Causes for World War 1

The causes were:

Militarism

Alliances

Imperialism

Nationalism

Militarism:

Militarism is the belief of the desire of a government or people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and use it aggressively to expand national interest or values.

How militarism contributed to WW1:

There was a naval rivalry between the British and Germans. They continued to fight each other by making new ships that would beat the other country and this led to many conflicts

The German and French army was growing and becoming more powerful at a rapid rate and they were competing against each other in an arms race which was caused by the growing European division

The growth of German power also challenged other, greater countries such as France and the United Kingdom.

There was a breakdown of the European treaty system and the 19th "Balance of Power"

Alliances:

World War 1 was fought between two major alliances of countries, the Allied powers and the Central Powers. The allied powers were formed mainly as a defence against Germany and the central powers

Alliances are agreements to protect each other when in need

Why alliances are important:

If one country declares war on another, the alliances would have to join the war as well

Germany made an alliance with Austria-Hungary and Italy in case they were attacked by France

Italy betrayed the central powers and signed a secret alliance with France saying that they would not aside from the Germans

France was allied with Russia and the United Kingdom and Serbia was protected by Russia

When Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, all the countries declared war

Imperialism:

Imperialism can be referred to as the acquisition of new territories in order to increase an empire and gain power

There was a lot of competition between the superpowers of Europe. Britain and France

were able to take over so many countries and land, unlike Germany which entered the race of acquiring colonies late. This is why it had fewer colonies compared to France and Britain. This increased the rivalry between Germany and is one of the reasons WW1 started

Nationalism:

Nationalism means strong support of the rights and interests of one country

The congress of Vienna, Austria in 1815 left both Italy and Germany divided. Germany was unified in 1871 and Italy was unified in 1861

Nationalism was born from people who wanted freedom from the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman states in which they lived

France was dissatisfied with the settlement at the end of the war between Prussia and France as France had to give large territories to Germany.

Notes are taken from the class of Miss Sabina Arsalan (2021)