How Did Germany Survive Before World War I?

At the turn of the twentieth century Europe seemed to enjoy a period of peace and progress. Yet below the surface, several forces were at work that would lead Europe into the “Great War”. Some of the causes of WW1 were Nationalism, Militarism, Imperial Rivalries, Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and Alliance.

Through the book ‘Europe’s Last Summer’ David Fromkin tackles the issues of pre WWI Europe, and the surrounding political, economic, social, debacles that led paranoid countries to go to arms after nearly a full century of relative peace within the European continent. While Fromkin certainly points his fingers to all the nations of Europe his primary focus lies with Germany and Austria-Hungary. Though he continues to stress throughout much of the book that Kaiser Wilhelm II and Archduke Ferdinand were fervent keepers of the peace within their nations, the fault of the war ultimately could be laid at the feet of their two nations and their constant attempts at war-mongering. He claims the war could have been avoided for the moment, had all the nations of Europe wanted peace, but the two bad eggs of Europe drew them all into an unavoidable general war.

Although the world seemed at peace in the early 1900’s but world’s powerful forces were pushing Europe towards war. These forces included militarism, alliances, imperialism and nationalism.

One underlying cause of World War I was Militarism. In 1890 Germany and Austria- Hungary spent together about 40 million pounds, and in 1914 increased their spending to 150 million pounds (Doc C). As well as that Great Britain, Russia and France spent 100 million pounds and increased spending to 225 million pounds (Doc C). This shows that a buildup of arms was an important underlying reason for the war. In a speech before the German Congress Bernhard von Bulow spoke about how worried he is about England, France and Russia based on their acquiring of colonies around the world and how he does not want to “Step on the toes of any foreign power” (Doc

Germany had been preparing for war long before WWI started. In 1898, Kaiser Wilhelm II directed the German Chief of Staff Alfred Von Schlieffen to think up a plan that would allow Germany to obtain power and declare itself as a dominant state.

With death tolls peaking at 16 million the future of Europe was bleak. The First World War for many was an opportunity to reflect upon their commitment, a sense of sacrifice, to the national crisis. This overwhelming sense of pride led to the pressing notion of citizenship among the great nations. However, by the time troops returned home to their native land, they were faced with a whole new array of challenges in addition to the psychological trauma they had endured throughout the war. A new social party now supersedes the impeding economic problems in Germany. Austria-Hungary also holds their fare share of problems as it pertains to an all-new multi-ethnic diversity and lack of consolidation. For many in Europe, the Great War brought an end to the Ancien Régime in addition to society as a whole. The European population began their search for a sense of certainty and belonging in this new modern world. The promise of the enlightenment and the idea of government protection both lacked conviction and certainty in the eyes of the people. We can conclude that the idea of ** failed at making the world a more civilized

Promptly after the First World War had ended there were many debates about who or what caused the war. Historians such as Fritz Fischer argued that Germany was the to blame for the entirety of the war but there have been many more ideas of what was the cause of the war and therefore causing peace to fail. The main ideas amongst historians for the underlying causes of the war are the different balance in power due the formation of alliances, imperialism, militarism and also the July Crisis of 1914. This essay will argue that the alliances were the main cause of peace failing as with the constant conflict of interests and increasing tension it made it almost impossible to create peace in Europe in 1914.

The early 1900s was a time of extreme nationalism throughout all of Europe. Nationalism is a strong sense of pride in one’s country. Militaries were becoming stronger and alliances were formed. France, Britain, and Russia formed the Allied Powers and Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire formed the Central Powers. All European countries were boiling over with excitement and pride. Everyone was waiting for a spark to ignite the war. War broke out over trouble with the Balkans in 1914. Russia supported Serbia becoming independent, but Austria-Hungary wanted to remain in control over them. The Great War was the most horrific war ever seen due to new technology invented during the Industrial Revolution. Extreme nationalism

Germany was left indebted to the United States for the relief it received. Guinnane noted that prior to entering the war, governments guaranteed their citizens that allied parties will pay for the costs accumulated during the war (9). The assurance left Germany indebted to France and Italy given that they entered the war in alliance to the nation. Guinnane reported that end of World War II marked the end of the Nazi regime and reparations from Germany to the Jewish group for the cruelty inflicted by the movement (5). The Jewish group was regarded as a nation by the United States. Germany paid an amount of $ 500 million to German-Jews to appease the damage they endured. King stated that after the war, the Soviet Union showed preference to

The First World War was an international conflict which erupted in July 1914 involving various nations across the world. Many historians and those who have studied the Great War tend to give varied opinions as to what initially sparked the outbreak. However, although these opinions between researchers differ, they do all tend to revolve around the hostility between the great powers of Europe, the violent assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and the controversial pieces of German foreign policy known as Weltpolitik and Mitteleuropa, which according to political theorist Hans Debruck (1899), would not only transform Germany into a nation of great economic and military power, but also into a nation that has been

On August 5, 1914 our own German forces began their attack on Belgium. This is the first battle for our german forces in the war. According to a German official “Belgium is in our way and we must continue to expand our nation's borders and back up Austria-Hungary”. Even though these Belgians had not declared war on anybody, the German officials claimed that it was necessary that Germany expands. It was evident that many countries did not respond well because many declared war. This is the first conflict in whatever war that may follow.

There are many different factors attributed to Germany’s early success during the Second World War. While some factors were more significant to the German’s success, there is no debating that all of them contributed to the German’s attacking and conquering of Europe. It took quite a while for the Germans to begin to have trouble winning battles. The early success of Germany from 1939 to 1941 was due to Western Europe being afraid to have another World War, America’s lack of initial intervention, the Blitzkrieg, and Adolf Hitler’s intelligent militaristic strategy.

Bismarck’s alliance system brought peace between the European countries. (Stewart, Fitzgerald, Pickard 12) His alliance system starts with a treaty with Austria-Hungary who was one of the 5 powers in Europe. In 1879, Germany and Austria-Hungary signed the Dual Alliance, which was planned as a merely defensive arrangement or military alliance. Both governments promised that they should help or remain neutral when other powerful countries such as Russia or France attack. (Stewart, Fitzgerald, Pickard 13) The second allied country was with Italy. In 1882, Bismarck turns Dual Alliance into Triple Alliance by making Italy to join in his alliance system. Since Italy had close friendship with Great Britain, although Italy was not a strong military nation, it was an influential part of the Alliance. And at the same time, Great Britain and Germany had conflict in North Africa on colonial aspiration. Therefore, it was the perfect time to be an ally with her to isolate France. (Stewart, Fitzgerald, Pickard 14) Making Great Britain as a close friend was a benefit for Germany. Bismarck’s next target to isolate France was Russia. In 1881, the Dreikaiserbund was made a treaty, which was the agreement between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia promising not to help the fourth power, France. However in 1884, this treaty had renewed and Russia refused to renew her membership in Dreikaiserbund. Then Bismarck discussed the Reinsurance Treaty with

By the dawn of the 20th Century, an overwhelming majority of the world was ruled by the Great Powers of Continental Europe. Furthermore, the paramount aim of the Great Powers was the consolidation of geopolitical power. Consequently, international relations amongst the Great Powers were characterised by fierce rivalries between competing imperial ambitions. As a result, this essay asserts that to a large extent, the First World War (1914-18) was an inevitable outcome of 19th Century imperial competition. To develop this assertion, this essay will analyse how the Great Powers’ competing imperial ambitions had worsened international relations within Continental Europe to the point where a major armed conflict was unavoidable. First of all, this essay asserts that the unification of Germany (1871) caused the international system’s initial destabilisation. Moreover, the consequences of the Congress of Berlin (1878) for international stability in the Balkans will be explored. Additionally, this essay posits that the Alliance System intensified imperial competition, which worsened international relations, thus drawing the continent closer to a major armed conflict. Furthermore, the consequences of Germany’s foreign policy (Weltpolitik) for international stability during the late 19th Century will be explored too. This essay also notes the significant, albeit smaller role that the Berlin Conference (1884-85) and the subsequent ‘Scramble for Africa’ played in worsening colonial

The First World War was not caused singularly by Germany and Austria-Hungary as the treaty of Versailles has set out. Germany is greatly responsible for much of the tension of the world situation in 1914, resulting from its aggressive policy of Weltpolitik, its attempts to have a superior navy, the Kaiser's personal poorly said remarks, and its attempts to break up the Triple Entente. However Germany was not solely responsible for the tension, many other events had occurred outside Germany's control, which had the same effect. Germany was also largely responsible for allowing the conflict in the Balkans to escalate into a major European conflict, by giving Austria-Hungary free reign, though it was not their intent. However Germany should