2. As U.S. prepared
• U-boats continued assault on supplies ships
844 Allied ships sunk
Protecting Allied Shipping
• Convoy system developed
Large group of merchant vessels sailing together
• Light & fast Allied destroyers accompanied
convoy
3. John J. Pershing
• Commander of American Expeditionary Force
• Wanted Americans to fight in separate units
under American command
June 1917
• American troops reached Europe
Not ready to combat; meant to increase French moral;
symbolized American commitment to the war
4. 1917
• Allies waited for more American troops
• Western Front: British offensive slowed in
Belgium
• Central Powers: major victory over Italians at
Caporetto
Russia Makes Peace
• New gov’t struggled w/ war effort
• 2 million soldiers deserted front lines
• German troops drove deep into Russia
5. Vladimir Lenin
• Leader of Bolsheviks; seized power on Nov. 7, 1917
• Wanted communism
• Embraced ideas of German thinker Karl Marx
Workers around the world would unite to overthrow the
ruling class
March 1918
• Russia & Germany sign peace treaty
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
30% of Russia’s territory to Germany
Setback
• Peace in the east
40 divisions of German army now re-focused to Western
Front
6. March 21, 1918
• Series of daring attacks
Goal: defeat allies quickly & bring peace on German terms
Pershing
• Pledged U.S. troops would now fight under French
command
“Infantry, artillery, aviation, all that we have are yours”,
“Use them as you wish”
2 months before significant contributions made
Germans
• Broke through Allied line in Belgium & France
Reached Chateau Thierry (50 miles from Paris)
• U.S. troops arrived to reinforce the Allies
7. American
& French counterattacked
Germans near Chateau-Thierry
• Americans: evict Germans from Belleau Wood
Filled w/ barbed wire, artillery, & machine guns
Suffered heavy casualties, but were successful
2nd battle of Marne
• Germans second attempt to reach Paris
• Gained ground, but stalled
• Allies counterattacked
8. German troops
• Became weakened by influenza & deprived of
supplies; started losing will to fight
September 1918
• Allied forces pushed forward from North Sea to
Verdun
• 1 million Americans advanced towards Meuse
River & Argonne Forest
Advanced slow at first; by November German
defense crumbled under unrelenting assault
9. Cause was lost
• Realized by military & political leaders of
Germany
No reserves left
Sought an armistice or halt in fighting
Germans
• Knew French & British wanted harsh settlement
• Germans wanted peace on Wilson’s “14 Points”
October 16, Germans requested armistice based on
14-Points, but Wilson was reluctant
10. France & Britain
• Dictated terms of armistice
• Germany: pull back forces on Western Front, cancel
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, & hand over fleet of U-boats
• Other Central Powers: also wanted armistice; in no
position to resist Allied demands
Wilson
• Insisted Kaiser (absolute monarch of Germany) step
down
• Kaiser Wilhelm II fled to Holland & soon gave up the
throne & Germany became a republic
11. Armistice
• Took effect 11 a.m. on November 11
11 day of 11 month of 1918
10 million military personnel died
Millions of other soldiers were blinded,
lost limbs, suffered permanent lung
damage, or experienced psychological
problems
Unknown civilian deaths
