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Synopsis Of Strachan 's The First World War Essay

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Synopsis of Strachan’s The First World War The Great War. World War I. The First World War. Whichever way one chooses to label the conflict between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire and the British Empire, France, Russia, the United States (alongside numerous other allied countries) from 1914-1918, the questions of the war’s origins, methods, and outcomes are brought are asked. How can this seemingly unnecessary, feudal war also be considered the turning point for change in the 20th century? Strachan discusses this paradox in the introduction of his book, The First World War, writing, “On the one hand it was an unnecessary war fought in a manner that defied common sense, but on the other it was the war that shaped the world in which we still live.” Strachan is not quick to label a particular country or group as the primary cause for triggering the war. All countries engaged in military action believed they were fighting for distinct ideals important to their people, each nation having their own idea of why the war was being fought. The Germans believed they were defending their borders, and subsequently their freedoms, by fighting. Not unlike the rest of Europe, Germany viewed Russia--the “anti-Europe”--as the main enemy. Prior to the war, Great Britain was satisfied with the current state of the world as they strived to maintain the status-quo. Once in the war, the British fought to uphold international law and the rights of smaller nations for which they

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