MILH355 World War I

1. Choose two questions each from the Kennedy and Baker Readings below:

Answer TWO of the following questions from Kennedy and TWO from Baker below.
David Kennedy, Over Here (Pages 3-14, 163-205):

Prologue
Why did the Germans initiate unrestricted warfare in 1917?
In what ways did the war lead to major domestic changes in Russia?
What was Germany’s strategy toward Russian politics?
Why was Wilson reluctant to declare war on Germany?

Chapter 3
What were the disagreements between Pershing and his fellow Allied commanders?
What were some misconceptions Americans had about European soldiers?
What was the role of black units in France?
What special problems did they encounter?
How was the fighting different than what many Doughboys anticipated?

Chapter 4 (consult the map on 196 as you start this chapter):
How and why did the battle plans change for the AEF?
What big advantage did the Americans have at Saint-Mihiel?
What problems did the AEF encounter during the Meuse-Argonne offensive?
What advantages did the AEF have?
What fundamental problem did the Europeans see in the American strategy (a criticism Pershing never did agree with)?
Why did the “Lost Battalion” get lost?
Why were Alvin York’s exploits somewhat un-representative?

2. Answer two of the questions from Horace Baker, Argonne Days in World War I:

One of the advantages of an autobiographical account is the little details of life in the military and in combat. What details jumped out at you that maybe you’d never considered before about life in wartime?

From Horace Baker’s Argonne Days:

How does Baker’s take differ from what you read about the AEF in Kennedy’s Over Here?

In what ways does his account confirm Kennedy’s?

Introduction: Was the Russian Revolution the determining factor in allowing the German offensive on the western front in 1918?

Does Baker think the war was worthwhile from the American perspective?