Causes of World War I

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Causes of World War I
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Militarism
The aggressive preparation for war heightened the
already existing tensions in Europe. European
armies double in size between 1890 1914.

• Armies Involved
• Russia (the largest with 1.3 million)
• France(900,000)
• Germany (900,000)
• Great Britain, Italy, Austro-Hungary (250,000
  500,000)

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Hey, Why is the miltary there in the first place?
European States were in competition with each
other over the amount of land they controlled and
this led to rivalries between the major European
Powers. These nations saw their military forces
(Army and Navy) as a way to both protect their
territory and intimidate their enemies. (Power
National Honor) The military also served to
suppress ethnic uprisings and internal public
dissent within their borders.
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Systems of Alliances

• Europes major powers ally themselves to build
  their power and protect their interests
• Triple Alliance (1882) Germany,
  Austria-Hungary, Italy
• Triple Entente (1907) France, Great Britain,
  Russia

So everything is peaceful among these alliances,
right?
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Not Exactly
The major trouble spot was the Balkan States
between 1908-1914.
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Nationalist struggles in the Balkans

• The Balkan states were made up of three ethnic
  groups (The Catholic Croatians, the Muslim
  Bosnians, and the Orthodox Serbians) who each
  wished to be recognized as separate nations.
• These groups were Slavic minorities in the
  Habsburg Empire of Austria-Hungary.
• Serbia was an Independent State wanted to unite
  all Slavic peoples in Eastern Europe.

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International Interests in the Balkans

• Austria-Hungary saw the increase of Serbian power
  as a threat to their Empire.
• Russia saw the rise of Serbia as a way to get
  access to warm water ports for international
  trade.
• Austria Hungary annexed the kingdom of Bosnia to
  stop Serbian Expansion.
• Russia backed the Serbian protest of this
  Austro-Hungarian aggression.

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Internal Dissent

• The Major Powers also had to contend with protest
  groups within their society.
• Socialist Workers Movements protested to get more
  rights for the working class.
• Anarchists protested government control over the
  individual.
• These groups provided a motive for governments to
  go to war since this would make their protests
  illegal.

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The Assassination
June 28, 1914 - Nineteen year old Bosnian Serb,
Gavrillo Princip, member of the Serbian terrorist
group, Black Hand, shoots and kills the heir to
the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Archduke Francis
Ferdinand and his wife, Sophia.

• This causes Austria-Hungary to threaten Serbia.
• Serbia turns to Russia for Support.
• Russia mobilizes troops at the Hungarian border.
• Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
• Germany declares war on both Russia and France.
• England declares war on Germany.

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So how are we going to memorize all the causes?
Good question! Heres an easy way to remember!
M is for Militarism
A is for Alliances
MANIA
N is for Nationalism
I is for Internal Dissent.
A is for Assassination
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Factual Questions (One Sentence Responses)

• What is Militarism?
• Which Country had the largest Army in Europe
  before World War I?
• What are the Balkans?
• Whose Assassination in 1914 started the conflict
  which became World War I?
• What was the Black Hand?

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Reflection QuestionsParagraph Answers

• Why was militarism popular among the European
  Powers before World War I?
• Why was Serbia and Austria-Hungary in conflict
  over the Balkans?
• How did the Assassination of Franz Ferdinand lead
  to World War I?
• How did internal dissent offer European
  Governments an incentive towards War?

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THE END.

• Answer the questions and turn them in with your
  notes!