Introduction
World War I was an international conflict that ensued between the central powers (Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Turkey) one hand against the allies (France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, and the United States). It started in 1914 and stretched all through to 1918 and it contributed to the destabilization of many European societies (Little, 2022). This fight was just about politics and it ended up brutalizing western civilization. Yes, it could be said to have signaled the end of high-point classical liberal society. However, it was caused by the alliance system, imperialism, Serbian nationalism, Millenarianism, and economic expansion, and competition for colonial territories.
Alliance System
Prior to the World War I, many countries in Europe had formed alliances. This tendency was started by Bismarck, the Chancellor of Germany in his bid to isolate France. The focal point for this relationships was that each coalition would support its members in case the broke between an ally and another bloc. Immediately before the conflict, there were alliances such as Russia and Serbia; France and Russia; Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary; Britain, France and Belgium; France, Britain and Russia; and Japan and Britain (Norwich University, 2017). Tensions continued to rise over these affiliations, for example, the Triple Entente pact formed by Britain, France and Russia in 1907, was seen as by Germany as a threat to its power (Norwich University, 2017). Members of the pre-existing unions free entered battle fields in support of their allies.
This led to the formation of the Allied and Central Powers sides of the First World War. At this point the European nations were divided into two camps and the systems easily turned small quarrels into complicated wars. Therefore, any fight involving any two countries of the two camps could rope in all the other members of the bloc (Kronenbitter, 2019). Finally, when Austria-Hungary who were in Central Power declared war on Serbia, the two alliances were brought into action and within one week almost the whole Europe was fighting.
Imperialism
The expansion of European nations as empires contributed greatly to of World War I. The activities of more ambitious countries such as Britain and France who were rapidly expanding their territories resulted in increased tensions among many states. This rivalry and competition for land and positions to acquire raw materials and wealth fueled bitter exchanges among major nations in different blocs (Llewellyn & Thompson, 2020). In particular, members of the Central Power bloc led by Germany were not happy how Britain and France were capturing many colonies. They felt the need to stop them and to equally get a share of the resources both human and natural from those smaller countries. Thus, this tension became one of the grounds that necessitated the war. Furthermore, the scramble for the control of Africa is viewed as a contributor to World War I (Little, 2022). Although it did not directly cause the conflict, it created an environment where European powers saw themselves as rivals or competitors.
Each nation used all the methods it could to succeed at the expense of the other. In addition, the capitalist drive for economic expansion was used by European colonial to conquer new colonies. Nations tried much they could to protect their capital invested abroad and to defend them against inconvenient competitors (Saveski, 2021). These spheres of interest together with the armament policies among various nations, create permanent strain between the states, which aided the outbreak of the war.
Germany Millenarianism
The belief held by many Germans across the political, religious, and social groups was prior to the war was that a major transformation would occur in their country. As a result many citizens from all spectrum of the German society supported their country’s participation in the conflict. They together with their government believed that getting involved while standing with Austria-Hungary, would make them a leading power. It was equally an opportunity for the country to create a nationalistic movement to unify the entire nation behind the monarch (Norwich University, 2017). Following the events, the war broke out between Central Power led by Germany and the Allied bloc. However, things did not go as were planned for Germany and it demonized many citizens of the country.
Nationalism
Nationalism was a key political factor at play at the time the World War I started. Various countries in the entire Europe tried to prove their dominance and power over the others. In particular, Serbian one which is dated to the mid and the 1800s was a major contributor of the fight (Norwich University, 2017). For example, in the Balkans, Slavic Serbs were seeking independence from Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. Furthermore, in 1878, they attempted to capture and take control of Bosnia and Herzegovina so as to create a unified Serbian nation (Norwich University, 2017). Over the time, Serbians continued to rise and it precipitated the assassination of Archduke of Austria and his wife in 1914 by a Bosnian Serb (Norwich University, 2017). This triggered a conflict between Serbia and its allies on one hand and the Austria-Hungary and its bloc on the other.
The German Emperor and the Chancellor gave Austria-Hungary a black check assurance of unconditional support in terms of military to enable them secure Balkans. This made the Hungarian leaders confident to start the fight with Serbia (Norwich University, 2017). However, when they had the chance to withdraw their support, Germany refused. This is a major reason why till today, Germany is widely viewed as the country which contributed largely to the escalation and continuation of the war.
Conclusion
World War I ensued between the Central Power alliance and the Allied bloc and it was caused by the alliance system, imperialism, nationalism, millenarianism, economic expansion, and competition for colonial territories. Firstly, prior to the war, several European nations were involved in the formation of coalitions with the view to support their members whenever they were in war with other countries. Secondly, many states were in rush to expand their territories and colonies abroad for purposes of controlling access to raw materials, natural and human resources. Thirdly, the belief across the political, religious, and social groups in Germany that the conflict would lead to a major transformation in their country. Fourthly, there was agitation for nationalism among several European nations to prove their dominance and power over the others. All these events created tension among member of different alliances and there was willingness to fight enemies from rival camps. On the other hand, other nations got the motivation, reasons, and the drive to flex their muscle against their perceived competitors, thus leading to a full blown across the entire world.
References
Kronenbitter, G. (2019). Alliance System 1914. International Encyclopedia of the First World War. Web.
Little, B. (2022). How imperialism set the stage for World War I. History. Web.
Llewellyn, J., and Thompson. S. (2020). Imperialism as a cause of World War I. Alpha History. Web.
Norwich University. (2017). Six causes of World War I. Norwich University Online. Web.
Saveski, Z. (2021). The economic causes of the World War I. Marxists Internet Archive. Web.