Long-term underlying causes of WW1

On 28 June 1914, a Serbian shot an Austrian. Within six weeks, many of the countries of Europe had become involved in a war that was to cause the deaths of 10 million soldiers, but was the assassination the only cause of war?Four underlying causes of war

• The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand signalled the rapid slide
• into world war, but this wasn’t the only cause.
• There were underlying causes in the run-up to the First World War.

In the 1930s, historians argued that there were four underlying long-term causes of the First World War:

Nationalism – the belief that your country is better than others. This made nations assertive and aggressive.

Imperialism – the desire to conquer colonies, especially in Africa. This brought the powers into conflict – Germany wanted an empire. France and Britain already had empires.

Militarism (Arms Race) – the attempt to build up a strong army and navy gave nations the means and will to make war.

Alliances – in 1882, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy formed the Triple Alliance. This alarmed, France, Britain and Russia. By 1907, they had all joined the Triple Entente. Europe was divided into two armed camps, to help each other if there was a war.

The countries in detail

Look at the map. The Triple Alliance countries are coloured in red and the Triple Entente countries in blue.

Revision tip

Make a spidergram of the four underlying causes of the First World War. Use the information from the interactive map to find examples of nationalism, imperialism, militarism and alliances in each country and add them to the spidergram.

Answer preparation

Make a note of the facts and arguments that explain:

1. Why the countries of Europe formed two alliance blocs.

2. How the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 affected the relationship between France and Germany.

3. How each of the four long-term causes helped to increase the likelihood of war.

4. Which of the four long-term causes was the greatest threat to peace

Long-term underlying causes of war

Test

1. Although all the following are true to an extent, which of the following is the dictionary’s definition of an alliance?

A. An obligation to go to war in the event of conflict.

B. A union of two countries’ foreign policies.

C. A union or connection of interests.

2. Which of these countries had a 44-year-old score to settle with Germany in 1914?

A. Belgium

B. France

C. Britain

3. The belief that their country and race were superior to others led Europeans to conquer and colonise vast areas of territory all over the globe in the 19th century. Another way to say this would be . . .

A. Nationalism led to militarism.

B. Imperialism led to militarism.

C. Nationalism led to imperialism.

4. Which country was least wedded to the Triple Alliance?

A. Italy

B. Austria-Hungary

C. Germany

5. What was Plan 17?

A. A French military plan to invade Germany.

B. The Austro-Hungarian scheme to annex Bosnia.

C. The German army’s plan to invade Belgium.

6. Which province, taken from France by Germany, was France determined to regain?

A. The Sudetenland

B. Morocco

C. Alsace and Lorraine

7. Why was the Treaty of London crucially important?

A. By the terms of the 1839 treaty, Britain promised to defend Belgium.

B. By the terms of the 1904 treaty, Britain formed the Entente Cordiale with France.

C. By the terms of the 1907 treaty, Britain formed the Triple Entente with France and Russia.

8. What were the Germany Navy Laws of 1898 and 1900 an example of?

A. Imperialism

B. Militarism

C. Nationalism

9. Which country was most threatened by Austro-Hungarian plans to expand into the Balkans by annexing Bosnia?

A. Russia

B. Germany

C. France

10. Which of these aspects of German policy probably frightened Britain most?

A. Expanding the German navy

B. Expanding the German army

C. The Triple Alliance – bbc.co.uk