Chad Maudlin
Period 1
March 20, 2014
The Inevitability of World War One
Peace and friendship do not always lead to a happy ending; at least that is what was found out after World War One. After a period of semi-peaceful relationships (excluding the Balkan Wars) and alliances between the countries and empires of Europe, came a “war to end all wars”-- so believed by H.G. Wells. However it just transitioned into a garish, unforgiving battlefield. This war is now and forever known as World War One. The war itself is blamed on a variety of reasons. A few of the most widespread beliefs would be Germany wanting to prove itself as a new upstart country, the boiling conflict between England and Germany, or even the death of Franz-Ferdinand, the Austria-Hungary prince being shot by the Black Hand assassination group from Serbia. However, the real reasons for the start of World War One would be militarism, alliances, and imperialism.
Out of three real reasons for World War One, the most significant would most likely be imperialism. Imperialism is the policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, and obtaining and holding colonies and dependencies. Imperialism is the greatest factor towards the cause of World War One because it provided a great deal of tension between all of the countries. This was shown in the Balkan Wars, one of the other related main factors leading up to the war. The battle over the Balkan territory provided tension between Russia, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the new country of Serbia. The tension between Austria-Hungary and Serbia eventually lead to the assassination of Franz-Ferdinand. He was the prince of Austria-Hungary and w...
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...n combat due to its lack of production of weapons. Militarism also provided hope and enthusiasm for the civilians within the countries, expanding economies and creating jobs. This fostered Nationalism and thus helping to promote war.
The real reason for World War One would be the combination of imperialism, the alliances, and militarism. All of these causes just stacked the tension between the European countries, making it so a war was bound to break out between them regardless. The blame for World War One itself cannot be put onto one country individually, due to all of them being participants in the war and all of them participating in the factors leading up to the war, intentionally or unintentionally. This war was inevitable because, after all, history repeats itself. Since there was war before, the war would have happened, it was just a matter of time.
Firstly, war is initiated by country having more power and wanting to expand their territory or to gain more resources. For example, in the essay The Ecstasy of War (1997) by Barbara Ehrenreich, she stated “that wars are designed, at least ostensibly, to secure necessaries like land or oil” (Ehrenreich 43). Therefore, countries wanting to have more land or important resources will initiate a war if the other country is not in accordance in willing to
History is full of people fighting against one another and going to war for all types of different reasons. For the most part countries go to war to either protect their way of life, or for a better way of living. We want to preserve certain aspects of life like our rights, as well as helping others gain or maintain them, we also want to be able to prosper as a country. When one or some of these things are threatened a country will go to war. Some wars that fallow this trend include the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War. Besides protecting or bettering life, war can also make or break a countries economy.
There are many reason why the world plunged into its first world war. There were over a half a dozen mutual protection pacts that forced other countries to enter the war. The fact that countries were in an arms race well before the war is a leading cause. Also Imperialism led to war because European countries had territories in Africa and A...
The causes of World War One are extensively different from the ones of World War Two. Although, both wars were catastrophic, the causes of the first war were about the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the July Crisis, and alliances between the European nations. While, the Second World War’s cause was Germany’s expansionist aims and Hitler’s book, Mein Kampf, the failure of Collective security along with the failure of the League of Nations, and also one major cause would be appeasement. In WW1, the terrorist attack of a Serbian nationalist caused the ignition of flames that were set across Europe.
...y countries building and perfecting their war techniques, they were the most significant prior to the outbreak of WWI. It does not take long for these countries to find a reason to use their militaries against one another in an attempt to prove who is superior. (Brown, B. (2009, April 23). Causes of world war I (great war). Militarism was very important to countries that try to promote national interests. However it also created a very hostile and militaristic atmosphere in Europe countries. (Nationalism, imperialism, and militarism in world war I. (n.d.). Militarism was one of the most important thing to all of the countries that fought in World War I.
This was when a country believed its power was reflected in its army. They believed that war was the right thing to do and that all countries needed to be ready for war. If a country felt they had a lot of power they would, no doubt, try to conquer a weaker neighbor or just any other country. Imperialism which was the countries want to build an empire was another reason. For a country to become an empire they would have to colonize and conquer other territories. This would easily start wars and it's not that hard to figure out why. A good example of this is Italy. They wanted to become an empire so they attacked a country which they thought was weaker then them(Abyssinia). This caused a war which in the end was won by Abyssinia. Another cause was the idea of social darwinism. This meant the survival of the fittest. The best would win and the weaker would parish.
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.
“War is unorganized murder, and nothing else” (Harry Patch). In World War 1, which was first called the Great War, there were many causes of the war breaking out. The Great War started August 1st 1914 days later after the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophia, when they visited Bosnia. Many soldiers went to war for no reason but to fight for their country. The Great War was not only affected by the soldiers, but also by the civilians as well. Women replaced men in factories, offices, and shops while the men were at war so that everything would be working smoothly. The main underlying causes of World War 1 were the alliances and imperialism in Europe.
Although France and Britain were natural enemies, their fear of Germany united them together with Russia. These alliances set the final stage for the beginning of World War I. Each country in each alliance would help each other during warfare. For example, if Germany attacked France, Britain and Russia would help France, and Italy and Austria would help Germany, dragging Europe into a state of chaos and violence. & nbsp;& nbsp;& nbsp;& nbsp;& nbsp;Militarism was also an underlying cause of World War I. As the alliance system divided Europe into opposing groups, each nation began to increase spending on its military.
Imperialism was a cause of WW1 because it developed the basis for tension to occur and after a continuous build-up of conflicts and frustrations; there was an outburst of war that was not only foreseeable, but also unstoppable. Different occurrences added to the pressure induced by the war, and led to the three other causes of war by means of threats, competition of power, and defense of nations. Imperialism made it possible for this conflict between countries to grow, and it stemmed from the industrialist movements attempting to expand and grow within countries, mainly in Europe. Although some may argue that the other three contributors were the main factors leading to WW1, none would have occurred without the introduction of imperialism to the world.
Besides the assassination of the archduke there were four other reasons for the start of WW1. 1. Militarism- the building of large armies. All the nations in Europe at that time were engaged in what today could only be called an arms race. As soon as one nation built a new weapon, all the others followed suit. 2. Alliance System- The building of alliances to strengthen the borders of a country. In theses alliances if one country went to war all the other countries in the alliance were forced to go to war also. 3. Imperialism- The practice of colonizing other lands by large European nations. 4.Nationalism- The feeling of Patriotism in a country that makes it compete with all other counties in the area in all areas.
The true reason’s that made World War One inevitable were the intimidating alliances, avaricious imperialism, and tedious tensions. Alliances played a hefty role in the inevitability of World War One. Countries were constantly at each other’s necks and needed power in order to protect themselves from each other. This is where alliances came in; countries could seek shelter from others by developing truces with close friends. Having a truce was beneficial in most ways because it provided the illusion of being a bigger power, and offered one extra support in case of a crippling event.
In conclusion, the causes of World War One included many factors both long term and short term. Some factors go deeper and contributed to the tension and rivalry developing in the nineteenth century among the Great Powers stage. Such as things involving politics, cultures, economics and what I believe to be the most important, the alliance system; lots of other factors tie in with the complex web of alliances. There are many factors that lead on and link in with one another; this just explains a few of the well known factors. Most involve contributing to tension and rivalry. The Great War is considered to be one of the most significant events of the twentieth century.
What in my opinion was the least important reason, for the war starting was how much richer all the countries were getting. England, Germany, France and Russia along with others, were all expanding their empires and in doing so they became a lot richer. England used their money to create a powerful navy, one that was said to be the “rulers of the waves”. Germany too was building a strong military and navy to compete with Britain’s. Countries also started building a new type of battleship called, the Dreadnought, which were stronger and faster than any other types of warship- these were created in 1906 – 8 years before the assassination of Franz Ferdinand (whom will be explained further on in this essay) and before World War 1 was declared as a state of war. This contributed to the start of the war as, these empires had the devices, ships and armies they would need for a small war, at the very least. This meant that the countries would be less scared to take part in or declare war, as they probably thought they had a high chance of winning.
The realism theory describes World War One the best because it is “based on the view that describes the individual as primarily fearful, selfish and power seeking” (Mingst, 2011). WWI was initially a war between two countries, Austria-Hungary and Serbia; but due to assassinations, the strength of alliances, binds by treaties, and increasing security dilemma, more and more countries entered the war until it manifested into a complete World War. Countries increased their weaponry and made other nations apprehensive. Even countries that felt compelled to stay neutral became fearful of the ever increasing power of countries in the war. Countries began to struggle for a balance of power, and the war outbreak was a product of the multi-polarity of power. “World War One by realist perspective, can be described by changes in the European balance of power, with distinctions drawn among the rigid alliances argument, which claims that the war was caused by an inflexible continental bipolarity; the future imbalances argument, which maintains that Germany's fear of Russia's growing power triggered the war; and hegemonic decline, which explains World War I by citing Britain's waning status as a superpower” (Nau, 2011).