Transcript Long Term Causes of World War I The World Wars Ms. Hamer September 9, 2009

Long Term Causes of World War I
The World Wars
Ms. Hamer
September 9, 2009
What were the Long Term Causes of World
War I?
• What countries had problems with each other
and why?
• What was happening to the Balance of Power
in Europe at the turn of the century?
• Imperialism
• Nationalism
• Militarism
The Great Powers
• Europe at this time was made up of:
– a few countries that had a lot of power (England,
France…)
– other countries that did not (Belgium,
Switzerland…)
– and some growing countries that wanted to be a
Great Power (Germany, Italy)
• In this system of control, if one country got
too much power, the other Great Powers would
band together to fight against it
Map of Europe - 1914
Great Britain
• Industrial and Commercial Power
• World’s Largest Empire
– 20% of the world’s land
• 45 million people
• Best Navy
• “Splendid Isolation”: Since England was doing
so well, it tended to stay out of the affairs of
continental Europe
• Constitutional Monarchy
• Banking capital of the world
British Empire in 1900
France
• Was the ruling power in Europe
in the 1700’s
• Lost a big war to Germany in
1870-1871 and was on the
downward spiral since then
– Lost Alsace and Lorraine in this
war
•
•
•
•
35 million people
Republic with very diverse political parties
Empire – SE Asia and Africa mostly
Was really worried about Germany…
Russia
• Spanned Asia and
Europe
• 164 million people
– Very diverse and not all happy to have had their country
merged into Russia (like the Poles)
• Not nearly as developed technologically or politically
as Western Europe
• Autocratic System ruled by Tsar Nicholas II
• Was having problems:
– 1905 – lost the Russo Japanese War
– 1905 – Revolution that almost destroyed the government
• Idealism of Pan-Slavism: Russia wanted to help
other Slavic nations (like Serbia)
Germany
• Created in 1870-1871 through a war with France
– Unification was based around Prussian military
principle
• Quickly became a Great Power and the strongest
on the continent; strong economy too
• 65 million people
• Kaiser Wilhelm II took over in 1888 and he
wanted to win respect through an aggressive
foreign policy
• Kind of a constitutional monarchy
– Reichstag – Parliament
– Kaiser – King / Leader
• Politically split between the Marxist SPD (Social
Democratic Party) and the Nationalist Leagues
Germany 1871-1918
Austria - Hungary
• Old empire, lost a lot to the
newly forming Germany in
1866, then befriended it…
• Empire ruled by Emperor
Franz Josef
• Major concerns: dissatisfied
ethnic groups, shaky empire,
and lagging behind in
industrial production
– The Balkans were especially
problematic as A-H worked to
keep their control there and to
keep Russian control out
Austria-Hungary 1910
Other Players
(Not Great Powers)
Ottoman Empire
• Would become Turkey
• Was a MAJOR empire, but was on its last legs
by the 1900’s
– Lost a lot of territory in the Balkans
– No real industrial development
– Was being preyed on by the European powers
• 1908 – Young Turk movement came about to
revive the empire
• Around 15 million people (estimated)
Ottoman
Empire
1798-1923
Purple: Lost by 1886
Pink: Lost by 1914
Italy
• Also a newly formed
country – 1860
• 36 million people
• Wanted to be a Great
Power, but had
internal instability
• Had complaints
against France (over
colonial issues) and
Austria-Hungary (over
land A-H had taken)
Serbia
• Kingdom
• Had gained
independence from the
Ottoman Empire
• Wanted to unite the
Slavs under a Balkan
league
– This worried AustriaHungary
• Supported by Russia
Japan
• Newly industrialized
country under the Meiji
Restoration of the last
quarter of the 1800’s
• Wanted to be an
imperialist power
– Won the Sino-Japanese
war in 1895
– Won the Russo-Japanese
war in 1904
– Annexed Korea in 1910
(had liberated Korea from
China in the 1895 war)
The United States of America
• Did not really figure into European politics
because of the vast distance between them
• Massive industrial production
– Produced more steel than either Britain or
Germany by 1900
• No real military power, but it had potential in
population and industrial capacity
• Had become imperialist in the late 1800’s
Life in Europe under the “Balance
of Power”
The Balance of Power
• Began in 1648 in Europe, reaffirmed at the
Congress of Vienna in 1815 and called the
Concert of Europe
– Theoretically kept harmony in Europe
– If one power got too strong, the others would unite
against it
• Broke Down in 1854 with the beginning of the
Crimean War
– Much more competitive after this
– “The German Question” – what would the new
Germany’s role be?
Mindsets of the Time
• Liberalism
– Middle Class
– Believed in individual freedom, constitutional limits
on the state, free trade, and identified with the
progress of the time
• Nationalism
– Had been used as idea of liberation, was now used to
legitimate governments of nation-states (Germany,
Italy…)
– Picked up the Social Darwinist ideas of ‘rising’ and
‘declining’ races of people by the turn of the century
Mindsets of the Time Part 2
• Conservatism
– Old school typically
– Against liberalism, but sometimes embraced the
nationalist ideas
• Socialism
– Super liberal idea based on the idea of a workers’
revolution
– Grew in strength in Germany
Imperialism
• During all of this, European countries fought for
control of land overseas, by the 1800’s the focus
was on Africa and Asia
• England and France were rivals
• England and Russia distrusted each other in
Central Asia (England controlled India and
somewhat controlled China)
• Germany did not participate in the rash of landgrabbing that happened in the mid-1800’s
– Therefore Germany did not have as much as everyone
else
– Germany would end up being very bitter about this
Militarism
• The combination of imperialist competition
and instability in the balance of power led
many European countries to expand their
military, especially after Germany’s new
aggressive foreign policy began in 1890
• France Germany and Russia built up their
armies
– European armies in general doubled in size from
1890-1914
• Countries began to make extremely detailed
plans for military operations in possible future
wars
Popular Militarism in Germany
• The idea of war starts to
blend with nationalism: war
is a test of national identity
and supremacy
• As militarism took hold in
Germany, there were
cultural changes:
– Brutalization of the middle
classes as they imitated the
Junker aristocracy
– Students prized dueling scar
Popular Militarism in Germany Part 2
– Lots of respect shown to
military officers
– Kaiser Wilhelm II was
all about uniforms,
parades, aggressive
foreign policy
– Many supported this
attitude, but not all
Germans felt this way
• Some felt that war was a
way out of a political
crisis or stalemate
What problems could militarism cause?
Militarism Moves Forward
Misconception of the Modern Nature of
War
• Should have known better after the Crimean
War (1850’s) and American Civil War (1860’s)
• Still though war was short, fast, and glorious
– Also thought it would still be focused on the
offensive, and cavalry…
• Ideas about war becoming more civilized:
– Geneva Conventions of 1864 and 1906
– Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907
• Protecting civilians and POW’s
• No use of poison gas
What does this all Lead to?
• Expectation of and planning for the “next war”
in Europe
– Glamorized in popular culture
– Extensive military planning
Military Planning
• Germany:
– Schlieffen Plan – Was to solve the 2-front war
Germany would have to fight
• Knock out France in 42 days by attacking through
Belgium, then face Russia
• France
– Plan XVII (keep in mind they started at 14!)
• Was based on an offensive to retake the lost provinces of
Alsace and Lorraine
• Left a small contingent to defend against the Belgian
border because the Germans would never do anything so
heinous as attacking through neutral Belgium…
The Cult of the Offensive
• Born out of this fervor for war was the Cult of
the Offensive:
– Emphasis on attack instead of defense
– Leaders felt that their dedicated soldiers were so
nationalistic that they could beat a larger force
– Training focused on the bayonet drill and attack –
infantry
What were the Long Term Causes of World
War I?
• What countries had problems with each other
and why?
• What was happening to the Balance of Power
in Europe at the turn of the century?
• Imperialism
• Nationalism
• Militarism