The First World War:The industrial Powers Collide: Why were the Balkan States important?

• The “spark” that ignited WWI was the assassination of the arch duke of Austria-Hungary,

• The underling causes are, as we have discussed more complex. • The importance of the Balkan states, of which Serbia was a

member, lay in their geographic location. • They were positioned adjacent to the straits that link the Black

Sea to the Med. • Therefore all trade from Austria-Hungary travelling down the

Danube, from Southern Russia had to pass through Turkish controlled waters to reach global markets.

• Threats to this region therefore were taken very seriously by the major imperial powers involved.

The Balkan States• The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire had destabilized the Balkan

region. • • As a result of the shift in the balance of power in the region,

strong feelings of nationalism had developed among the Balkan States.

• •The regular ethnic uprisings and the wars of independence against Turkey following the collapse of the Ottoman empire had left the region deeply unstable, this was compounded by the development of ultranationalist movements inside the Balkan states.

• •The competing interests of the involved nation states culminated with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne which Austria used as a pretext to invade Serbia.

• •The Austro-Hungarians thought that the danger of Russia entering the conflict to protect Serbia would be balanced by Germany’s promise to support Austria-Hungary if Russia interfered.

• This proved to be a gross miscalculation

The German Question• The formation of Germany the upset the balance of power between the

major European nations. • The unification of the German states brought more than 60 million people

together presenting the industrial potential to dominate the rest of the European continent, with the right resources.

• By 1900 Germany had developed into an industrial giant. When territorial expansion became essential to sustain industrialization and economic growth, Germany began to come into conflict with the other nation states of Europe.

• German expansion into Turkey and the Middle East was blocked by Britain and France.

• German interest in S. America and the Philippines conflicted with the USA. • German interest in China and the acquisition of some Pacific islands and some

old colonial holdings in Africa did not give the German people the position of global power or “a place in the sun” which the Germans thought they deserved.

Realpolitik

• Realpolitik, from German: real “realistic”, “practical” or “actual”; and Politik “politics”, refers to politics or diplomacy based on practical considerations, rather than ideological notions or moralistic premises.

• The term realpolitik is often used pejoratively to imply politics that are coercive, amoral, or Machiavellian

• . Realpolitik is a theory of politics that focuses on considerations of power, not ideals, morals, or principles.

• The term was coined by a German writer and politician in the 19th century

• It has been defined as the principle on which nations act, in their foreign policies, driven by their own interests and not by altruism, friendship, idealism or solidarity considerations.

Weltpolitik• The "Weltpolitik" (world policy) strategy was adopted by Germany in the late 19th century, replacing

the earlier "Realpolitik" approach.• A German politician said "[i]n one word: we do not want to place anyone into the shadow, but we also

claim our place in the sun”• This was a more aggressive foreign policy which resulted in conflict between Germany and foreign

nations• The policy sought Germany's "place in the sun" commensurate with its rising industrial strength,

primarily by the creation of a colonial empire to rival those of other powers. • The most dramatic element in the policy was the construction of the High Seas Fleet, a navy which

sought to rival, or even exceed, the United Kingdom's Royal Navy in strength. • This led to an Anglo-German naval race where each sought to out-build the other in Dreadnoughts.• Weltpolitik is a natural development springing from the nationalism that had influenced Germany

Whereas before nationalism had focused on attaining the unification of Germany, when that was achieved German nationalists sought to increase Germany's international power, and a colonial empire was thought to be an essential part of this.

• Social Darwinism was popular at the time, and it stated that the idea of the survival of the fittest applied to states as well as individuals. If a state did not strive to expand, it would itself be weakened or destroyed.

• This fed into the nationalism that already existed in Germany and prompted the greater expansionism that Weltpolitik represented.

• Think/Pair/Share: What are the positive and negative attributes of Realpolitik and Weltpolitik? Do you see these government policies as over or do they still play a part on the world stage? (T: 2 min, P: 3 min S: 5 min)

The Great War: Mobilization• Initially the outbreak of war in 1914 was greeted on all sides with

enthusiasm and eager cheering mobs. • People of this time had a tendency to romanticize the war. Most people in

all of the involved countries thought the war would be over by Christmas of 1914.

• Unfortunately WWI would prove to be significantly different from the wars of the past.

• It was the first modern industrial war where technology and newly developed machinery would be systematically applied to the destruction of human life.

• This resulted in loss of life and economic devastation on an unprecedented scale.

• Within weeks of the declaration of war. Approximately 6 million men were ready to fight.

• The creation of a military of the size necessary to compete in battle, at this level, could only be sustained by the highly industrial nations.

• Nations that tried to compete on this level but had not first become adequately industrialized suffered badly during WWI, this included; Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Italy

The Western Front: Stalemate 1914

• The Germans attempt to a quick victory by following the “Schlieffen Plan”

• German armies pushed through Belgium and attacked N. France. This brought Britain into the war,

• Britain protests the violation of Belgian neutrality, guaranteed by treaty• The German Chancellor replied that the treaty is just a chiffon de papier

(a scrap of paper). • How does this relate to Weltpolitik and/or Realpolitik?• •The United Kingdom declares war on Germany in protest to the

invasion of Belgium. • Germany anticipated this, however they believed that French resistance

would be wiped out before British Troops could cross the English Channel.

• That did not happen.

Stalemate on the Western Front: Failure of the Schlieffen Plan

• The French responded with an assault on the Germans in Alsace and Lorraine. • This attack was driven back with heavy losses to the French Army. the German

First and Second Armies were ordered to swing away from Paris and surround the French armies caught between Paris and Verdun.

• •The Germans began to swerve to the southeast away from Paris, exposing their right flank to the allies.

• •French Commander-In-Chief Joseph Joffre recognized the German armies’ error, and stopped the French and British withdrawal and attack the Germans all along the front. Allied planes discovered the gap and reported it to commanders on the ground.

• •The Allies exploited the break in the German lines, dispatching troops from the BEF to join the French Army in pouring through the gap between the two German armies,

• •Nevertheless, the German forces were close to achieving a breakthrough. In one of the famous events of WWI the Sixth Army was assisted by 6,000 French reserve infantry troops ferried from Paris in around 600 taxi cabs.

Schlieffen Plan

Stalemate on the Western Front Continued: The end of the Schlieffen Plan

• The following night the French launched a surprise attack against the Germans Second Army, serving to further widen the gap between the German First and Second Armies. it looked as though the German First and Second Armies would be totally encircled and destroyed.

• General von Moltke suffered a nervous breakdown upon hearing of the danger. His subordinates took over and ordered a general retreat to the Aisne River to regroup.

• he German armies ceased their retreat after 65 km (40 miles), at a point north of the Aisne River, where they dug in, preparing trenches that were to last for several years.

• •The German retreat marked the abandonment of the Schlieffen Plan. Moltke is said to have reported to the Kaiser: “Your Majesty, we have lost the war.”

• • The Schlieffen Plan had failed. • •The line of battle moved north and west until it reached the sea. • •Armies dug in for the winter. • •By the Spring the Western Front had become a long series of entrenchments stretching from the

English Channel to Switzerland. • •This 400Km line remained relatively unchanged for the next three years. Though attempts to break

through would cost millions of lives. • •Despite the failure of the Schlieffen Plan the German position in the west was still strong. • •German forces occupied the industrial regions of Belgium and France. Initial attempts by the

French and British to throw the Germans back failed. • •The Germans decided to adopt a defensive strategy in the west and turned their attention to the

Russians in the East.

Stalemate on the Western Front: Battles of Attrition• In 1916 both sides tried to seize control by massing men and equipment against the

narrow sections of the front . • These attempts proved to be horrific in cost of lives. • Infantry troops were slaughtered by artillery and machine-guns. • These attacks went on and on sometimes for months, until shortages of men created

pauses, until more troops could be sent to the front. • The first major battle of this type was Verdun. • During 5 months of battle, over 600,000 men were killed. Nearly ½ of the dead were

German and Verdun remained in French hands. • The Russians were involved in similar confrontations. the Bursilov offensive though

initially highly effective coast a million men and was the beginning of the demoralization of the Russian army that eventually helped contribute to the Russian Revolution.

• The next allied campaign was in the Somme . The British lost 50% of their soldiers on the first day of what would be a 6 month battle. 57,470 casualties, including 19,240 dead—the bloodiest day in the history of the British Army.

• The allies gained only 10 km failed to break the German lines, and paid for it with the lives of 100’s of thousands of men, many of them Canadian.

The Eastern Front 1914-1918

• The length of the front in the East was much longer than in the West. • The theatre of war roughly extended to the Baltic Sea in the West and Moscow in the East, a

distance of 1,200 kms, and Saint Petersburg in the North and the Black Sea in the South, a distance of more than 1,600 km.

• This had an effect on the nature of the warfare. While World War I on the Western Front developed into trench warfare, the battle lines on the Eastern Front were more fluid and trenches never truly developed.

• The greater length of the front ensured that the density of soldiers in the line was lower so the line was easier to break.

• Once broken, the sparse communication networks made it difficult for the defender to rush reinforcements to the rupture in the line to mount a counteroffensive and seal off a breakthrough.

• There was also the terrain in the Eastern European often making it near impossible to construct anything like the trench systems on the Western Front

• On the Eastern front the side defending did not have the overwhelming advantages it had on the Western front.

• The war in the East began with the Russian invasion of East Prussia and the Austro-Hungarian province of Galicia. This turned into a disaster following the Battle of Tannenberg in August 1914.

• The second incursion was successful, with the Russians controlling almost all of Galicia by the end of 1914. the Russians began to push toward the Austro-Hungarian border.

• This Russian success in 1914 on the Austro-Russian border caused concern to the Central Powers considerable German forces were moved East to take pressure off the Austrians.

• At the end of 1914 the main focus of the fighting shifted to central part of Russian Poland.

The Eastern Front: 1915• The Russian and Austro-Hungarian armies continued to fight in and near the

Carpathian Mountains throughout the winter of 1914–1915. • •The Russian forces made some progress, crossing the Carpathians in 1915,

but then the Germans sent relief and stopped further Russian advance. • •In 1915 the German command decided to make its main effort on the

Eastern Front, and transferred considerable forces there. • •To eliminate the Russian threat the Central Powers began a successful

campaign in Galicia. • After the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, the German and Austro-

Hungarian troops in the Eastern Front functioned under a unified command. • •The offensive soon turned into a general advance and then a strategic

retreat by the Russian army. • •By mid-1915, the Russians had been expelled from Russian Poland and

pushed hundreds of kms away from the borders of the Central Powers, • This removed the threat of a Russian invasion of Germany or Austria-Hungary. • At the end of 1915 the main part of the front reached a line which in general

outline did not change until the Russian collapse in 1917.

The Eastern Front:1916-17• In 1916 the Russians attempted a large counteroffensive under the

leadership of General Aleksey Brusilov (the Brusilov Offensive). • •The attack, aimed against the part of the front held by Austro-

Hungarians, was initially a spectacular success largely because of its use of storm troopers.

• A successful counterattack by German units halted the Russian assault.

• • By 1917, the Russian economy finally neared collapse under the strain of the war effort.

• •While the equipment of the Russian armies actually improved due to the expansion of the war industry, the food shortages in the major urban centres brought about civil unrest which led to the abdication of the Tsar and the February Revolution.

The Eastern Front:1917-18Russia exits the war, becomes the Soviet Union and signs the

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

• In addition to food shortages the poor leadership on the part of some Russian military leaders compounded with the large war casualties created disaffection and mutinous attitudes in the army.

• •This anger was fuelled by Bolshevik (communist) agitators • The very last offensive undertaken by the Russian Army in the war

was the brief and unsuccessful Kerensky Offensive in July 1917. • •On November 29, 1917, the Communist Bolsheviks took power

under their leader Vladimir Lenin.• Lenin’s new Bolshevik government tried to end the war but the

Germans demanded enormous concessions. • •Finally, in March, 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed and

the Eastern Front ceased to be a war zone. • The Germans were able to transfer some of their divisions to the

West, in order to mount an offensive in France in 1918.

Russia: Exit Stage Left

• Russia stayed in the war despite greater losses than any other power• By 1917 its industrial and agricultural resources could no longer sustain its armies. • •German victories had destroyed the Russian army even before the overthrow of the

Tsar in the spring of 1917. • •Over 3.6 million Russian soldiers had been killed, 2.1 million were captured and an

additional 2 million + had deserted. • •The tsarist government was replaced by two provisional governments. One led by

Prince Georgi Lvov and the other by Aleksandr Kerensky. • •Inflation reached 700% and a series of strikes broke out in June, that ended supplies

going to the front. • Food shortages became widespread. • •The inability of the provisional government to supply the people and the army led to

its overthrow • The October Revolution brought Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and the Bolsheviks to power.

Lenin’s promise of “Peace, land and bread” won the hearts of the Russian people . • •Lenin immediately pulled Russia out of the war signing the “Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on

3 March 1918. • In all, the treaty took away a third of Russia's population, half of her industry and nine-

tenths of her coal mines.

Total War: costs and consequences• When World War One began all sides had counted on an short and

victorious war. This obviously was not the case. • •In order to fund a protracted war effort, governments began to

take direct control of their domestic resources. • •National employment agencies directed labour forces. • •Women of all economic groups began to work outside the home

in real numbers for the first time. • •Countries introduced conscription. • •Laws were passed banning strikes and lockouts. • •Governments passed laws rationing the use of food and consumer

goods. • •Every aspect of the combatant countries social and economic

efforts were controlled by the government and directed at the war effort.

• •This total devotion to victory is known as total war. • Do you believe war justifies this level of Government control?

World War I: The Middle East

• The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I was fought between primarily the British and the Russians on the Allied side, and the Ottoman Empire and Germans, on the other.

• •The Allied side also included the Arabs, and the Democratic Republic of Armenia after the Russian Revolution of 1917.

• •Fighting began in1914; hostilities ended in1918 and a peace treaty was signed in1920.

• •This theatre encompassed the largest territory of all the theatres of WWI. • •It comprised four main campaigns: • the Sinai and Palestine Campaign,• the Mesopotamian Campaign, • the Caucasus Campaign,• the Dardanelles Campaign. • •The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers due to a secret Ottoman-

German Alliance . • •This alliance threatened Russia's Caucasian territories and Britain's

communications with India and the East via the Suez Canal.

World War I: The Middle East, the battles

• 1914 Mesopotamian Campaign: The campaign was fought mainly in the Tigris River valley region of what is now Iraq

• •Caucasus Campaign: The Russian and Ottoman armies fought in the Caucasus and eastern Anatolia (north-eastern Turkey), with the Ottoman Empire suffering a crushing defeat 1915 .

• The Ottoman forces were ultimately able to drive them back.• Ottoman repression of the Armenian population in Anatolia,

who had evinced pro-Russian sentiments, grew into what is now called the Armenian Genocide.

• •The fighting was largely inconclusive as the focus of the Ottoman and Russian war effort shifted to the Dardanelle Campaign (Gallipoli) and the Eastern Front respectively.

World War I: The Middle East "Gallipoli".

• Dardanelles Campaign: the campaign took place on the Gallipoli Peninsula on the European side of the Dardanelles and is commonly referred to in Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland simply as "Gallipoli".

• • The British and French mounted a combined operation with the goal of capturing the Ottoman capital at Constantinople (now Istanbul).

• •The campaign started with a Naval attempt to force the Dardanelles. • •This failed so the Allies decided to seize the European side of the

Dardanelles with an amphibious assault. • •The troops were able to land but could not dislodge the Ottoman

forces• After months of battle that caused the deaths of an estimated 131,000

soldiers, and 262,000 wounded the Allied forces withdrew. • •The campaigning represented something of a coming of age for

Australia and New Zealand they view Gallipoli much the same way Canadians look at Vimy Ridge.

World War I: The Middle East Continued• Arab Revolt: The British, based in Egypt, began to incite the Arabs

living near the Red Sea and inland to revolt to expel the Ottoman forces from what is the modern-day Saudi Arabian peninsula.

• •Sinai and Palestine Campaign: The Ottomans launched an unsuccessful attack across the Sinai with the objective of destroying or capturing the Suez Canal.

• •Arab Revolt: 1916, The planning and direction for this war was largely the work of Lawrence of Arabia (a British Military agent). The revolts success was aided by General Allenby's conquest of Palestine in 1917

• •Sinai and Palestine Campaign: The Ottoman forces launched a second attack across the Sinai with the objective of destroying or capturing the Suez Canal, they failed in this objective

• •The British then went on the offensive, attacking east into Palestine. Mesopotamian Campaign: British Empire forces reorganized and captured Baghdad in March 1917.

• •Caucasus Campaign: Russia effectively withdrew from the war in 1917; the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk of 1918 eventually restored to Ottoman Empire the territories it had lost to Russia

The US Enters the War• The United States originally pursued a policy of isolationism in WWI, (avoiding conflict). • •This resulted in increased tensions with Berlin and London. • •When a German U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania in 1915, with 128 Americans

aboard, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson demanded an end to attacks on passenger ships.

• •. Wilson repeatedly warned the U.S. would not tolerate unrestricted submarine warfare, in violation of international law and U.S. ideas of human rights..

• • Other factors contributing to the U.S. entry into the war include suspected German sabotage.

• •the Zimmermann Telegram intercepted by Britain and shown to the US was an ill-conceived plan for Mexico to join the war as Germany's ally against the United States, should the U.S. join.

• •The proposal suggested, if the U.S. were to enter the war, Mexico should declare war against the United States and enlist Japan as an ally.

• This would prevent the United States from joining the Allies and deploying troops to Europe, and would give Germany more time for their unrestricted submarine warfare program to strangle Britain's vital war supplies. In return, the Germans would promise Mexico support in reclaiming Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.

Final Days: Cost of the War• The final German attack an the Western Front began in the spring of 1918. The

came within 40 km of Paris before they ran out of resources. • •That August the allies started to push the Germans back. • •In retreat German and Austrian forces disintegrated, causing political upheaval in

Germany and Austria-Hungary. • •The Austro-Hungarian empire dissolved into a number of successor states. In

total, it lost land to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Poland, Romania, and Italy.• •The Ottoman Empire disintegrated. • • Germany was swept into chaos culminating with the Kaiser abdicating and going

into exile in Holland. • •The Weimar Republic was proclaimed in Germany and Armistice terms were

signed on 11 of November 1918. • •The War cost 10 million dead and 21 million wounded. It effectively exterminated

a significant portion of a generation of youth. Financial costs were estimated at $330 billion.

• •The Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman and Russian empires were gone and German imperial holdings were placed under control of the League of Nations.

The Ottoman Empire• The Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire was the distribution of the huge

conglomeration of territories and peoples formerly ruled by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire

• The partitioning was planned from the early days of the war, the Allies, disagreed over their post-war aims and made several dual and triple agreements.

• After the occupation of Istanbul by British and French troops in November, 1918, the Ottoman government collapsed completely

• However, the Turkish War of Independence forced the former Allies to return to the negotiations.

• The Allies and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey signed and ratified the Treaty of Lausannein 1923, superseding the Treaty of Sèvres (1920) and solidifying most territorial issues.

• The partitioning created the modern Arab world including the Republic of Turkey. • The League of Nations granted France mandates over Syria and Lebanon • It granted the UK: Palestine and Transjordan• . Parts of the Ottoman Empire on the Arabian Peninsula became parts of what are

today Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Brief history of British in Palistine

World War I: Post War• In Jan. of 1919 the allied powers met in Paris. • •The Major decisions that ultimately led to the Treaty of Versailles

were made by the “Big Three”: Great Britain (led by David Lloyd George) France ( Georges Clemenceau) and The USA (Woodrow Wilson) •Together they redrew the political map of Europe.

• •They declared the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk void. • •Germany went back to its 1914 borders • •Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France. • •Danzig was made a free city • •The Polish corridor was created to give Poland access to the sea

through Prussia. • •Wilson’s proposal to end the war and avoid future conflicts

consisted of 14 points. •

World War I: Post War (cont.)• Economic reconstruction proved to be a complex task • • Both the victors (excluding the US) and the vanquished faced economic

difficulties• •Russia and France were the hardest hit • Russia suffering in a civil war • France being the victim of the Germans scorched-earth policy which destroyed

crops, burned houses, flooded mines, slaughtered livestock, and left transportation routes sabotaged

• •Reparation coasts, demanded in the War Guilt clause of the Treaty of Versailles, totalled $330 billion dollars.

• Germany could only pay if it was admitted to world markets but Britain and France did not want a revived German industry

• •Germany was required to pay an initial 5 billion with a final total of 33 billion. • Germans were in a state of shock and disbelief. People were led to believe that

the Treaty of Versailles was punitive and unjust. Germany didn’t even participate in the negotiations, just told to sign the finished draft.

Major players WWI The Allies: Russia

• Russia• Nicholas II- Tsar of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland.• Nicholas II was the last Tsar of Russia from 1894 to 1917. Nicholas was unable to

manage a country in political turmoil and command its army in World War I. While the war was still going on, because of the failure of government to produce supplies, Russia was facing hardship, which create massive riots and rebellions. People start to go on strikes in Petrograd. His rule ended with the Russian Revolution.

• Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich - Commander-in-chief and viceroy in the Caucasus• Alexander Samsonov - Commander of the Russian Second Army for the invasion of

East Prussia• Paul von Rennenkampf - Commander of the Russian First Army for the invasion of

East Prussia• Nikolai Ivanov - Commander of the Russian army on the Southwestern Front,

responsible for much of the action in Galicia• Aleksei Brusilov - Commander of the South-West Front, then provisional

Commander-in-Chief after the Tsar's abdication

Major Players WWI The Allies: France• France• Raymond Poincaré - President of France

• Georges Clemenceau- Prime Minister of France. At the end of the war he largely represented the people of France in that he wanted revenge upon the German nation.

• Clemenceau wanted to impose policies deliberately meant to cripple Germany militarily, politically, and economically.

• Clemenceau's intentions were to weaken Germany’s military to be not only for the time being, but permanently so that they would not be able to invade France again.

• Joseph Joffre- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal of France• Ferdinand Foch- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal of France• Robert Nivelle- Commander-in-Chief of the French Army• Philippe Pétain - Commander-in-Chief of the French Army and Marshal of

France

Major Players WWI The Allies: The UK• United Kingdom• George V- King of the United Kingdom and the other

Commonwealth Realms, Emperor of India• H. H. Asquith - Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

• David Lloyd George- Prime Minister of the United Kingdom• Lloyd George wanted the Germans to pay for causing the war.

• Douglas Haig - Commander-in-Chief of the BEF• John Jellicoe- First Sea Lord

• Horatio Herbert Kitchener - Secretary of State for War

And their friends• Serbia• Peter I - King of Serbia Belgium• Albert I of Belgium - King of Belgium Italy• Victor Emmanuel III - King of Italy (April 1915 Italy joined the Entente and on 3 May 1915 officially

rejected the Triple Alliance.)• Luigi Cadorna - Commander-in-Chief of the Italian army• Armando Diaz - Chief of General Staff of the Italian army• Lugi Amedeo- Commander-in-Chief of the Adriatic Fleet of Italy Romania• Constantin Prezan - Chief of the General Staff of Romania• Alexandru Averescu - Commander of the Romanian 2nd Army, 3rd Army, then Army Group South

• United States of America• Woodrow Wilson - President of the United States• Wilson believed that the Europeans must learn to live peacefully with one another. He proposed the

League of Nations. • John J. Pershing - Commander of the American Expeditionary Force Japan• Emperor Taishō - Emperor of Japan• Ōkuma Shigenobu - Prime Minister of Japan

Major Players WWI the other side ( central powers):

• Franz Josef I - Emperor of Austria-Hungary (died 1916)• Karl I - Emperor of Austria-Hungary• Conrad von Hötzendorf - Chief of the Austro-Hungarian

General Staff• Arthur Arz von Straussenburg- Chief of the Austro-

Hungarian General Staff• Anton Haus- Commander-in-Chief of the Austro-

Hungarian Navy• Maximilian Njegovan - Commander-in-Chief of the

Austro-Hungarian Navy

Major Players WWII: the other side (central powers) Germany

• German Empire Wilhelm II - German Emperor• Erich von Falkenhayn - Chief of the German General Staff

• Paul von Hindenburg - Chief of the German General Staff• Reinhard Scheer - Commander of the Imperial High Seas Fleet• Erich Ludendorff - Deputy Chief of Staff of the German Army• Wilhelm Souchon - German Naval Advisor to the Ottoman Empire• Otto Liman von Sanders - German Army Advisor to the Ottoman

Empire• Paul Erich von Lettow-Vorbeck German Army Commander of East

Africa Campaign• Hermann von François Germany Army General

Major Players WWII: the other side (central powers) The Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria

• Ottoman Empire • Mehmed V - Sultan of the Ottoman Empire• İsmail Enver - Commander-in-Chief of the Ottoman Army

• Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - Commander of the Second Army

• Bulgaria• Ferdinand I - Czar of Bulgaria• Nikola Zhekov - Commander-in-Chief of the Bulgarian Army• Georgi Todorov - commander of the 2nd Army, deputy Commander-in-

Chief• Konstantin Zhostov - Chief of the Bulgarian General Staff• Vladimir Vazov - Bulgarian Lieutenant General

1. Norway2. Sweden3. Denmark4. Netherlands5. Belgium6. Portugal

7. Switzerland8. Estonia9. Latvia10. Lithuania11. Germany-East Prussia12. Czechoslovakia

13. Austria14. Hungary15. Yugoslavia16. Albania17. Greece18. Bulgaria