What are the causes of war and conflict?

Lead up to War- World War 1 or ‘The Great War’ officially broke out on 4th August

1914.

- However, many European countries had been preparing for this war for years.

- There are many causes that contributed to war breaking out across Europe.

- To understand World War 1 we need to know who the allied countries were.Read through the Allies information and determine who the allies of Britain were and who the allies of Germany were.

Alliances:- Germany believed that to protect themselves they should always

be in an alliance of three. This group of allies would change constantly.

- When the alliance between Russia and Germany failed, Germany was left with the weakest alliance in Europe which was with Austria-Hungary.

- Thankfully for the Germans, Italy joined the alliance in 1882, thereby forming the:

Triple Alliance/Central Powers

- Due to a long hostility between France and Germany and Britain’s battle for naval superiority with Germany, Britain formed an alliance with France.- In 1906 Russia forms an alliance with Britain which creates the :

Triple Entente/Allies

Germany in the 1900s- In 1860 Germany was considered a ‘backwater’ amongst

the powers that ruled Britain, France, Russia, Spain and Italy.

- By 1910 Germany was thriving and due to migration, some of the German cities were thriving under urbanisation.

- Due to an increased population the labour force was expanded and this meant that Germany now had more wealth per capita than any other country in Europe.

- To fight the increasing power of Germany, other European countries revitalised their Imperial Campaigns (Empire Building).

- 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.- Also, in the Middle East, the crumbling Ottoman Empire was

appealing to Austria-Hungary, the Balkans and Russia.

Cause #1- By the mid 19th C, Britain was the strongest economic power

in Europe and it had the strongest navy.- By 1900 Germany had become the newest power in Europe

and was rivaling Britain in terms of Industrial power as well.

- However, Germany did not have any room to move in Europe . . .

Germany wanted world power and ultimately – WORLD DOMINATION?

Cause #2- With increased competition for land between the super powers,

the need for military strength increased.- Spending on building large military forces soon spiraled out of

control.- The armies of France and Germany doubled in size from 1870 –

1914.- Britain which had boasted the best navy was concerned about

Germany which had the best army and had announced plans to develop its navy.

- Germany introduced a new military strategy – in the event of war, Germany would attack France before Russia – ultimately, this is what led to many more nations joining the war.

- Each country developed plans for mobilisation that only awaited a go-ahead signal.

- This existence of secret battle plans increased espionage, which in turn aroused greater hatred and fear.

Militarism

Cause #3- Strong feelings of nationalism fed the fires of

hatred in pre-war Europe.- It turned Frenchman against German and Russian

against Austrian. - These general causes created an atmosphere in

Europe which made war a likelihood.

Nationalism- Ultimately, this led to the spark that lit the fuse and

started the fire!

Cause #4- On June 28, 1914, Serbian fanatic, Gavrilo Princip, assassinated

Archduke Franz-Ferdinand of Austria, while he was in Sarajevo.- A few days after the assassination, Germany assured Austria-Hungary

that it would support whatever decision it came to in response to the murder. This has become known as the 'blank cheque'.

- Nearly a month after the assassination, Austria-Hungary finally responded with an ultimatum for Serbia. Serbia refused to comply with all the demands made, which included allowing Austro-Hungarian forces into Serbia to assist in arresting organisations which were hostile to them.

Austria-Hungary declared war on 28 July.

- Once Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, the pre-war European alliances came into effect.

- Russia came to the defence of Serbia, which made Germany react.

- On 1st August Germany declared war on Russia.

- Germany put the military strategy known as the Schlieffen plan, which had been developed in 1905, into action.

- This meant that France and eventually Britain were also drawn into the conflict.

Cause #5- It can be often argued that the First World War started on the 22nd

of April 1915.- On the 22nd of April, not far from the city of Ypres, Belgium, the

Germans did something new . . .- They opened cylinders of poison gas to try to break through the

defensive strength of the allies on the other side. - French and Canadian troops were hit by this gas, or chlorine gas,

and were terrified. - These are men without really any protection against this because it

never happened before.

- These weren't shells, these were cylinders that had been lined up, and when the German troops thought that the wind was blowing the right way, the cloud opened – it looked very much like a green cloud – and the people who didn't escape from it would have their lungs burned out and die an awful death.

Gas Warfare

Your Task- Choose one of these causes that you think is the most important

contributor to WW1.

- Create a timeline for that event on a poster which will need to contain the following information:

- Date of the cause

- What happened

- Who was involved

- The contribution this event made to the start of World War 1.

- Your poster should be decorated with images and/or quotes that are associated with your cause.

- You will need to do research to understand these causes in more detail!

- DUE: Next Week!