Preview

World War 1 Cause Analysis

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1472 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
World War 1 Cause Analysis
Introduction
This essay discusses the immediate cause for start of the first World War as well as the short and long term root causes. Besides, there will be analysis, whether this worldwide heinous conflict could have been avoided or not. Lastly, which nations are mainly responsible for the start of the first World War.

Causes
Undeniable to the immediate cause for the outbreak of the first World War is the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. An angry dissatisfied Serbian-nationalist terrorist group, named the Black hand put a significant amount of planning into the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. When the driver of the open car with the royal couple made a wrong turn. Then a Black Hand member named Gavrilo Princip …show more content…
Some form of peace has existed in Europe due to the delicate power balance. However due to the rise of Militarism, and imperialism nationalism the balance, which existed in Europe was heavily distorted. Therefore, many countries were fearful for an attack. So most countries held secret meetings to discuss classified mutual defense alliances, to protect each other against threats. Because once a country was attacked or threatened, the allied countries would come to their aid. When after the the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Austria Hungary declared war on Serbia, Russia declared war on Austria Hungary to protect its ally. On the other side, Germany was an ally of Austria-Hungary and therefore declared war on Russia. Since France was again an ally of Russia, France declared war on Germany. When Germany crossed through neutral Belgium, to launch an attack against France, Britain joined the war since it had an agreement with Belgium. The collapse of the complicated structure of alliances caused more than 100 countries to participate in the war, even as far away as Japan, Bolivia, Canada and …show more content…
Most countries were prepping up their military power, national pride and empire before the start of the first World War. This led to a rise in aggressive nationalism and hatred and fear against other nations. Also the rapid accumulation of colonies in Africa and the race in armaments, fueled these sharp divisions even further. The key which triggered the outbreak of the war is undeniable to assassination of Franz Ferdinand. After the first war declaration the complex structure of alliances, turned this conflict into an unprecedented worldwide
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Cause Of World War 1 Analysis
    • 982 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Cause Of World War 1 Analysis

    By 1914, the powder keg that was the imperial alliances had been given a crucial spark; the assassination of Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand triggered a series of war declarations that would eventually grow into the most devastating war the world had ever experienced. The assassination wasn't the only reason. Several other causes, such as the M.A.I.N. causes (militarism, alliance systems, imperialism, nationalism), the crises, and the annexation of Bosnia, had built up a tension in Europe that could only lead to a massive war.…

    • 982 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Causes of World War One
    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Causes of World War One

    There were many reasons why World War One broke out: imperialism was taken into effect, nationalism and unification of nations was very popular, alliances all over Europe were established and glorifying one’s military rapidly rose. World War One started in July of 1914, and lasted until November 1918. The primary cause of WW1 was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand; however, alliances developed prior to the war and the glorification in country’s military made the call for war nearly imperative.…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Cause Of Ww1 Research Paper
    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page

    Cause Of Ww1 Research Paper

    The immediate cause of WW1 was the assassination of Francis Ferdinand, the archduke of Austria and his wife on June 28, 1914. This occurred while the couple was touring the streets of Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. Gavrilo Princip, was the assassin and a Serbian student affiliated with the Slav terrorist group known as the ‘Black Hand’ secret society. The “Black Hand” wanted to assassinate him because he wanted to convert the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy into a Triple Monarchy. It has been said that some of the Serbian cabinet members knew about the assignation plan and could have stopped it but chose not to. Austrians suspected that Serbia, an independent country and rival of Austria-Hungry, was behind the killing. Because of this, it has been…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    World War I: Poison Gas
    • 1774 Words
    • 8 Pages

    World War I: Poison Gas

    There were many small things that eventually caused World War I. The spark that started the First World War was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 (Duffy). The killing was blamed on the Serbians, making the Austrian-Hungarians declare war on them. Russia was bound to a treaty with Serbia so it made Russia have to step in. Because Russia stepped in, more and more countries had to get involved due to being allies or having a treaty with one of the involved countries. Some of the big powers that fought each other were Austria-Hungary, Russia, Serbia, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada, United States, Bulgaria, The Ottoman Empire, and Japan. Several other smaller powers were also included in this disastrous event. The Central Powers were made up Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. The Allies included the United States, Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, Serbia, France, Canada, and many others. The war officially started on July 28th, 1914 (Duffy).…

    • 1774 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How Did Russia Become Involved In Ww1
    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages

    How Did Russia Become Involved In Ww1

    1: World war one was sparked by the assignation of archduke Francis Ferdinand. The political objective of the assassination was to break Austria- Hungary’s south- Slav provinces off so they could be combined into a great Serbia. Both sides of the group believed it would be a quick war of many resources.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Main Long Term Causes of World War One
    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Main Long Term Causes of World War One

    There was no single cause for the outbreak of the First World War. The causes are much more complex than those of the Second World War and include short, intermediate and long term factors that all culminated to cause the July Days in 1914. These factors include militarism, nationalism, imperialism, the alliance system, and industrialization as the long term causes. The intermediate causes included the crises in the Balkans and the short-term trigger for the war was the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in the Sarajevo, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary.…

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Major Causes Of World War I
    • 806 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Major Causes Of World War I

    Throughout the years prior the war, two major alliances appeared in Europe. One was the Central Alliance between Germany, Italy and Austria – Hungary. The other one was the Triple Entente between Russia and France. So, if any of those countries was attacked for one or another reason, all five of them would have to join the war. Before the War to End All Wars, Austria-Hungary and Germany made a promise to support each other in case they were attack by Russia. (Britannica) Later, Italy joined this alliance (Britannica) Whether Austria-Hungary or Serbia declared war on each other, Russia would eventually step in and would help alongside of Serbia since Russia has been their traditional alliance. (McKay 835) Which mean Germany would also step in and help Austria-Hungary. So, even if the direct cause of the war was different than the assassination, all of those countries would have been in…

    • 806 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Cause Of World War I
    • 99 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Cause Of World War I

    World war I was the cause of a total of 17 million deaths,traumatised a generation, destroyed an old empire and changed political order and it seems often obscure. The simplest answer is the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria-Hungary. The person that killed him was Gavrilo princip-a Serbian Nationalist with ties to a secret military group known as Black Hand-pushed the European military powers to war. The events of the assassination is significantly more complicated,scholars agree that the growing emergencies on a groupe of alliances between two major powers is partly to blame for the cause of…

    • 99 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Major Causes of World War 1
    • 586 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Major Causes of World War 1

    People believe that one of the 'major' causes of world war one was the assassination of Arch-duke Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian nationalist, by the name of Garvilo Princip. but that is not the case, while there was a different chain of events that directly lead to the fighting, the actual root causes are much deeper. These are the major reasons that are cited as the root causes of world war 1.…

    • 586 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Causes of Wwi
    • 10942 Words
    • 44 Pages

    Causes of Wwi

    The causes of World War I, which began in central Europe in late July 1914 and finished in 1918, included many factors, such as the conflicts and hostility of the four decades leading up to the war. Militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism played major roles in the conflict as well. The immediate origins of the war, however, lay in the decisions taken by statesmen and generals during the Crisis of 1914, casus belli for which was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (the Archduke of Austria Hungary) and his wife Sophie by Gavrilo Princip, an irredentist Serb.[1]…

    • 10942 Words
    • 44 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Causes of Wwi
    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Causes of Wwi

    The causes of World War I, which began in central Europe in late July 1914, included intertwined factors, such as the conflicts and hostility of the four decades leading up to the war. Militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism played major roles in the conflict as well. The immediate origins of the war, however, lay in the decisions taken by statesmen and generals during the Crisis of 1914, casus belli for which was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife by Gavrilo Princip, an irredentist Serb.[1]…

    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    ‘the First World War Started More by Accident Than by Design'. Discuss.
    • 2516 Words
    • 11 Pages

    ‘the First World War Started More by Accident Than by Design'. Discuss.

    To some extent it is correct to state that the First World War started more by accident than by design. However, it can be argued that many nations within Europe had planned for war and some even pushed for war. Despite this, those nations never wished for a full scale ‘World War'. They were hoping for a war on a much smaller scale, for example, the earlier Balkan wars of 1912 and 1913. In this essay I will discuss both sides of the argument; an accidental war and the planned war. I will then conclude the essay with which side of the argument I believe holds the strongest position.…

    • 2516 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    WW1 causes
    • 417 Words
    • 2 Pages

    WW1 causes

    The beginning of the 20th century was heavily influenced by the First World War. This war began in July 18, 1914 and ended four years later 11 November, 1914(Versailles Treaty). WWI was a ‘cruelty’ (blood lust) war as it left behind more than 10.000,000 dead soldiers. In this essay I will present the main causes of WWI and analyze them in order to see how they lead to this war. With the term ‘causes’ we don’t refer only to the specific causation that finally caused the war but also in the background causes that built up tension between the countries involved and in a long-term made this war more likely.…

    • 417 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Did Germany cause World War I?
    • 1131 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Did Germany cause World War I?

    World War I started because of the contests between the powers of Europe and the loathing between the alliances. All countries were putting pressure on each other. When countries joined alliances the opponent would get worried and would then get others to join. This was the tinder for the War. All that was left to do, was to light the fire. In this case the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand from the Austro-Hungarian empire was the lighter. The first cause of World War One took place on June 28, 1914. Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb student, shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife (Archduke Franz Ferdinand). Princip belonged to a group called the Black Hand, who wanted Serbia to be independent from Austria Hungary. Austria Hungary demanded Serbia to punish those responsible for the assassination. When Serbia failed to comply, Austria Hungary declared war on Serbia. Since Serbia was an ally of the Allied Powers, the Allied Powers declared war on Austria Hungary. This, in effect, meant a…

    • 1131 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    causes of World War I
    • 7786 Words
    • 32 Pages

    causes of World War I

    The causes of World War I, which began in central Europe in early July 1914, included many intertwined factors, such as the conflicts and hostility of the four decades leading up to the war. Militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism played major roles in the conflict as well. However, the immediate origins of the war lay in the decisions taken by statesmen and generals during the July Crisis of 1914, casus belli for which was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife by Gavrilo Princip, an irredentist Serb.[1]…

    • 7786 Words
    • 32 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More