in the First World war

Trench Warfare

Weapons

The Home Front

Statistics

 

The Causes of the First World War

There are many reasons why the World went to war in 1914. These are some of the more important reasons.

 

Why did the world go to war in 1914?

The events of 28h June 1914, when Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Crown Prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was assassinated, are considered to be the spark for war. This event triggered decades of underlying tensions, and kickstarted a series of events that led to war. The longer term causes of the war can be broken down into easy to remember mneumonics:

Militiarism

Alliances

Imperialism

Nationalism

This section of the GCSE First World War unit provides a brief narrative of some of these causes. Please note, this unit needs to be expanded and areas currently not covered ARE very important for the GCSE Modern World History course.

Militarism
Alliances
Imperialism
Nationalism

Alsace - Lorraine

The Assassination of Franz Ferdinand

A revision guide covering all of the MAIN long and short term causes of the First World War is provided here.

Activities:

Alliances and Militarism - a diamond 9 thinking skills exercise created using Classtools.net

Alliances and Nationalism - a diamond 9 thinking skills exercise created using Classtools.net

Causes of the First World War - a timeline / research exercise created using Classtools.net
In this unit:

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Recommended Books related to the History of the First World War

   

 

SchoolsHistory.org.uk highly recommends these sites:

Schoolhistory.co.uk - fantastic range of interactive games, revision materials and links.
ActiveHistory.co.uk - outstanding use of ICT to engage pupils.
Thinkinghistory.co.uk - a brilliant range of learning activities from Ian Dawson
JohnDClare.net - simply the best for Modern World GCSE students
Historyboxes.com - make your lessons 'real' with artefacts and living history provided by experts
Schoolshistory.com - same author as this site, just put together in a slightly different way!