❖ To what extent was naval rivalry the main cause of the first World War? One of the main causes of World War I was the Anglo-German naval race. Britain, as an island empire, always had the navy as one of her top priorities. A key event in Britain’s naval expansion was the 1889 “Naval Defense Act” that established the "two power standard": Britain considered necessary to have a navy that was not only the largest in the world, but also equal to or greater than the sum of the world's second and third largest navies. On the other side of the channel, also Germany saw naval expansion vital and as the only way to succeed in the acquisition of overseas colony; therefore, the “official” aim of Germany’s naval expansion was to reinforce their …show more content…
The attack was planned from a group of six young Bosnians, even if their first plan to kill Franz Ferdinand failed, Gavrilo Princip, one of them, was able to approach the car and shot the Archduke and his wife. The assassination was the perfect pretext for Austria to start military actions against Serbia, and after gaining Germany’s support Austria-Hungary finally mobilized her troops against Serbia on 25 July. As a reaction Russia mobilized against both Germany and Austria, Germany declared war on France and Britain declared war on Germany for violating Belgium neutrality. In conclusion none of these causes can be defined as the only cause of war. All of them contributed to create hostility between European powers and to create the basis for a World War. The Naval Rivalry was probably a result of the pre existing tensions but certainly increased the hostility between Britain and Germany. Anyway the presence of such a great navy and army do not implicate a war but should be a deterrent since large scale destructions would be inevitable. It’s also true that the possession of a great and expensive navy and army pushes to use and test them. The overwhelming impression is that the long term causes made a conflict inevitable and that the short term causes such as the Balkan and Moroccan crisis just helped to increase the tension; while the Franz Ferdinand’s assassination was just the excuse
Relations between the French and Germans were additionally beset, while France and Russia likewise had their disparities. The leaders of Austria-Hungary considered Serbia in charge of Archduke Francis Ferdinand 's demise in a terrorist assault in 1914. Leaders of Austria-Hungary wanted to rally the people of their vanishing empire going to war against the minuscule Serbia, trusting a
On June Twenty Eighth Archduke was traveling with his wife, when the driver got lost and went down the wrong road. Gavrilo Princip was a Serbian assassin who shot and killed Archduke and his wife. The assassination was used to start a rebellion that would create a much larger Serbian nation. Austrian ambassador was very unsettled by that, so he decides to get a friendship with Germany. They become allies on July fifth. Austrian wanted an apology from Serbia. But did not receive one. Austria-Hungary then declared war on Serbia. Therefore caused a giant war to break out (DBQ Project Essay Background).
World War I, also known as the first World War, or the Great War, was a global war originating in Europe the began on the 28th of July 1914 and lasted until the 11th of November 1918. World War I was a war that was fought between two sides with a few of the World’s greatest Nations of that time. The two sides were Triple Entente which included Britain, France, and Russia, and the Triple Alliance which was consisted of the countries Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. World War I left a mark on history as we know it, what could have possibly led to that war?, What were the underlying causes of World War I?. The major causes of “The Great War” or WWI consist of four long-term causes and one short-term cause. The common acronym that’s used for the four long-term causes to help students remember the causes of WWI is M.A.I.N; the acronym stands for Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism,and the short-term cause The Assassination of the ArchDuke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo on the 28th of June 1914. To put all of this in a simpler way the five major causes of WWI was Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism, and the assassination of the ArchDuke Franz Ferdinand. Each of topics played a significant role in the reasons why WWI would begin.
A major build up of armies in main countries resulted in the Naval Arms Race which was another main contribution to the war as it increased tension and more rivalry. The armies of Germany and France had more than doubled but it was Germany and England who were about to compete for the most powerful navy in the world the tension between the two nations had risen. Wilhelm’s dream of being an imperial ruler was about to come true, he had put his plans into practice and had built several powerful ships. The British saw this as a threat. In
Another main cause of World War I was Militarism. For each country there was a big increase in military and naval forces. For each country there was a big increase in military and navel forces. The policies and government created a big influence on the military men and because of this, force was a alternative as solutions to problems. This is what made militarism one of the main causes of World War I. There was a rise in military influence on policy making after 1907, in countries such as Germany and Russia. During this period of time the German Army was known as a “state within a state”. Everybody in the government such as the parliament and politicians were required to follow the General staff. The war atmosphere was endangered. It was because of the secret alliances and that triggered a armaments race among all the powers. During 1900-1914 the race became very serious and the international situation became much worse then ever before. During these years there was a rise in army and navel estimates. There was so much military rivalry within countries competing for the
The most anticipated war in history, World War One, started off with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Franz Ferdinand. As a result, Austria-Hungary gave the killer’s country, Serbia, an opportunity to take ownership and apologize to A/H’s government. Without a response from Serbia, A/H declares war, launching the July Crisis- one of many of Europe’s fighting frenzies. Countries were declaring war on each other, gathering secret alliances, and building their armies. The Crisis continuously built its longevity until declared as a Great War, a nickname for World War One. Knowing which event pushed the world to arm themselves, historians had asked what the underlying causes for the war were. Causes for the war were alliances, imperialism, nationalism, and most destructive, militarism.
One can say militarism was a main cause of WWI because European nations felt the need to have an army on standby, basically preparing for the worst which in this case was war. According to Document E, England dominated most of the war at sea, due to the fact they had a very strong and powerful navy. Document E supports the idea of militarism being one of the main causes of WWI because England’s navy was glorified and feared by the central powers due to the fact they lacked a strong navy. Along with militarism, alliances were an main cause of
D) The arms race increased tensions and formed a rivalry between the nations which caused them to fight to determine who had the strongest army. This military build up led to WWI, because the countries of Europe wanted to have the strongest military force in order to protect themselves from the attacks of nearby countries and increase their chances of winning wars if one does break out. As each country started to build up their military power in response to one another, this gave them an excuse to wage war on other nations since they had a strong and large army. Secondly, another factor of militarism that caused WWI was the army mobilization of European countries. In response to the Austro-Hungarian attack on Serbia, Russia started to mobilize their troops, which then caused a chain of military mobilizations due to the high tensions militarism caused and the military capabilities Russia
Jessica Kasparian Period 3 Cause of World War 1 “If even one person is left standing at the end of a war, then the fight was worth it,” Garrus Vakarian, Mass Effect 3. World War 1 was one of the cruelest wars ever with more than 10 million deaths and 20 million wounded. With the major conflict with the alliances, World War 1 shifted how the world is now. There were many reason why World War 1 occurred.
This caused tensions to build up between Britain and Germany, who were constantly competing with naval warfare. Britain dominated the naval forces, with it being massive in numbers of battleships. Problems started to appear while they were constantly competing with each other’s numbers of naval ships as a comic in PUNCH Magazine states the two countries have a conversation “‘[Kaiser] I go three dreadnoughts!’ ‘[John Bull] Well, just to show there’s no ill-feeling, I raise you three!’(Doc
Europeans struggled to cooperate to govern these two weak, vulnerable countries. This created tension throughout Europe. World War one was pushed by the desire for greater empires and increasing competition. Imperialism is one of the prime causes that lead to World War one.
World War One was many years in the making with separate incidences occurring between the empires that ultimately lead up to war beginning. With many powerful empires on edge and wanting to be the most powerful, they did whatever they could to make this happen. The First World War was not sparked by one event or motive, but in turn was started due to many major factors. The war’s blame can be placed on all of the countries involved, rather than solely Germany. These factors from World War One were the product of each empire and their long-term needs such as nationalism, imperialism, militarism and the alliances. The short-term event that was the final push to start the war was the assassination of Franz Ferdinand.
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
In order to fully understand how Britain’s decision to go to war against Germany is best explained one must engage into the debate revolving around the question of the extent to which Britain and other countries were responsible for causing war. This helps explain the intention Britain had for war which is vital in understanding their decision making process to cause war in the first place. Some schools of thought have come to the conclusion that it was everybody or nobody- the continent “slithered over the brink into the boiling cauldron of war without any trace of apprehension or dismay.”1 That analysis will be considered in this essay as will the widespread thesis that it was Germany’s aggression which not only created the preconditions for war, but also triggered Britain into war with the political imbalance of power being created from the growing naval and colonial expansion of Germany. Other factors that help explain why Britain went to war against Germany
While we are always reminded of the negative effects of war, it is not everyday that we learn to understand the deeper factors of war that can turn a small conflict into an international outbreak. World War I was said to have been sparked by the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand but there are various deeper reasons that contributed to the commencement of the Great War. These factors include militarism, imperialism and the alliance systems.