Causes of WW1 essay outline PDF

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Causes of WW1 essay outline Hook: Mr. Frip is advising that we use our specialized impact categories to highlight some of the long-term effects of the Great War. -->Example: World War 1 was the cataclysmic event which would end the lives of 10 million young european men, therefore destroying an entire generation of Europeans. It would end the empires of Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. Russia would resort to communism, which would promptly outlaw religion and impose a totalitarian government. HC: The Congress of Vienna in 1814 created an atmosphere of peace in Europe that would last 100 years. Peace congresses were held regularly from 1843-1907 and, since the mid 1800s, peace organizations had been attempting to present non-violent solutions to European tensions. Though there were clashes such as the FrancoPrussian war of 1871 and the Crimean War of 1853, war began to become a thing of the past. However, in the years leading up to 1914, rising tensions among European powers would create a “powder keg” that required only the slightest spark to start a world war. Thesis: Although militarism set a belligerent atmosphere in Europe, in the end, a system of alliances, nationalism, and imperialism were what caused the first world war. 1. Militarism (Concession): Though militarism readied nations for war, created tension with detailed military plans, and caused an arms race, in the end it did not play a large role in causing the great war a. Created an environment ready for modern war i. Militarism not only called for more weapons, but also more advanced ones. World War one was a colossal step forward in terms of modern war. 1. Tanks were first introduced by the British in 1916 during the Battle of the Somme against the Germans 2. Germans introduced submarines as warships in 1914 3. Poison gas introduced by Germans 4. Airplane warfare first used ii. (Analysis) With large armies and navies, a country would be more willing to go to war as they knew they had a better chance of achieving victory. b. Arms Race: Nations of Europe believed that, to be truly great, they must have a powerful military. By 1914, all Great Powers except Britain had large standing armies. The buildup of troops caused warlike tensions on the continent that would eventually erupt into war i. Risk fleet theory: Admiral Tirpitz wanted to develop a navy just 1

strong enough to deal a crippling blow to the British navy. 1. When Wilhelm II used Tirpitz’s theory to build Dreadnoughts threatening the supremacy of Britain’s navy, Britain joined in an entente with France to spite Germany. This alliance then later dragged Britain into the war. 2. Wilhelm II declared “Everything about me must be big”. His love for all things big is reflected in the arms race c. Generals developed highly detailed plans to allow for rapid mobilization i. Plans such as the Schlieffen plan (Germany quickly defeats France in west then moves against Russia to the East) caused countries to ready themselves for war. 1. (Analysis) Many nations, in addition to their standing armies, had plans to quickly mobilize. Countries would more easily go to war for less significant reasons if they are already prepared. d. Concession: Militarism was simply a byproduct of Nationalism and other factors. Therefore, there are other more important causes of the war. Nationalistic beliefs resulted in each country’s desire to be great and powerful. This led to militarism. Ultimately, because militarism would not have existed without Nationalism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism were the main three causes of WWI. Arms races also don’t necessarily mean war, as seen in the nuclear arms race during the Cold War.

2. Alliances: Alliances caused the first world war because they increased tensions between European countries and created an environment where one conflict could engulf an entire continent. a. Increased Tensions: In the late 19th century, German chancellor Otto von Bismarck forged a system of alliances with neighboring countries to isolate France. He believed they still wanted revenge for the loss of AlsaceLorraine during the Franco-Prussian War (1871). Bismarck formed the triple alliance (Germany, A-H, Italy) to mitigate any French aggression (1879 w/ A-H, 1881 w/ Russia). i. (Analysis)With old, unsolved tensions woven between European countries, war was imminent. The Alliances formed only increased those tensions because if one country formed an alliance with another, feelings of belligerence were engendered among nearby nations. As a result, more alliances were formed (i.e. Triple Entente). Tension continually increased. b. When Austria Hungary declared war on Serbia, Russia, an ally of Serbia, was brought into the conflict. The Russians mobilized troops against Austria-Hungary and Germany because they assumed Germany would side with A-H. Two days after the war, Germany declares war on France

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because they know that France is part of the entente. i. (Analysis)Because of the several alliances that existed during the time, many other countries were pulled into the war. Without Alliances, world war I would have been only between Austria Hungary and Serbia and essentially would not be a World war. 3. Imperialism: Imperialism was a major cause of WWI because it created tensions on the European continent, increased unrest in the Balkans, and expanded the European conflict to include the entire world. a. First, imperialism created competition and tension among European imperial powers. i. Britain and France both militarily opposed Russian imperialism in the Crimean War (1853, initially was between Ottomans and Russia), and Great Britain and Russia went to war over Afghanistan in the “Great Game”, both wanting Afghanistan for its geopolitical location to India. ii. However, the most foreboding conflicts were between future enemies. The creation of the new nations of Italy and Germany in the 1860s and 1870s challenged the traditional supremacy of Great Britain and France in Africa and Asia. As new powers, Germany and Italy saw imperial expansion as a way to legitimize their status within Europe. 1. (Analysis) When new nations are created and desire to expand their empire, the powerful, existing nations are threatened. The tensions caused in this time remained unsolved all the way until WWI.

iii. From 1905-1906, this conflict panned out in the Moroccan Crisis, when Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Morocco to support Moroccan independence from France. France was angered and soon both countries had armies ready for war on their border; France was supported by Britain, Russia, Italy, and the United States (the Allies), and Germany was supported by Austria-Hungary (another Central power). 1. (Analysis)Although this did not result in war, it heightened tension in Europe even more. It also served as an early decision as to which countries would join together in the event of war. iv. Another foreboding conflict related to imperialism was the Kruger telegram, which was a message sent to Boer leaders from the Germans congratulating them on their repelling a British attack in South Africa. This infuriated the British, who had long wanted imperial control of the area.

b. Secondly, imperialism ignited the “powder keg of Europe” (the Balkan Peninsula) i. In 1908, while Slavic nationalists were attempting to unite all Slavs on the Balkan peninsula, Austria annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina. Austria’s annexing this large Slavic population angered Serbian

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leaders who had also wanted control of this area because of the large slavic population. 1. (Analysis)The tensions arising from this annexation were eventually the direct cause of the war. On June 28, 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife, Sophie, visited the capital of Bosnia. During a ride in an open car, the two were killed by Gavrilo Princip, a member of a secret society committed to ridding Bosnia of Austrian rule. Russia, and then the rest of Europe were then brought into the ensuing conflict and war. Without imperialism, this event never would have happened. c. Finally, and most importantly, imperial connections allowed the European war to extend to the entire world. i. The Japanese, English, and French attacked German colonies in China, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. ii. The British and French recruited troops from their control in India, South Africa, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, and Indochina. iii. In February of 1917, US officials intercepted the Zimmerman telegram stating that Germany would help Mexico “reconquer” the land it had lost to the United States if Mexico would ally itself with Germany. If America hadn’t used imperialism to acquire new land in Mexico, the US never would have been pushed into the war by this telegram. 1. (Analysis for all) The power European Nations held around the world allowed the war to expand outside of Europe. Imperialism truly made World War I a world war. 4. Nationalism: Nationalism was a major factor in causing the war because of economic and territorial competition and because it helped cause the Balkan crisis that would eventually start the war. a. Nationalism heightened tensions in Europe because of economic competition. i. In 1880, Britain controlled about 23% of the world's manufacturing output, compared to Germany’s 8.5%. However, in the span of 33 years, Germany would overtake Britain; by 1913, on the eve of the war, Germany controlled 15% of the world’s manufacturing output while Britain controlled 14%. 1. (Analysis) Germany was pressured to catch up to Britain. When it did, Britain was threatened by Germany which led to the formation of alliances and increased tension. ii. With the Treaty of Versailles came Article 231, or the “war guilt” clause. This placed responsibility for starting the war entirely on 4

Germany’s shoulders, forcing them to pay billions of dollars in reparations. 1. (Analysis) This shows exactly why Great Britain joined the war: to weaken Germany’s economy to regain the number one spot in Europe. They felt threatened by the Germany’s rise in economic strength and wanted to again establish themselves as dominant. b. Territorial competition i. After the Franco-Prussian war in 1871, France lost control of the Alsace-Lorraine region. 1. (Analysis) Germany feared that France would seek revenge. As a result, they decided to create the Dual Alliance in 1879 with Austria-Hungary. This lead to more tension between European countries by contributing to the pre-war belligerence among Europe. ii. Nationalism also caused Italy to join the war because they wanted to gain land? iii. The Treaty of Versailles gave France back Alsace-Lorraine, took land from Germany, and gave land to Italy 1. (Analysis) This proves that the motive for some countries to enter the war was to gain back regions lost in previous wars. The Ottomans also wanted to get land back, which is why they joined Germany. 2. To prove the nationalistic land thing more succinctly, Italy joined the allies to expand their empire, they succeeded because they demanded it at the Treaty of Versailles c. Balkan crisis i. World power Russia had close cultural ties with Serbia, mainly because of the large slavic populations in each country. When Serbia refused the Austrian ultimatum and Austria declared war, it was Russia that came to their defence.

Conclusions are basically just expanding what you introduced in your hook

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