Causes of the Great War
Boundaries
War in Europe is not a new thing, they often fought back and forth
over land
 Alsace-Lorraine: two French provinces lost to Germany as a
result of earlier war
 Bosnia-Herzogovinia: Austria absorbed these as a result of the
Balkan Wars
 Austria-Hungary: transfer so often that this region had three
alphabets, three religions, and eleven or more languages
Nationalism
What conflicts do you see arising in Austria-Hungary?
 A strong sense of nationalism – feeling of pride and devotion to
one’s country
Imperialism
Domination by one country of the political, economic, or cultural life
of another country or region
Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand
Before the assassination, countries had a complicated system of secret
treaties that bound them together to come to each other’s aid in the
event of attack. Up until this point they had never really had to use
these alliances. However, within hours of the assassination these
alliances came into effect as Austria-Hungary declares war. This set
off a chain reaction that worked its way through every chain of the
alliances.
ALLIED
AXIS (Central)
NEUTRAL