World War I Causes

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT WWI Started on July 28, 1914 Ended November 11, 1918 Almost 8 million died because of the war Russia having the most : 1.7 million 22,000,000 wounded MAP OF EUROPE GREATLY CHANGED

Karl Marx 1818-1883 German philosopher, political economist, historian, political theorist, sociologist, communist & revolutionary Ideas created foundation of communism Argued capitalism would produce internal tension and lead to destruction. Created “ The Communist Manifesto” (1848)

Charles Darwin 1809-1882 Wrote: “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, 1859 All plants and animals have evolved over a long period of time Those who survived had adapted to the environment The Descent of Man, 1871 Ideas highly controversial; gradually accepted

Now for a bit of humor The continuing Evolution of man

The Causes of World War I Militarism Alliances Imperialism Nationalism

Militarism Militarism - Building up weapons and forces to get ready for war

Militarism Germany was competing with the UK to build battleships The British feared an attack on their Empire, so they built even more battleships

Militarism Germany was competing with Russia and France to expand their armies

Militarism World War I was the first war in which advanced weaponry and tactics were used There was a race for creating more weapons of mass destruction among nations There was a desire to create a large amount of weapons as well as building up a nation’s army and navy

Nation # of aircraft in 1914 Size of Army in 1914 # of soldiers who fought in war Austria-Hungary 34 3 million 7.8 million Britain 110 975 000 8.9 million France 160 4 million 8.4 million Germany 246 4.5 million 11 million Russia 300 6 million 12 million United States 200 000 4.4 million

Alliances Alliance - Agreement or promise to defend and help another country, with military help if necessary

Alliances Aid – Supporting another country with the use of goods Treaty – An agreement to not attack each other

Alliances By 1914 all the major powers were linked by a system of alliances. The alliances made it more likely that a war would start. Once started, the alliances made war more likely to spread.

Alliances By 1907, Europe was divided into two armed and rather fearful camps

Alliances Triple Alliance Triple Entente Germany Great Britain Austria-Hungary Italy Great Britain France Russia

Alliances

Imperialism Imperialism - When one country takes over another territory to try to build up an Empire Empire – Where a powerful country controls several less powerful countries

Imperialism All the great powers were competing for colonies and territory The fiercest competition was between Britain and Germany and between France and Germany

Imperialism Great Britain, Germany and France needed foreign markets after the increase in manufacturing caused by the Industrial Revolution. These countries competed for economic expansion in Africa. Clash of France against Germany and Britain in North Africa

Imperialism The British did not want Germany involved in Africa

Imperialism In the Middle East, the crumbling Ottoman Empire was alluring to Austria-Hungary, the Balkans and Russia The Austrians did not want Serbia or Russia in the Balkans

Nationalism – having pride in your country, willing to defend it Annex – to add as an extra part Think: What are some holidays where people celebrate pride in their heritage? Nationalism

This was an age when all nations wanted to assert their power and independence Ottoman Empire  ruled the Balkan area for 400 years Nationalism

Nationalism The Balkan Area Balkans Albanians, Greeks, Romanians, and Slav Slavs in Austria-Hungary, aided by Serbia and Russia, wanted to be free of Austrian rule Each group was struggling for their own independence Nationalism

THIS BECAME AN AREA OF CONFLICT Bosnia Area of great hostility Austria- Hungary annexed Bosnia as one of its territories in 1908 Serbia was newly independent and thought that Bosnia should be one of their territories THIS BECAME AN AREA OF CONFLICT Nationalism

Key Figures Kaiser Wilhelm II Aggressive foreign policy – wanted Germany to be a “Bully” Built up German army and navy Determined to make Germany a top nation Distrusted by other powers “Germany must have its place in the sun” “The world belongs to the strong.”

Key Figures Count Berchtold Austrian Foreign Minister, later Prime Minister Hated Serbia, wanted a reason to have a war with them

The “Spark”

The Crisis June 28, 1914 Heir to the Austrian throne, Franz Ferdinand, visits Sarajevo Sarajevo was the capital of Bosnia, recently grabbed by Austria Sarajevo was the center of Slav nationalism

Seal of the Black Hand group The Crisis Seal of the Black Hand group THE BLACK HAND Black Hand: Serbian nationalist group The main objective of the Black Hand was the creation, by means of violence, of a Greater Serbia.

The Crisis “Black Hand” terrorists attack on the Arch Duke Bomb attempt in the morning fails to kill the Arch Duke Later in the day, Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip shoots Archduke and his wife

The Crisis Austrians blame Serbia for supporting terrorists Austrians, supported by Germany, send Serbia a tough ultimatum Serbia agrees to all but two terms of the ultimatum Russia prepares troops to support Serbia

The Crisis Germany demands that the Russian army stand down Germany declares war on Russia

Domino Effect Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for Ferdinand’s death and declared war on Serbia. Germany pledged their support for Austria –Hungary. Russia pledged their support for Serbia.

Domino Effect Germany declares war on Russia. France pledges their support for Russia. Germany declares war on France. Germany invades Belgium on the way to France. Great Britain supports Belgium and declares war on Germany.