What were the causes of the first world war? Many people believe, that the First World War was caused by the assassination of the heir to the empire of Austria-Hungry, Arch-Duke Franz Ferdinand. However, I believe, there were many other more important causes that could have started the war. For example: the rivalry of countries, the alliances (Triple Entente and Triple Alliance), the industries of Britain and Germany, Militarism, Rivalry and many more. Firstly, Germany was trying to expand its empire, and Britain and France had large empires. Therefore, as Germany became more power it also wanted an empire. Britain and France did not want this, as a big German empire was a threat to both Britain and France’s Empires. Thus, this made Germany a rival of both Britain and France. Secondly, the rivalry of Russia and Austria-Hungry, both countries wanted control of the Balkans. Russia tried to control the Balkans by helping the Slav people gain independence from Austria-Hungry. Austria-Hungry wanted to stop the Serbs helping the Slav people gain independence. Consequently, a rivalry between Austria-Hungry and Russia was formed. Thirdly, Britain had been leading the world’s industry for many years. By 1914 Germany was producing more coal, iron, steel and cars than Britain. Britain saw Germany as a major rival and its growing wealth and power as a potential threat to its wealth and power. As a result, the rivalry of Germany and Britain heightened. On the other hand, some poeple believed this was the most important cause of the war: on June 28th 1914, the heir to the Austria-Hungarian empire, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was assinated along with his wife, while touring the streets of the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. The assassin ... ... middle of paper ... ...etween each other, and the alliances contributed to this, by all of the major powers stepping all in because their ally needed help (this was the most important and most major cause of the first world war happening). I also believe that the assination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand was only a minor cause and put together with all the others caused the First World War. Austria-Hungry had had enough of Serbia (they were trying to unite Slav people and they killed their Archduke). So then Austria-Hungry’s allies, Germany and Italy, stepped in to help. Russia too stepped in to help Serbia, and with that Russia called in its allies: Britain and France. Furthermore, the rivalry of Britain and France between Germany was very high, Germany was getting powerful, so Britain and France were very happy to help Russia when Germany stepped in to help Austria-Hungry.
In August of 1914, the war to end all wars began. The First World War saw incredible amounts of casualties because of new fighting techniques and technology, among other reasons. While it is clear who the victors of the war were after the battles had been fought and the Peace of Paris signed, what is not clear is who started this war. Historians have debated this question since the very early stages of the war and it is one that still remains without one concrete answer. A common elementary history textbook will explain the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria as the sole cause for World War one, but further research seriously brings this statement into question. I feel as though it was not one single person, or even a single country who/that caused the war, but rather a series of events and situations which include the following: the allying of countries and preparing for war which preceded the fighting itself, the actions of the Black Hand as a message of Serbian nationalists, the persuasion of Austria-Hungary by Germany for a swift retribution for this act, and Russia's swift mobilization of troops along the Central Powers' eastern border in the early stages of the war.
There are four factors which could be held accountable for World War I; militarism, alliances, imperialism and nationalism. Militarism is the expansion of armies and navies, alliances refer to the webs of pacts and agreements that countries made with each other, imperialism is the taking over of other countries, and nationalism is the promoting of one’s own country and propaganda against either other countries or countries which were opposition of your allies. All of these four factors were partially responsible for causing the war. Militarism could be blamed for causing the war, because the growing competition between the European powers meant that countries were desperate to show their dominance, and this was best done through military investing. Furthermore, increasing military spending meant that countries wanted to use their armies, and this idea is backed up by the ”use it or lose it” mindset. Alliances were formed to protect one another against possible future attacks, but ended up further increasing the tensions between the European powers as alliances were formed against other alliances. Imperialism meant that countries were already fighting over territory, and though it was far away from where these countries actually were, it severely increased the risk of war as the tensions between countries increased. Nationalism increased hostility as the propaganda war began and continued. Each country was frantically trying to prove that they were superior to all other countries, and in this process they often ended up making negative propaganda slandering other countries and their leaders. Nonetheless, it was the Triple Alliance of 1882 that started the string of events that would inevitably lead to war. Even though none of the f...
One underlying cause of World War I was the alliances that were being formed. On July 28th 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophia were assassinated by a serbian member of the blackhand. Austria played Serbia as puppets and no longer wanted to compromise and wished to declare war. Alliances were formed to benefit their own country and to keep peace with the Great Powers and Europe. Many alliances split amongst Europe and made each country enemies. The Triple Entente military alliance between Great Britain, France & Russia in the years preceding World War I (Chapter 13 Section 1).
World War One or ‘The First World War’ as it became known, occurred due to many causes including the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and ideologies such as nationalism and militarism. The most obvious trigger for the war was the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on June 28, 1914. The assassination took place during the Archduke’s visit to Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Archduke was targeted due to an ill feeling amongst Serbians that, once appointed to the throne, Ferdinand would continue the persecution of Serbs living within the borders of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Just moments after the couple had been shot; authorities arrested the triggerman, Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian student, who was believed to have been linked to the Serbian terrorist organization, The Black Hand.
The causes of World War I were mutual alliances created in many small groups. These countries agreed to hold mutual alliances, typically three or four nations tied for alliance. As you have mentioned, the World War I began with assassination of Ferdinand and which set off many mutual alliances to come support their respective mutual allies. This is why now in modern society, roles of diplomatic officials, remote embassies, and such ambassador’s roles play very critical parts in political sides. Lesson learned from the past created organizations such as United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to promote peace.
The factors that led to the outbreak of the First World War have been argued over for many years and it is still something that does not have a definitive answer. Many historians argue over who is responsible through long and short term factors. It is true to say that Germany and Austria were responsible but there were other factors such as the alliance system.
The assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Austrian Archduke, is often cited as the direct cause of WWI. While it was a significant catalyst to the war, the circumstances surrounding WWI were actually more complicated. The first great world war was caused by a variety of factors including: tensions between countries due to a threatening system of alliances, stockpiling of weaponry, and nationalism.
However, in addition to the struggle over Bosnia, there were several underlying causes of World War I sweeping across Europe on the eve of World War I which contributed to the start of the war. These conflicts had plagued Europe for years and made a large-scale European war unavoidable. Although the direct cause of World War I was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, long term causes such as the political instability of Europe, rivalries and alliances between countries, and the conflict between large empires and nationalism brought Europe into a situation in which a large-scale war was inevitable. By 1914, these factors made the major European powers on the verge of war and a small spark in the “tinderbox of Europe” was all that was necessary to cause World War I.
War is what keeps a nation from dying, it is the backbone of a country. This is the shown throughout the course of World War I, also known as “the war to end all wars.” World War I started in the summer of 1914. Archduke Francis Ferdinand, from the Austro – Hungarian Empire was visiting Bosnia. He was shot, along with his wife, Sofia, by a young man from the Black Hand, Gavrillo Princip. What were the three main factors that started World War I? There were three main underlying causes that started World War I: greed, nationalism, and militarism.
The first world war started in August 1914. The assassination of the Austrian archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife directly triggered the war, but it is believed by most that this was only a spark to start the war, and that there were many other factors leading up to it. These factors include a strong sense of nationalism and militarism within the countries, and the fight for the Balkans between Russia and Austria-Hungary. With imperialism already causing tensions between countries, some believe that the war was inevitable. There is ultimately no main cause or event that triggered the war, but a lot of small tensions that built up over time, eventually coming to a head and starting the war.
During the period of July 1914 to November 1918 was when the world took a turn of events, and had an everlasting effect on the world including the people in it. Yet, the main focus was Europe and the United States. The causes of World War 1 also known as the Great War included both short, and long term occurrences. Some of the reasons for these occurrences included a multipolar power in Europe, Imperialism, the alliance system, nationalism, imperial rivalries in Africa / Asia, and a sudden assassination. However, this was based on what the public thought, and was some of the reoccurring things the public seen as the main reasons. In my opinion, I feel the main causes for the Great War starting off was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand which led up to nationalism, imperialism, militarism, and alliances. I say this because I seen all these as a cause and effect thing, opposed from everyone
There were many causes of World War 1 and one of the causes was Militarism.Militarism was a leading cause to WWI because the military had control over everything.In document 7 it shows how much money each country invested into their Army and Navy.These lead to the WW1 because with
There are many reasons why World War One occurred in 1914, many are complex and remain controversial which is why the matter has been disputed to this day by historians all over the world. My theory is that a lot of those reasons and the trigger factor all links to one thing; the alliance system. The alliance system is what made countries oppose each other and become rivals making it the most significant factor. It had an impact on who supported who when Duke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated. This was only the spark that started war in Europe; there were long term causes that contributed to the war and were the origins. This answer will explain the causes focusing on how they contributed to World War One and what the important links are between them.
Although the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is what was believed to be the reason World War 1 was started, it certainly is not the only or even the most important reason. Like an onion, one must peel away the layers to find the heart of the issue. The four main causes leading up to the war included militarism, or the building up of a country’s fighting forces. There were also alliances, or agreements made between two or more countries. Trying to build their empires bigger and better, or imperialism led to competition along with pride in each country, or nationalism. You should look at each reason individually and notice how one may have led to another.
The assassination of Franz Ferdinand and his wife was definitely the most significant cause of the calamity that is World War I. Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro- Hungarian throne, was simply visiting Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Unfortunately, a secret Serbian society known as the Black Hand awaited the Archduke’s arrival. This nationalist group targeted Ferdinand due to the feeling amongst Serbians that once appointed to the throne; Ferdinand would uphold the persecution of Serbs inhabiting the borders of the Austro- Hungarian Empire. Gavrilo Princip was one of eight members of the Black Hand chosen to execute Franz Ferdinand. Unloading two shots, Princip had assassinated both Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie. Seized by the police, he was beaten and put into prison, and there he died. The shots of this young man echoed all over the world to initiate the explosion of World War I.