I have complied a list of really good sites that deal with WWI. You may use these sites to do your work, or use them as a starting point. If you do use other sites, make sure that they are reputable sites, not personal web pages on geocities or the like. 

http://www.worldwar1.com/
http://www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwi/
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/
http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/lect15.htm
http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/lect15.htm
http://google.yahoo.com/bin/query?p=causes+of+world+war+i&hc=0&hs=3
http://www.ukans.edu/~kansite/wwi-1298/msg00688.html
http://www.history.sfasu.edu/WarHistory1.html
http://library.thinkquest.org/12367/background/
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWW.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/special_report/1998/10/98/world_war_i/newsid_197000/197437.stm
http://encarta.msn.com/find/Concise.asp?z=1&pg=2&ti=761569981
http://search.eb.com/bol/topic?eu=118861&sctn=1#s_top

*On Friday, you must turn in  a draft of one of the following assignments in word document form. 
*On Monday, you must turn in one of the following assignments in word document form, in Times New Roman 12 font, double spaced, 1" margins, with a list of the sites you used for your paper.

A.    Using information from your website research, answer two of the following questions. Make sure your  answers are in complete sentences, and ach is at least two paragraphs in length. 
 

 1. List at least two causes of WWI, explaining the significance of each. 
 2. Who do you think was ultimately responsible for causing WWI. Explain your answer using historical evidence   to support your choice. 
3. Imagine that you are one of the major players in WWI. Discuss your motivation for participating in the war. 
4. How did the new found nationalism that we just studied impact the outbreak of WWI ? Did the fervor have a greater effect on some countries than others? Explain your answers. 
5. It is said that Austro-Hungary wanted to go to war, and took measures to ensure that this happened. Do you agree? Why or why not?

B.     OR,  DO THE FOLLOWING  “ WHAT WOULD YOU DO NEXT ? ” EXERCISE.

Read the following ‘Decision Points’ and decide what you would do if you were the figure in question. Please type your answers into a word document, being sure to use complete sentences. Choose 2-3 people/scenarios. 

Causes of World War I: Decision Points

Nationalism: The Black Hand Meets 

Decision Point—Nikola Paši? 
Assume you are Nikola Paši?, the prime minister of Serbia. You know that the Black Hand has targeted the Austrian archduke Franz Ferdinand for assassination during his visit to Sarajevo. The assassins have crossed the border from Serbia to Bosnia. You send a veiled warning through your ambassador to Austria-Hungary, but the warning is not taken seriously. 

At home, you are being pressured by Serbian nationalists to be more Pan-Slavic in your actions. However, you have a diplomatic obligation to try to prevent this possible assassination. 
What would you do now and why? 

Decision Point—Oskar Potiorek 

Assume you are Oskar Potiorek, the governor of Bosnia. Your honored guest, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir apparent to the throne of your ruling empire, Austria-Hungary, has just narrowly escaped an assassination attempt. 
Although initially upset, the archduke regains his composure. In fact, Archduke Franz Ferdinand jokes that Vienna may decorate the assassin unless he’s arrested quickly. He is obviously aware that many Austrians do not support his view to grant greater rights to Serbs and other minorities in Bosnia. 
If you were Governor Potiorek, what would you do now, and why? 

Decision Point—Franz Josef 

Assume you are Franz Josef, the emperor of Austria-Hungary. You need to make a decision about how to respond to Serbia in regard to the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, by Serbian terrorists. If you threaten war, you know that Russia may come to Serbia’s aid. You need German military support to fight against Russia. 
Your ambassador in Germany has met with the German kaiser. He has written you a report conveying his impressions on the question of German support. 
You are also aware of a telegram from the German chancellor to his ambassador in Austria. 
Read the ambassador’s report and the telegram to decide if you have enough support from Germany to make threats of war against Serbia. 

To what extent will Germany back Austria-Hungary if you retaliate against Serbia? Use evidence from the documents to support your answer. 

Ambassador’s Report [A report to Franz Josef from the Austrian ambassador conveying his impressions of Germany's level of support for Austria-Hungary] 
Potsdam 
July 5, 1914 
After lunch, when I again called attention to the seriousness of the situation, the Kaiser authorized me to inform our gracious Majesty [Austro-Hungarian emperor Franz Josef] that we might in this case, as in all others, rely on Germany's full support. He [Kaiser Wilhelm II] must ... first hear what the Imperial Chancellor [Herr von Bethmann-Hollweg, chancellor of Germany and staunch advocate of German support for Austria-Hungary] has to say, but he did not doubt in the least that Herr von Bethmann Hollweg would agree with him. Especially as far as our action against Serbia was concerned ... Russia's attitude will no doubt be hostile, but to this he [Kaiser Wilhelm II] had been for years prepared, and should a war between Austria-Hungary and Russia be unavoidable, we might be convinced that Germany, our old faithful ally, would stand at our side. Russia at the time was in no way prepared for war, and would think twice before it appealed to arms. But it will certainly set other powers on to the Triple Alliance and add fuel to the fire in the Balkans. He [Kaiser Wilhelm II] understands perfectly well that His Apostolic Majesty [Franz Josef I] in his well-known love of peace would be reluctant to march into Serbia; but if we had really recognized the necessity of warlike action against Serbia, he [Kaiser Wilhelm II] would regret if we did not make use of the present moment, which is all in our favor. 
 

Telegram 
[Telegram from the Imperial Chancellor, von Bethmann-Hollweg, to the German Ambassador at Vienna, Tschirschky, July 6, 1914] 
I replied to Count Szagyeny [The Austrian ambassador to Germany] today on behalf of His Majesty [Kaiser Wilhelm II] that His Majesty sends his thanks to the Emperor Francis Joseph for his letter and would soon answer it personally. In the meantime His Majesty desires to say that he is not blind to the danger which threatens Austria-Hungary and thus the Triple Alliance as a result of the Russian and Serbian Pan-Slavic agitation ... 
Finally, as far as concerns Serbia, His Majesty, of course, cannot interfere in the dispute now going on between Austria-Hungary and that country, as it is a matter not within his competence. The Emperor Frances Joseph may, however, rest assured that His Majesty will faithfully stand by Austria-Hungary, as is required by the obligations of his alliance and of his ancient friendship. 
BETHMANN-HOLLWEG [Chancellor of Germany and staunch advocate of German support for Austria-Hungary] 

Decision Point—Nikola Paši? 

Assume you are Nikola Paši?, the prime minister of Serbia. After almost a month of waiting to see what Austria-Hungary would do in response to the assassination, you have an ultimatum from Austria-Hungary. You need to respond to Austria-Hungary’s demands. 
Read the ultimatum and decide whether or not you will agree to the terms. Refer to specific points in the ultimatum and use what you know about the assassination to explain your decision. Be sure to consider the following questions: 
? What do you know about Serbia’s role in the assassination? 
? Are there any elements of the ultimatum you think are unreasonable? 

Austrian Ultimatum to Serbia 
The Austro-Hungarian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Berchtold [Leopold von Berchtold], to the Minister of Belgrade, von Giesl [The Austrian ambassador to Serbia] 
Vienna [The capital of Austria], July 22, 1914 

Your Excellency [The Austrian ambassador to Serbia] will present the following note to the Royal Government [Serbia’s government] on the afternoon of Thursday, July 23: 

On the 31st of March, 1909, the Royal Serbian Minister at the Court of Vienna made, in the name of his Government [Serbia], the following declaration to the Imperial and Royal Government [Austria-Hungary]: 

Serbia recognizes that her rights were not affected by the state of affairs created in Bosnia, and states that she will accordingly accommodate herself to the decisions to be reached by the Powers in connection with Article 25 of the Treaty of Berlin. Serbia, in accepting the advice of the Great Powers, binds herself to desist from the attitude of protest and opposition which she has assumed with regard to the annexation since October last, and she furthermore binds herself to alter the tendency of her present policy toward Austria-Hungary, and to live on the footing of friendly and neighborly relations with the latter in the future. 
Now the history of the past few years, and particularly the painful events of the 28th of June, have proved the existence of a subversive [Intended to overthrow or undermine an established government, in this case, Austria-Hungary's rule in Bosnia] movement in Serbia, whose object it is to separate certain portions of its territory from the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. This movement, which came into being under the very eyes of the Serbian Government, subsequently found statement outside of the territory of the Kingdom in acts of terrorism, in a number of attempts at assassination, and in murders. 
Far from fulfilling the formal obligations contained in its declaration of the 31st of March, 1909, the Royal Serbian Government has done nothing to suppress this movement. It has tolerated the criminal activities of the various unions and associations directed against the Monarchy, the unchecked utterances of the press, the glorification of the authors of assassinations, the participation of officers and officials in subversive intrigues; it has tolerated an unhealthy propaganda in its public instruction; and it has tolerated, finally, every manifestation which could betray the people of Serbia into hatred of the Monarchy and contempt for its institutions. 
This toleration of which the Royal Serbian Government was guilty, was still in evidence at that moment when the events of the twenty-eighth of June exhibited to the whole world the dreadful consequences of such tolerance. 
It is clear from the statements and confessions of the criminal authors of the assassination of the twenty-eighth of June, that the murder at Sarajevo was conceived at Belgrade, that the murderers received the weapons and the bombs with which they were equipped from Serbian officers and officials who belonged to the Narodna Odbrana [Literally "Defense of the People," a secret society focused on Pan-Slavism that was founded in Serbia in 1908 AFTER Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1911, "Union or Death," also known as the Black Hand, formed as an outgrowth of this older Serb nationalist group.], and, finally, that the dispatch of the criminals and of their weapons to Bosnia was arranged and effected under the conduct of Serbian frontier authorities. 
The results brought out by the inquiry no longer permit the Imperial and Royal Government to maintain the attitude of patient tolerance which it has observed for years toward those agitations which center at Belgrade and are spread thence into the territories of the Monarchy. Instead, these results impose upon the Imperial and Royal Government the obligation to put an end to those intrigues, which constitute a standing menace to the peace of the Monarchy. 
In order to attain this end, the Imperial and Royal Government finds itself compelled to demand that the Serbian Government give official assurance that it will condemn the propaganda directed against Austria-Hungary, that is to say, the whole body of the efforts whose ultimate object it is to separate from the Monarchy territories that belong to it; and that it will obligate itself to suppress with all the means at its command this criminal and terroristic propaganda. 
In order to give these assurances a character of solemnity, the Royal Serbian Government will publish on the first page of its official organ [Document] of July 26/13 [July 26, 1913], the following declaration: 

"The Royal Serbian Government condemns the propaganda directed against Austria-Hungary, that is to say, the whole body of the efforts whose ultimate object it is to separate from the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy territories that belong to it, and it most sincerely regrets the dreadful consequences of these criminal transactions. 

"The Royal Serbian Government regrets that the Serbian officers and officials should have taken part in the above-mentioned propaganda and thus have endangered the friendly and neighborly relations, to the cultivation of which the Royal Government had most solemnly pledged itself by its declarations of March 31, 1909. 
"The Royal Government, which disapproves and repels every idea and every attempt to interfere in the destinies of the population of whatever portion of Austria-Hungary, regards it as its duty most expressly to call attention of the officers, officials and the whole population of the kingdom to the fact that for the future it will proceed with the utmost rigor against any persons who shall become guilty of any such activities, activities to prevent and suppress which, the Government will bend every effort." 
 

This declaration shall be brought to the attention of the Royal army simultaneously by an order of the day from His Majesty the King, and by publication in the official organ of the army. 

The Royal Serbian Government will furthermore pledge itself: 

1. to suppress every publication which shall incite to hatred and contempt of the Monarchy, and the general tendency of which shall be directed against the territorial integrity of the latter; 
2. to proceed at once to the dissolution of the Narodna Odbrana, to confiscate all of its means of propaganda, and in the same manner to proceed against the other unions and associations in Serbia which occupy themselves with propaganda against the other unions and associations in Serbia which occupy themselves with propaganda against Austria-Hungary; the Royal Government will take such measures as are necessary to make sure that the dissolved associations may not continue their activities under other names or in other forms; 
3. to eliminate without delay from public instruction in Serbia, everything, whether connected with the teaching corps or with the methods of teaching, that serves or may serve to nourish the propaganda against Austria-Hungary; 
4. to remove from the military and administrative service in general all officers and officials who have been guilty of carrying on the propaganda against Austria-Hungary, whose names the Imperial and Royal Government reserves the right to make known to the Royal Government when communicating the material evidence now in its possession; 
5. to agree to the cooperation in Serbia of the organs of the Imperial and Royal Government in the suppression of the subversive movement directed against the integrity of the Monarchy; 
6. to institute a judicial inquiry against every participant in the conspiracy of the twenty-eighth of June who may be found in Serbian territory; the organs of the Imperial and Royal Government delegated for this purpose will take part in the proceedings held for this purpose; 
7. to undertake with all haste the arrest of Major Voislav Tankositch [Serbian official accused of membership in Narodna Odbrana by Austria-Hungary] and of one Milan Ciganovitch [Serbian official accused of membership in Narodna Odbrana by Austria-Hungary], a Serbian official, who have been compromised by the results of the inquiry; 
8. by efficient measures to prevent the participation of Serbian authorities in the smuggling of weapons and explosives across the frontier; to dismiss from the service and to punish severely those members of the Frontier Service at Schabats and Losnitza [Serbian border crossings where members of the Black Hand may have entered Bosnia-Herzogovina enroute to Sarajevo to assassinate Franz Ferdinand] who assisted the authors of the crime of Sarajevo to cross the frontier; 
9. to make explanations to the Imperial and Royal Government concerning the unjustifiable utterances of high Serbian functionaries in Serbia and abroad, who, without regard for their official position, have not hesitated to express themselves in a manner hostile toward Austria-Hungary since the assassination of the twenty-eighth of June; 
10. to inform the Imperial and Royal Government without delay of the execution of the measures comprised in the foregoing points. 

The Imperial and Royal Government awaits the reply of the Royal Government by Saturday, the twenty-fifth instant, at 6 p.m., at the latest. 

A report to Franz Josef from the Austrian ambassador conveying his impressions of Germany's level of support for Austria-Hungary Austro-Hungarian emperor Franz Josef Kaiser Wilhelm II Herr von Bethmann-Hollweg, chancellor of Germany and staunch advocate of German support for Austria-Hungary Kaiser Wilhelm II Kaiser Wilhelm II Franz Josef I Kaiser Wilhelm II Telegram from the Imperial Chancellor, von Bethmann-Hollweg, to the German Ambassador at Vienna, Tschirschky, July 6, 1914 The Austrian ambassador to Germany Kaiser Wilhelm II Chancellor of Germany and staunch advocate of German support for Austria-Hungary Leopold von Berchtold The Austrian ambassador to Serbia The capital of Austria The Austrian ambassador to Serbia Serbia’s government Serbia Austria-Hungary Intended to overthrow or undermine an established government, in this case, Austria-Hungary's rule in Bosnia Literally "Defense of the People," a secret society focused on Pan-Slavism that was founded in Serbia in 1908 AFTER Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1911, "Union or Death," also known as the Black Hand, formed as an outgrowth of this older Serb nationalist group. Document July 26, 1913 Serbian official accused of membership in Narodna Odbrana by Austria-Hungary Serbian official accused of membership in Narodna Odbrana by Austria-Hungary Serbian border crossings where members of the Black Hand may have entered Bosnia-Herzogovina enroute to Sarajevo to assassinate Franz Ferdinand . 
 

Save the Word Documents you have created to your logon  space and print the assignments you must hand in at the end of each period.