Country Profile: Great Britain

Country Profile: Great Britain

Cost: $35,334,012,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military – 885,138

Civilian – 109,000

TOTAL: 994,138

Leader: David Lloyd George – Just won an election with the slogan “Germany Must Pay!”

· December 1914, German Navy attacks the British ports at Scarborough, Hartlepool, and Whitby. This results in over 600 civilian deaths

· 1916: Germany begins unrestricted submarine warfare in Britain in an attempt to starve out the island

· First ever war in which British cities were bombed. German bombing runs result in 1,400 civilians killed and 3,409 wounded.

· Many British colonial possessions have been attacked in fighting in the Middle East

· Britain has gone from being one of the world’s largest investors to being one of the biggest debtors

· Approximately $300 million in foreign investments has been lost

· More than 40% of the British merchant fleet has been sunk

· Inflation has more than doubled (the value of the British pound has fallen by 61%)

Country Profile: France

Cost: $24,265,583,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military - 1,397,800

Civilian – 300,000

TOTAL: 1,697,800

Leader: Georges Clemenceau – Has personally lived through two invasions of France by Germany

· Majority of fighting has taken place directly on French soil

· Trench warfare has left portions of France in ruins, with unexploded shells and destruction marking the countryside

· Numerous small villages and cities in northern France have been destroyed

· The attacks in France have left 40% of the coal industry and 58% of the steel industry destroyed

· Once it was clear Germany would be defeated, the German army began to destroy French mines

· Many French colonial possessions have been attack in fighting in Africa and the Middle East

· France has lost a higher percentage of its population than any other country in the war

· Constant attacks have left France demoralized, exhausted, hungry, and in debt

Country Profile: Russia

Cost: $ 22,293,950,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military - 1,811,000

Civilian – 1,500,000

TOTAL: 3,311,000

Leader: Vladimir Lenin – New communist leader of Russia

· Russian soldiers were constantly defeated by German troops at almost every encounter

· By Spring 1915, the Russians has been pushed back into their own territory

· In March 1917, a revolution led by Vladimir Lenin begins in Russia

· By November 1917, the revolution in Russia ends with Lenin’s troops winning

· In December 1917, Russia begins to negotiate an armistice agreement (cease fire) with Germany

· On March 3, 1918 Russia signs the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany and exits WW1

o This treaty gives control of Finland, Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine

o Returns land to the Ottoman Empire which was claimed in the Russo-Turkish War

· In August 1918, Russia agrees to pay Germany $6 billion in reparations

· The war has left Russia exhausted and has stripped them of a large amount of land

Country Profile: United States

Cost: $ 22,625,253,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military – 116,708

Civilian – 757

TOTAL: 117,465

Leader: Woodrow Wilson- Democrat President who had attempted

· The Allied and Axis powers both owe a large war debt to the United States

· U.S enters WW1 after Germans refuse to stop unrestricted submarine warfare, and after the interception of the Zimmerman note

· On April 2, 1917, the Americans enters the war to “make the world safe for democracy

· American power brings to war to a swift conclusion (less than 2 years)

· American troops suffer less casualties than any other country in the war

· America has emerged as the largest economic and military power on the earth

Country Profile: Germany

Cost: $ 37,775,000,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military – 2,050,897

Civilian – 462,000

TOTAL: 2,512,897

Leader: Weimar Republic – Fresh, new government that has just overthrown the Kaiser monarchy

· At the start of the conflict, Germany is the most powerful country on the planet

· Germany managed to fight off three of the largest powers in the world, France, England, and Russia (Russia was forced to surrender)

· Due to naval blockades in the North Sea, many German citizens starved to death due to food shortages

· On November 3, 1918, socialists begin a revolt against the Kaiser

· On November 9th 1918, the socialists win the revolution and establish the Weimar Republic

· On November 11th, 1918 Germany agrees to a cease fire

· No battle had ever been fought upon German soil, meaning that the German infrastructure is largely intact

· New German government is still less than a year old

Country Profile: Austria-Hungary

Cost: $ 20,622,960,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military – 1,100,000

Civilian – 467,000

TOTAL: 1,567,000

Leader: Franz Joseph- Duke of Austria Hungary who’s son, Franz Ferdinand, was assassinated

· Accidently began WW1 after the assassination of Arch-Duke Ferdinand leads to an invasion of Serbia

· The war on both the Serbian and Russian fronts were a disaster

· Becomes largely dependent on the German Army

· In 1916, Russians take advantage of Austria-Hungary’s small numbers and inflect massive casualties

· By 1916 Hungary’s food supplies, once the backbone of the Axis army, has gone dangerously low.

· In 1916, Austria Hungary attempts to sign an armistice with the Allies but the Allies turn them down

· In late 1918, socialist and pacifist protests have become common

· On November, 3 1918 the Austria-Hungary Empire signs an armistice agreement with the Allies

Country Profile: Ottoman Empire

Cost: $ 1,430,000,000 U.S dollars

Casualties:

Military – 771,844

Civilian – 2,150,000

TOTAL: 2,921,844

Leader: Said Halim Pasha

· The Ottoman Empire is constantly fighting off revolution and terrorism after entering WW1 with the Germans

· Most of the fighting takes place in the Middle East

· The Ottomans fail to take any land in Palestine, Egypt, and India

· The Ottoman Empire is given land by Russia following the end of their involvement in WW1

· Starting in March 1918, the Ottoman Empire enters into a war in Armenia

· The Ottomans sign an armistice on October 30, 1918 with the Allied powers

· Even though WW1 has ended, the Ottoman Empire still faces civil war and unrest

NAMES:

Instructions: As a group, create 10 points that your nation wants to be included in the peace treaty. Keep in mind the statistics given to your group, as well as what we learned about how the war started and was fought. Also consider how your country would have felt going into these discussions.

Country Name:

10.