Causes of WWI
World History, Culture and Geography
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Long Term Causes - Nationalism
• Starting with the French Revolution
• National identities become important, desire
dominance and prestige
• 1871 Germany and Italy become nations – they
want to catch up with Britain, France
• Pride in country partly based upon industrial
capacity, colonies
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Long Term Causes - Industrialization
• 1850’s on sees industrialization spread to
continental Europe
• Economic competition between nations
begin – Germany quickly gaining on Britain
• Transportation, communication, and
military advances continue
• Need for markets and raw materials =>
imperialism
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Long Term Causes - Imperialism
• Nationalism and industrialization tied to
colonial holdings
• Competition for colonies increases tensions
• European nations military, political, and
economic domination of Africa and Asia
build confidence
4
Long Term Causes - Militarism
• Between 1870 and 1914, European nations
increase military spend by 400%
• Many believed war was coming, began
preparing
• German, Russian Generals extremely
powerful
• Arms race developed
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Short Term Causes
• Entangling alliances pull everyone into the war
• Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and
Italy)
• Germany secretly told Austria-Hungary they
would support them no matter what happened –
called the “blank check”
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Short Term Causes
• Triple Entente (England, France, and Russia) –
Treaty of Friendship
• France was concerned about Germany’s growing
military
• England was concerned with Germany’s navy
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Precipitating Events
• Moroccan Crisis between
France and Germany
• Balkan Wars between
1912-13 raised tensions
between Russia, Serbia,
Germany, and AustriaHungary
• Balkans considered the
“Powder Keg of Europe”
– so many countries had
national interests in the
region
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The Domino Effect
• In June 1914,
Archduke Ferdinand,
heir to the throne of
Austria-Hungary,
travels to Sarajevo
with his wife to review
the Austrian
Hungarian army on
maneuvers.
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The Domino Effect
(1) June 28, 1914 – Austrian
Archduke Ferdinand
assassinated in Sarajevo,
Bosnia
A nineteen year-old member
of the Black Hand, Gavrilo
Princip, jumped from the
sidewalk onto the Archduke's
car and fired 2 shots. The
Archduke and his wife were
killed.
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Austria-Hungary
issues an ultimatum to
the Serbian
government in order to
allow Austrian forces
to investigate the
assassination and stop
anti-Austrian activities
in Bosnia
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The Domino Effect:
War Starts . . .
2) Serbia refuses the
ultimatum, AustriaHungary declares
war
(3) Russia mobilizes an
army to defend
Serbia
(4) Germany declares
war on Russia
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The Domino Effect
War Starts . . .
(5) France declares
war on Germany
(6) Germany invades
Belgium to attack
France
(7) Britain declares
war on Germany
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The Domino Effect:
War Starts . . .
• Italy decides that its chances to gain land
are better with France, Britain, and Russia.
Italy abandons its pre-wartime alliance with
Germany and Austria-Hungary and joins the
war on the side of France, Britain, and
Russia.
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• Most of the fighting
takes place in Western
Europe, even though
the conflict started in
the Balkans in Eastern
Europe
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Fighting spreads to the colonies as well
=global war!
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