A couple of years ago, the stock market had crushed. While its impacts were felt throughout the world, and are still felt today, it wasn’t as serious as previous stock crashes that had occurred. The most devastating stock crash was right after World War 1 when the stock market in America collapsed. The affects were felt throughout the entire world and this age was appropriately named The Great Depression.
The Great Depression was a widespread economic depression in between the two world wars. Germany was hit by the depression the hardest, and the German mark would cost more to print, than it was actually worth. This is widely considered Germany’s darkest days in modern history in terms of politics, economy and lifestyle and this also led to the rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party, which in conjunction with the revenge felt throughout Germany during this depression and Hitler’s assets as a leader, led to WW2.
As a result of Germany losing World War 1, Germany was already a mess. They were aimlessly trying to rebuild their economy, with the Allies demanding Germany to pay their members billions of dollars as a form of reparation. By doing this, in conjunction with the feeling of revenge, the League led to WW1 more than interrupt it. To be able to do both simultaneously, Germany had to get loans from the United States and pay the allies. This caused even more problems since Germany was getting in more debt, while they still had no money to pay. As a result the value of the Mark decreased rapidly and prices were also constantly increasing. Germany entered a state of hyperinflation and that resulted to the money being used as burning material rather than an actual currency.
Due to this Hyperinflation, there was a high unemployment rate and people were starving on the streets. Estimates say that there were six million unemployed in Germany alone. As, a result they started to question their governments as they couldn’t enforce democracy nor create jobs. This is the lowest point of living standard in modern German history and the people were willing to hear anybody to get them out of this nightmare. This is when Hitler found the chance to easily manipulate these starved people by promising them the world.
The Weimer republic was very popular before The Great Depression and the civilians loved it. The Great Depression swept thought the Weimar republic and people weren’t satisfied with their government’s decisions and most turned to the extreme’s. Before The Great Depression, the extreme parties, like the communist and nationalist parties, were not very popular but because of that economic downfall people began to turn their head’s to these two parties. The nationalist party beat the communist party because of a strong leader who had the gift of motivating his listeners.
The Nazi Party rose to power on August 1st, were just a few hours after the winning results of the elections had been announced; The Nazis introduced their reign of terror. They began stoning shops, burning gas stations and at the same time killing socialists and communists. It was obvious that this isn’t a protest about the inflation of civilians but rather an uprising fuelled by nationalism and hatred.
Economically Germany was destroyed. The German mark was worth nothing and it cost more to print ink on paper than an actual note. The people were protesting in the streets for this inflation and after years of hardship, they finally turned to the extreme leader who promised them a better life, which then led to his raise to power and the Second World War.
Monday, 21 March 2011
Monday, 24 January 2011
Evaluate the successes and failures of the Paris Peace conference in creating a stable European Community in the post WWI era.
World War I was a war fought between the Allied Forces and the Central powers. The battle was level, with many under the belief that Germany would be the winner. This, soon, changed as America joined the Allied Forces in a period were Germany had no more resources to fight and defeat would be inevitable. World War I ended on the 11th of November 1918. The Paris Peace Conference was held in 1919 and it was a meeting between the allied victors to negotiate the fate of the defeated Central Powers. Its main purpose was to set peace terms, or limits, by creating a series of treaties for the Central Powers so they couldn’t act up as a form of retaliation. There are historians who say that the Paris Peace Conference was a success, those that say it was a failure and those that say that it was ineffectual, and the best that could have happened at the time, to the events that followed. I am here to argue that the conflicting interests of The Big Three, led to a rise in nationalism which resulted in the ultimate failure of the Paris Peace Conference.
The first major problem of the conference was the fact that although most countries that had an involvement with WWI were represented, except Germany and Russia. This created problems later because by excluding Germany this created the feeling that decisions made were one sided and that the Treaty was unfair to them, which led to a need for revenge and a birth of new nationalistic ideas. Russia also didn’t part –take in this conference because it was under a communist regime and a working class uprising back home was every leader’s fear. Therefore, even though 32 countries were involved, all the major decisions were made by the Big Three which were mostly looking out for themselves rather than keeping peace.
The USA tried to be impartial and focused its attention on trying to create an organization that would deal with each countries problem equally, through the creation of the League of Nations. USA also brought forth the idea of self-determination, the freedom for people to govern themselves, which led to the creation of new countries in Europe. France, at the opposite end, was the most ruthless and demanded punishment for Germany. They wanted severe reparations for Germany and this can be seen by the increase of an approximate 35 billion by the time the peace conference had ended. England wanted revenge from the Central Powers, but not to the extent France was pushing for. Rather, they pushed for the expansion of The British Empire rather than the extinction of Germany. The results of this were broken down, poor countries and this is considered by many as a key to the inflation and Great Depression in Germany, as well as opening the door for nationalistic ideas and leaders to take charge.
The treaties of the Paris Peace Conference, did, however succeed in reshaping Europe physically. During WWI one of the biggest disasters was the genocide of the Armenian people. Because of what the Ottoman’s had done, The Treaty of Sevres made sure that a country would be formed called Armenia. Many more countries were formed, in an act of self determination that used to be a part of the now fallen empires. While this shaping of Europe, in majority, can still is seen today it still has its faults. New feuds were born between the people that owned the land and its new owners that were given the land under the Paris Peace Conference. We also had the problem of loss of identity because people didn’t have a nationality as a result of this border shifting. This reshaping didn’t lead to issues on the newly established country, but also the country it was separated from. For example, Russia went into an economic crisis because of the loss of land (Ukraine, Estonia and Lithuania). While this is close to what US was suggesting, Britain shaped it up so they could benefit. Rhineland was given to the British for 15 years under evaluation and France got Alsace and Lorraine as a mean for them to agree to sign this treaty.
The treaties also argued that in order to have a safer Europe, everybody had to downsize in army. It was only forced upon the Central Powers and while it was suggested to the Allies, there is little evidence that any downsizing took place. In conjunction with the high reparations imposed on Germany and the loss of jobs by downsizing spelt catastrophe for its economy that inevitably collapsed during the Great Depression. The huge unemployment rate and the poor level of life of society created more ground for nationalistic leaders to rise from. France wanted the complete destruction of the German army but, England wanted to downsize Germany’s army enough so they couldn’t start another war and be left open to attack if they were to act upon the treaty of peace. Of course, being Great Britain, they wanted Germany to downsize their navy because they wanted to re establish their name on the top of the naval battle that the two had gone into before and during WW1. This all backfired though, in 1939 when Germany had more than enough fire power to seek the vengeance they were looking for.
The conference’s main goal was to bring stability into Europe after the war. Certain countries gained their independence, new borders were drawn up that looked and there was a general decision to downsize in army so such a world war wouldn’t happen again. These can also be considered as auspicious reasons since the winners had become stronger, certain countries didn’t get their independence rather just changed from being a mandate for one country to another (Syria). The conferences, while might have brought some short term peace in Europe, were mainly benefitting The Big Three rather than the whole of Europe.
The first major problem of the conference was the fact that although most countries that had an involvement with WWI were represented, except Germany and Russia. This created problems later because by excluding Germany this created the feeling that decisions made were one sided and that the Treaty was unfair to them, which led to a need for revenge and a birth of new nationalistic ideas. Russia also didn’t part –take in this conference because it was under a communist regime and a working class uprising back home was every leader’s fear. Therefore, even though 32 countries were involved, all the major decisions were made by the Big Three which were mostly looking out for themselves rather than keeping peace.
The USA tried to be impartial and focused its attention on trying to create an organization that would deal with each countries problem equally, through the creation of the League of Nations. USA also brought forth the idea of self-determination, the freedom for people to govern themselves, which led to the creation of new countries in Europe. France, at the opposite end, was the most ruthless and demanded punishment for Germany. They wanted severe reparations for Germany and this can be seen by the increase of an approximate 35 billion by the time the peace conference had ended. England wanted revenge from the Central Powers, but not to the extent France was pushing for. Rather, they pushed for the expansion of The British Empire rather than the extinction of Germany. The results of this were broken down, poor countries and this is considered by many as a key to the inflation and Great Depression in Germany, as well as opening the door for nationalistic ideas and leaders to take charge.
The treaties of the Paris Peace Conference, did, however succeed in reshaping Europe physically. During WWI one of the biggest disasters was the genocide of the Armenian people. Because of what the Ottoman’s had done, The Treaty of Sevres made sure that a country would be formed called Armenia. Many more countries were formed, in an act of self determination that used to be a part of the now fallen empires. While this shaping of Europe, in majority, can still is seen today it still has its faults. New feuds were born between the people that owned the land and its new owners that were given the land under the Paris Peace Conference. We also had the problem of loss of identity because people didn’t have a nationality as a result of this border shifting. This reshaping didn’t lead to issues on the newly established country, but also the country it was separated from. For example, Russia went into an economic crisis because of the loss of land (Ukraine, Estonia and Lithuania). While this is close to what US was suggesting, Britain shaped it up so they could benefit. Rhineland was given to the British for 15 years under evaluation and France got Alsace and Lorraine as a mean for them to agree to sign this treaty.
The treaties also argued that in order to have a safer Europe, everybody had to downsize in army. It was only forced upon the Central Powers and while it was suggested to the Allies, there is little evidence that any downsizing took place. In conjunction with the high reparations imposed on Germany and the loss of jobs by downsizing spelt catastrophe for its economy that inevitably collapsed during the Great Depression. The huge unemployment rate and the poor level of life of society created more ground for nationalistic leaders to rise from. France wanted the complete destruction of the German army but, England wanted to downsize Germany’s army enough so they couldn’t start another war and be left open to attack if they were to act upon the treaty of peace. Of course, being Great Britain, they wanted Germany to downsize their navy because they wanted to re establish their name on the top of the naval battle that the two had gone into before and during WW1. This all backfired though, in 1939 when Germany had more than enough fire power to seek the vengeance they were looking for.
The conference’s main goal was to bring stability into Europe after the war. Certain countries gained their independence, new borders were drawn up that looked and there was a general decision to downsize in army so such a world war wouldn’t happen again. These can also be considered as auspicious reasons since the winners had become stronger, certain countries didn’t get their independence rather just changed from being a mandate for one country to another (Syria). The conferences, while might have brought some short term peace in Europe, were mainly benefitting The Big Three rather than the whole of Europe.
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Why were Germany and her Allies unsuccessful in WWI?
World War I is infamous for being the bloodiest and deadliest war at the time. After the first few months of the War, it was quite clear that Germany was on the verge of a great loss against the Allied Powers. Unlike Britain, Germany didn’t have a strategy and went into war thinking that it would end quickly, without them planning ahead. Towards 1917, Germany began to deteriorate in all aspects (militarily, economically, culturally and even political) while the allied powers had just joined forces with the USA and were standing united against a non-existent German army. After the failure of the Von Schlieffen Plan, and Germany’s hopes of the war ending quickly being shattered problems began in all other aspects of German society and the war, including military, economic, culturally and even political.
The key reason Germany and her Allies lost the war, was the failure of the Von Schlieffen plan and the lack of planning ahead, in case their initial plan failed, which it did. Four years before the war even begun, Germany prepared the Von Schlieffen plan in-case of a war against France and Russia. The plan was to attack France through, the up to now neutral, Belgium and try to mobilize into Belgium before Russia. This would have enabled the German’s to concentrate on their Eastern Front, against Russia. Germany tried to execute the plan but it failed as they underestimated not only Belgium but also France’s Western Front. At the same time, Russia had already begun mobilizing much faster than Germany had planned. Germany attacking Belgium, also allowed the British to enter with the auspicious reason that Belgium was neutral. This led to the creation of the image that German’s are barbarians for attacking Belgium. At this point I want to mention that it has been widely speculated that even if the Germans didn’t execute their plan, that the British would have begun a war anyway. The Germans, instead of regrouping, persisted with executing such a risky plan and when it ultimately failed, they were left with no other strategies. When the fast capture of Belgium failed, the German’s were stuck fighting in trenches and only engaging in small attacks until an opportunity arose. This shows that not only the German military leaders were incapable of leading a country to war but also that they underestimated their enemies, even though they had just begun becoming a powerful country.
German propaganda also ridiculed the worth of the enemy and the soldiers trusted that everything the propaganda said was true but when the war actually begun, they were shocked as what they had been told was far from the truth. They didn’t expect the harsh brutality, which was a result of British propaganda presenting Germans as barbarians, and didn’t have time to prepare for what they faced. The British, with their propaganda, adjusted their soldiers to know what to expect and fight with all their might to defeat the barbarians, as they presented them, that pillaged a neutral country.
In addition, Alliances played a big part in Germany losing the war. Before the war broke out, Germany was allied with Austro-Hungary and Italy. As soon as the war begun, Italy left because their contract read that they would help Germany if they were under attack. Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire joined Germany’s Alliance later but both were weak and depended on Germany rather than providing Germany with resources. That in conjunction with the fact that they had no communication with their allies, led to Germany giving more than what they received from their allies. Germany’s war effort relied mainly on their own strength and by the end of the war; they were at war with over 20 countries, by themselves. The allied powers though, made positive contributions to the allied victories. Britain helped the vast expenses of the war and the French proved to be great allies since they were prepared to fight rather than surrender. Also Russia had a lot of man power, which took attention away from the Allies on the Western Front.
Additionally, Germany followed an Authoritarian Government, which is run by a leader that is usually royalty. This was very ineffective in Germany as all decisions were made by Kaiser Wilhelm, a very militaristic minded person. Wilhelm was unwilling to listen to others more experienced in the field, and they made all the decisions without considering the opinions of others and if their plan failed, they had no back-up. Also, Germany was a force to be reckoned with at the beginning of the war but in reality their economy and geography were very limited. In 1914, Germany was one of the richest countries in the world, but after the war had begun it constantly lost money. The biggest drawback of Germany was that it didn’t have a formal tax system, and depended on the people donating money and goods to the government. This also led to problems after the war when people had lost faith in their government and stopped donating money. Furthermore, their weapon manufacturers were private so the German government had to pay to get its weapons and ammunition. Germany had begun expanding, imperialism, and was considered a large empire at this point. The problem was that Germany was in the middle of Europe and when the war had begun, Germany found themselves surrounded and as a result had to fight on many different fronts (Russians in the east, British / French in the west). The British, having an actual strategy, ordered their fleet to create a blockade on German ports to stop other countries from supplying Germany. Being surrounded and outnumbered, impending doom was imminent for the Germans.
Furthermore, a big factor towards the end of the war was the entry of the US against Germany. At this point I want to mention that the US entered the war with the auspicious reason that Germany sank the Lusitania which was allegedly a civilian ship, but in reality it carried soldiers, weapons and resources for the allies. Germany also provoked the USA when rumours spread that Germany was planning an alliance with Mexico to enable them to take back states from the US(which couldn’t have happened, because there was a war within Mexico).The USA had soldiers, money and supplies whereas Germany was running out of all these resources. Germany knew that if the US decided to mobilized, they would surely face defeat. Knowing this, Germany launched a massive attack on France, tried to split the British and the French but they failed. The entry of the US greatly increased the morale of the Allied army as they were fresh and they were excited to join the fight, while Germany’s morale was in an all – time low. As soon as the Americans started bringing troops to France, the war was basically over because other countries were running out of trained troops and they resorted in putting young untrained civilians into the war.
World War I was significant because it was the first war that involved a large amount of countries. The Central Alliance was weak from the beginning because they didn’t have an alternative strategy, or any real support for Germany. Mistakes were made by the government of Germany and instead of relying on the war ending fast, Germany should have actually planned out exactly what they would have done, or at least a back-up plan. Because of the military failure of the Von Schlieffen plan, the weak alliances, the insufficient propaganda machine and the late entry of the USA, Germany and its alliance system declined until ultimately failing in the 11th of November 1918. Germany gained nothing from this war, and lost not only millions of people but also, under the Treaty of Versailles, lost their right to have their own government and were forced to pay unimaginable fees which they couldn’t pay because of how much money they lost during the war.
The key reason Germany and her Allies lost the war, was the failure of the Von Schlieffen plan and the lack of planning ahead, in case their initial plan failed, which it did. Four years before the war even begun, Germany prepared the Von Schlieffen plan in-case of a war against France and Russia. The plan was to attack France through, the up to now neutral, Belgium and try to mobilize into Belgium before Russia. This would have enabled the German’s to concentrate on their Eastern Front, against Russia. Germany tried to execute the plan but it failed as they underestimated not only Belgium but also France’s Western Front. At the same time, Russia had already begun mobilizing much faster than Germany had planned. Germany attacking Belgium, also allowed the British to enter with the auspicious reason that Belgium was neutral. This led to the creation of the image that German’s are barbarians for attacking Belgium. At this point I want to mention that it has been widely speculated that even if the Germans didn’t execute their plan, that the British would have begun a war anyway. The Germans, instead of regrouping, persisted with executing such a risky plan and when it ultimately failed, they were left with no other strategies. When the fast capture of Belgium failed, the German’s were stuck fighting in trenches and only engaging in small attacks until an opportunity arose. This shows that not only the German military leaders were incapable of leading a country to war but also that they underestimated their enemies, even though they had just begun becoming a powerful country.
German propaganda also ridiculed the worth of the enemy and the soldiers trusted that everything the propaganda said was true but when the war actually begun, they were shocked as what they had been told was far from the truth. They didn’t expect the harsh brutality, which was a result of British propaganda presenting Germans as barbarians, and didn’t have time to prepare for what they faced. The British, with their propaganda, adjusted their soldiers to know what to expect and fight with all their might to defeat the barbarians, as they presented them, that pillaged a neutral country.
In addition, Alliances played a big part in Germany losing the war. Before the war broke out, Germany was allied with Austro-Hungary and Italy. As soon as the war begun, Italy left because their contract read that they would help Germany if they were under attack. Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire joined Germany’s Alliance later but both were weak and depended on Germany rather than providing Germany with resources. That in conjunction with the fact that they had no communication with their allies, led to Germany giving more than what they received from their allies. Germany’s war effort relied mainly on their own strength and by the end of the war; they were at war with over 20 countries, by themselves. The allied powers though, made positive contributions to the allied victories. Britain helped the vast expenses of the war and the French proved to be great allies since they were prepared to fight rather than surrender. Also Russia had a lot of man power, which took attention away from the Allies on the Western Front.
Additionally, Germany followed an Authoritarian Government, which is run by a leader that is usually royalty. This was very ineffective in Germany as all decisions were made by Kaiser Wilhelm, a very militaristic minded person. Wilhelm was unwilling to listen to others more experienced in the field, and they made all the decisions without considering the opinions of others and if their plan failed, they had no back-up. Also, Germany was a force to be reckoned with at the beginning of the war but in reality their economy and geography were very limited. In 1914, Germany was one of the richest countries in the world, but after the war had begun it constantly lost money. The biggest drawback of Germany was that it didn’t have a formal tax system, and depended on the people donating money and goods to the government. This also led to problems after the war when people had lost faith in their government and stopped donating money. Furthermore, their weapon manufacturers were private so the German government had to pay to get its weapons and ammunition. Germany had begun expanding, imperialism, and was considered a large empire at this point. The problem was that Germany was in the middle of Europe and when the war had begun, Germany found themselves surrounded and as a result had to fight on many different fronts (Russians in the east, British / French in the west). The British, having an actual strategy, ordered their fleet to create a blockade on German ports to stop other countries from supplying Germany. Being surrounded and outnumbered, impending doom was imminent for the Germans.
Furthermore, a big factor towards the end of the war was the entry of the US against Germany. At this point I want to mention that the US entered the war with the auspicious reason that Germany sank the Lusitania which was allegedly a civilian ship, but in reality it carried soldiers, weapons and resources for the allies. Germany also provoked the USA when rumours spread that Germany was planning an alliance with Mexico to enable them to take back states from the US(which couldn’t have happened, because there was a war within Mexico).The USA had soldiers, money and supplies whereas Germany was running out of all these resources. Germany knew that if the US decided to mobilized, they would surely face defeat. Knowing this, Germany launched a massive attack on France, tried to split the British and the French but they failed. The entry of the US greatly increased the morale of the Allied army as they were fresh and they were excited to join the fight, while Germany’s morale was in an all – time low. As soon as the Americans started bringing troops to France, the war was basically over because other countries were running out of trained troops and they resorted in putting young untrained civilians into the war.
World War I was significant because it was the first war that involved a large amount of countries. The Central Alliance was weak from the beginning because they didn’t have an alternative strategy, or any real support for Germany. Mistakes were made by the government of Germany and instead of relying on the war ending fast, Germany should have actually planned out exactly what they would have done, or at least a back-up plan. Because of the military failure of the Von Schlieffen plan, the weak alliances, the insufficient propaganda machine and the late entry of the USA, Germany and its alliance system declined until ultimately failing in the 11th of November 1918. Germany gained nothing from this war, and lost not only millions of people but also, under the Treaty of Versailles, lost their right to have their own government and were forced to pay unimaginable fees which they couldn’t pay because of how much money they lost during the war.
Monday, 4 October 2010
What was the leading cause of WWI?
Many factors led to the second bloodiest war in history, World War One. Alliances, militarism, nationalism and imperialism were the main causes of WW1.Imperialism is the idea that land equals to power and also describes the need for powerful countries to dominate and control undeveloped, third world countries. The need of powerfull countries to control more land, was an important contributor to the First World War because it created tensions inside and outside of Europe. While Imperialism might have been the most important cause of WW1, alliances, militarism and nationalism also helped shape imperialism.
Alliances were being made constantly towards the beginning of WW1 by all countries so they could protect themselves. This many alliances caused mistrust between members because of overlapping alliances. . The 3 emperor’s league was formed in 1872 after the Franco-Japanese war. Bismarck wanted to keep his land and even gain some more so he joined with Russia and Austro-Hungary. The Ducu alliance of 1879 was a defensive alliance with Austria-Hungary and Germany. This was the only alliance that had stayed through to WW1. The Triple Alliance in 1882 was signed by Germany, Austria and Italy and it stated that if one of the three countries went into war (on the defensive) the others would help. Germany and Austria went into war but Italy didn’t support them because they were on the offensive, they were the attackers. Italy ended up joining later with the enemy.
Countries focused all of their resources in the development of armies and new weapons. Industrialization was one of the main reasons that WW1 was so bloody. There were many weapons developed (artillery, machine guns), as well as the naval race which was, mainly, Germany and Britain having a battle for control over the sea. The Dreadnought was the most heavily armed ship in Europe. When it was created, it renewed the naval arms race between Britain and Germany. Admiral Tirpitz was the one that created such a powerful German navy that could compete with Britain’s already established navy. Britain was furious because this new power, Germany, was catching up to their powerful navy even though they had just begun the development of their own navy.
The definition of nationalism is extreme pride in your nation. This was a big issue in Europe because many countries had nationalistic leaders which had nationalistic followers, and therefore caused conflicts between countries in Europe. The Young Turk revolution was the birth of the modern Ottoman Empire. The Young Turks were a coalition of various groups that rebelled and reformed the Ottoman Empire to their liking. Alsace/Loraine was French territory with German speaking people. Germany was trying to unite all German speaking people together but when the Germans tried to take Alsace and Loraine the French didn’t let them, which led to even more issues between the two countries. Slavic nationalism is accounted as the starting point of WW1. With Russia’s support, the Serbian people were thinking nationalistic and they assassinated Franz Ferdinand which led to Austria’s ultimatum.
Imperialism is the idea that land equals to power and it also represents the need of big countries to conquer and rule underdeveloped countries to shape them as part of their empire and also use them to have more overall control over the world. The Austro-Hungarian Ultimatum to Serbia raised conflicts in between alliances because Russia was in an alliance with both sides. The ultimatum was sent, after the king was assassinated, to Serbia with a list of demands. The two meetings in Morocco were also factors to the shape of alliances in WW1. France wanted to claim the land of Morocco but so did Germany and there were 2 meetings that Germany tried to sabotage by sending high members (such as the Kaiser himself) to impress England so the land could be given to them but to no avail since France signed with the British an alliance that granted them the area . Industrialization also created conflicts in Europe in terms of Imperialism and could be accounted as one of the main sub-causes of WW1. Industrialization was the revolution in fields such as agriculture, mining, transporting and even military technology. The industrial revolution also gave way to the creation of rail ways, and one of the most famous railways created at the time was connecting Berlin to Baghdad which was a British colony, and a railway connecting them with their enemy infuriated them.
Imperialism was the main cause of WW1 because it developed the base for everything to occur. The need for countries to expand can be accounted towards nationalist leaders having nationalist followers (nationalism), or the industrial revolution which led to the naval race as well as the development of new, deadlier weapons (militarism) and untrustworthy and overlapping alliances (alliances), all led to the Imperialism, which is the need for countries to expand and become more powerful at the expenses of others.
Alliances were being made constantly towards the beginning of WW1 by all countries so they could protect themselves. This many alliances caused mistrust between members because of overlapping alliances. . The 3 emperor’s league was formed in 1872 after the Franco-Japanese war. Bismarck wanted to keep his land and even gain some more so he joined with Russia and Austro-Hungary. The Ducu alliance of 1879 was a defensive alliance with Austria-Hungary and Germany. This was the only alliance that had stayed through to WW1. The Triple Alliance in 1882 was signed by Germany, Austria and Italy and it stated that if one of the three countries went into war (on the defensive) the others would help. Germany and Austria went into war but Italy didn’t support them because they were on the offensive, they were the attackers. Italy ended up joining later with the enemy.
Countries focused all of their resources in the development of armies and new weapons. Industrialization was one of the main reasons that WW1 was so bloody. There were many weapons developed (artillery, machine guns), as well as the naval race which was, mainly, Germany and Britain having a battle for control over the sea. The Dreadnought was the most heavily armed ship in Europe. When it was created, it renewed the naval arms race between Britain and Germany. Admiral Tirpitz was the one that created such a powerful German navy that could compete with Britain’s already established navy. Britain was furious because this new power, Germany, was catching up to their powerful navy even though they had just begun the development of their own navy.
The definition of nationalism is extreme pride in your nation. This was a big issue in Europe because many countries had nationalistic leaders which had nationalistic followers, and therefore caused conflicts between countries in Europe. The Young Turk revolution was the birth of the modern Ottoman Empire. The Young Turks were a coalition of various groups that rebelled and reformed the Ottoman Empire to their liking. Alsace/Loraine was French territory with German speaking people. Germany was trying to unite all German speaking people together but when the Germans tried to take Alsace and Loraine the French didn’t let them, which led to even more issues between the two countries. Slavic nationalism is accounted as the starting point of WW1. With Russia’s support, the Serbian people were thinking nationalistic and they assassinated Franz Ferdinand which led to Austria’s ultimatum.
Imperialism is the idea that land equals to power and it also represents the need of big countries to conquer and rule underdeveloped countries to shape them as part of their empire and also use them to have more overall control over the world. The Austro-Hungarian Ultimatum to Serbia raised conflicts in between alliances because Russia was in an alliance with both sides. The ultimatum was sent, after the king was assassinated, to Serbia with a list of demands. The two meetings in Morocco were also factors to the shape of alliances in WW1. France wanted to claim the land of Morocco but so did Germany and there were 2 meetings that Germany tried to sabotage by sending high members (such as the Kaiser himself) to impress England so the land could be given to them but to no avail since France signed with the British an alliance that granted them the area . Industrialization also created conflicts in Europe in terms of Imperialism and could be accounted as one of the main sub-causes of WW1. Industrialization was the revolution in fields such as agriculture, mining, transporting and even military technology. The industrial revolution also gave way to the creation of rail ways, and one of the most famous railways created at the time was connecting Berlin to Baghdad which was a British colony, and a railway connecting them with their enemy infuriated them.
Imperialism was the main cause of WW1 because it developed the base for everything to occur. The need for countries to expand can be accounted towards nationalist leaders having nationalist followers (nationalism), or the industrial revolution which led to the naval race as well as the development of new, deadlier weapons (militarism) and untrustworthy and overlapping alliances (alliances), all led to the Imperialism, which is the need for countries to expand and become more powerful at the expenses of others.
Monday, 13 September 2010
To what extent was Germany already at war with Europe by 1914?
Otto van Bismarck had a very special way of thinking. His belief was that war should be the last resort, but at the same time wanted events that couldn’t have come if there was no war. Germany was improving steadily under the rule by Bismarck until Kaiser Wilhelm II came to power in 1888. Germany then began trying to align themselves with many countries so they could prevent potential war. Two incidents in Morocco, a naval race with Britain and a crisis in the Balkans were enough to cause war.
In 1905, France tried to extend her influence in Morocco but Germany argued that it would be illegal to do so and the Kaiser went himself to Morocco to demand a deal to struck. Germany did this because it wanted to show that Germany was the powerful ally and not Britain. However, Britain supported France at the Algeciras conference and won their support. At this point, Germany was more isolated than ever but still had the Triple Alliance. Once Britain joined Russia, Europe split up into two alliances which was one of the main causes of the war.
In 1908-1909 there was a crisis in the Balkans where loyalties where questioned. Germany stood by Austria and forced Russia to back down in 1909, an event that Russia stated would never be repeated again. The Balkans were a contested area between Germany and Russia because of their location but Russia was weak after the Japanese war so they were forced out by the Austro-German alliance. A naval race was also going on between Britain and Germany. The British government believed that if Germany was to attack by sea, they would be annihilated. The liberal government agreed to increase battleship production and the race to a superior navy begun.
The Second Moroccan crisis was in 1911, when French troops were sent to Morocco at the Sultan’s request. Germany thought that this was the beginning of a takeover, and so they sent one of their gunboat’s to demonstrate their power. Germany had previously been in talks to exchange some land in Morocco for the French Congo but the British were alerted by the German fleet and got gunned down. This concluded their negotiations.
Germany was isolated, the naval race was growing to an all new high and there was expansion in land by all big European powers. The prospect of a war was clearly present. Germany was alarmed by the speed of Russia’s recovery. Wilhelm and his army general’s called a meeting where a war was discussed, thus proving that not only was Germany at War in 1914 but even two years before.
In 1905, France tried to extend her influence in Morocco but Germany argued that it would be illegal to do so and the Kaiser went himself to Morocco to demand a deal to struck. Germany did this because it wanted to show that Germany was the powerful ally and not Britain. However, Britain supported France at the Algeciras conference and won their support. At this point, Germany was more isolated than ever but still had the Triple Alliance. Once Britain joined Russia, Europe split up into two alliances which was one of the main causes of the war.
In 1908-1909 there was a crisis in the Balkans where loyalties where questioned. Germany stood by Austria and forced Russia to back down in 1909, an event that Russia stated would never be repeated again. The Balkans were a contested area between Germany and Russia because of their location but Russia was weak after the Japanese war so they were forced out by the Austro-German alliance. A naval race was also going on between Britain and Germany. The British government believed that if Germany was to attack by sea, they would be annihilated. The liberal government agreed to increase battleship production and the race to a superior navy begun.
The Second Moroccan crisis was in 1911, when French troops were sent to Morocco at the Sultan’s request. Germany thought that this was the beginning of a takeover, and so they sent one of their gunboat’s to demonstrate their power. Germany had previously been in talks to exchange some land in Morocco for the French Congo but the British were alerted by the German fleet and got gunned down. This concluded their negotiations.
Germany was isolated, the naval race was growing to an all new high and there was expansion in land by all big European powers. The prospect of a war was clearly present. Germany was alarmed by the speed of Russia’s recovery. Wilhelm and his army general’s called a meeting where a war was discussed, thus proving that not only was Germany at War in 1914 but even two years before.
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