CAUSES OF WORLD WAR 1 ESSAY history

CAUSES OF WORLD WAR 1 ESSAY World War 1, also known as the ‘Great War’ had occurred during the years between 1914-1918 and had consisted of the major European powers: France, Russia, Austria/Hungary, Germany, and Britain. The Russo-Japanese war and the significance of the Russians’ defeat had clearly sparked the desperate need for political and economic development in Russia. Furthermore, the spark that initiated Russia’s demand for industrialization was the Trans-Siberian railway- created tension between the public of Russia. In the book, The First World War by Michael Howard, he states: “…terrified that industrial development, however essential it might be for military effectiveness, would only encourage demands for further political reform, and it suppressed dissidents with a brutality that only drove them to extremes of ‘terrorism’” (Howard, pg.6). From this reasoning by Howard, it could be interpreted that Russia’s start of industrialization and great weakness in their military sparked the interest of having mobilization and causing terror which eventually was one of the factors that led to the Great War.
However, Russia did not physically initiate the war, she (Russia) was primarily responsible for the conditions that led to the outbreak and extent of World War 1. The conditions that the Russians had created caused led to the outbreak of war and were wholly to blame for World War 1.
Three of the major European powers- Britain, France, and Russia- were part of the Triple Entente, unlike the “Triple Alliance” (which were composed of the major powers- Austria, Germany, and Italy). “Entente” meant the understanding that two of the three countries would support each other if one of them got attacked, but it was not a promise. Britain was concerned about Germany’s growing navy force and were compelled into competing for an arms race. The inclusion of Russia seemed unusual as Russia was far from Britain geographically. However, Tsar Nicholas II (the Russian