long term causes of ww1
The drift toward the war started in August 1914, when it was directly triggered by the assassination of the Austrian archduke, Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian nationalist. This event was, however, was the trigger that set off declarations of war. The actual causes of the war are more complicated, which were Militarism, forms of Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism.
Militarism
Maybe you're questioning the term militarism. It simply means that the army and military forces are given a high profile by the government. The growing European divide had led to an arms race between the main countries. The armies of both France and Germany had more than doubled between 1870 and 1914 and there was fierce competition between Britain and Germany for mastery of the seas. The British had introduced the 'Dreadnought', an effective battleship, in 1906. The Germans soon followed suit introducing their own battleships. The German, Von Schlieffen also drew up a plan of action that involved attacking France through Belgium if Russia made an attack on Germany. The picture to your left shows how the plan was set up.
form of alliances
The term Alliance is referred to an agreement made between two or more countries to help each other out when they need it. When an alliance is signed, those countries become known as Allies.
While national interests searched for allies, each nation viewed its fulfillment of treaty obligations as crucial to self-preservation. intended to preserve peace, rival alliance systems created framework whereby even a small international crisis could set off a chain reaction leading to global war, which in 1914 Europe's major powers had transformed themselves into 2 hostile camps- the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente.
The Triple Alliance consisted of Germany and Austria- Hungary made an alliance with Italy to stop Italy from taking sides with Russia, and The Triple Entente (had no separate peace) Britain, Russia and France agreed not to sign for peace separately. Although these Alliances were the major ones, there were still a number of alliances signed. The picture to your left shows you how these Alliances were formed.
While national interests searched for allies, each nation viewed its fulfillment of treaty obligations as crucial to self-preservation. intended to preserve peace, rival alliance systems created framework whereby even a small international crisis could set off a chain reaction leading to global war, which in 1914 Europe's major powers had transformed themselves into 2 hostile camps- the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente.
The Triple Alliance consisted of Germany and Austria- Hungary made an alliance with Italy to stop Italy from taking sides with Russia, and The Triple Entente (had no separate peace) Britain, Russia and France agreed not to sign for peace separately. Although these Alliances were the major ones, there were still a number of alliances signed. The picture to your left shows you how these Alliances were formed.
imperialism in ww1
Imperialism is when a country takes over new lands or countries and makes them subject to their rule. By 1900 the British Empire extended over five continents and France had control of large areas of Africa. With the rise of industrialism, countries needed new markets. The amount of lands 'owned' by Britain and France increased the rivalry with Germany who had entered the scramble to acquire colonies late and only had small areas of Africa. Look at the map above. It shows Imperialism in Europe.
Nationalism in ww1
Nationalism means being a strong supporter of the rights and interests of one's country. The Congress of Vienna aimed to sort out problems in Europe. Delegates from Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia (the winning allies) decided upon a new Europe that left both Germany and Italy as divided states. Strong nationalist elements led to the re-unification of Italy in 1861 and Germany in 1871. The settlement at the end of the Franco-Prussian war left France angry at the loss of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany and keen to regain their lost territory. Large areas of both Austria-Hungary and Serbia were home to differing nationalist groups, all of whom wanted freedom from the states in which they lived. The picture to your left gives an example of Nationalism in the U.S.
assassination: Franz Ferdinand and his wife pronounced dead
June 28th, 1914
Ferdinand had decided on visiting the capital of Bosnia to make an inspection of the Austro-Hungarian troops. The inspection was scheduled June 28th, Earlier today. He had planned to met his wife, Sophie, at the station and go out to eat lunch with her near City Hall before the inspection.
A Serbian terrorist group, AKA The Black Hand, decided to go to City Hall that day and assassinate the married couple. The young serbian group insisted of 7 trained bomb men. Their plan was to follow Ferdinand's route to City Hall, where he would be eating and to follow his driver to the inspection. 3 of the 7 men failed, leaving 2 injured and rushed to the hospital.
After lunch, Ferdinand insisted on visiting the young men in the hospital. On their way there, Ferdinand's driver took a wrong turn. The driver attempted to stop, which caused the car to reverse and spin. Another terrorist, Gavrilo Princip fired two shots Ferdinand and his wife. The first shot hit pregnant Sophie in the stomach, and instantly killed her, and the second shot fired at Ferdinand's neck, with him dying shortly after that.
Ferdinand had decided on visiting the capital of Bosnia to make an inspection of the Austro-Hungarian troops. The inspection was scheduled June 28th, Earlier today. He had planned to met his wife, Sophie, at the station and go out to eat lunch with her near City Hall before the inspection.
A Serbian terrorist group, AKA The Black Hand, decided to go to City Hall that day and assassinate the married couple. The young serbian group insisted of 7 trained bomb men. Their plan was to follow Ferdinand's route to City Hall, where he would be eating and to follow his driver to the inspection. 3 of the 7 men failed, leaving 2 injured and rushed to the hospital.
After lunch, Ferdinand insisted on visiting the young men in the hospital. On their way there, Ferdinand's driver took a wrong turn. The driver attempted to stop, which caused the car to reverse and spin. Another terrorist, Gavrilo Princip fired two shots Ferdinand and his wife. The first shot hit pregnant Sophie in the stomach, and instantly killed her, and the second shot fired at Ferdinand's neck, with him dying shortly after that.
Gavrilo Princip
Here is a short video clip on the causes that lead to World War 1.