World War One started in 1914, when Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated by a Serbian causing Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia. Austria-Hungary dragged its allies, Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Italy, into the war. Also, France, and Russia joined the war supporting Serbia. However, the people on both sides did not expect the war to take a long time. In addition, lots of people died in this war on both sides. The new military technology, new map of Europe, and rise of Communism were the three biggest pieces of evidence that the First World War  was a turning point in world history.  

The First World War, 1914-1918 was a turning point in world history because of the new military technology. Transportation was different in World War One than any other war that came before, because horses were not faster than trains nor safer than tanks. Tanks were used as an offensive tactic, and soldiers were able to move into other places by staying in tanks or moving behind them. Also, lots of soldiers were transported from one places to another in a short time because of the high speed of trains. Fighter planes were invented in 1915, and first used by the Germans for spying against other countries. Then, bombers were invented which were used as another attacking tactic against enemies such as the British. First pilots used pistols and then machine guns when the bombers became more advanced. In World War One, swords were useless against the new weapons such as, guns, machine guns, and snipers.  Also, it was much easier and faster to use the advance weapons against swords.

Another reason the First World War can be seen as a turning point in world history is because the map of Europe was redrawn. The Treaty of Versailles happened at the end of World War One in 1919, and most of the discussions were about Germany.Allied leaders wanted to redraw the map of Europe which caused the Austro-Hungarian Empire to be split into two nations; Austria and Hungary.  France played a big role in the redrawing of Germany. The leader of France, Georges Clemenceau, wanted Germany  to pay for all the damage that France had suffered in the war. Also, he wanted to avoid future wars with Germany by making two important demands. The first demand was: “Germany must return Alsace-Lorraine to France; this had been taken by Germany in 1871,” and the second one was “ France should be allowed to take possession of the Rhineland (the area near the River Rhine) (Modern World History).” Also, new countries were added to the map after World War War One such as Poland.

Finally, the First World War can be seen as a turning point in world history because it brought about the rise of Communism. Russia was one of the first countries where Communism started, and caused Russia to leave World War One. Communism started when Russia began losing the war and lots of soldiers were dying. Communism spread to East Asia, and largely to China, which became a communist country in 1949.  Also, it spread to North Korea in 1948, which led to the war between Korea and the USA.  After that, communism spread to neighboring Cambodia and Laos in 1974, and in 1976, East Asia became communist. The communist in Russia around 1917, caused civil war between the White army, who were supported by the Allies, and Red army, who were the government. The people suffered during the Revolution.

Overall, World War One was a turning point in history because of the new military technology which became more effective and more advanced instead of previous wars’ technology, such as swords, and riding horses. In addition, the political map of Europe changed after World War One by creating new nations, such as Poland, and splitting up nations, such as Austria-Hungary. Also, Germany was reduced in terms of geographic size. Finally, World War One was a turning point because of the rise of Communism, which strengthened in Russia and spread to other nations such as China.  As a result of these changes, wars will be fought differently, Germany may seek revenge for the lands that were taken from them, and Communism was a threat.