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Causes of World War I

Causes of World War I The Balkan Peninsula has long been known as the “tinderbox of Europe” because it has been an area of conflict and political unrest for centuries. The countries and people that occupy the peninsula are constantly in chaos and at war with each other. This trend continues today with the problems in Bosnia and the recent international crisis in Kosovo. Throughout history, small local incidents in the Balkan Peninsula have escalated into large international crises. World War I is a perfect example of what started as a regional conflict and grew into an all-out European war. A small local European struggle between Austria-Hungary and Serbia over the territory of Bosnia erupted into a full-blown worldwide conflict after the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand. However, in addition to the struggle over Bosnia, there were several underlying causes of World War I sweeping across Europe on the eve of World War I which contributed to the start of the war. These conflicts had plagued Europe for years and made a large-scale European war unavoidable. Although the direct cause of World War I was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, long term causes such as the political instability of Europe, rivalries and alliances between countries, and the conflict between large empires and nationalism brought Europe into a situation in which a large-scale war was inevitable. By 1914, these factors made the major European powers on the verge of war and a small spark in the “tinderbox of Europe” was all that was necessary to cause World War I. In 1815, the Congress of Vienna set forth a political plan for Europe which would create stability among the European nations after Napoleon suffered defeat (Ross 74). However, this balance of power was upset by the unification of Germany in 1871. With the emergence of Germany as a strong European power, the other nations of Europe had to alter their foreign relations in order to attain political stability. For instance, by 1891, France and Russia, two nations traditionally opposed to each other and had gone to war twice in the 19th century, allied with one another for protection against the alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary (Ross 13). The emergence of Germany as a European power caused other political changes in Europe and offset the balance that had existed in Europe since 1815. Several nations were unclear on how to react to Germany and others disagreed on whether to accept Germany as a dominant power in continental Europe (Ross 29). The other major effect of the unification of Germany was that after the humiliating defeat in the Franco-Prussian war, France was fearful of Germany. France also feared that the Dual Alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary would form a huge German-speaking empire in Europe. This fear of Germany led to France’s alliance with Russia and its rivalry with Germany, two factors which helped bring about World War I. In addition, the Franco-Prussian War left France wanting revenge against Germany and they saw a European war as an opportunity for payback. The chaos and confusion of the European nations after the unification of Germany dismantled the political stability of Europe that was created at the Congress of Vienna. The inability of Austria-Hungary and Russia to peacefully work out their differences over the Balkans also caused political turmoil in Europe. Both nations had legitimate claims to the Balkan region and both wanted those lands for political, commercial, and cultural reasons. Russia wanted these lands because it saw itself as the protector of the Slavic people in the Balkans, known as its “Pan-Slavism” policy, and it wanted control of the straits between the Mediterranean and the Black sea (Baldwin 32). Austria, who already controlled some Balkan nations, wanted control of the straits and was trying to gain more nations for more power over that region of Europe (Baldwin 33). These differences brought Russia and Austria-Hungary into conflict with each other and created a strong tension between these nations which pushed then towards war. Tensions like these further upset the political stability of Europe. When the delegates at the Congress of Vienna redrew the map of Europe, they kept England separated from continental Europe. England was not involved in many of the affairs of the other major European powers. However, the 19th century marked the end of British isolation from the rest of Europe (Ross 14). By 1900, the British government no longer looked upon its isolation as “splendid”, but instead it was dangerous for a country to be without an ally in case of war. England was particularly fearful of a war due to imperial rivalries because it had such a large empire (Ross 14). By 1904, Britain had formed treaties with Japan and Russia, essentially forming the Triple Entente of Britain, France and Russia against Germany and Austria-Hungary. By forming alliances with other European nations, Britain made the continent of Europe more politically unstable. For centuries, the Turkish Empire had dominated the Balkan Peninsula. The Turkish domination of this area was vital to maintain the stability of Europe set by the Congress of Vienna. By the late 1800’s, Turkish power in the Balkans had been dramatically weakened. Several countries, including Greece and Serbia, had already gained independence from the Ottoman Empire and slowly this former European power was disintegrating (Lafore 53-54). With the Ottoman Empire no longer being a dominant power, the political stability of Europe was affected. In addition, the lack of Turkish influence in the Balkans opened up the region for other countries to take over (Lafore 54). Conflicts over who controlled the Balkans arose often, especially between Russia and Austria-Hungary as stated before, and created more tension between the European nations. By 1900, the political unrest in Europe was mounting and began to cause small crises between several countries. One of these conflicts occurred in Morocco in 1911 between France and Germany. This occurred when Germany challenged the French claim in Morocco but it was settled and left the Kaiser displeased (Ross 25). A conflict in Macedonia occurred in 1912 when Russia attempted to ally with Serbia and Bulgaria and take over Macedonia. This is an excellent example of crises which arose as a result of the weakening of Turkish power. After taking over Macedonia, Serbia and Bulgaria argued over who would control Macedonia. Serbia then crushed Bulgaria and took over much of Macedonia, which angered Austria-Hungary (Ross 26). The growing political instability of Europe in the late 1800’s laid the foundation for a large-scale European war. The upset stability of Europe coupled with the forming of rivalries and alliances between countries would eventually cause small crises, like the one in Macedonia, to explode into a world war. While the political instability of Europe grew, imperial and commercial rivalries were being formed between countries. The British were the most successful imperialists. Their empire, on which the sun never sets, covered a fourth of the world’s land surface including India, Australia and New Zealand (Ross 16). Other nations were jealous of Britain’s colonial wealth and they became a great threat to the British Empire. For years, Britain had colonial conflicts with France and Russia in areas like Sudan and Afghanistan but by 1900, these problems ceased. A major reason why Britain settled their differences with France and Russia was that Germany was a new aggressive player on the imperial board (Ross 17). “German economic success was an even greater threat to Britain’s position in the world. Between 1870 and 1914 Germany’s coal production soared 800 percent to rival Britain’s. By the outbreak of war, Germany was producing as much iron as Britain and twice as much steel. Its electricity output matched that of Britain, France, and Italy combined, while its electrical and chemical industries led the world. Everywhere the British looked, they saw signs of Germany’s newfound power. It was hardly a situation to promote harmony between the two peoples.” (Ross 19). Germany, which was becoming a worldwide empire with a solid economy, was becoming dangerous to England. Likewise, England posed a threat to Germany. Other rivalries such as ones between France and Germany, Russia and Germany, and Austria-Hungary and Serbia began springing up all over Europe (Ross 18-19). In each case, the rivalries promoted arms races between countries and formulated war plans in case a war did break out. France and German led the arms race while Britain led the naval race (Ross 21). The intense arms races going on troubled many people such as British foreign minister Edward Gray who said “…this escalation – the arms race – made war inevitable.” (Ross 20). In response to these rivalries, countries formed alliances with one another in case of a war. At first, small alliances were formed between several nations of Europe but as alliances were formed, more rivalries formed due to countries fearing particular rivalries. More rivalries brought about more alliances and so forth until most of Europe was divided into two alliances. One was the Triple Alliance of Austria-Hungary, Germany and Italy and the other was the Triple Entente of Britain, France, and Russia. However, the alliances were even more complex and indirectly almost every European nations was involved in one of these alliances (McGowen 16). Because of these alliances, most countries could no longer be neutral if a problem arose between two nations. The formation of alliances between the nations of Europe made it almost impossible for a small regional conflict not to escalate into a large crisis. Rivalries between countries were not the only quarrels going on in Europe during this time. There was also a growing conflict between vast empires and nationalism. Large European empires, particularly Austria-Hungary ruled over many different ethnics groups throughout Europe. Many ethnic groups were treated unfairly by the government and by native Germans because of their differences in religion, culture, and heritage. Several of these ethnic groups resented Austria-Hungarian rule and many people in these nations demanded autonomy. These feelings of nationalism spread throughout the region and soon, Austria-Hungary began to feel threatened by the political unrest in the southeastern part of its empire (Evans 94). The nationalism building up in the troubled Austrian province of Bosnia was a particularly dangerous situation for the Austria-Hungarian Empire. After the Ottoman Empire withdrew from Bosnia, instead of obtaining independence, Bosnia was taken over by the Austria-Hungarian Empire. This infuriated Bosnian nationalists. Many people in both Bosnia and its neighbor Serbia, who achieved independence after Turkish withdrawal, felt that Bosnia should be either given full independence or annexed by Serbia. This belief know as the Greater Serbian Movement gave rise to several small militia groups that were determined to win Bosnia its freedom from Austrian rule. (Evans 95-96). Austria-Hungary saw Serbia as a deadly enemy was eager to erase it from the map (Hayman 5). All Austria-Hungary needed was an excuse to go to war with Serbia and put an end to the threats to their empire in the Balkans. Austria-Hungary’s wishes were granted when Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to the Austria-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie took a trip to Bosnia. While driving down a street in Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital, a young man named Gavrilo Princip jumped out of a crowd and fatally shot the Archduke and his wife. This assassination sent shockwaves across the world and enraged the Austria-Hungarian government back in Vienna. The government thought that somehow, Serbia had been involved with and aided the assassination. Vienna decided to use the assassination as an excuse to attack Serbia. Austria-Hungary sent Serbia an ultimatum that, if accepted, would put Serbia under their control. Austria-Hungary knew that Serbia was unwilling to accept the ultimatum so it would soon go to war (Ross 6). When Serbia refused to accept all the requirements of the ultimatum, Austria-Hungary declared war. The alliances of Europe then came into effect when Russia, who pledged to protect Serbia, prepared for war. The Germans then demanded that Russia stop and when Russia refused, Germany declared war on Russia. France, Russia’s ally then mobilized against Germany and then Germany declared war on France and invaded Belgium. Britain entered the war to help France and Belgium. Within five weeks after the Sarajevo assassination, all of the European powers had entered World War I (Ross 7-8). After the war, most countries blamed Germany for being over aggressive and causing World War I. However, later scholars believed, “It was more realistic to say that the world had, in the apt words of British wartime prime minister Lloyd George, ‘slithered’ in war.” (Ross 9-10). Although the assassination in Sarajevo sparked World War I, by 1914, several long-term factors had made Europe ripe for war. The growing political instability among nations, the building of rivalries and alliances, and the conflict between empires and nationalism had all helped bring about World War I. These factors made World War I inevitable and while the crisis in Bosnia was the direct cause of the war, war would not have broken out without the other long-term factors in Europe. When people look back at the events leading up to World War I, it is easy to relate to present problems that exist in the Balkan region today. The Balkan Peninsula is still the “tinderbox of Europe” and just as it was in 1914, it is a center of political unrest and conflict. Nations today should be cautious not to “slither” into war as Europe did at the turn of the century to ensure that a crisis, such as the recent Kosovo issue, does not set off another World War. Bibliography: Baldwin, Hanson W. World War I: An Outline History. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1962. Evans, R.J.W., and Hartmut Pogge Von Strandmann. The Coming Of The First World War. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988. Heyman, Neil M. World War I. London: Greenwood Press, 1997. Lafore, Laurence. The Long Fuse: An Interpretation Of The Origins Of World War I. New York: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1965. McGowen, Tom. World War I. New York: Franklin Watts, 1993. Ross, Stewart. Causes And Consequences Of World War I. Hong Kong: Steck-Vaughn Company, 1998.

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