What Was The Cause Of The Great War Essay

First of all, what was World War I? World War I, or the Great War, was one of the most gory conflicts the world has ever seen, lasting for about four years. The major European nations involved in this conflict were Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, Germany, and Russia. The war was fought on two main fronts: the Western Front and the Eastern Front. While we might know the setting of the war and which nations were involved, the causes of the Great War remain controversial. Many argue about Germany being at fault, but there were other factors (before nations were officially involved) that led to the War to End All Wars. Before World War I occurred, the tides were turning in Germany. Otto von Bismarck, the chancellor of Prussia (1864 to 1871), saw France as a threat due to the result of the Franco-Prussian War. He took this opportunity to form the Triple Alliance with Austria-Hungary and Italy. Bismarck also signs a treaty with Russia, which expires due to the next German leader: Kaiser Wilhelm II. Russia responds by allying with France. Wilhelm develops the army and navy to compete with Britain’s. Great Britain

A young man named Gavrilo Princip was eating his sandwich and looks up to see his target a few feet away. He pulls out his gun and shoots the Archduke and his wife Sophie in 1914. Austria-Hungary was outraged by this and issued a series of ultimatums and declares war on Serbia despite Serbia’s attempt to maintain peace. Once Serbia entered war, Russia came to its assistance. Germany, Austria-Hungary’s ally, then declared war on Russia. The Germans did not hesitate to declare war on France two days later because France was a part of the Triple Entente. Great Britain responded by declaring war on Germany a few weeks later. If these alliance systems never existed, than only a war between Serbia and Austria-Hungary would have