CHAPTER THREE: World War I

Explore

First World War
This site is a multimedia history of World War I, featuring primary documents, photographs, an encyclopedia, memoirs and diaries.

Click on "Trench Warfare," then read through to following article. Be sure to watch the video footage of trench life. What percentage of war deaths occurred in the trenches, according to some estimates? What caused Trench Fever, and why were attempts to stop it at its source largely ineffective?


World War One (BBC)
The BBC's Web site offers a broad range of articles and interactive features about World War I, including video interviews with British veterans, soldiers' poems, historical accounts of various battles, and battle simulations.

Click on "The Western Front Animation," then follow the links to play this interactive illustration of the military campaign waged on the Western Front. According to this animation and its captions, how did the Schlieffen Plan work? How many people died during the Battle of Verdun? Which side gained ground at the Battle of the Somme?


The Great War Map
With an interactive map of Europe, the PBS Web site allows you to watch how World War I unfolded. It also contains a glossary of important terms related to the war and a well-organized chronology of important World War I events.

Click on "The Outbreak of War," then begin the animation. On August 4, 1914, who did Germany declare war against? What was France's response, and why? What occurred at the Battle of Tannenburg?


Eyewitness to History
This site contains first-person stories of World War I, from letters and diary entries to memoirs and autobiographies.

Click on "Lawrence of Arabia, 1918," to read an account of T.E. Lawrence's experience in World War I. What was his position, and what is his most infamous role in the war? Why was it so controversial?