AFFERMATIVE CONSTRUCTIVE
[Hannah Zimmer, ZeenaAmer]
Introduction
“Imperialism is capitalism… In which the export of capital has acquired pronounced importance;
in which the division of the world among the international trusts has begun, in which the division
of all territories of the globe among the biggest capitalist powers has been completed.”–Lenin
1906
Imperialism can be strung to different ideas, like stated in Lenin’s quote. This is why we chose to
discuss: colonial disputes, alliances and treaties, and finally Weltmacht. These are the reasons for
why we affirm the resolution that Imperialism is primarily responsible for the First World War.
Fist Contention: Imperialism was the cause of the colonial disputes.
When Imperialism started, it was very important for the great powers to gain colonies around the
world to expand their land. The Fashoda Incident in 1898, for example, caused an immense
dispute between Britain and France in East Africa. This tension brought the two countries to the
verge of war. The same went for the Second Boer War from 1899 to 1902. This war only took
place because of Britain’s imperialistic views. Also, the Germans caused tension during this war
because the Kaiser, sending the Kruger telegram, congratulated Kruger for repelling the Jameson
Raid. Another example for colonial imperialism was the Moroccan Crisis (1905-10906).
Germany resented France’s increasing supremacy of Morocco and wanted an open door policy.
This was all because Germany seemed to have been scared that France was getting too much
power.
Contention: Also, alliances and treaties were created due to Imperialism.
The Franco- Russian alliance 1893 was a treaty that was a reaction mostly to the Triple Alliance
(1882) of Germany, Austria, and Italy. The Triple alliance left Russia vulnerable, and gave
France the impression of being diplomatically isolated since the defeat of the Franco-Prussian
war, where Alsace and Lorraine were taken by Germany. This gave Russia a free hand in southeast Europe. The alliance also gave security for Russia to extend control across Siberia to the
Pacific. Russia had made the decision to construct the Trans-Siberian railway. Anglo- Japanese
Alliance 1902 was created because Britain fearing a threat of both France and Russian war that
would enable them to concentrate their naval resources in the European waters and push towards
the Far East. England was opposed to the Russian expansion, and they being cautious created a
treaty with Japan. This alliance with Japan was one of the first steps Britain took out of their
normal political view of “splendid isolation”.
Third Contention: Lastly, the naval race was a result of Imperialism.
Germans ambition of nationalism was their expansion into creating colonies. Weltmacht,
following that of Weltpolotik was a policy that gave rise to industrial strength but mostly, the
creation of colonial empire to rival those of other powers. Germany wanted to shift the world’s
balance of power in favor of them even if it caused the risk of war. Wilhelm II believed that
Germany had the right to be the largest, strongest, and to become unbeatable in every possible
way. The Naval Race was caused when Germany sought to rival or exceeds the English Royal
Navy in strength. Alfred von Tripitz, Secretary of State of the German Imperial Navy, wanted to
expand the Navy which caused Britain to feel threatened. This in turn made England embark on
its on expansion to keep ahead of the Germans. This created so much tension, policies and laws
changed the view of the government spending and even the public’s opinion.
Conclusion
Today I have affirmed the resolution that imperialism is the primarily responsible for the First
World War. Imperialism is the trigger to many alliances and treaties, as well as the primarycause
of disputes and tensions. Many other reasons should be taken into account, but the actions and
decisions made by leaders of the great powers during this time period was their hunger for
power.