The Long Shadow: WWI and the Modern Middle East

After stalemate was achieved on the Western Front in winter 1914, many combatants began focusing on winning the war outside of Europe. The Middle East underwent a major transformation as a result of World War I. Many historians consider World War I an event with a "long shadow." This activity asks your students to trace this "long shadow" in current events in the Middle East, finding and using several articles and answering a series of questions. (Email amanda.williams@norfolk.gov if you would like the Memorial to send you a short PowerPoint to help explain WWI in the Middle East to your class.)