Causes of World War One Essay

For Germany, 1914 would witness the enthronement of Kultur in Europe and the fulfillment of Germany’s historic mission. As Thomas Mann saw it, “Germans . . . deserved to be the most powerful, to dominate, to establish a ‘German peace’” (311). The French, for their part, in the face of growing German militarism given voice by the Kaiser himself, “possessor of the least inhibited tongue in Europe,” stoked up their furor Gallicae and awaited the moment that had seemed inevitable ever since the Treaty of Versailles had amputated her eastern flank. Aside from nationalistic scores to settle, many other nations were simply “sore-headed and fed up” with “Germany’s clattering of the sword” and saw in the coming conflict hopes for the “moral regeneration of Europe” (312-313). Tuchman sees the parts as well as the whole, and her discussion of cause as it relates to individual battles and the generals involved is psychologically astute without being limiting. She offers plausible explanations for General John French’s lack of will in the defense of Belgium (218) and shows how the breakdown of Plan 17 in the first weeks of the war paved the way for a long and brutal struggle (262), as did the final failure of the Germans’ Schlieffen Plan for a double envelopment of the enemy. The ensuing deadlock

Through the book ‘Europe’s Last Summer’ David Fromkin tackles the issues of pre WWI Europe, and the surrounding political, economic, social, debacles that led paranoid countries to go to arms after nearly a full century of relative peace within the European continent. While Fromkin certainly points his fingers to all the nations of Europe his primary focus lies with Germany and Austria-Hungary. Though he continues to stress throughout much of the book that Kaiser Wilhelm II and Archduke Ferdinand were fervent keepers of the peace within their nations, the fault of the war ultimately could be laid at the feet of their two nations and their constant attempts at war-mongering. He claims the war could have been avoided for the moment, had all the nations of Europe wanted peace, but the two bad eggs of Europe drew them all into an unavoidable general war.

​“The war to end all wars” was what people called it. Others called it “The Great War”. Many people died in this war. And there was really no right or wrong in this war; meaning that I don’t think there really was a side that was wrong or right, and I’m going to explain why further in this essay. I think both sides were wrong in things, but in the end, Germany was the one that suffered the most because they were being forced to pay billions dollars in the war debts, and let the French control a rich mine for well over 15 years. But before that Germany and the Britain’s were at war with each other. And Germany sent out a warning to everyone saying that every ship crossing the war zone line (which was the

Whitney, Craig R. “World War I Why It Still Matters.” New York Times Upfront 4 May 2009: 24-27. Print.

Promptly after the First World War had ended there were many debates about who or what caused the war. Historians such as Fritz Fischer argued that Germany was the to blame for the entirety of the war but there have been many more ideas of what was the cause of the war and therefore causing peace to fail. The main ideas amongst historians for the underlying causes of the war are the different balance in power due the formation of alliances, imperialism, militarism and also the July Crisis of 1914. This essay will argue that the alliances were the main cause of peace failing as with the constant conflict of interests and increasing tension it made it almost impossible to create peace in Europe in 1914.

Whenever the topic of World War One is raised, the issue of necessity follows immediately after. The cost of the war, both in terms of monetary loss and lives lost, was so immense that people will always talk about the reasons for those losses, and whether it was all worth it. Referred to, once idealistically, with names such as “The War to end all Wars” and “The Great War”, these names are now used both ironically and sardonically as a social commentary that revolves around the topic of the necessity of the war. But while the necessity of the war is often called into question, the actual understandings of what exactly necessity entails vary—and this is where a lot of discord is rooted. In order to determine whether the First World War

World War I was a time of chaos and turmoil for Europe and Great Britain. The events of World War I impacted the British Empire and its allies not only through the human and financial costs engendered by the brutal battles that characterized the war, but the technologies that developed to further the war machine left a lasting impact on postwar Britain and all of Europoe. What is more, the "War to End All Wars" forever changed the cultural roles of the British family. Finally, the war changed the configuration of European alliances, laying the groundwork for later political strife in the aftermath of The Great War. The following article details the events and impacts of The Great War on the British empire, detailing the battles, new ideas

The first world war between the triple entente and the triple alliance is said to be the first modern war. A previously unseen number of human lives were lost on both sides and because of this when the war ended it came to be known as ‘the war to end all wars’ — as said by the former president of the United States Woodrow Wilson. The interpretation above is correct but only to a certain extent, one must understand and fully asses all the factors of the war before making a judgement. There are two clear origins for the start of WW1, long-term origins and short term origins. Both must be analysed and assessed properly in order to make a just statement in regard to the main cause of WW1. There are four generalised long-term origins of the first world war, Nationalism, Imperialism, Militarism and the world war one alliances. However, it must be stated that the long-term causes of the war are far more complex and must be dissected and analysed in depth before truly understanding the long-term causes of the war. A short term analysis aims to explain why the war began when it did, how and why the European powers went to war and how the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg played a part in the start of the war. This division of the work will help, to qualify

“No one wants war”, states David Lloyd George, an English politician during the beginning stages and rising tensions that would eventually spill over to produce the first great war of the 19th century, World War One. The factors that lead to the formation of WW1 were a combination of fragile alliances, the race for power, ignorance, and the assassination of an Austrian duke. Each of these issues contributed to rising tensions, and while the civilized world remained oblivious, the war had begun on July 1914.

The Great War, World War I, was a time of great turmoil for many people in Europe and America. The impact of this war was felt by all who lived through this era and the generations after the War. This essay will aim to analyze what factors contributed to the notions that Vera Brittain asserts on how the Great War affected her generation, their worldview, her experiences compared to the attitudes and experiences presented in the war propaganda posters, and also in Clapham’s account in regards to pre-war, war, and post-war factors. The sources used will include; Vera Brittain’s novel, “Testament of Youth”.

Historians to this day are still debating the origins of the Great War, with WWI historiography going through many changes. Viewed as a fundamental turning point in global history, collapsing four empires in the process, it is not surprising to find that it is a fascination to both young and old still.

“War, as one of the most destructive forms of human behavior, lies at the heart of discipline of international relations.” (Goemans, World War 1) World War One (WWI), which is often said to be one of the most devastating wars of all time, with 17 million dead and 20 million injured, was caused by a combination of agendas for all of the involved countries. Although the Treaty of Versaille, which marked the end of the war, completely blamed Germany, I do not believe Germany was the only country at fault. In fact, it was caused by political, territorial, and economic conflicts amongst all the European powers. Throughout all of Europe there were tensions arising from heightened levels of militarism and nationalism leaving many European powers with incentives to go to war. (Elena Shen) This heightened militarism transformed Europe into a hostile environment, with all countries troops ready to be mobilized with new industrialized warfare. Before the war had even begun, the major powers of Europe- Germany, Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, and Russia, were investing large amounts of money into their military. So, with so much thought and money invested in the military, the war was inevitable. (Elena Shen)

In history, there has been many controversies with who is responsible for World War I that has changed the lives of many during the twentieth century. In Taking Sides Issue 7, V.R. Berghahn and Samuel R. Williamson, Jr discusses two sides on who is responsible for World War I. Berghahn states that all of Europe’s major powers played a part in the war but Germany is responsible for the conflict. On the other hand, Williamson argues that all factors and conditions goes to all of the nations and no one nation can be blamed for all that has happened. The issue being debated gives both side perspectives of World War I and the historical event that have occurred.

Understanding the significance of the Great War and the irreversible impact of the fighting that arose within Europe and surrounding regions.

Now that Europe has finally concluded that War was not an effective way to deal with one another they had to come to up with better alternatives to deal with inter-state conflict. In fact most of this book examines the many laws and procedures carried out to prevent another World War. What this reader assumed most interesting about this book was the fact that even