Immediate Causes of WWI

World WarsMs. Hamer

September 11, 2009

Escalation

• The opening of World War I is a case of escalation – so many factors built up that some of the countries felt that war was the only option.

• There is great debate over how much emphasis to place on each factor – decide that for yourself

Review of Long Term Causes

• Crumbling of the Balance of Powers System

• Nationalism• Imperialism• Militarism

Alliances

• One of the most immediate causes of WWI was a complicated entanglement of alliances

• Try to keep up here…

Alliances with Germany• Germany wanted to be a power player in

Europe• 1873- Three Emperors’ League –

Bismarck wanted to join A-H, Germany, and Russia but it failed

• 1879 – Dual Alliance – A-H and Germany• 1882 – Triple Alliance when Italy joined• 1887 – Germany signed secret

Reinsurance Treaty with Russia, but this was a “Bismarck only” agreement and dissolved when he left in 1890

Alliances in Response to Germany

• Russia and France entered into a military alliance in 1894 even though they fought each other in the Crimean War (1853-1856)

• England joining Germany would make sense here, but Germany decided a new course of world policy in 1897 (Weltpolitik) that included construction of a large navy! (NO!!!)

• So England looked elsewhere for allies, like Japan (1902)

Germany is Scaring People

• England is pushed into settling issues with France in the 1904 Entente Cordiale

• This bond grows stronger after 1905 and 1911 when Germany is causing imperialist issues with Morocco

• 1907 England and Russia settle differences

French Entente Cordiale Postcard

The Dual Alliance System• After 1907 it

looked like this in Europe:

• Triple Alliance– Germany– Austria-Hungary– Italy

• Triple Entente– France– Russia– Great Britain

The Balkan Wars

Trouble in the Balkans• Ottomans were losing

power• Independence

movements were growing in Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania

• A-H and Russia got involved– A-H didn’t want their

own Southern Slavs to join the independence movement (esp in Serbia)

Purple: Ottoman Empire lost by 1886Pink: Ottoman Empire lost by 1914

The Balkan Wars (1912-1913)

• The First Balkan War (1912): Serbia, Bulgaria, Montenegro, and Greece take territory from the Ottoman Empire

The Balkan Wars (1912-1913)• The Second

Balkan War (1913): Bulgaria attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, to get more land. Bulgaria lost land of its own instead – dark colors are

areas Bulgaria lost

Why Do the Balkan Wars Matter?

• Because some Serbians felt very passionately about Balkan independence, which was heightened by the Balkan Crises

• So passionately in fact that they wanted to stop A-H from preventing further independence…like that of the regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Shot

The Black Hand• Original group founded in 1909, would

become The Black Hand in 1911• Secret society committed to Pan-Slavism• Used terrorist methods• “Union or Death”• Many members were in the Serbian military

and military intelligence• Chose to assassinate the Archduke of

Austria Hungary, Franz Ferdinand– was next in line for the crown– was planning on reorganizing A-H and creating a

Slavic state within the Empire – this would weaken Serbia’s idea of Slavic independence

June 28, 1914

• Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assassinated by GavrilloPrincip, an 18 year old student and member of the Black Hand

Assassination Blunders• There were 7 assassins in Sarajevo (Bosnia)

where Ferdinand and his wife were inspecting the military

• First 2 assassins failed to throw their bombs• The 3rd threw his bomb but it bounced off the

convertible roof cover and blew up under another car

• FF went to his next scheduled stop, but then changed his plans, going to the hospital to visit the wounded from the first bomb

• Princip was further along the first route but couldn’t act since FF’s motorcade sped by after the first bomb

• Princip went to a deli to get a sandwich, walked out, saw FF’s car backing up after making a wrong turn, ran up and shot FF and Sophie

How did this lead to WWI?• Previous assassinations had not led to

war• A-H felt that this was an opportunity to

have a showdown with Serbia• Germany told their ally A-H that Germany

would support them against Serbia even if it meant war (July 5)

• July 23, 1914 – A-H delivers a list of 10 ultimatums to Serbia that must be accepted within 48 hours– July 25, 1914 Serbia accepts all but the one

that would infringe on its sovereignty• July 28, 1914 A-H declares war on Serbia

How did this lead to WWI? Part 2

• Russia calls for a full mobilization to support Serbia on July 30, 1914

• July 31, 1914 Germany sends Russia an ultimatum to stop mobilizing within 12 hours!

WWI Begins• July 28 A-H declares war on Serbia• August 1 Germany declares war on Russia• August 2 Germany informs Belgium that

Germany will be using Belgium to invade France

• England told Germany that if Belgian neutrality were violated, England would declare war

• August 3 Germany declares war on France• August 4 Germany invades Belgium with the

Schlieffen Plan• August 4 England declares war on Germany• Italy stays out of it

Alliance System in 1914

Looking Back