July Crisis 1914 PDF

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Case Study Synopsis assignment on the July Crisis 1914...

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July Crisis 1914 - Crisis case study outline and annotated bibliography Case Study Synopsis I have chosen the July Crisis of 1914 as my case study, as the events surrounding the crisis have particular relevance today when understanding elements of the power transition between a declining US hegemon and a rising Chinese superpower. Background To understand the nature and development of events which unfold during the July Crisis, I will first analyse the context of British and German power rivalry with reference to Organski’s Power Transition Theory (PTT). Through applying this theory, I will be able to convey the predetermined interests of the European powers during the crisis negotiations, with the two primary examples being Britain’s interest of containing Germany to uphold its influence as a regional hegemon, and Germany’s interest of becoming a dominant imperial superpower. Further to this, I will examine the alliance structure of Europe preluding the crisis, as this is essential to understanding the nature of the crisis escalation. Spark of the Crisis In examining why the crisis started, I will break down the events surrounding the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian nationalism. The event, which many perceive as being simple, involves a network of complicated political consequences. Therefore, I will refer back to the aforementioned alliance structure to analyse the nature of political interchanges involving the national interests of Austria-Hungary and Serbia. Aims and Objectives of Both Parties The aims and objectives of Parties participating in the July Crisis are vexed by complicated alliance structures, historical tensions between nations, and insecurities surrounding power transitions. However, amongst all this is the core notion that due to this revisionary period in Europe, all parties have a primary objective of retaining or maximizing their power, rather than cooperating for mutual benefit. I will pay particular attention to the nature of German and British aims and objectives, and how insecurity and the alliance network drove the inadvertent escalation of the July Crisis.

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Crisis Management Continuing from the Aims and Objectives of Parties participating in the crisis, I will examine the mechanisms used to manage the escalation of the July Crisis. First, I will analyse how the series of threats and failed bargaining attempts exacerbated the crisis, and leading to a domino effect through alliance entrapment. Second, I will be using PTT to examine the inadvertent escalation of the crisis by Britain and Germany, as both parties played a primary role in the mismanagement of the crisis. Particularly, I will examine how British insecurity fostered a policy of containment against Germany, and how Germany’s perception of threat by the Triple Entente drove a series of pre-emptive attacks against Russia and France. Therefore, through linking these two mechanisms I will breakdown the nature of the crises’ escalation. Crisis Outcomes Subsequent to analysing the escalation of the July Crisis, I will link the final events of the crisis to the advent of the First World War and its opening manoeuvres. The primary focus will be on the Western Front, with the aforementioned pre-emptive attack on France, involving the Schlieffen Plan, encroached on Belgium neutrality and drove Britain to declare war on Germany.

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Case Study Source Annotations Chong, Ja Ian, and Todd H. Hall. 2014. "The Lessons Of 1914 For East Asia Today: Missing The Trees For The Forest". International Security 39 (1): 7-43. doi:10.1162/isec_a_00165. The journal article “The Lessons of 1914 for East Asia Today” provides a comparison between the power transitions between Germany and Britain in 1914 to the US and China today, discussing the inadequacies and benefits the comparison holds for contemporary analysis. In particular interest to me is specific breakdown of elements contributing to crisis escalation in Europe, including the power transitions and security competition between Germany and Britain, the geostrategic issues of alliance systems, the web of complex security commitments, the role of nationalism, and the role consecutive crises has on exacerbating problems. As this journal article is a more so a comparative essay between Europe in 1914 and East Asia today, it may leave out many other factors contributing to the July Crisis. Nonetheless, the isolated elements discussing July 1914 provide a comprehensive understanding of the nature of the crisis escalation. Germany. 1915. "The German White-Book (Only Authorized Translation)". New York City: The Fatherland. The published German Government Documents titled “The German White Book” is a primary source containing a collection of documents and telegrams preluding the outbreak of the First World War. Of particular interest to me is the document released by the Berlin Foreign Office in 1914 discussing from the German perspective the chain of threats, declarations of war, and strategies which guided German decision making to launch preemptive attacks on Russia and France. The documents outline in extensive detail the nature of the alliance structures within Europe, noting specifically the German expectations of certain allies such as Austria-Hungary. This, therefore, provides much usefulness to my case study, as it gives direct insight into the decision making which may have escalated the Crisis of July 1914. However, as the source is written from German perspective and published amongst an atmosphere of strong nationalism, the writing holds a bias towards the German image and may distort the realities of the events of the July Crisis.

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KERSHAW, IAN. 2015. TO HELL AND BACK: Europe 1914-1949. [S.l.]: ALLEN LANE. 9-43 “To Hell and Back” provides an insight through a narrative structure of the background context preluding Europe in 1914, and the events throughout 1914 and the July Crisis. The book gives a very detailed understanding of each event in sequence, discussing the political, social, economic, and military aspects which influenced the lead up to the First World War. In addition to this, Kershaw discusses the aims and objectives of each party in the lead up and throughout the July Crisis, commentating the cause and effect of each step of the crisis. This source is a very credible and useful source for my case study, as being both written by renowned historian Ian Kershaw, and published in the recent date of 2015. However, whilst these aspects may help my case study, the lack of critical analysis or interpretation of the events hinders the source’s usefulness as an analytical tool. Kliman, David. 2014. Fateful Transitions. University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc. 1-58 “Fateful Transitions” follows the link between power transitions and regime type, to the strategies taken by leaders to overcome power shifts. The first two chapters of the book break down the nature of power transitions, with a focus on how democratic leaders react to both the rise of democratic powers, and autocratic powers. This compliments the second chapter, where Kliman analyses the different strategies employed by Britain in dealing with both the US and Germany as rising hegemons. This would be particularly useful for my case study, as it pays close attention to the link between insecurity and power transitions between Britain and Germany, and the escalation of the July Crisis. Further to this, the source has a high level of usefulness and credibility due to its recent publication date of 2014, suggesting the author, Dr. D Kliman, has access to a wide array of developed and sophisticated literature on WWI. Therefore, elevating the value this source holds to my case study. Lebow, Richard Ned, and Benjamin Valentino. 2009. "Lost In Transition: A Critical Analysis Of Power Transition Theory". International Relations 23 (3): 389-410. doi:10.1177/0047117809340481. “Lost in Transition” is a journal article discussing varies IR power transition theories, focusing on theories postulated by Organski and Kugler, and analyses the conditions under power transitions in which war occurs. The article examines 7 implications which are common throughout power transition theories, comparing each implication to historical

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scenarios which either compliment or detract from the theories. Whilst there is little mention specifically of the neither July Crisis nor power transitions between Germany and Britain, the article’s extensive analysis and explanation of power transition theories provides me with the utility to apply such theories to my own research in the case study. Therefore, as this article would be very useful source in complimenting my other sources which closely examine the events of the July Crisis, this source would be very useful for my case study. Stevenson, David. 1997. The Outbreak Of The First World War. London: Macmillan Press. “The Outbreak of the First World War” is a book discussing the events of the July Crisis from the perspectives of various European Governments in1914, as well as providing interpretation and analysis to the cause of the events. The book is broken down into the context and events surrounding Austro-Serb conflicts throughout the crisis, the German perspective and response to Austria-Hungary and the Franco-Russian perspective. Furthermore, Stevenson provides an interpretation of First World War literature, analysing different elements, such as the specific aggression of particular parties and the inadvertence and miscalculations in decision making, which escalated the crisis. The wide array of analysis and specific breakdown of crisis escalation makes this source very useful to use for my case study. In addition, the reliability of the source material, having being written by a recognised WWI Historian, makes this source credible to cite for my case study.

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