Assess critically three causes of WWI The First World War began in Europe in 1914, after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. This trigger action caused the involvement of Germany, Russia, Serbia and Austria-Hungary. However, the war itself was caused by nationalism, alliances and Germany’s fear of encirclement. Nationalism was the central cause of WWI because, due to the nationalism of the Slavs, the Balkan states became a powder keg. Austria-Hungary made the Serbs fear annexation while the Slavs inside the country wanted a Great Serbia.
Both Germany and Russia mobilized their armies in haste, because each one feared defeat by powerful enemies if they delayed. Germany and Russia also rashly committed themselves to support Balkan clients - Austria-Hungary and Serbia, respectively - because Berlin and St. Petersburg feared that failure to do so would cost them the trust of important allies and leave them isolated. This view treats Balkan matters largely as influences on policy
Austria wanted to send Austrian investigators to investigate Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination in Sarajevo and they wanted to abolish all major Serbian organizations, which Serbia refused, and Austria declared war on Serbia. Since the Russians considered the Serbians to be Slavic people as well, they mobilized their army as a sign of support for Serbia. Since Germany was an ally to Austria-Hungary, they sent an ultimatum to Russia demanding them to stop the mobilization of their army and also sent an ultimatum to France, Russia's ally as part of the Triple Entente and an enemy of Germany, asking them to remain neutral in the conflict. Russia did not respond to the ultimatum and France didn’t give a clear answer, which caused Germany to declare war on both countries. Germany was not at fault for World War I, Serbia and Austria- Hungary War because of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Austria then declared war on the grounds that it had not been accepted in its entirety. It has become fashionable (at high school level) to claim that the Austrians had been looking for an excuse to declare war because of lingering disputes between the two countries. It is probably more accurate to say that Austria was trying to clip Serbia's wings and deny it a coastline. On July 5, 1914, Germany (which had reasons of its own for a war) had given Austria a "blank check", or unconditional guarantee of support in its actions against Serbia. Provocations and Disputes 1.
Gareth Parker How important was the Bolshevik threat to Tsardom in the reign of Nicholas II? The threat to Tsardom is complex and needs to be understood from different viewpoints. Initial examination of the Bolsheviks is vital from formation to the growing strength of revolutionaries such as Lenin and Trotsky and their influence on the downfall of Tsarism. Nicholas II was key to his own demise, not only his poor leadership but also his alienation from his own people and the average Russians way of life. There can be no ignoring the effect that World War I had on Russia, with the crippling affects of a major war and the resulting breakdown of infrastructure within the Russian Empire.
How significant was war in changing the nature of Russian Government between 1855-1918? Trotsky’s famous quote: ‘War is the locomotive of change’ is relevant to Russian government between 1855-1918 due to the initiation of many turning points and reforms, as well as repressions, potentially as a result of war. However, it is questioned whether these were just natural developments in Russian society rather than results of war. One area of Russian government on which war had a significant impact on was repression and liberalization. The Crimean war (1853-6) proved a struggle for Russia as they faced inferior opponents, alike to the Russo-Turkish and Japanese wars.
Or was it really the longed wish for the Hungarian empire to act against Serbia and resolve the ‘Slavic problem’? In 1908, Austria officially annexed Bosnia igniting outrage in Serbia and Russia. Linked by their Slavic ethnicity, the two nations wished to prevent Austrian expansion. Their efforts were defeated when the Ottomans agreed to recognize Austrian control in exchange for monetary compensation. The incident permanently damaged the already tense relations between the nations.
WHY DID THE SCHLIEFFEN PLAN FAIL? Germany was left in a dangerous encirclement by the triple entente agreement. Germany’s army had a planned to counter this threat and COUNT ALFRED VON SCHLIEFFEN would devise the plan. Germany concentrated on its troops the west to b able to conquer France. They would turn around their army and attack Russia because Russia was expected to take long to mobilise its enormous but undated army.
* War in the Balkans. Spreading of Wars NB: Alliances – opposed When Serbs were under attack, they asked Russia for help. Russia was sympathetic and said yes. Tsar Nicholas II MOBILISED Russia 29th July to help Serbia – THIS STARTED THE COUNTDOWN FOR THE FIRST WORLD WAR. 5....30th July | When Kaiser heard that Russia was getting ready for war (Mobilising) he asked Tsar Nicholas to stop.
When deciding who was responsible for starting World War One, the instigator of the first major conflict must be established. With growing ethnic nationalism, Serbia ached for independence. Serbia felt mistreated by Austria-Hungary government and a terrorist group called “The Black Hand” decided that they were going to do something to show their displeasure. On June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princep, a member of the Black Hand, assassinated the archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. This assassination was the first in a chain of events that ultimately led to war for all countries.