2.4+Results+of+WW1

= __Results of World War One__ = = = **__Past Questions:__**
 * Analyse (a) the short-term results, and (b) the long-term results up to 1935, of the First World War. (May 2009)
 * Analyse the results of **either** the First World War **or** the Second World War. (May 2007)
 * Compare and contrast the results of the First World War and the Second World War. (May 2006)
 * Analyse the results of **either** the First World War **or** the Second World War. (May 2005)
 * Analyse the results of //two// wars, each chosen from a different region.(May 2004)

MARKSCHEME NOTES FOR THESE QUESTIONS

__**Context:**__
 * After 4 years of fighting an **armistice** was signed on **November 11th 1918** to end the war. Germany surrendered hoping to secure a peace treaty on the basis of **Wilson’s 14 points,** leaving the Allies (chiefly Britain, France, USA and Italy as victors) as victors, and the Central Powers the defeated (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Turkey). When the Allies met for the **Paris Peace Settlements** in 1919, to try and create a lasting peace and resolve the issues behind the war, they were facing a vastly changed Europe from that of 1914.



__**Key //political// results of the war, domestically and internationally:**__
 * **Political map of Europe re-drawn**: collapse of four great empires in central and Eastern Europe (Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire). Following the Paris settlement, 9 new **successor states** emerged, including Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Austria and Yugoslavia. This meant the traditional **balance of power** was destroyed, replaced by a power vacuum of new unstable states undermined by ethnic rivalry within them.




 * **Collapse of imperial monarchy and rise of republicanism:** Historian Niall Ferguson argues that the war saw a loss of faith in the monarchy in many states and “//a triumph of republicanism undreamt of even in the 1790s”.// Furthermore, the traditional assumption that traditional governing elites ‘knew best’ and had a ‘natural right’ to govern was shattered forever. Key examples of the effects this could have is the **rise of radical fascist political movements in Germany and Italy** in the interwar years.




 * **Continuity:** surprising fact is the amount that the war did **not** change - i.e. Britain and France kept their empires and continued with //colonial policies//; and //nationalism// remained a powerful force in European politics.


 * **L** **eague of Nations set up as attempt to reform international relations:** as part of the Paris Peace Settlements, and a central part of Wilson’s vision for a more ethical system of diplomacy than that which had contributed to war in 1914, a new international organization was set up in 1920 with its headquarters in Geneva.




 * __Key //economic// results of the war:__**
 * **Massive economic cost:** perhaps the greatest impact of the war was economic, given its huge cost of **£34,000 million.** This shattered the previous century’s economic progress. All powers had paid for the war though loans, and the need to repay these after the war created a difficult economic situation in the 1920s, especially in Germany where **inflation** quickly destroyed the currency and the savings of many middle-class Germans.


 * **Physical damage caused by the war:** also had a negative impact on the European economy, as large amounts of land and industry had been destroyed where the war was fought. This meant that **manufacturing output decline dramatically.** Taken together with the **loss of trade and foreign investments over 4 years** this left Europe facing economic crisis in 1919.


 * **Decline of Europe, rise of America:** the European powers were indebted to America, who saw her **share of world trade increase significantly** in this period. This signified **the decline of Britain and France as Great Powers**, and the gradual emergence of USA as the **world’s economic superpower.**



__**Key //social// results of the war:**__
 * **Human cost and the ‘lost generation’: 8 million dead soldiers** left a huge legacy of **dependents** (widows, children, war-wounded) that had to be supported by the state through pensions. Furthermore, in difficult conditions at the end of the war **5 million civilians died from disease,** and **15 million died** from a flu epidemic in 1918-9 in Europe as a whole.




 * **Improved position of trade unions and workers:** given the government’s dependence upon industry for military production during the war, workers and organized labour (ie. trade unions) were able to **seek greater social and political power.** This led to **improved pay and conditions,** and in Britian **various social legislation** after the war, including **social insurance benefits** for unemployed workers and their families.


 * **Improved position and social status of women:** the demands of a ‘war economy’ brought women new employment opportunities in traditionally male-dominated roles, such as industry, engineering and transport - in Britain, an extra 1.5 million women entered the workforce. Though the war’s end and the return of the men meant that women were often forced back into the home, these new experiences **increased their confidence and led to increasing demands for more opportunities in the future.** Women also gained greater rights in society largely as a result of their contribution in the First World War - in Britain women were now allowed to train for new professions such as architects and lawyers, while in many counties women were given a political voice through **receiving the vote.**



__**Resources:**__