The Great War - History Book Chapter Page 15
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26The World at War, 1914–1918
War rages in
Southwest Asia as
Arab nationalists
battle their Turkish
Japan declares war on
Main fighting of
rulers.
Germany in 1914; seizes
the war occurs on
German colonies in
Arctic Circle
Western and
China and the Pacific.
0
4,000 Miles
Eastern Fronts.
0
8,000 Kilometers
ASIA
NORTH
EUROPE
AMERICA
40°N
JAPAN
ATLANTIC
SOUTHWEST ASIA
The United States
OCEAN
enters the war on
INDIA
the side of the
Tropic of Cancer
Allies in 1917.
PACIFIC
AFRICA
OCEAN
PACIFIC
0°
OCEAN
SOUTH
India provides about
AMERICA
1.3 million men to fight
and labor alongside
The European colonies
Brazil is the only South
their British rulers
throughout Africa become
American country to
throughout Europe.
Tropic of Capricorn
a battlefield as the warring
enter the war. It supports
AUSTRALIA
parties strike at one another’s
the Allies with warships
INDIAN OCEAN
colonial possessions.
and personnel.
40°S
NEW
Both countries fight on
ZEALAND
the side of the Allies and
contribute many troops to
the 1915 Gallipoli campaign
in Southwest Asia.
GEOGRAPHY SKILLBUILDER:
Interpreting Maps
1.
Region Which countries were aligned with the European Allies?
2.
Location Outside of Europe, where was World War I fought?
China. They also captured Germany’s Pacific island colonies. English and French
troops attacked Germany’s four African possessions. They seized control of three.
Elsewhere in Asia and Africa, the British and French recruited subjects in their
colonies for the struggle. Fighting troops as well as laborers came from India,
South Africa, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, and Indochina. Many fought and died on the
battlefield. Others worked to keep the front lines supplied. To be sure, some colo-
nial subjects wanted nothing to do with their European rulers’ conflicts. Others vol-
unteered in the hope that service would lead to their independence. This was the
view of Indian political leader Mohandas Gandhi, who supported Indian participa-
tion in the war. “If we would improve our status through the help and cooperation
of the British,” he wrote, “it was our duty to win their help by standing by them in
their hour of need.”
America Joins the Fight
In 1917, the focus of the war shifted to the high seas.
That year, the Germans intensified the submarine warfare that had raged in the
Atlantic Ocean since shortly after the war began. In January 1917, the Germans
announced that their submarines would sink without warning any ship in the waters
unrestricted submarine warfare
around Britain. This policy was called
.
The Germans had tried this policy before. On May 7, 1915, a German subma-
rine, or U-boat, had sunk the British passenger ship Lusitania. The attack left 1,198
people dead, including 128 U.S. citizens. Germany claimed that the ship had been
carrying ammunition, which turned out to be true. Nevertheless, the American
public was outraged. President Woodrow Wilson sent a strong protest to Germany.
After two further attacks, the Germans finally agreed to stop attacking neutral and
passenger ships.
852
Chapter 29
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