The Origins Of The First World War

Prior to World War I, Britain was the most imperialistic country in the world. The British Empire occupied more than a quarter of the world, which spread over five continents and France controlled most of Africa. Because of this control the rivalry with Germany and Italy had increased, they decided they wanted a colonial empire also.

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.

The first world war was one of the most brutal and remorseless events in history; ‘the global conflict that defined a century’. Over nine million soldiers and a large amount of innocent civilians lost their lives. Empires crumbled, revolution engulfed Russia and America rose to become a dominant world power. Huge armies deployed new weapons of devastating effect from rifles and pistols to torpedoes and flame throwers. These weapons were used not only in the trenches but by tanks too. This was an advantage to those who were able to access such machinery as they could easily launch bullets and missiles at nearby enemy bases. The downfall of the tank was the fact it was unable to cross the trenches. Tanks were not the only pieces of equipment that could access this machinery but U boats and planes too. The British carried ‘bolt action rifles’ in which fired 15 rounds per minute at a minimum range of 1,400 metres away. This allowed the British to take out foes at a far greater range. By using machinery in which rules out the need for getting up close to the enemy was a great advantage during world war one. Soldiers ran from trench to trench attacking with all that they had. This resulted in a massacre as the soldiers running toward the trenches were shot down. Machinery such as machine guns and heavy artillery were the weapons used in the trenches. In modern day society, machine guns are the main weapons used by soldiers. This wasn’t the case around the 1914s. They took four

To begin, Great Britain had a total of 12,740,000 miles of land in the year 1913, a year before World War One began. The closest country to Great Britains size was France with 4,440,000 miles of land. Great Britain was very confident and would try to overpower many nations, causing problems. (Document F) In 1917, Germany became upset with Great Britain because they were practicing imperialism. Germany created a cartoon symbolizing how they felt Great Britain was taking over the world. (Document E) Also, Germany was angry with Great Britain because they took over the seas. The seas were a necessity for every country to be able to trade during the war and still make a profit and receive military aid too. (Document E) By practicing imperialism, lines are crossed, causing problems that lead to World War

The first consequence created by the fall of France in 1940, was the disintegration of the Anglo-French relationship. England along with the rest of Europe believed that France would be able to stand German invasion. However, this was not the case and France fell in six weeks. This caused tensions between France and England which led to the collapse of their alliance in 1940 because there was “bitter mutual recrimination about French ineptitude and British treachery…”

Wars have immensely contributed to human history for thousands of years, becoming highly destructive usually for the means of gain. The First World War, also known as ‘the Great War’ was a truly global war centred in Europe. The causes of one of the most destructive wars in human history are still debated to this day. Some historians have come up with a list of multiple causes of the war. However, experts have identified some of the primary causes of the war, including the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, militarism, alliances, imperialism and nationalism. The causes of the truly deadly war, sending ripples of shock throughout Europe and the world, can be summarised into four points, and the start of the war pinpointed to one bullet from a young Serbians gun.

The thesis in the article ‘The origins of the World War’, by Sidney B. Fay, can clearly be stated as the explanation for World War I. Fay states that no one country is responsible for the creation of the war. Furthermore, he goes on to explain that each of the European country’s leaders did, or failed to do ‘certain’ things to provoke the other countries into a war. Fay states, “One must abandon the dictum of the Versailles Treaty that Germany and her allies were solely responsible. It was a dictum exacted by victors from vanquished, under the influence of the blindness, ignorance, hatred, and the propagandist misconceptions to which war had given rise.” (Fay, The Origins of the World War). His main arguments are his explanations of how

The First World War (WWI) was fought from 1914 to 1918 and the Second World War (or WWII) was fought from 1939 to 1945. They were the largest military conflicts in human history. Both wars involved military alliances between different groups of countries.

Great Britain, being the secluded island that it is, always had the luxury of choosing to become involved in the strife across the English Channel. Before war broke out Britain's main concern was her empire abroad. To further justify her interest in affairs abroad it should be noted that the main source of Britain's influence and power was the massive amounts of resources and manpower provided in India. And her greatest concern was preserving the trade routes between Britain and India and her other interests. But she also had competition from continental Europe. Great Britain viewed France as a potential competitor for her interests in Africa, and as a result, France and England had not previously been on the best of terms.

World War I, one of the most catastrophic wars waged on earth, began on the continent of Europe. This war was not any ordinary war; it differed from other wars because it involved countries from around the globe. It would also prove to have a lasting effect on the following century. To constantly provide for the soldiers, the war caused enormous pain, with millions injured or killed at the front and their families mourning for them. The war was not caused by a sudden or abrupt event; it was a boiling pot ready to overflow at any moment. That is, there were several reasons that prompted the war to break out across Europe. Now, World War I was officially declared in 1914, but years before that, Europe was internally conflicted. Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Serbia all contributed to the war,

Imperialism was one of the main causes of WWI, which created a strong competition between Europe’s Triple Alliance and Entente powers. During the war, Great Britain had the strongest naval blockade of all Europe, which created even greater tension with Germany. Britain’s main goal was to prolong naval operation conducted by the Allied Powers during and after World War I in an effort to restrict the maritime supply of goods to the opposed Central Powers, which included Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. New progressive technology gave the British and Germans advancement in creating naval goods; U-boats and submarines expanded the naval army military strength. With the help of new technology, Britain intended to use its powerful

Therefore in order to understand and answer this question successfully, it is important to question why Britain became an imperial power. There are various explanations as to why Britain

The British also went to war to ensure that the English Channel was not under the control of a “Mighty and hostile European power” (Strachan) resulting in blocked trade routes having a devastating effect on the front lines and the world. The nature of being an island is that all international trade takes place over water; from movement of troops to food, weapons and goods sold to the rest of the world. The citizens reacted very

This question has formed part of the historiography of the causes of the First World War, a historical debate that has endured ever since the conflict ended. It periodically resurfaces with new theories being advanced such as the Fischer thesis, usually on account of the release of previously unseen documents or because of a shift in the political climate. It has emerged to the fore once again because this year is the centennial of the war’s outbreak and there are plans to commemorate it nationally across the UK.

One of the main reasons Britain was so powerful was because it was built on trade. The British Empire made over 50% of the worlds completed products and exported millions of goods every year. Britain’s navy seemed to be the key to their power, as 90% of the merchant ships in the world were British. (Robbins, 1996) Having this incredible amount of ships, the British were able to control the importing and exporting of goods. Therefore, virtually all business done in the 19th century involved Britain in some way. Britain was the worlds bank and because the stock exchange in London was the only one worldwide, governments from all kinds of nations did their business through London. During the civil war, war bonds were issued, sold by British agents for the American Government in order to get the US back on its feet. Pretty much every powerful nation in the world owed Britain money and no one did anything without