Cambridge History - Paper 1 Exam Questions
With Complete Solutions
Was WW1 Germany's fault? - Correct Answer Yes, WW1 was Germany's fault because
1) Germany built up an unnecessary navy (41 battleships and 60 cruisers in 1900)
- this led to the arms race
2) blank cheque to Austria which encouraged Austria to start a war, and even further
encouragement to Austria to start a war; told Austria-Hungary to ignore negotiations
3) Germany was very imperialistic; wanted to expand its territory, its army and navy
which threatened other countries; Kaiser Wilhelm II ended friendly relations with Russia
The Allies - Correct Answer Alliance between France, Russia and Britain in WW1
The Central Powers - Correct Answer Alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary
in WW1
WW1 dates - Correct Answer July 29, 1914 - November 11, 1918
Long term causes of WW1 - Correct Answer MIINA - Militarism, Industrialism,
Imperialism, Nationalism, Alliances
1) Germany ended friendly relations with Russia
2) Germany built up her navy unnecessarily
3) Two alliances formed
4) Tension in the Balkans - Austria disliked the growing Serbia; Austria annexed Bosnia
and Herezegovina (wanted to crush Serbia)
5) Moroccan Crisis - France wanted Morocco but Germany promised its support; 1911-
France tried to take Morocco again, Germany sent a gunboat
- threatened Britain as it was afraid that Germany was challenging its empire
Short term causes of WW1 - Correct Answer 1) Murder in Sarajevo: A Serbian, Gavrillo
Princip, assasinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife. (heir to Austria-Hungarian
throne)
2) Blank cheque: Germany encouraged Austria-Hungary to start a war
3) British position: Britain had not made it clear that it would fight, which made Germany
confident enough to fight.
Important dates of WW1 - Correct Answer 1916- Battle of Verdun: Germany tried to
break through
River Somme- Britain attacked but failed
Battle of Jutland - North Sea
1917- Passchendaele: Britain attacked
March 1918 - last major offensive
November 11, 1918 - armistice
Countries that joined the alliances - Correct Answer Aliies: Romania, Italy, America
Central Powers: Bulgaria
,Treaty of Brest-Litovsk - Correct Answer Germany to Russia; Germany took massive
amounts of land and reparations
Kaiser Wilhelm II - Correct Answer German Kaiser in the 1900's that felt that Germany
should have an overseas empire and should be a world power.
Western Front - Correct Answer main area of WW1 where both sides attempted to out
flake each other
Eastern front - Correct Answer Territorial struggle beteen Germany and Russia
Attrition - Correct Answer military strategy of wearing down the enemy and defeating
them by loss of military
The Russian Revolution of 1917 - Correct Answer Tsar Nicholas II abdicated on March
15, 1917
A provisional government was set up and was also accompanied by the Soviet
Vladmir Lenin: "all power to the soviets"
Bolsheviks seized power in oct/nov of 1917
Treaty of brest-litovsk
Russian civil war (1918-1920) - Reds won
1919- Comintern
U1 - Problems for the winners - Correct Answer The Big Three had to make sure that
Germany could not fight another war again, to prevent the spread of Communism, to
give Italy and Japan their rewards, and they all disagreed.
U1 - DIfferences between the big three (motives) - Correct Answer Woodrow Wilson
(American president)
- wanted self-determination for countries, his fourteen points and league of nations (for
international co-op), a just and not harsh treaty, strengthened democracy so that the
countries would not make the same mistakes
- didn't care as much about reparations as US did not have much debt
Georges Clemenceau (French Prime Minister)
- wanted to cripple Germany, wanted reparations, revenge for the Prussian war, wanted
Alsace-Lorraine back, wanted Germany broken up, wanted Germany to loose the Saar,
Rhineland, Upper Silesia, Danzig and East prussia, wanted Germany's disarmament
Lloyd George (British Prime Minister)
- wanted trade with Germany, wanted reparations, want a just treaty, wanted share of
Germany's colonies, didn't want France to be to powerful, wanted South Africa,
,Australia and New Zealand to be rewarded, share of former Turkish lads, wanted stop
of communism
Paris Peace Conference - Correct Answer Versailles Peace Conference - discussing
the terms of the defeated treaties (1919-1920)
Why did the victors not get everything they wanted? - Correct Answer They had to
consider the views of their people, the future of Germany, and they had to compromise
to satisfy almost everyone
Why did Wilson want his fourteen points? - Correct Answer International co-op, World
Peace, no revenge
- clear communication between countries (no more misunderstandings)
- not harsh on Germany
Differences between Wilson's 14 points and the treaty - Correct Answer - peace vs.
punishment
- no advantage vs. taking advantage
- self-determination vs. Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia (had Germans)
- all pay vs. Germany paid
- multilateral disarmament
Achieved:
- Germany left Belgium
- Alsace-Lorraine given back
- independence for Austria-Hungarians and Poland
Not Achieved:
- ban on secret treaties
- open seas
- free trade
- disarmament
- great independence
Territorial losses (Germany) - Correct Answer 1) demilitarized Rhineland
2) Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia (new states)
3) lost annexed baltic states
4) lost Upper Silesia, Danzig (free city) , Malmedy, Some of west prussia, posen
5) Alsace-Lorraine returned
6) Saar given to LON
7) Polish corridor
Terms of the Versailles treaty - Correct Answer 1) war guilt clause (Clause 231)
2) military losses - 100000 men, no air force, 6 battleships, no submarines, no
conscription
, 3) reparations - 6,600 million (pounds)
4) mandates and colonies - lost colonies to LON as mandates
5) League of Nations set up - League covenant
6) Loss of territory: Polish corridor, Alsace Lorraine
Treaty of St. Germain (1919) - Correct Answer Treaty for Austria
- lost land to Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia
- Anschluss forbidden
- army limited to 30000 men
- split from Hungary
No longer a world power; resented Anschluss;
Treaty of Neuilly (1919) - Correct Answer Treaty for Bulgaria
- army limited to 20000 men
- land given to Greece, Yugoslavia and Romania
Treaty of Trianon (1920) - Correct Answer Treaty for Hungary
- 2/3 of territory given to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and Romania
- 35000 men in army
Treaty of Sevres (1920) - Correct Answer Treaty for Turkey (ottoman Empire)
- lost lots of land
- reparations
Treaty of Lausanne (1923) - Correct Answer Turkish people drove Greece out of
Smyrna making the Treaty of sevres re-negotiated
- regained land
- no reparations
- unlimited army
The Weimar Republic - Correct Answer government led by Freidrich Ebert during the
end of WW1 and was forced to sign the treaty;
- many communist revolutions
Ruhr invasion (1923) - Correct Answer Germany did not pay a reparation and in turn
was invaded by Belgium and France which took the amount owned in goods. Germans
went on strike and France killed many in turn.
The Kapp Pustch - Correct Answer uprising/revolution against the Weimar Republic that
was easily defeated by Berlin Workers
Effect of treaty of Germany - Correct Answer 1) Hyperinflation - printed money for
reparations
2) Attempted revolution by Adolf Hitler (failure)
