Europe and WWI — home-front impact and the peace treaties
Practice Flashcards
Flip to reveal answersTotal war
Track your progress — Sign up free to save your progress and get smart review reminders based on spaced repetition.
All 12 Flashcards — Europe and WWI — home-front impact and the peace treaties
Sign up free to track progress and get spaced-repetition review schedules.
Question
Total war
Answer
A war that mobilizes a nation's entire population and economy, not just its army, to fight.
Question
What happened to Germany's economy during WWI (blockade)?
Answer
The British naval blockade cut off food and raw-material imports; by 1917-18 Germany faced severe shortages, and the 1916-17 'turnip winter' saw thousands die from malnutrition-linked illness.
Question
How did WWI change women's roles on the home front?
Answer
Millions of women moved into munitions factories, transport, farming and nursing, filling jobs left by conscripted men — though most were pushed out again once the war ended.
Question
Name one marginalized group whose WWI experience is debated.
Answer
Colonial and minority soldiers/workers (e.g. African and Asian colonial troops in French/British armies, or Jewish communities in Eastern Europe) — they served or laboured for empires that denied them equal rights, and some faced increased suspicion or violence during the war.
Question
The Big Three
Answer
Woodrow Wilson (USA), Georges Clemenceau (France) and David Lloyd George (Britain) — the dominant leaders at the Paris Peace Conference.
Question
What did Clemenceau want from the peace settlement?
Answer
Maximum security and punishment for Germany — reparations, territorial losses, and a weakened Germany that could never invade France again.
Question
What did Wilson want from the peace settlement?
Answer
A 'peace without victory' based on his Fourteen Points — self-determination, open diplomacy, and a League of Nations to keep future peace.
Question
Treaty of Versailles — key terms
Answer
Germany: War Guilt Clause (Article 231), reparations, army capped at 100,000, lost Alsace-Lorraine and colonies, Rhineland demilitarized.
Question
Treaty of Sèvres vs Treaty of Lausanne (Ottoman Empire)
Answer
Sèvres (1920) dismantled the Ottoman Empire harshly; Turkish nationalist resistance under Mustafa Kemal forced a renegotiation, replaced by the much more favourable Treaty of Lausanne (1923).
Question
Treaty of St Germain
Answer
Peace treaty with Austria (1919) — confirmed the break-up of Austria-Hungary and forbade union (Anschluss) with Germany.
Question
Treaty of Trianon
Answer
Peace treaty with Hungary (1920) — Hungary lost about two-thirds of its pre-war territory and population.
Question
Why is 'was the peace settlement fair?' a genuine historical debate?
Answer
Some argue it was too harsh on Germany (fuelling resentment and instability); others argue it was too lenient to truly weaken Germany, or that it was fair given the scale of WWI destruction — historians disagree on which flaw mattered most.
Read the notes
Full study notes for Europe and WWI — home-front impact and the peace treaties
Topic 13.6 hub
Europe and the First World War (1871–1923)
More from Topic 13.6
All flashcards in this topic
History (2028+) exam skills
Paper structures & tips
Track your progress with spaced repetition
Sign up free — Aimnova tells you exactly which cards to review and when, so you remember everything before your IB exam.
Start Free