Nationalism's Role In World War I

     World War I was the result of leaders' aggression towards other countries which was supported by the rising nationalism of the European nations. Economic and imperial competition and fear of war prompted military alliances and an arms race, which further escalated the tension contributing to the outbreak of war. One cause of the World War was militarism, which is a policy in which military preparedness is of primary significance to a situation. Another cause of the World War was nationalism. Nationalism is the pride and devotion form one towards his/her country. It played a great part in the causes of World War 1 because citizens wanted to stand up for their country, and fight for them. The third

Another debated cause is imperialism, which is the policy of extending a nation's authority by territorial acquisition or by the establishment of economic and political hegemony over other nations. This contributed to WWI because of the rivalry it caused in Europe between Great Britain, Germany, and France. They needed foreign markets after the increase in manufacturing caused by the Industrial Revolution. Great Britain, Germany, and France competed for economic expansion in Africa. Even though Great Britain and France came to an agreement several problems before the war had to do with the dislike of Germany against Great Britain and France in North Africa. Also the crumbling of the Ottoman-Empire in the Middle East was a big factor for Austria-Hungary, the Balkans and Russia. So the competition for colonies brought great powers into conflict and fueled the ideas of war and added to the present tension that already existed, and that tension keeps on building up.

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

The are four “main reason why Europe was unsteady. One is Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism. Militarism is growing your nation's army, to have a fighting chance. Alliances are having an agreement with another country and helping one if need help. Imperialism is a country taking over someone else's land and making them go by their government. Nationalism is a strong love for your country. These are the main reasons but will this incident be the last straw for Europe.The archduke( Franz Ferdinand) and his wife of Austria-Hungary were visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia on June 28th, 1914. The black hand was a terrorist group that wanted Bosnia to belong to Serbia. First, they tried a bomb and failed, then a young shooter succeed. He was

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

“A-H annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina and after this success Germany and A-H had the confidence to demand formal acknowledgements of Habsburg authority. Both gave their acknowledgements but Russia suffered humiliation from this. (Anorak)”. Austria-Hungary was a large, relatively powerful country that neighbored a small, weak, loose group of nation-states persecuted by racial conflict, they established power of Britain, France and Russia.. A-H was trying to establish itself as a dominant power in the world but needed to expand. Another example that shows nationalism is a crisis which had been given to France by Britain, but the Moroccans wanted their independence.“The German desire for colonial expansion resulted in the two Moroccan crises.(Anorak).” The German encounter with France in Morocco, to break the alliance between Britain and France, but they achieved the opposite effect. Not only did it strengthened the Anglo-French alliance.

The United States wasn’t jumping to get involved it WWI. They wanted to remain neutral for the duration of the war. However those plans did not last because we entered the war in 1917. There were many reasons the war started in general and that U.S. entered the war. There were many things that resulted from the war.

Nationalism provoked Germany and Britain to get into a naval measuring contest to see who had the biggest and most powerful navy to rule the seas. These are the most radical examples of how nationalism affected the causes of WWI, but that isn’t to say that nationalism didn’t have a role in the other two

The theme of the source provided is to what extent we should pursue nationalism. Nationalism is the sense of belonging to a certain group or community. The source is talking about how nations have created alliances which causes them to lose some of their sovereignty. During the source the author explains “… Nations have formed economic and military alliances with each other. It is often necessary for nations to give up some degree of sovereignty” this proves that this source is against internationalism and is for nationalism.

For a nation to attain the most prestigious status of superiority over its counterparts, rapid weaponry advancements and a vast empire, through colonization, were necessary to showcase military superiority and to provide resources. This quest for power is mostly conveyed in Germany’s attempts of overthrowing Britain from their supremacy. For instance, Germany, determined to overpower Britain’s military strength, created the Dreadnought to take dominion over the high seas in which Britain dominated. Britain, recognizing the threat of the Germans, decided to construct three more Dreadnoughts to answer Germany’s attempts. This translated into a costly competition between Germany and Britain trying to upstage each other’s efforts.

Nationalism effected the situations in different nations during the interwar years, whether they were to end or start a

Nationalism and its utilization by leaders was a large contributing factor to the outbreak of war as it worked to escalate tensions between European powers as it was often backed by extreme militarism and created a need for nations to become superior often at the expense of other

The largest factor contributed to the outbreak of World War I was Alliances. All four main reasons played a role, and they all connect to each other. Although alliances were what made the war officially happen, it empowered the countries by uniting them. It’s a law of defense, a signed treaty to have defense and more power added to a country that makes them stronger in the war. Which makes the enemy (imperialized country) increase envy’s feelings, therefor it makes them find anyway to add to their power just to win the battle/war.

Before World War 1 began there were many conflicts between many countries, these conflicts are what eventually led to the war. Nationalism lead to World War 1 for reasons people believed they needed to fight for their country, many people who weren’t fighting wanted to support their soldiers, and many soldiers felt as if they couldn’t back out of the war. Militarism was a cause because each country was building up their weapons and ammunition, as well as building up their armies. Finally Kaiser Wilhelm II was a cause because he had a very strong hate towards Britain, he was a very aggressive leader and he wanted Germany to be the number one country. Nationalism, militarism and Kaiser Wilhelm II were the three main causes of World War 1.

Before the war, nationalism had swept through the world, most notably playing a role in other