Causes of World War I
The subject of the Causes of World War I has been among the most discussed issues in historiography ever since the war began in August 1914. The immediate cause is agreed to be the assassination in Sarajevo of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist. However the assassination is also widely agreed to have been merely the overt cause (or "trigger"), where numerous hidden and implicit factors were contributing —central of these being the drives and interests of various competing nationalist elements.
The Allied Powers, led by France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and later Italy and the United States, defeated the Central Powers: Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire.
Much of the fighting in World War I took place along the Western Front, within a system of opposing manned trenches and fortifications (separated by a "no man's land") running from the North Sea to the border of Switzerland. On the Eastern Front, the vast eastern plains and limited rail network prevented a trench warfare stalemate from developing, although the scale of the conflict was just as large. Hostilities also occurred on and under the sea and — for the first time — from the air.
More than nine million soldiers died on the various battlefields, and millions more innocent civilians killed.
The war caused the disintegration of four empires: the Austro-Hungarian, German, Ottoman, and Russian. Germany lost its overseas empire, and states such as Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia were created, or recreated, as was the case with Poland.
World War I created a decisive break with the old world order that had emerged after the Napoleonic Wars, which was modified by the mid-19th century’s nationalistic revolutions.
The results of World War I is one of the most important factors in the development of World War II 21 years later.
Ideological causes
The face-picture of the concerned generation in Austria and Germany reaches back far into the past. The World War I. is no single - or special case after their experience from the history. Repeataton has worked for itself raising people and states their position beside prevalent people and states in the past and has secured, in which they claim a share the mineral resource available on this earth, trade flows, and other wealth-origins and has reached, and in that has been competition. That on - and descent of nations is for the generation of the Europeans about 1900 slices of the world-history and no question of the morals. So, also the Germans can see nothing reprehensible in the ascent of their own country at this time. The phenomenon of the on - and descent in the modern time is for them something like a historical natural law. Besides, in England, the view of the things was and is alaways the same.
Some of the roots of the conflict arise out of specific ideologies which influenced the behaviour of politicians and other figures during the years leading up to the war.
Social Darwinism
By the late 19th century a new form of political and social thought emerged in the same context as nationalism, known as Social Darwinism. It emphasized the competition on a social scale between different national, ethnic, or racial groups. Inspired by what Charles Darwin considered a faulty understanding of his theory of evolution, expressed as 'survival of the fittest', this ideology was taken up by European political elites. The new ideology emphasised the violent struggle for existence between "races" or "nations" in which the weak would inevitably be destroyed by the stronger. These ideas were profoundly influential. Social Darwinism as a political ideology also influenced competition amongst nation states for colonies. Colonial expansion was rationalized by the elite as important for assuring a nation's economic and military strength in the face of rivals.
Other than Social Darwinism, lack of Moral in their respective cultures, extreme lust of wealth and Resources all for themselves, no respect for other peoples Rights, Arrogance, Brutality and Aggressiveness within participating countries were the other basic ideological causes for both First and the Second World War. The same human weaknesses are still driving them towards Global conflagration again and again.Preparations including weapon and technological development are at their peak, what else to be done is another blunder of using them against each other at a certain time.
The British policy of 'strategic exclusion' of potential competitors was compatible with this adversarial perspective.
An aspect of late 19th century Social Darwinism was the sense of urgency it engendered. For a nation to be not growing compared to its neighbors and rivals was seen as very risky.
The French looked in dismay at their birth rate, which was lower than Germany's.
German Domestic Politics
Left wing parties, especially the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) made large gains in the 1912 German election. German government at the time was still dominated by the Prussian Empire who feared the rise of these left wing parties. Some authors feel that they deliberately sought an external war to distract the population and whip up patriotic support for the government. Other authors feel that German conservatives were ambivalent about a war, worrying that losing a war would have disastrous consequences, and even a successful war might alienate the population if it were lengthy or difficult.
French Domestic Politics
The situation was quite the opposite in France, but with the same results. More than a century after the French Revolution, there was still a fierce struggle between the left wing French government and its right wing opponents, including monarchists, "bonapartistes" and the Catholic Church. A "good old war" was seen by both sides (with the only and remarkable exception of Jean Jaures) as a way to solve this crisis thanks to a nationalistic reflex. Everyone thought the war would be short and would lead to an easy victory. The left side government thought it would be an opportunity to implement social reforms (income tax was created in July, 1914) and the right side politicians hoped that their connections with the army's leaders could give them the opportunity to regain power.
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| See also: | Treaty of Versailles | Treaty of Saint Germain | Treaty of Trianon | Kaiser Wilhelm II | Polish Corridor| revanchism | Anschluss | Wilson's fourteen points | German Revolution | Dolchstosslegende | European colonial powers | Dutch East Indies | war guilt | reparations | hyperinflation | |
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Salauddine Mohammed Faruque on July 25,2007, last updated on 12.10.2007 Copyright:©2007 All Rights Reserved |