3.15.10

1. Drill – Try to come up with the four causes of WWI.

2. Is it ever possible for an alliance to cause more harm than good?

The Stage is Set for War

Chapter 16, Section 1

1. NationalismFuels competitionEvery nation wants the most land, the most

weapons, the most industry, the most $ etc.Fierce rivalries emerge (do NOT write these,

but read them): Great Britain vs. Germany Germany vs. France Austria-Hungary vs. Russia Small Slavic countries in Balkans vs. Everyone

2. Imperialism –Countries also competed for coloniesGermany and France both want MoroccoCountries start to distrust each other

3. Militarism – Countries want strong standing armies; bigger army = more patriotism

Countries want to be able to “mobilize” (get into battle) quickly

1914, all the great powers except Britain had large standing armies

Rise in Military Expenditure The Total Defense Expenditure of the

Powers (in million £ ) (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy,

Britain, France and Russia) 1870 – 94 1890 – 130 1900 – 154 1910 – 268 1914 - 398

British Tankscalled “whippets”

4. Alliances!Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary

and ItalyTriple Entente: Britain, France and Russia

And all this madness, all this rage, all this flaming death of our civilization andour hopes, has been brought about because a set of official gentlemen, livingluxurious lives, mostly stupid, and all without imagination or heart, have chosenthat it should occur rather than that any one of them should suffersome infinitesimal rebuff to his country's pride. -Bertrand Russell

Obsessed with the German military

Competitive with Britain – wanted a larger army, better navy, more colonies etc.

Known to “recognize no authority but himself”

Russia and Austria-Hungary compete for the Balkans

Balkan lands = inhabited by Slavic peoples from nations of Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro and Romania

Lots of Slavic peoples in Serbia. Serbia wanted to get bigger to hold all the Slavs in the Balkans. Austria-Hungary did NOT want Serbia to expand.

Balkans1914

Austria-Hungary annexed Slavic territory, and the Serbians went nuts

Germany and Austria-Hungary ganged up against the angry Serbs, so the Serbs had to back down

Then….June 18, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife visited Bosnia (a Slavic area) and a young Serbian nationalist killed them

Austria-Hungary wanted revenge on Serbia.

With Germany’s unconditional support, Austria declared war on Serbia

Alliances drag everyone else in.