Chapter 26 Chapter 20 World War I: Global Impact (Part 2)

The war-weary and defeatist sentiments that arose throughout Europe in 1917 were most intense and widespread in Russia; in Russia, two great revolutions broke out in March and November, which profoundly affected not only the course of the war, but the Patterns that shaped world history in the postwar years.In fact, 1917 proved to be a decisive year for two developments—the Russian Revolution and the American entry into the war.These events changed the nature of the war—from a war initially fought over European issues, and essentially a European war, to a war on a global scale.True, Japan entered the war on August 23, 1914, but it only occupied a few scattered German colonies in the Pacific Ocean.Now, American involvement meant the involvement of a non-European power that quickly decided the outcome of the war.

The country's entry into the war and the Russian Revolution also led to a new mindset that had immediate worldwide impact.Wilson's Fourteen Points of Peace and Lenin's revolutionary slogans were universal and destructive in their influence, and they had nothing to do with, say, the fate of Alsace-Lorraine or the subordinate states under the Habsburgs. Endemic European disputes such as the fate of nation-states are very different.Thus, it was in 1917 that the First World War transitioned from the European phase to the global phase. When Russia declared war on Germany on August 1, 1914, all classes of Russia rallied around its government.Unlike the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, this conflict was well received by the populace; it was believed to be a defensive battle against the aggression of traditional German enemies. On August 8, when the Duma convened, Professor Milyukov, the leader of the Cadets, who used to be extremely dissatisfied with the government, declared: "We must concentrate all our efforts on protecting our country from a foreign enemy; To push us out of the way of world domination. . . . We shall fight for our fatherland to be free from foreign aggression, and for European and Slavic peoples to be free from Germanic domination. . . . " Despite the long-standing discrimination against and persecution, one of their representatives expressed the same sentiments: "We Jews live and will continue to live under extremely harsh legal conditions. However, we ... will stand firmly as one in Russia banner. . . . The Jewish people will die to fulfill their obligations.”

The only ones who objected to the drawing of social strata around the government were the ultra-radical Bolsheviks.Their leader, Lenin, saw the war as an imperialist struggle for markets and colonies.Workers all over the world, therefore, have no reason to die for such a conflict.Instead, Lenin called on workers to turn against the agitators of imperialist war.He repeatedly put forward the slogan "Turn the imperialist war into a civil war!"However, this slogan was the only counter-tone in 1914, so it was not noticed at the time and had little effect.The Bolsheviks were then a tiny party in Russia, and their prominent leaders were in exile, among them Lenin in Switzerland and Trotsky in New York.Thus, the Bolshevik agitation did not destroy the impressive national unity under the tsarist autocracy.

Not only were the Russians united in fighting the Germans, but they were convinced they would win the war in the short term.In fact, the public solicited large sums of money to be given to the first Russian soldiers to enter Berlin.However, instead of winning quickly, the Russians suffered a disastrous defeat.It is true that Russia's war efforts contributed greatly to the final victory of the Entente. In 1914, the unexpectedly rapid advance of the Russians into East Prussia forced the Germans to draw troops from the Western Front, thus greatly helping to stop the German advance on the Marne.The fact remains, though, that the two Russian armies that invaded East Prussia in 1914 suffered a crushing defeat.The following year, when the Russian army retreated in the face of a strong German and Austrian attack, there was a big rout.The most populous and industrialized provinces of the Empire were lost to the Allies. The defeat in 1915 was the beginning of the demise of the tsarist autocratic regime.

One of the reasons Russia never recovered from its military defeat was that it had no economic strength to wage a modern war against the leading industrial powers (see Chapter 13, Section 5).What did this mean for Russian soldiers on the front lines? This was vividly described by a Russian general in the following remarks to the French ambassador in the summer of 1915: This economic weakness was exacerbated by the loss of the industrialized regions of the empire in 1915.In addition, incompetent military leaders hampered Russia's war effort.When war broke out, Tsar Nicholas picked his uncle, the Grand Duke Nicholas, as commander in chief.The Grand Duke was clearly not up to the task, as one able Russian general noted in the following comment: "He seemed to be a man who was wholly unfit for the job, and, by his own account, whenever he took over the To the emperor's order. He always takes a long time to shout, because he doesn't know what to do with his new task."

The Russians were also hampered by political divisions at home.The Duma and the imperial bureaucracy were constantly at loggerheads over their respective jurisdictions and privileges.The two again clashed with the military over lack of munitions and responsibility for eventual front line failures.This discord could have been minimized and brought under control had the leadership at the top been strong.Unfortunately, Tsar Nicholas was a well-intentioned but weak and indecisive ruler of limited intellect and poor imagination.His strong-willed yet deeply sensitive, capricious wife often urged him to assert his power and take drastic measures. "You never miss an opportunity to show your love and kindness, now let them taste your fist!" But Nikolay remains a weak, sentimental figure who usually listens to the advice of the last person he speaks to.The biggest mistake he made was: in August 1915, when the front line was in disaster, he decided to relieve Grand Duke Nicholas from his duties and take military command himself.He was even less qualified for the job than his uncle, and he was a nuisance at High Command.However, he has an uncanny belief that his self-sacrifice can save the situation. "Perhaps an atoning sacrifice was needed to save Russia. I am the victim. So will God's will." In the end, he did become the victim, since military defeats were henceforth held to be his own.The end result, therefore, was the destruction of his family, the end of the Tsarist autocracy and the emergence of the Bolsheviks.

In 1917, two revolutions broke out in Russia: the first in March and the second in November; the former ended the tsarist autocratic rule and established a provisional government, the latter overthrew the provisional government and established the Soviet regime.The first revolution was an accident that took everyone by surprise. On March 8, strikes and riots broke out in Petrograd due to insufficient means of transport, which led to a severe shortage of food and fuel.The authorities ordered the army to maintain order, but the soldiers mutinied and became close to the demonstrators.The Tsar, who had always been suspicious of the Duma, suspected that it was involved in this matter, and ordered the dissolution of the Duma on March 11.The leaders of the Duma refused to obey this order, and the tsar found that he could no longer force the Duma to obey him.In fact, the recognition of one's own powerlessness is itself a revolution.It suddenly became apparent that the tsarist government was only a government in name and had no means of asserting its power.In other words, Russia no longer has a functioning government.Such was the situation in Russia both de facto and de jure when Tsar Nicholas abdicated on March 15 to his brother Mikhail, who abdicated the throne the next day.

No one expected this first Russian revolution, let alone planned it.On the contrary, it was this: the decaying tsarist autocracy was gradually weakened by the stress and catastrophe of war, until at last the whole rickety institution collapsed.A new kind of institution must be established immediately, in order not to be replaced by radicals in the street. On March 12, a provisional government was formed to run the country until a Constituent Assembly could be elected.The new government was led by Prince Georgi Lvov of the Liberal Party, Professor Paul Miliukov, the leader of the Cadet Party, was the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Alexander Kerensky, the only Socialist in the cabinet, was the Minister of Justice.

This is a bourgeois, liberal, centrist cabinet that is partly conducive to reform.In fact, it did proclaim freedom of speech, press, and assembly; it proclaimed amnesty for political and religious prisoners; it recognized the legal equality of all citizens without social, religious, or racial discrimination; Includes an eight-hour workday.Despite these achievements in terms of reforms, the interim government never took root in the country.It struggled desperately for eight months without providing proper administration.In the end, the new government was not overthrown, but collapsed suddenly, helplessly and humiliatingly, as the tsarist autocracy had done in March.Following the Provisional Government was a brand new political system - the Soviet system.

March to November 1917 was a period of struggle for power between the Provisional Government and the Soviets.The Provisional Government was at a severe disadvantage in this struggle because it refused from the outset to consider two things that the vast majority of Russians wanted—peace and land, Prince Lvov and his ministers insisted, Major reforms such as land redistribution must wait for a constitutional assembly that truly represents the people and has the power to decide this fundamental issue.Likewise, the government was reluctant to end the war because Russia had certain inescapable obligations to its allies.The arguments are reasonable and understandable, but politically suicidal.The Provisional Government resorted to expediency and begged for patience, while the Soviets demanded immediate peace, the immediate distribution of land, and thus won over the masses of the people.

The origins of the soviets can be traced back to the 1905 revolution, when workers elected workers' councils, or soviets, to coordinate their struggle against tsarist autocracy.Although the Soviets were repressed at the time, they had proven their worth as institutions of agitation and direct action.They possessed exactly the quality that the Provisional Government clearly lacked—a close relationship with the masses of the people. An observer of the 1905 revolution described this feature of the Petrograd Soviet in the following passage: It was only natural that the soviet reappeared with the crisis caused by the world war.Because of their origin and composition, they are not at all overly formal like the Provisional Government, which has to wait until after the elections for peace negotiations and land distribution.They have expressed the aspirations of the people without hesitation and without reservation, so they have won the support of more and more people.Soviets arose not only in the cities, but soon in the countryside and in the army.As a result, the Soviet movement quickly spread throughout the country, and actually developed into a grassroots government that constantly challenged the Petrograd regime.The village soviets are organizing people to seize the property of the nobility; the city soviets are supporting people's constant demonstrations and riots in the streets; The extent to which it has just become effective. At first, the representatives elected to the Soviets were mainly Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks.The Bolsheviks remained in a lesser position until their leaders returned from Switzerland. On April 16, Lenin and several assistants traveled across Germany and returned to Petrograd in a closed carriage.The German High Command speculated that these revolutionaries would undermine the pro-Entente Provisional Government, and their speculation proved correct.Lenin immediately published his famous "April Theses", which demanded immediate peace, the distribution of land to the peasants and the transfer of all power to the Soviets. Lenin's request seemed natural and logical in light of what was about to happen.In practice, however, these demands aroused much dissent among the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks within the Soviets, and even among some Bolsheviks.Particularly controversial was the demand for "all power to the Soviets".This seemed completely absurd and irresponsible at the time.As Marxists, the majority of Soviet representatives saw the March Revolution as a bourgeois uprising and believed that a second revolution, a socialist revolution, was impossible before Russia experienced a long period of economic development.Their strategy, therefore, was to allow the interim government to remain in power while constantly pressing it to carry out appropriate reforms and social changes. Lenin almost alone challenged this policy and called for an immediate second revolution.However, time proved him right, as the longer the war went on, the greater the public discontent and the more popular his demands became.Slogans that seemed outlandish in April sounded perfectly reasonable half a year later.By the end of 1917 many were ready to fight for "all power to the Soviets" in order to get rid of the Provisional Government which had prevented the much-desired peace, land and bread. The earliest sign of a shift in public opinion was the forced resignation of Foreign Minister Milyukov on 17 May.Miliukov strongly advocated the continuation of the war in Russia, which made him so unpopular that he was forced to resign; Lvov and Kerensky formed a new provisional government.The new provisional government remained in power until July 20; from July 20, Kerensky, who had always appeared as an influential figure in power, formed a new government with himself as prime minister.By this time the national tendency had turned so completely to the left that the new ministers were mostly Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks.Gone are the days when the Cadets were considered radicals in Russian politics.Against Lenin and his Bolsheviks, Kerensky was now cooperating with the Mensheviks and the Socialist-Revolutionaries. Kerensky claimed that his main purpose was to "save the revolution from extremists".In an effort to stem the growing encroachment on property, he warned that a future Constituent Assembly would not recognize land transfers made after July 25.He also tried to restore discipline to the military by reintroducing the death penalty for certain crimes.These measures naturally made Kerensky extremely unpopular with the Bolsheviks and other radicals, and unfortunately for him, he did not enjoy the support of the military and other conservative elements.They saw him as a weak, talkative statesman and demanded that immediate measures be taken to crush the Soviets.When he refused to do so, a general named Raphael Kornilov launched a military rebellion against Kerensky, avowedly aiming to free the government from Soviet manipulation. The result of Kornilov's rebellion was exactly the opposite of the original plan.It was the Soviets that took the lead in organizing the resistance against Kornilov and in spreading propaganda among his troops that led to the desertion of many soldiers in the end.Kornilov was thus mainly defeated by the Soviets; Kerensky thus also found himself under the control of the Soviets.In addition, the Bolsheviks were becoming more and more influential in the Soviets at this time as public opinion shifted more and more to the left.By October they had majorities in the soviets in Petrograd and Moscow.Lenin concluded at this time that the time had come to overthrow Kerensky and realize the socialist revolution.But his own party is still not preparing for a showdown because they fear that, even if they can overthrow the interim government, they will not be able to maintain power.Lenin's answer was that 240,000 Bolshevik party members could rule Russia for the benefit of the poor against the rich, just as 130,000 landowners used to rule Russia for the benefit of the rich against the poor.Finally, after threatening to resign, Lenin persuaded the Party Central Committee to vote for a revolution, and the date of the uprising was set for November 7. The actual revolution was an upsurge.Bolshevik forces captured key Petrograd sites—rail stations, bridges, banks, and government buildings—with little resistance.Only bloodshed occurred in the Winter Palace, and the casualties amounted to one Red Army soldier and five Red Army sailors.Kerensky managed to escape, fleeing the country after trying in vain to organize resistance.The Provisional Government thus collapsed with humiliation and ease, reminiscent of the end of the Tsarist autocracy.There was no fighting here, for Kerensky in November, like Nikolai in March, had few devout supporters. The easy victory of the Bolsheviks did not mean that they had the support of the entire Russian people, or at least the majority of the Russian people.This is evidenced by the composition of the Constituent Assembly finally elected on 25 November: Socialist-Revolutionaries 370 seats; Bolsheviks 175; Left Socialist-Revolutionaries 40; Cadets 17 seats; Mensheviks 16; ethnic groups 86.The Constituent Assembly convened in Petrograd on January 18, 1918. After one session, it was dispersed by the Bolsheviks, who had now taken military power.However, the structure of the Constituent Assembly reveals how many followers each party had at the time. At the time, Lenin was seriously striving for peace, if only because Russia could not continue to fight. On November 25, Trotsky addressed all belligerents on the radio, asking them to conclude an armistice immediately.The Allies evaded this answer, unwilling to accept peace on the basis of the Bolshevik slogan "No land, no reparations".But the Allies were willing to negotiate, and on December 5 they signed an armistice with the Bolsheviks.In later negotiations, the Germans demanded the cession of Poland and the Baltic provinces, possibly on the basis of national self-determination.When the Bolsheviks objected, the Germans tore up the armistice and pushed on to Petrograd.At this point, Lenin decided to compromise, not only because he lacked the means to resist, but also because he surmised that the Germans were likely to be defeated and unable to hold the territories they had conquered. On March 3, 1918, Lenin accepted the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty, whose draconian terms were far harsher than originally proposed.He gave up not only Poland and the Baltic provinces, but also Finland, Ukraine and parts of the Caucasus.These cededs included a territory of 2 million people and 1.25 million square miles; half of Russia's factories, one-third of its grain-producing areas, and three-quarters of its iron and coal were produced in these territories. Thus Russia withdrew from World War I, and the new Bolshevik rulers set out to create the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, whose influence still affects the world today. When World War I began, President Wilson immediately called on his countrymen to maintain strict neutrality. On August B, 1911, he declared in a speech to the American people: "I would venture to give you a grave warning not to make the strongest, most The most sublime and fundamental breach of neutrality. In these days that will test the souls of men, America must remain neutral not only in name but in fact." This appeal was generally approved, because the vast majority of Americans did not want to be involved in this war.Yet by 1917, Wilson himself was leading the country into war.Why go to war despite such strong sentiments in favor of neutrality? One factor is the arms buildup movement.Formed on December 1, 1914, the National Security League has strong support from soldiers, munitions makers and contentious politicians.They advertised the possibility of war with Germany, demanded compulsory military training, and demanded a substantial increase in the standing army and navy.Wilson initially objected to this agitation, but for political reasons he could not have completely ignored it.Finally, he personally led the expansionist marches in New York and Washington, and presided over the passage of the National Defense Act on June 3, 1916; this act doubled the standing army, reorganized the National Guard, and provided for Officers are trained in academies and summer camps.Two months later, another bill approved a three-year plan for a massive expansion of the Navy.The intensive agitation and propaganda associated with this expansion also helped to prepare the nation psychologically for war. Very similar to this was the effect of the US armed invasion of Mexico from March 1916 to August 1917.The invasion was sudden; half revolutionary, half bandit Francisco (Pancho) Villa attacked the New Mexico frontier city of Columbus, killing 19 people.Villa's purpose was to drive the United States to intervene, thereby discrediting and overthrowing President Carranza.Wilson did react to this, and immediately ordered a crusade led by General John Pershing.Despite sending more than 100,000 people across the border, capturing Villa and his associates proved impossible.Villa instead attacked Glen Springs, Texas, killing four people.This led to clamor in the United States to declare war on Mexico and occupy its northern territories.Both Carranza and Wilson, however, wished to avoid war action, and finally made arrangements that would see the United States withdraw its troops.Yet, spurred by these disaster-free, sacrifice-free military operations, this incredible episode helped to foster a war spirit in America. Another factor favoring entry into the war was America's financial and industrial commitment to the Allied cause.Foreseeing this pressure, Bryan argued from the outset for the "moral prohibition" of lending to belligerents.This proposition was rejected by Wilson, and as a result, by the end of 1914, Morgan & Co. had made "arrangements" for the Allies to purchase military supplies in the United States.In order to pay for these military supplies, the Allies first gave cash, then sold the bonds and stocks they owned in the United States, and finally had to borrow large sums of money.This situation necessarily created pressure to bring the United States into the war.Booming American industry depended on a steady stream of orders from the Allies, while American bankers' coffers were filled with British and French notes that would have been rendered worthless had Germany won. Also noteworthy were the propaganda campaigns by both belligerents to influence American minds.On the whole, the Entente was more successful in this, not only because of their superior technology and communications, but also because their situation was more easily justified and defensive.British tyranny at sea was dwarfed by the German invasion and occupation of Belgium.The so-called starvation of Germany caused by the British blockade was quickly forgotten when German submarines began taking American casualties. This led to German submarine warfare against merchant shipping, which proved to be the single most important factor in bringing the United States into the war. Before 1917, Germany did not engage in unrestricted submarine warfare for a simple military reason - not getting enough submarines to guarantee the defeat of Britain before American military power could be exerted.However, the number of German submarines was increasing rapidly—from 27 in February 1915 to 74 in August 1916 to 103 in February 1917.Thus, by early 1917, the German military believed they could bring Britain to its knees within six months if they were given free rein.This is the fundamental reason why the German government ordered the beginning of unrestricted submarine warfare on August 1, 1917.When this order was issued, the German government was fully aware that it would inevitably lead to the entry of the United States into the war.But the logic presumes that the United States as a belligerent could not have given more economic aid to the Entente than it had provided in the past as a neutral, and its troops would have arrived in Europe too late to save Britain from being forced to surrender. Wilson broke diplomatic relations with Germany at this time, but he was still hesitant to actually enter the war.In his message to Congress, he stated that he believed the Germans would not fulfill their threat to exterminate the Americans and destroy American ships.If he turns out to be wrong, he will go back to Congress to fight for legislative power to protect the rights of Americans on the high seas. Wilson's restraint failed to arrest the then irresistible tendency to draw himself into war. On March 1, 1917, the U.S. press published the infamous Zimmermann telegram sent by the then German foreign minister to the minister in Mexico City.In the event of war between Germany and the United States, the envoy would propose to the Carranza government an alliance in which Mexico would join Germany in return for "generous financial aid" and the restoration of "lost territories in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona."Carranza was also supposed to mediate between Germany and Japan, which were at war at the time, and ask Japan to join the alliance.The code was intercepted and deciphered by the British, who sent it to Ambassador Page.When it was announced to the American press, American public opinion was naturally very shocked.Questions about Japan and the cession of territory to Mexico aroused war sentiment even in the previously lukewarm regions of the Central and Far West.Meanwhile, the Germans were torpedoing American ships, and Americans were dying.Finally, adding that the tsarist autocratic regime had been overthrown at this time, the United States recognized the newly established provisional government in Russia on March 20.At this point, the United States can unreservedly join the coalition of democracies fighting the dictatorships of Central Europe. April 2; Congress calls a special session.President Wilson read his "War Speech" to the assembly: "We gladly fight for the ultimate peace of the world and the gradual liberation of the peoples. . . . We must make the world harmless to democracy. . . . , do not want to dominate.... We are just a guardian of human rights...." On April 4 and 6, the Senate and the House of Representatives passed a joint resolution declaring a state of war between the United States and Germany.Then the President made a proclamation.America begins to enter the war. When Wilson clarified the purpose of war in "The State of War", his wording must be abstract and general.But in his speech to a joint session of Congress on January 8, 1918, he laid out the purpose of the war in specific, detailed form in the form of his famous Fourteen Points for Peace.Famous of these fourteen points are: "Conclude a public peace treaty" against secret diplomacy, freedom of navigation on the seas, removal of obstacles to international commerce, reduction of armaments, in accordance with the interests of the colonial nations must be equal to the demands of the colonial nations Emphasis on the principle of impartial adjustment of the overall claims of the colonies, applying the principle of national self-determination to the problems of the subordinate minorities of Central and Eastern Europe. Leading British and American naval experts agreed that Germany could win the war with just a few more submarines.The accuracy of this judgment is perceived in the figures given in table 1 for ship losses and construction.These figures show that the Entente succeeded not only by speeding up ship building, but also by reducing the number of sinking ships.This success was achieved through various methods, including the development of effective escort systems, camouflage of merchant ships, the use of depth charges containing large amounts of high explosives, and the invention of hydrophones to detect nearby submarines.Thanks to these methods, the Allies were able to overcome the critical moment in early 1918, when the total tonnage of new ships built in 1918 exceeded the total tonnage of destroyed ships for the first time. Once the German submarine threat was subdued, the United States could effectively use its enormous economic potential.How decisive this was is shown very clearly in the statistics on the productivity of the belligerent countries presented in table 2. The entry of the United States into the war gave the Allies a decisive advantage not only in munitions but also in manpower.During the month of March 1918, a total of 84,889 American troops arrived on the Western Front; in June, this number rose to 306,350.In this way, the commanders of the Allies can get a new force every month.In a last, desperate effort to avoid defeat, the German High Command launched a general offensive against Paris in the spring of 1918.Their efforts were aided by the Peace of Brest-Litovsk; this peace allowed them to transfer several divisions from the Eastern to the Western Front.The Germans managed to get within 40 miles of the capital with the most powerful offensive of the war at the time, but were then stopped. The turning point came on July 18 when the Allied forces launched a counter-offensive, aided by tank formations.This offensive not only proved the value of the tank as a weapon of positional warfare, but also exposed for the first time the general defeatist sentiment in the German army.Entire battalions surrendered, sometimes to solitary infantry, while retreating German troops greeted the new troops marching to the front with chants of "scab" and "prolong the war." Table 1 Ships lost and built by the Allies and neutrals during the First World War Table 2 Production of belligerent countries (unit: million tons) At that time, the situation of Germany's allies was even more difficult.When General Franche Despere, commander of the Allied forces at Thessaloniki, attacked in mid-September, the Bulgarian front collapsed. On September 29, 1918, Bulgarian representatives signed an armistice, and on October 3, King Ferdinand abdicated in favor of his son Boris.Similarly, in Turkey, the British imperial army was advancing with two forces-one from Egypt to the eastern Mediterranean coast, the other from the Persian Gulf to the Mesopotamian valley.Meanwhile, Allied troops from Thessaloniki were advancing on Constantinople.Horrified by these setbacks, and isolated by the surrender of the Bulgarians, the Turks accepted the armistice on October 30, 1918. The situation in Austria-Hungary was dire.Many ethnic minorities formed national assemblies one after another and declared their independence.Even the Germano-Austrians and the Hungarians, who had previously ruled the empire, were now talking about the independence of their respective countries.Meanwhile, the Italians were crossing the Piave, and Franche Despere was advancing on the Danube. On November 3, the Armistice Council of the Austro-Hungarian Empire accepted the conditions proposed by the Italian High Command, and on November 6, Count Mihai Karoy, leader of the Hungarian Freedom Party, signed a separate armistice agreement in Belgrade on behalf of Hungary. On November 11, King Charles abdicated his supreme power, and the ancient Habsburg Empire finally perished. At that time, the situation of the Germans on the Western Front was deteriorating day by day. Due to the steady flow of American soldiers, the commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, Marshal Foch, could attack anywhere at will.German casualties outnumbered replacements, and deserters flooded bus and railway stations.These defeats, combined with the news of the Bulgarians' surrender, made General Ludendorff nervous. On September 29, with a touch of panic, he asked the government to start negotiations for an armistice "immediately" before the army was damaged too much.In preparation for the negotiations, the Kaiser appointed his cousin, Prince Max of Baden, as the new chancellor.Prince Max, known as a liberal and a pacifist, demanded negotiations with President Wilson on the basis of the Fourteen Point Peace Agenda.What followed was a weeks-long exchange of views between Berlin and Washington.A major obstacle was the Kaiser's steadfast refusal to abdicate.However, on November 3, a mutiny in the German fleet in Kiel forced him to take a stand.The mutiny spread rapidly from port to port, and then to the interior. On November 9, Prince Max forced the decision to abdicate the Kaiser; two days later, an armistice was signed, ending the war on the Western Front. Thus ended World War I—a war that lasted 4 years and 3 months, involved 30 sovereign states, overthrew 4 empires, created 7 new states, and killed: Combatants About 8.5 million, non-combatants about 10 million, direct economic losses amounted to 180.5 billion U.S. dollars, and indirect economic losses amounted to 151.6 billion U.S. dollars. The peace treaties signed with the Allied Powers include: the "Treaty of Versailles" with Germany on June 28, 1919, the "Treaty of St. The Treaty of Agriculture, the Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria on November 27, 1919, and the Treaty of Sevres with Turkey on August 20, 1920.Three features of this comprehensive peaceful settlement are of great importance to world history: the establishment of the League of Nations, the application of the principle of self-determination of nations to Europe, and the failure to apply this principle outside of Europe. As the first worldwide international cooperation organization that vowed to jointly defend against aggression and resolve disputes through non-violent methods, the League of Nations occupies a prominent position in world history.The idea of ​​such an alliance was repeatedly raised during the Great War. 1915年，英国成立了一个国际联盟协会，美国也成立了一个坚持和平联盟。世界上的各种领导人，包括教皇本尼狄克十五世、英国当时的外交次官罗伯特·塞西尔子爵和南非当时的国防部长斯穆茨将军，都为未来的和平组织提出了建议。威尔逊总统在其《十四点和平纲领》的最后一点中宣称：“必须成立广泛的国际联合组织，制订专门条款，使各国不论大小，相互保证政治独立和领土完整。”因而，当战争结束晚国际联盟是已被认真考虑过的有关和平的唯一问题。 《国际联盟盟约》是《凡尔赛和约》的一个主要部分，它于192O年1月开始生效。在一个对民主无害的世界中——这是当时所希望的《盟约》自然应提供议会、内阁和行政机构这种标准的民主格局。大会就是国联的议会，原42 个成员国中的每一国在大会中都有一票表决权。理事会是国联的内阁，由各拥有一个常设席位的五个“主要协约国与联系国”的代表和“大会定期选出的”其他四国的代表组成。原常任成员国是英国、美国、法国、日本和意大利，但美国没有参加国际联盟。随后，德国和俄国获得了常任国席位，而非常任成员国的数目增加到10个。最后是秘书处，它的作用相当于国联的行政机构，由一名秘书长和全体职员组成。 国际联盟的首要目的是维护和平。它的成员国应互相承担起共同防御侵略、仲裁或调查争端和在裁定后的三个月以前避免战争的义务。国联的第二个目的是关心国际范围的卫生、社会、经济和人道等问题。由于这一目的，国联建立了专门的机构，如卫生组织、智力合作委员会、国际劳工组织以及许多临时的咨询委员会。总的说来，国联在履行其第二个职责方面取得了辉煌的成功。它在改善国际劳动条件、促进世界卫生、同毒品交易和奴隶贸易作斗争、克服经济危机等方面证明是很有价值的。但是，我们将看到，国联未能维持和平，正由于维持和平是它存在的理由，所以这一失败便意味着整个组织的结束。 第一次世界大战后的和解还具有在民族自决原则的基础上重新划分欧洲边界的特点。重新划分欧洲边界这一点在《十四点和平纲领》中已明确提出，以后，通过各种和平条约而正式得到落实。最终结果是欧洲地图被大幅度修改。阿尔萨斯- 洛林地区毫无疑问归还给了法国。俄国由于芬兰、拉脱维亚、爱沙尼亚和立陶宛等独立国家的建立而失去了它在波罗的海沿海的大部分地区。独立的波兰在前俄国、德国和哈布斯堡帝国割让的诸省领土上成立；捷克斯洛伐克出现在前哈布斯堡帝国的版图上。南斯拉夫也形成了，它由战前的塞尔维亚、门的内哥罗和南斯拉夫人居住的前哈布斯堡帝国的一些地区组成。罗马尼亚因从奥匈帝国、俄国和保加利亚获得领土而使其面积增加了一倍多。最后，在古老的哈布斯堡帝国剩余的地区出现了奥地利和匈牙利这两个小国家。 不能因此就说民族自决的原则在划分新边界时一定受到尊重。的确，关于波兰和捷克斯洛伐克的许多日耳曼少数民族、南斯拉夫、罗马尼亚和捷克斯洛伐克的匈牙利少数民族、波兰、捷克斯洛伐克和罗马尼亚的俄罗斯少数民族，还存在着相当大的异议。其原因一定程度上在于以下这一事实：中欧和东欧的许多民族集团密不可分地混居在一起，以致只要划分边界，就必然会在一边或另一边形成相当多的少数民族。不过，这种不可避免的少数民族之所以会大大增加，是因为划分边界时除了要满足民族主义愿望，有时还要服从战略方面的考虑。为什么苏台德日耳曼人被留在捷克斯洛伐克，为什么提洛尔日耳曼人被留在意大利，为什么《圣日耳曼条约》明确禁止德奥联合，至少在战后最近的几年里不许联合，尽管德奥联合符合民众的意愿——其原因就在于以上所述的。然而，尽管有这些偏差，新边界却远比旧边界更符合民族主义愿望。少数民族的数目在第一次世界大战后比大战前要少得多。 人们有时责备说，调停人在遵循民族自决原则方面所犯的错误达到了彻底瓦解哈布斯堡帝国的程度。例如，温斯顿·丘吉尔曾写道：“主要的悲剧是奥匈帝国因《圣日耳曼条约》和《特里亚农条约》而全面崩溃。……对构成哈布斯堡帝国的各民族或省份来说，获得独立并不是没有带来古代的诗人和神学家所一直诅咒的痛苦。”民族自决并没有开创某些空想家所天真地期望的太平盛世，这是事实，而《圣日耳曼条约》和《特里亚农条约》不应对哈布斯堡帝国的崩溃负责，这也是事实。由于军事上的失败和威尔逊的《十四点和平纲领》对诸从属民族的破坏性影响，哈布斯堡帝国于战争后期开始崩溃。国王查理拼命努力，企图阻止帝国结构的崩溃，曾于1918年10月16日发表声明，将奥地利改变成联邦国家。在匈牙利，米哈伊·卡罗伊伯爵也准许少数民族完全自治。但这两个提议都立即遭到拒绝。捷克人在布拉格宣布独立，日耳曼人也在维也纳宣布独立；南斯拉夫人声明同贝尔格莱德联合，特兰西瓦尼亚的罗马尼亚人也声明同布加勒斯特联合。 因此，诸从属民族国家对古老而专制的哈布斯堡帝国和所提出的新的联邦形式都不予理睬。不管哈布斯堡帝国是多么希望自己能以一种或另一种形式保存下来，事实仍然是，它缺乏可作为基础的人民大众的任何实际的支持。哈布斯堡帝国同罗曼诺夫王朝、霍亨索伦王朝和奥斯曼帝国一样，并非目光短浅的外交家的牺牲品，而是成功的民族主义的牺牲品；民族主义虽然过去在中欧和东欧长期受到抑制，但这时却正在整个中欧和东欧获得应有的承认。 尽管调停人通常将民族自决的原则运用于欧洲，但他们绝对不在欧洲以外地区这样做。这种差别对待在威尔逊的《十四点和平纲领》中能清楚地觉察出来；这一纲领明确阐明了该如何满足欧洲各种少数民族的愿望。与此形成鲜明对照，《纲领》第五条宣称：在殖民地，“有关居民的利益必须同政府的合理要求同等予以重视；政府的权利范围应予确定。”这里重要的一点是，它提到的是诸殖民地民族的“利益”而不是“愿望”。不用说，正是欧洲人自己决定这些“利益”是什么，结果是变相形式的帝国统治，即所谓的托管制度。 《国联盟约》第22 条把从同盟国手中获得的殖民地居民看作是“在现代世界的紧张形势下还不能自己站立的民族。”因此，这一条款规定：“这些民族的监护应该委托给那些先进民族，即因其资源、经历或地理位置而最能承担这一责任的民族……同时，这一监护应由他们作为'受托者'、代表国联来执行”。值得注意的是，这种由“受托者” 来“监护”的规定并没有扩大到获胜的协约国的殖民地，虽然这些殖民地的居民在许多方面都处于相似的发展水平或缺少发展。 托管条款将德国和奥斯曼帝国的国外和海外领土分为一级、二级和三级托管地。其类别随有关领土发展水平的不同而不同。在此基础上，前奥斯曼帝国的属地为一级托管地，德国的殖民地属二级和三级托管地。在奥斯曼帝国的领土中，美索不达米亚和巴勒斯坦受托给受托管理国英国，叙利亚和黎巴嫩受托给法国。在德国殖民地中，坦噶尼喀大部分地区划给英国，其余部分划给比利时；多哥兰和喀麦隆由英、法瓜分；西南非洲分给南非联斯至于德国在太平洋上的岛屿，赤道以北的归日本，赤道以南的归澳大利亚和新西兰。 受托管理国对托管地的居民承担着特定的义务。它们应向常设托管委员会说明履行这些义务的情况，并必须每年向国际联盟会议作汇报。虽然，常设托管委员会和国际联盟本身都无权强迫不服从的受托管理国，但值得注意的是，欧洲诸国首次接受了某些规定的程序。这些程序随托管地类型的不同而不同。就一级托管地来说，托管条款特别期望在可能的情况下立即准许独立。受托管理国的任务仅仅是“给予管理方面的指教和帮助……直到他们（托管地的人民）能自立独处时为止。这些社会的愿望在选择受托管理国时必须是首先要考虑的问题。”但对于二级和三级托管地，却没有提到最后的独立。其受托管理国的义务是提供符合居民利益的管理。 尽管托管制度是对战争中的胜利者瓜分殖民地战利品的传统方法的一种改进，然而，它仍强烈地使人联想起1815年那种忽视民族愿望的解决办法。我们将看到，奥斯曼帝国领土上的居民并不想处于被托管的地位，并强烈反对法国作为受托管理国。当叙利亚和黎巴嫩划给法国时，他们的愿望直接遭到了蔑视。甚至是非洲一些二级托管地，也对所作的安排表示强烈不满。因此，毫不奇怪；正如1815年对民族主义愿望的忽视导致19世纪期间欧洲的一系列革命一样，这一托管制度也将导致战后数年间殖民地世界中的一些起义。 似乎有悖常理的是，欧洲诸从属少数民族赢得独立需要整整一个世纪，而海外大多数殖民地民族虽然在许多方面落后于欧洲人，但获得自由只需半个世纪、其原因一定程度上也许能在现代大众交流媒介的影响中找到。由于无线电广播响彻乡村的每一块地方，当代印度尼西亚人、埃及人或巴基斯坦人对世界大事、世界趋势的了解和作出的反应达到了19世纪的加利西亚人、波斯尼亚人或阿尔巴尼亚人根本无法想象的程度。两次世界大战比1815年至1914年间的一系列较小的冲突更加削弱了欧洲强国，这一点也可解释当代殖民地的觉醒。 粗看第一次世界大战前后的全球，它显露出的变化相当少。欧洲的边界虽因四大帝国的消失而不同，但就整个世界而言，欧洲的统治似乎并没有减弱。英国、法国和其他帝国仍然统治着与1914年以前一样多的海外殖民地。实际上，它们的领地甚至更大，因为它们这时控制了以前曾在苏丹统治下的中东领土。因此，欧洲的全球霸权在第一次世界大战后比大战前更完整。 不过，在这表面之下，形势却完全不同。实际上，从全球的观点来看，第一次世界大战的主要意义恰恰在于它开始了对欧洲霸权的削弱——这一过程在第二次世界大战之后宣告完成，这一削弱至少表现在三个方面，经济衰落、政治危机和对殖民地的控制日益削弱。 1914 年以前，欧洲的经济很大程度上依靠大规模的海外投资，这些投资每年产生大量的利润。然而，第一次世界大战期间，英国失去了其对外投资的四分之一，法国失去了三分之一，而德国则失去了全部对外投资。这一趋势的完全改变从美国新的金融实力中可看出来。战前，美国靠欧洲提供所需的资本。到1914年时，美国欠欧洲投资者的债务约为40亿美元；如果用现在的标准来衡量，这是一笔微不足道的款项，但却是那个时期国债的三倍。然而，战争完全改变了这种关系，因为协约国政府为了支付战争物资款，先被迫出售了它们在美国的股份，然后又向美国政府以及私方借款。因而，到1919年时，美国已成为一个借出款项达37亿美元之多的债权国，到1930年时，这个数字已上升到88亿美元。 在工业上，与此相同的格局也很明显，因为欧洲许多工业区已遭破坏，而美国的工厂却在战时极大需求的椎动下，犹如雨后春笋惊人地发展起来。到1929年时，美国的工业产量至少占世界工业总产量的42.2％，这一产量大于包括苏联在内的所有欧洲国家的产量。因此，欧洲与美国的经济关系因第一次世界大战而完全改变。欧洲已不再象在19世纪时那样，是世界的银行家和世界的工场。这两方面的领导权已转到大西洋彼岸。 战争不但在经济上，而且在政治上也使欧洲内部遭到摧残。1914年以前，欧洲已是近代基本的政治思想和政治制度的发源地。正如我们所看到的那样，这些思想和制度的影响已波及全球每个角落。然而，战争的浩劫使欧洲人士气沮丧，失去信心。在欧洲大陆的各个地方，古老的秩序正受到怀疑和挑战。英国首相劳合·乔治在1919年3月的一份秘密备忘录中写道：“在反对战前形势的工人中间，存在着一种不仅是不满，而且是忿怒和反抗的强烈意识，所有现存的政治、社会和经济方面的秩序都受到了欧洲各地广大人民的怀疑。” 在这一革命的紧要关头，许多欧洲人都期待两位非欧洲人、美国的威尔逊和苏俄的列宁的指导。威尔逊的《十四点和平纲领》引起了一场民主愿望和期望的骚动。1918年12月，当威尔逊踏上欧洲血染的土地时，广大民众以发狂的热情把他当作“人类的国王”、“救世主”、“和平王子”来欢迎。他们贪婪地聆听着他的有关和平和安全的远景规划。 与此同时，另一个拯救福音正从东方传来。数百万死伤的人和城乡冒着烟雾的废墟使得广大民众易于接受进行革命和实现社会新秩序的号召。为了模仿布尔什维克革命，柏林、汉堡和布达佩斯都建立了苏维埃。伦敦、巴黎和罗马街头也举行了示威游行。威尔逊的密友豪斯上校在1919年3月22日的日记中写道：“不满的呼声每天都有。人民需要和平。布尔什维主义正越来越为各地的人们所接受。匈牙利刚刚屈服。我们正坐在一座露天火药库上，总有一天，一颗火星便能将它点燃。” 18、19世纪，欧洲人的思想曾唤醒和激励过美国人和俄国人。现在的情形正好相反。欧洲人正在别处寻找领导者，寻找思想。下一章我们将看到，20世纪20年代以前，欧洲一直是“一座露天火药库”，随后，在1929年的经济飓风到来之前，安定、繁荣了几年。 最后，欧洲的霸权被第一次世界大战削弱，因为这次大战对海外殖民地产生了影响。欧洲列强的一个集团同另一集团血战到底的惨状不可弥补地损坏了白人主子的威信。白人不再被认为几乎是天命注定的统治有色人种的人了。数以百万计的殖民地居民作为士兵或劳工加入战争，同样具有破坏性。印度几个师在西线和美索不达米亚作战；许多身着法军制服的非洲人在法国北部作战；大批的中国人和印度支那人在后方的劳动营里服劳役。不用说，有过如此经历后返回家园的殖民地居民对欧洲领主不可能再象以前那样恭顺。例如，法国一位行政官员说，“1914至1915年间应征入伍的175000名士兵在法国和佛兰德的战壕中挖掘了古老非洲的坟墓。”法国驻印度支那总督于1926年写道：“这场用鲜血覆盖整个欧洲的战争……在距我们遥远的国度里唤起了一种独立的意识。……在过去几年中，一切都发生了变化。人们、观念和亚洲本身都在改变。” 革命思想还因与战争行为有关的宣传而在殖民地中得到传播。诚然，威尔逊的《十四点和平纲领》所提到的只是殖民地民族的“利益”而不是“愿望”。但在战时，这是一个极其细微的差别，“民族自决”这一革命术语已不仅在欧洲而且在殖民地世界留下了印记。同样具有影响的是社会主义和共产主义的思想体系。第一次世界大战之前，亚洲的知识分子已为西方的自由主义和民族主义所激励。他们引用过伏尔泰、马志尼和约翰·斯图尔特·穆勒的话。但现在，他们的后裔很可能引用马克思、列宁或哈罗德·拉斯基的话。1919年7月25日，孙中山博士为这一转变提供了证据，他宣布：“如果中国人民希望自由的话……中国人民在争取民族自由的斗争中的唯一的伙伴和兄弟是苏俄工农红军。” 第一伙世界大战对殖民地世界的所有这些影响不可避免地带来深刻的政治结果。只有少数几个人清楚地看到了这一点，美国黑人领袖W·E·B·杜波伊斯就是其中的一个；他于1918年写下了以下这一有关即将到来的世界的非凡预测：