 Nations
of Europe competed fiercely for
colonies in Africa and Asia that supplied
their economy with raw materials
 The quest for colonies contributed to
tensions between nations over territorial
claims
A
deep devotion to one’s own nation.
Competition developed between nations who
sought to overpower each other.
 Middle
class educated citizens owed their
loyalty not to the nobility of the past, but to
their native land.
 Nations became very egocentric and a sense
of national satisfaction came at the expense
of another nation
 Best way to demonstrate fitness was to
dominate one’s fellow neighbors
“This is my own, my native land”
 Increasing
nationalism led to a dangerous
arms race.
 European nations believed that a powerful
military made them truly great and
respected

War was attractive to a generation that had not experienced a
major war since 1815 (Napoleonic Wars)

All wars had been short or fought on land far away from the
home country

Germany doubled army by 1861 leading to wars with Denmark
(1864), Austria-Hungary (1866), and France (1870); Proclaim their
empire the “Second Reich” in 1871

Otto Von Bismarck proclaims the philosophy of “realpolitik”
 Tough Power Politics
 Rule without Parliamentary Support
 Decisions made by “blood and iron”, not by speeches

Two things will change the nature of war
 1. technology
 2. alliances
 One
of the most outstanding examples of
technology that impacted WWI stemmed
from the development of a device to control
cattle on the Western plains of the U.S. (It is
the…………
 The
Machine Gun……..had a devastating
effect (Maxim Gun: 500 rounds/minute) the
 During the Russo-Japanese War fought in
1904-05. Observers believed the machine gun
would be no match for the elite trained
European soldiers
 Growing
rivalries among nations led to
several military alliances
(agreements/compacts).
 They were intended to keep the peace; but
instead pushed nations closer to war
 Germany
forms Dual Alliance with AustriaHungary in 1879, then added Italy to form
“Triple Alliance” in 1881 (Objective:
Protection From France)
 Russia
an France form an alliance in 1892,
encouraging Germany to enlarge their naval
force. Prompts Britain to enter into the
“Triple Entente” with France/Russia in 1907
 War
would be short because no one country
could sustain an effort for a long period of
time
 Underestimated
the passions held by
nationalism for one’s country and the extent
people would go to in order to sacrifice their
life for one’s country