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Discuss the circumstances leading to Anglo French convention or entente
cordiale?
The Anglo-French Convention, also known as the Entente Cordiale, was signed on April 8,
1904, marking a significant shift in the relationship between the two nations. The agreement
resolved several colonial disputes, including those in Egypt, Morocco, and Africa, and
established a more formal understanding between the two powers. Rising German power and
militarism under Kaiser Wilhelm II alarmed both Britain and France. The agreement aimed to
counterbalance Germany's growing influence and potential aggression. France sought to break
out of its diplomatic isolation following its defeat in the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871) and
the formation of the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy).Both countries recognized
the economic benefits of cooperation over competition, especially in maintaining and expanding
their colonial empires without [Link], the Entente Cordiale was a strategic move to secure
mutual interests and counterbalance Germany's rise.
Discuss the consequences of the two Balkan War?
First Balkan War (1912)
Turkey was known as the sick man of Europe and Balkan countries wanted to take
advantage of this situation. They wanted to expand their territories at the expense of
Turkey. This situation resulted in the Balkan wars.
In the first Balkan war Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and Bulgaria launched a series
of attacks on the Turkey. To avoid the spreading of the conflict, the British Foreign
Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, arranged a peace conference in London, with the German
government.
The resulting settlement divided up the former Turkish lands among the victor
Balkan powers. However to prevent Serbia becoming more powerful Albania was
made an independent state. Serbia wanted Albania, to get an outlet to the sea, but
Austria prevented this with support from Germany and Britain.
Second Balkan War (1913)
Like Serbia, Bulgaria was also unhappy with their gains from the first Balkan
war. They had been hoping to get Macedonia but most of it was given to
Serbia. Bulgaria attacked Serbia to get what it desired, but the plan could not be
successful.
Greece, Romania and Turkey supported Serbia. Bulgaria lost the war and by
the Treaty of Bucharest (1913), they forfeited most of their gains from the first Balkan
war.
Balkan wars had serious consequences for the Europe and the world. Serbia gained
from the war and emerged as a stronger nation. It strengthened her resolve to use war
as a means to achieve her national objectives. It also made Austrians determined to put
the brakes on Serbians ambitions of creating Grand Serbia.
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What were the main causes of rivalry between Austria and Serbia?
The main causes of rivalry between Austria and Serbia were rooted in nationalism, territorial
ambitions, and political influence in the Balkans:-
1. Serbia wanted to unite all Slavic peoples in the region, including those living in Austria-
Hungary. This goal threatened Austria-Hungary, which had many Slavic groups within its
borders and feared losing control over them.
2. Serbia aimed to expand its territory, particularly after gaining independence from the
Ottoman Empire. Austria-Hungary saw this expansion as a direct threat to its own
influence and territory in the Balkans.
3. Both countries wanted to be the dominant power in the Balkans. Austria-Hungary aimed
to maintain its influence over the region, while Serbia sought to increase its power and
reduce Austrian control.
4. Moreover, the Annexation of Bosnia, an area desired by Serbia, by Austria in
1908 made the situation more volatile and complicated .
5. These tensions culminated in a hostile relationship, contributing to the outbreak of World
War I after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
How did the Sarajevo murder help to start the First World War?
On 28 June, 1914 Austrian Prince Franz Ferdinand was assassinated along with his wife
Sophie in Bosnian capital Sarajevo, by a Bosnian terrorist Princip. The Archduke, nephew
and heir to the Emperor was on an official visit to Sarajevo. The annexation of Bosnia had
intensified anti Austrian feelings in Serbia and Bosnia. This assassination was reflection of
those feelings.
The Austrians blamed the Serbia and sent a harsh ultimatum. Serbia accepted most of the
demands, but the Austrian government was determined to use this incident to put an end to
Serbian menace. With a promise of German support, Austria declared war on Serbia on
28th July, 1914. Russia ordered general mobilization on 29th July, 1914. On 31st July, 1914
Germany demanded that this general mobilization should be cancelled. When Russia did not
comply, Germany declared war on Russia on 1 August, 1914 and against France on 3rd
August,1914. Britain entered the war on 4th August, 1914. Austria-Hungary declared war
on Russia on 6th August,1914.
So while the Sarajevo murder was not the only cause of World War I, it was the immediate
event that set off a chain reaction of declarations of war among the major powers, transforming
a local conflict between Austria-Hungary and Serbia into a massive global war.
Discuss the Anglo German naval rivalry.
Britain was the world’s greatest sea power during those days. Germany after its unification
in 1871 had replaced France, Russia and even Britain as the Industrial powerhouse of Europe.
Between 1900 and 1914, Germany became identified by Britain as the chief foreign threat to its
Empire. This was, to a large extent, the outcome of the policies pursued by Germany's leader,
Kaiser Wilhelm II – most notably his eagerness to build a battle fleet to rival Britain’s Royal
Navy. The British felt threatened by the new Germany who had a far better army than Britain
and was now industrially and economically capable of challenging the might of the Royal Navy.
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They also did not want a huge power like Germany on the continent. It was Britain’s primary
goal ever since to not let a great power thrive on the continent. By 1914, Britain had long
viewed their navy as the important to their status as the leading world power. Germany intended
to create a fleet to match the Royal Navy and wanted to expand the limits of his empire by
conquering overseas colonies. German desire to build a navy, which leads to Anglo- German
rivalry, later on this rivalry leads to World War I.
What was Monroe doctrine?
The Monroe Doctrine, proclaimed by President James Monroe in 1823, was a key U.S. policy
statement. It declared that the Americas were no longer open to European colonization and that
any European interference in the Western Hemisphere would be viewed as a threat to U.S.
security. In return, the U.S. would not interfere in European affairs. This doctrine aimed to
protect newly independent Latin American nations and assert U.S. influence in the region.
What factors prompted the United States to enter the first World War? What were
the consequences of the United States entering the war?
The United States remained isolated from the First World War (1914-1918) until it joined in
1917. Till then it was only providing loans and selling arms to the allied powers. The factors that
prompted US to join WW1.
1) German navy sinking American merchant ships that were bound to allied territories, inspite of
repeated warnings by the US
2) The intercepted Zimmerman telegram from Germany to Mexico asking it for help in case
America joins the war and in return it will be helped in seizing territories including New Mexico
and Texas from US.
3) Many of the people in US were sympathetic to the cause of allies and believed that US
involvement could spread the ideals of democracy across the world which was a factor in
pushing Wilson into war.
Consequence of the US entering the war -
1) The entry of US rapidly sealed the war in favor of allied powers, as it boosted the morale of
allied soldiers while the tired German soldiers were no longer capable of facing another big
power.
2) It helped the allied powers a better position in the post war negotiations which might have
resulted in the humiliating terms of the treaty of Versailles contributing to WORLDWAR 2
But it is the isolationism of the US that helped it become the superpower of the century while the
war-stricken European powers became dependant on it.
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HOW DID THE ANGLO RUSSIAN DISPUTES WERE SETTLED?
There was a history of series of hostilities between Britain and Russia during the preceding
century. Britain was a proud democracy and they held autocratic Russian government in
contempt.
The Russians were also seen as a major threat to the Eastern empire of Britain (India). But the
weakness of Russian empire led the way for both the countries to come together. They settled
their differences in Persia, Afghanistan and Tibet. They signed an agreement of cooperation in
1907. It was regarded as a hostile move by Germany and German resentment against Britain
increased further.
What were the Reasons behind the Loss of Germany in the First World war?
Germany, the most powerful country among the Central powers, was fighting the war on
two fronts. It affected her war efforts .
Allied sea power was decisive. Making it difficult for Central Powers to receive supplies
through ports, creating severe food shortages. It also affected exports of the Central Powers.
The German submarine campaign failed to achieve complete blockade of the Allies.
Unrestricted submarine warfare had an important consequence as it brought the USA into the
war.
The entry of the USA helped the Allies in their war efforts. It brought vast resources of the
USA to the allies, and in a long drawn out war, it was always strength of resources which
decides the fate of the war. Entry of the USA also made up for the withdrawal of the Russia from
the war .
Germany was badly let down by her allies. Germany did not get any considerable support
from her allies and it was always on them to rescue their allies. In the end it proved too much for
the German army to fight on multiple fronts.
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World War Causes
1. Imperialism
Imperialism is defined as the practice where a nation builds an empire by seizing and controlling
overseas [Link] the last decades of the 19th century, there was a massive burst of
aggressive expansion by European nations trying to build these empires.
Britain, France, and Russia had already built massive colonial [Link] had practically
divided up the entire non-European world among themselves. Because the world was
essentially "full," if any country wanted to increase its territory, it had to "reorder" the world by
taking land at the expense of another nation.
Germany successfully unified as a country between 1870 and 1871. This unification turned
Germany into a highly powerful and ambitious nation. Germany felt it deserved global
recognition and wanted to claim its rightful "place in the sun". Because Germany unified late, it
had been left out of the initial imperial race for colonies. To catch up, Germany tried to expand
its influence in every possible direction.
Germany's unsatisfied imperialist ambitions created immense friction with the older empires (like
Britain and France) and became the main cause of the international crises in the decade leading
up to WW1 in 1914.
2. Militarism-The Race for Armed Supremacy
Militarism is the glorification of military power and the aggressive build-up of armed forces to
prepare for war.
After unifying, Germany wanted to expand its power in Europe and claim its "rightful" place in
world affairs. To achieve this, it dramatically increased the size of its standing army.
This made other nations nervous, sparking an arms race. France lengthened its compulsory
military service from two to three years. Russia vastly expanded its army. Great Britain heavily
increased its spending on the navy.
In 1906, Britain introduced a revolutionary, highly powerful battleship called the 'Dreadnought'.
This ship was so advanced it instantly made all older battleships completely obsolete.
Germany immediately started building its own Dreadnoughts to compete, creating a massive
naval arms race that filled Europe with hostility and paranoia.
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3. The Alliance System
Originally, military alliances were created to maintain peace, but they ended up doing the exact
opposite by dividing Europe into hostile armed camps.
The root of this system started after the Franco-Prussian War (1871).German Chancellor
Bismarck knew France would never forgive Germany for taking the territory of Alsace-
[Link] believed that as long as France had no allies, it posed no danger to
Germany. He created a web of alliances to keep France totally isolated.
Britain was terrified by Germany's rapidly growing navy and aggressive colonial expansion.
Britain abandoned its traditional policy of "splendid isolation" (staying out of European drama)
and allied with France. They resolved their past colonial disputes in Egypt and Morocco to
solidify this [Link] Entente (1907) was formed. France acted as a peacemaker between
its two allies, Britain and Russia. Russia had just lost a war to Japan (1904) and was ready to
settle old disputes with Britain over territories like Persia and Tibet. This created a three-way
understanding among France, Britain, and Russia.
Germany realized Austria-Hungary was its only true, reliable friend left. Austria-Hungary was
very unstable internally because it contained many different nationalities that wanted
independence. Germany decided it had to protect Austria-Hungary at absolutely any cost to
avoid fighting a lonely battle against the Entente powers.
By 1907, Europe was rigidly split into two highly armed, deeply suspicious camps, the Triple
Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia).
Because of these tangled alliances, if any single nation from one group got into a dispute with a
nation from the other group, it would automatically drag all the major powers of Europe into a
massive war.
4. Nationalism- The "Double-Edged Weapon"
Nationalism caused direct friction between almost all major European [Link] was
the main dominant force driving the massive naval and military competition between Great
Britain and Germany.
France had suffered a humiliating defeat in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71) and lost the
valuable territory of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany. This loss turned France into a bitter enemy of
Germany, keeping a strong spirit of revenge alive among the French people.
Italy practiced an explosive brand of nationalism aimed at creating a "Greater Italy". They
focused on the "Italian Irredenta" (unredeemed Italy), trying to acquire Italian-speaking
territories like Trieste and Trentino, which were currently controlled by Austria.
People living on the western edges of the Russian Empire (like Poles, Finns, Ukrainians, and
Lithuanians) deeply resented "Russification" meaning the forcing of Russian culture upon them.
This nationalist resentment was a major threat to the Tsarist Russian Empire.
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The most critical and explosive ethnic nationalism occurred in the Balkan region among peoples
like Bosnians and Macedonians.
Unlike countries made of one group of people, the Austro-Hungarian (Hapsburg) Empire was
made up of many different nationalities mashed together including Germans, Hungarians,
Czechs, Slovaks, Serbs.
Because of this, opposition to nationalism was a massive counter-current in Austria-Hungary. If
every group in the empire successfully fought for its own independent nation, it would mean the
total destruction of the Hapsburg Empire.
Driven by the anxiety and fear that these nationalist aspirations would tear their empire apart,
Austrian leaders decided they had to pursue a very forceful, aggressive policy against
nationalism to keep their empire intact.
The extreme tension caused by this multinational empire trying to survive in an age of
heightened national feeling finally set off an [Link] June 1914, Archduke Francis
Ferdinand, who was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was assassinated. The assassin
was a member of a Serbian nationalist group known as the 'Black Hand'. This clash of
nationalisms was the direct spark that ignited the First World War.
Bosnian Crisis(1908)
In 1908, taking advantage of the 'Young Turk' Revolution, Austria annexed the Turkish
provinces of Bosnia and [Link] was a massive blow to Serbia, which had
been dreaming of creating a "Greater Serbia" by absorbing Bosnia, as it contained 3
million [Link] threatened to take action against Austria, bringing Europe close to
war. However, Germany stepped in and declared military support for Austria.
Still weakened by a 1905 defeat to Japan, Russia was forced to back down and accept
the annexation, marking a victory for the Austro-German alliance.
The crisis had two major results that helped lead to the First World War. Serbia was left
with deeply wounded nationalist feelings and remained bitterly hostile toward
[Link] learned a harsh lesson and started a massive military build-up to ensure
it would never be humiliated by Austria and Germany again. The incident also pushed
Russia and Serbia closer together.
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Agadir Crisis (1911) (IMP)
The tensions flared up in Morocco again in 1911. The crisis started when French troops
marched into Fez, the capital city of Morocco. France claimed they were only doing this to put
down a rebellion by local tribesmen against the Moroccan sultan.
Germany saw this as a power grab and wanted to put pressure on the [Link]'s goal
was to warn France that it was not the sole decision-maker regarding Morocco's fate, and to
demand some territorial compensation, preferably in the French Congo.
To show they were serious, Germany sent a military gunboat called 'the Panther' right into the
Moroccan port of Agadir. This aggressive move pushed Europe to the very edge of war,
causing both France and Germany to hastily begin military preparations.
Great Britain became highly worried because a German naval presence in Agadir could easily
threaten crucial British sea trade routes. Furthermore, Britain was bound by the Triple Entente
alliance to support France.
Britain issued a stern warning to Germany, stating it would not sit back as a spectator when its
vital interests were affected. To back this up, Britain sent its own cruiser to Agadir to match the
German Panther.
Realizing they were outmatched and not willing to push the situation into a full-scale war,
Germany withdrew its gunboat. A compromise was reached, Germany agreed to formally
recognize France's protectorate (control) over Morocco. In return for backing down, Germany
was given a small piece of territory in the French Congo.
Although a war was avoided in 1911, the Agadir Crisis had severe consequences that acted as
a forecast for the First World War.
The crisis solidified the bond between Britain and France, strengthening the Triple [Link]
significantly increased the hatred and suspicion the French people held toward the Germans.
It caused anti-British feelings to soar in Germany, as the Germans blamed Britain's firm stand
for forcing them into a humiliating compromise.
Germany felt incredibly dejected. They concluded that their legitimate position as a world power
had been damaged; France got to keep Morocco, Britain got to flex its naval muscle and
German interests were ultimately sacrificed.
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