 There was a lasting peace between ◦ Largely due to peace agreements and peace conferences held often

 Beneath the peace there were several developments that would bring the continent into war…  M.A.I.N. Causes of WWI ◦ M – Militarism ◦ A – Alliance system ◦ I – Imperialism ◦ N – Nationalism

 Nationalism = deep devotion to one’s country ◦ Unifying force w/in one’s country BUT ◦ Creates a strong sense of competition b/w countries  Where did the European competition come from? ◦ Competition for natural resources ◦ Territorial disputes  Austria-Hungary and Russia both tried to dominate the Balkans  W/in the Balkans  intense nationalism coming from different groups (Serbs, Bulgarians, Romanians, etc)

 Imperialism: ◦ Fierce competition for colonies  Created rivalry and distrust

 Militarism: ◦ 20 th century arms race b/w European countries  Idea that to be great and powerful, countries needed the most + best weapons and militaries ◦ Military experts stressed the idea of quick mobilization  Militarism = The policy of glorifying military power and keeping an army prepared for war

 B/c of the distrust + rivalries many of the great powers formed alliances ◦ This was designed to help keep the peace but ultimately contributed to the onset of war

 In order to isolate and take power from France: ◦ 1879 – Otto Von Bismarck, Chancellor of Germany, formed an alliance w/ Austria-Hungary  3 years later Italy joined, formally forming the Triple Alliance: (Germany, Aust-Hun, Italy) ◦ 1881 – Germany also forms and alliance w/ Russia

 1890: ◦ Kaiser Wilhelm II forces Bismarck out of power, he didn’t want to share power w/ anyone  The German army was Wilhelm II’s greatest pride and was eager to show it off ◦ He let the treaty w/ Russia expire ∴ Russia initiated a defensive treaty w/ France  = Germany had enemies on both sides

 Next, Wilhelm II expanded the German navy to be comparable to that of Britain’s ◦ 1907  Alarmed GB formed an alliance w/ France and then Russia ◦ ∴ the Triple Entente was formed (GB, Fr + Russia)  What would happened in a fight broke out between Russia and Germany?

 The Balkans aka the “Powder Keg” of Europe due to its long history of nationalist uprisings  Could very easily draw the alliances into war

 Early 1900s – Ottoman Empire (that was very quickly weakening) controlled the Balkan region  Nationalism in the area was VERY strong ◦ Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, Romania, and Serbia already fought for + won independence from the OE

 Serbia (mostly Slavic) sought to absorb all the Slavic population in the Balkan Peninsula ◦ Russia supported this mvm’t as it too was mostly Slavic ◦ Austria-Hungary feared this would create a rebellion of its Slavic population

 ∴ in 1908 Aust-Hun took over Bosnia + Herzegovina (both largely Slavic)  This outraged Serbia ◦ They vowed to gain those areas for themselves while Aust-Hun vowed to crush any attempt to do so

 June 28, 1914 ◦ Heir to Aust-Hun throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand + his wife, Sophie visited Sarajevo, Bosnia ◦ Were shot while riding in their car by Gavrilo Princip – a young Serbian nationalist  Member of Black Hand: Secret society committed to taking Bosnia from Aust-Hun  /Assassination-of-Archduke-Franz- Ferdinand /Assassination-of-Archduke-Franz- Ferdinand

 B/c the assassin was Serbian, Aust-Hun saw this as an opportunity to punish Serbia  Serbia accepted most of Aust-Hungary’s demands but tried to negotiate a few ◦ Aust-Hun reject Serbia’s offer and declared war

 Russia who supported Serbia due to its Slavic population mobilized its army toward the Austrian border ◦ European leaders urged them to negotiate but it was too late…