Unit One: Death of the Old Order

Overview

World War I is often referred to as a turning point in world history. Its consequences were to significantly impact the course of history in this century .

This unit will examine:

• the conditions which made that war a possibility and an actuality;
• how that war represented a departure from previous wars, in particular, how it impacted the rights of the individual, the role of government and the `undermining' of the political status quo;
• how Russia (example of a major nation), its leadership and institutions, reacted to the war and the consequences of that war for the people of that nation;
• the conditions which resulted in the Russian Revolution and the consequences of that event; and,
• the desire of nations to secure their national self-interests and sovereignty and how that desire inhibited the major powers in securing a lasting peace.

Note: The section on the conditions and forces which shaped the pre-World War 1 period is a topic area which is an integral part of the grade ten history course and can be viewed as optional in grade eleven.

The perception of the world as a hostile and competitive environment, which influenced national decision makers at the beginning of the 20th century, was a product of the ideas and social/economic structural changes taking place in the industrialized nations. Economic forces, including the need for markets and raw resources to sustain the industrial economies of Europe and North America, were to drive foreign policies and actions.

Economic forces combined with nationalism to create situations where the agendas of major nations collided. In the face of such `new forces' and realities, nations turned to the `old' remedies of alliances and the maintenance of large standing military forces to secure their well-being. These alliances and forces were to create a `real' possibility of a regional conflict expanding into a world-wide conflict. That possibility was actualized in 1914.

The confluence of new ideas, new technologies, the rise of ethnic nationalism, and the First World War, all challenged the traditional political status quo of each nation. Nations such as Czarist Russia were not prepared for the magnitude and totality of the war. Inflexible responses in meeting the demands of both industrialization and the war, made those nations ripe for profound changes. The old order, the dynasties, and traditions were to be destroyed by the war.

The political vacuum which resulted was filled by a number of alternative political models. Some nations implemented democratic models of government with varying degrees of success. Totalitarian models of government appeared in other nations. Russia was to see the downfall of the Romanov dynasty and revolution. That revolution and the application of a new ideology had a profound influence on global politics for the remainder of the 20th century.

Unit One: Foundational Objectives

Concept: Change

Knowledge Objectives The student will:

• Know that the process of adjusting to change will vary from one society to another.
• Know that the process of adjusting to change will involve a number of stages:
• Denial/rejection of the change occurs when the change is unthinkable.
• Acknowledgment of change occurs when the new idea is given some credence and recognition.
• Acceptance of change occurs when more of an individual's behaviour centres on the new approach than the old; and,
• Defence of change occurs when the old idea is seen as wrong and the new idea is viewed as common sense.
• Know that change can be either evolutionary or revolutionary.
• Know that an interplay exists among social, economic, political and cultural domains within a society and that changes within one of the domains will impact the other forces.
• Know that new visions of humans and society emerged during the early decades of the twentieth century which were to profoundly impact how nations viewed/interacted with other nations/peoples.
• Know that the early decades of the twentieth century witnessed a confluence of forces that produced events and conditions, such as a world war, which seriously challenged the traditional institutions and political status quo in many nations.
• Know that the impetus for change within a society can originate from events beyond the political boundaries of that society/nation.

Skills The student will:

Learn and practise the basic research skills of:

• finding information;
• classifying information into meaningful categories;
• distinguishing between relevant and less relevant information; and,
• summarizing information, etc.
• Learn and practise the following analytical skills:
• defining the main parts;
• describing cause and effect relationships; and,
• describing how the parts of the whole are related to each other.
• Learn and practise using the criteria of paradigms as a basis for making evaluations.
• Learn and practise defining a problem, stating a hypothesis about the problem, and finding data which will confirm or disprove the hypothesis.

Values Issues The student will discuss:

• Whether a nation's decision-making processes should be influenced by external conditions such as involvement in a major war.
• Whether the authoritarian or democratic style of decision making and leadership is superior.
• What should be the criteria in determining whether individual rights or societal/collective rights should be a paramount importance to the society.
• What the proper balance between individual rights and collective rights should be in a society.
• Whether conditions ever exist which demand that order and security take precedence over individual rights.

Core Material for Unit One

Core Content	Core Concepts	Suggested Time Allotment
A New Century: Forces of Change Challenge the Status Quo Nationalism and the Nation State A Network of Alliances Russian Autocracy: Resistance to Reform	Change Paradigm Nationalism Ideology Alliances Autocracy	3 hours
World War I and the Destruction of the Old Order Impact of the War on National Societies Growing Public Disenchantment Russia and World War I: An Inflexible System	Total War Planned Economy	4 hours
The Russian Revolution Contested "Legitimacy": An Ideological Struggle The Bolshevik Assumption to Power and Civil War in Russia Germany: The Shock of Defeat	Legitimacy Social Contract Bolshevism Accountability	5 hours
Competing Visions for International Security Wilson's Collective Security Vision and the Reality of European Politics The Versailles Treaty: The Victor's Retribution	Collective Security War Guilt Self Determination	4 hours

Time to cover the core material	16 hours
Time available to teach optional concepts, to enrich or reinforce, or to accommodate modifications to the pacing and timing factors through the use of the Adaptive Dimension	4 hours
Total Class Time	20 hours

This core material appears in bold type on the pages that follow. The remainder of the material in this unit is not core material; teachers may choose to work through all, some, or none of these items. This material should be seen as an opportunity to individualize instruction for students with different levels of intellectual ability and motivation. Teachers may also choose to substitute locally developed material in optional areas where it is appropriate. Such material should reflect community interests and must also meet the concepts, skills, and Values Objectives

of the course.