First World War Essay

subroutine of theparticipants in World War IAllied Powersin green,Central Powersin orange, and neutral countries in gray-headed In the 19th Century, the major European supplys had gone to great lengths to maintain abalance of powerthroughout Europe, resulting by 1900 in a complex network of political and military bond papers throughout the continent. These had started in 1815, with theHoly AlliancebetweenPrussia, Russia, and Austria. Then, in October 1873, German ChancellorBismarcknegotiated theLeague of the Three Emperors(GermanDreikaiserbund) between the monarchs of AustriaHungary, Russia and Germ whatever.This sympathy failed because AustriaHungary and Russia could non agree over Balkan policy, leaving Germany and AustriaHungary in an alliance formed in 1879, called theDual Alliance. This was seen as a method of countering Russian influence in theBalkansas theOttoman imperiumcontinued to weaken. In 1882, this alliance was expanded to include Italy in what became theTriple A lliance. After 1870, European conflict was averted largely through a carefully planned network of treaties between the German Empire and the remainder of Europe orchestrated by Chancellor Bismarck.He especially worked to hold Russia at Germanys side to avoid a two-front warfare with France and Russia. WhenWilhelm IIascended to the throne asGerman Emperor(Kaiser), Bismarcks alliances were gradually de-emphasised. For example, the Kaiser refused to renew theReinsurance treatywith Russia in 1890. Two years later, theFranco-Russian Alliancewas signed to counteract the force of the Triple Alliance. In 1904, the unify Kingdom sealed an alliance with France, theEndecadete cordialeand in 1907, the United Kingdom and Russia signed theAnglo-Russian Convention.This system of interwoven bilateral agreements formed theTriple Entente. HMS Dreadnought. A navalarms raceexisted between the United Kingdom and Germany. German industrial and economic power had grown greatly afterunification and the foundation of the Empirein 1870. From the mid-1890s on, the government of Wilhelm II used this alkali to devote significant economic resources to building up theKaiserliche marine(Imperial German Navy), established by AdmiralAlfred von Tirpitz, in rivalry with the BritishRoyal Navyfor ground naval supremacy. As a result, both nations strove to out-build each other in terms ofcapital ships.With the put in ofHMSDreadnoughtin 1906, the British Empire expanded on its significant advantage over its German rivals. 21The arms race between Britain and Germany eventually extended to the rest of Europe, with all the major powers devoting their industrial base to producing the equipment and weapons necessary for a pan-European conflict. Between 1908 and 1913, the military spending of the European powers increased by 50percent. Austria-Hungary precipitated theBosnian crisisof 19081909 by officially annexing the former Ottoman territory ofBosnia and Herzegovina, which it had occupied since 1 878.This angered theKingdom of Serbiaand its patron, thePan-SlavicandOrthodoxRussian Empire. Russian political manoeuvring in the region destabilised peace accords that were already fracturing in what was known as thePowder kegful of Europe. Ethno-linguistic map of AustriaHungary, 1910 In 1912 and 1913, theFirst Balkan Warwas fought between theBalkan Leagueand the fracturing Ottoman Empire. The resultingTreaty of capital of the United Kingdomfurther shrank the Ottoman Empire, creating an independentAlbanian Statewhile enlarging the territorial holdings of Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro and Greece.When Bulgaria attacked both Serbia and Greece on 16 June 1913, it lost most of Macedonia to Serbia and Greece andSouthern Dobrujato Romania in the 33-daySecond Balkan War, further destabilising the region. Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian-Serb student, was arrested immediately after he assassinatedArchduke Franz Ferdinand of AustriaOn 28 June 1914,Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian-Serb student and member ofYoung Bosnia, assassinated the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne,Archduke Franz Ferdinand of AustriainSarajevo, Bosnia.This began a block of diplomatic maneuvering among Austria-Hungary, Germany, Russia, France, and Britain called theJuly Crisis. Wanting to finally end Serbian interference in Bosnia, Austria-Hungary delivered the July Ultimatum to Serbia, a series of ten demands intentionally made unacceptable, intending to provoke a war with Serbia. When Serbia agreed to only eight of the ten demands, Austria-Hungary state war on 28 July 1914. Strachanargues, Whether an equivocal and early response by Serbia would have made any difference to Austria-Hungarys behavior must be doubtful.Franz Ferdinand was not the sort of personality who commanded popularity, and his demise did not cast the empire into deepest mourning. The Russian Empire, unwilling to allow AustriaHungary to eliminate its influence in the Balkans, and in support of its longtime Serb proteges, ordered a partial mobilization one day later. When the German Empire began to mobilise on 30 July 1914, France, angry about the German conquest ofAlsace-Lorraineduring theFranco-Prussian War, ordered French mobilisation on 1 August. Germany declared war on Russia on the same day.