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Text Box: Steps to War: The Causes of World War One

In 1900, many Canadians (who were descendants of the British Empire) believed in:
Imperialism
Gaining control over other countries using Trade, Politics, War.
Great Britain held control over Canada; we were part of the British Empire.
Militarism
Accepting war and military force as the only way to solve conflicts. It also gives a nation pride.
Nationalism
Exaggerated patriotism, and doing things your way ALL THE TIME without thinking how it affects other countries.
Industrialization
A nation's reliance on industry to propel the economy and social concerns.
How might these beliefs lead countries to war?

Imperialism Under Fire
Many Canadians were happy to be part of the British Empire, as they were original descendants of England. People in Quebec had mixed feelings and these feelings were tested in 1899 with the outbreak of the Boer War: broke out in a British colony in Africa and we sent a volunteer army. English Canadians wanted to go.   French Canadians did not.

The Naval Bill (1910)
Great Britain asked Canada to help build the Empire’s navy. Prime Minister Laurier made a small Royal Canadian Navy to protect our shores but to also be loaned to Great Britain. It was a weak navy; many people called it our TIN POT NAVY. In 1911, Laurier is defeated in a federal election. Robert Borden is the new PM.

The Road to War:
Alliances
Terrorism
Alliances
By 1910, the possibility of conflict in Europe was inevitable. Countries promised to protect one another in times of war. This encouraged conflict. The Alliances were:
Triple Entente
France
Great Britain
Russia
Triple Alliance
Germany
Austria-Hungary
Italy

Terrorism
Many groups tried to use terrorism to get what they wanted. At this time, Bosnia was controlled by Austria-Hungary and they didn’t want to be. They wanted independence. Franz Ferdinand, the next king of Austria, was visiting Bosnia. Many Serbs lived in Bosnia. They wanted Bosnia freed from Austrian rule. The Black Hand warned F.F. that he’d be killed if he came to Bosnia and, in 1914, in Sarajevo, a young Serbian, Gavirilo Princip, assassinated the Austrian archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie. Princip was a member of the Black Hand, a terrorist organization. Their goals were to fight for the independence of Serbia.
If the fight had stayed between Austria and Serbia, it would have been over quickly...it didn’t…
Assassination led to an Ultimatum (a threat from one country to another). Austria-Hungary gave Serbia an ultimatum: Let our forces into Serbia to find the Black Hand. Serbia said no and asked Russia to back them up.

Meanwhile...
Germany, in 1914, was a new country, made up of many small states of the Prussian Empire. They had, in 1870, defeated France in the Franco-Prussian War, so there were some hard feelings between the two countries. Wilhelm (William) I was the Kaiser (King) of Germany and Otto van Bismarck was his Chancellor (like a Prime Minister). When Wilhelm I died, Wilhelm II became Kaiser and fired Bismarck. Kaiser Wilhelm II had Big Plans for Germany:
First of all, he broke an agreement with Russia that made the two countries allies. This worried Russia, who soon allied with France. The Kaiser also had a four-point plan to make Germany the world’s greatest nation.

Point I: The building of a high-seas fleet. He wanted a navy that would be as strong or stronger than England’s.
Point II: Increased spending on new armaments and equipment to make the German Army the most powerful in the world. Sound like someone’s preparing for war?
Point III: The development of a German overseas empire like the one that England had all over the world. Something like ‘manifest destiny’, only Germany wanted a piece of the pie.
Point IV: He wanted to develop an aggressive foreign policy on issues around the world.   William II wanted Germany to be seen as a power broker on the international scene, like England was. It kind of backfired…

Alliances
Russia immediately allied itself with France, forming the Double Entente. This was bad news for the Kaiser because now Germany would have to fight a TWO-FRONT war when it broke out. What does that mean for the Germans? It really meant that they would attack France first (still weak from the Franco-Prussian War) and destroy them. After that, they would attack Russia, transporting soldiers using their sophisticated railway system.   They weren’t counting on England joining the conflict. In fact, England and Germany were almost allies during World War One. The Kaiser was ½ English and a grandson of Queen Victoria, but the British felt his policies were too harsh and looked to ally with France and Russia and form the Triple Entente:
Although the 3 countries didn’t really trust one another, they joined forces. They had an agreement to work together should one of their members be threatened.
The formation of the Entente divided Europe into two armed camps with Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy (Triple Alliance) on one side, and on the other France, Russia and England (Triple Entente). When the alliances were formed, the World Waits for War...and Gavrilo Princip was just what the world was waiting for!
Who Supported Who?
Serbia asked Russia for help. Russia asked France for help. Germany promised to help Austria-Hungary. Italy promised to help Germany and Austria-Hungary ONLY IF they were both invaded.

The Steps to War
Austria consulted Germany after the assassination. Germany agreed to support Austria, no matter what they did. They decided to declare war on Serbia, and that started a chain reaction:

1. Austria-Hungary Mobilizes. This means that its army prepared for war. Since they knew it would take only a small army to crush Serbia, they only prepared a small army.
2. The Russians responded because Russia had agreed to protect Serbians. The Russian army began to mobilize its ENTIRE ARMY.
3. The Germans sent Russia an ultimatum. The Kaiser demanded that the Russians stop mobilizing or they’d face war. Russia refused, and Germany declared war on Russia on August 1, 1914.
4. Germany then contacts France. Remember, the Germans weren’t ready to fight Russia first, so they needed to know where France stood. France said that they’d support their allies and began mobilizing for war. On August 2, the German army began pushing into Luxembourg in order to attack France.
5. Ultimatum to Belgium (August 3) - an ultimatum was sent to Belgium, demanding free passage of the German army through Belgium (on their way to France), or else there would be war. Belgium was given twelve hours to decide. It refused and asked the Entente for help.
6. Since France pledged to assist its allies, Germany also declares war on France on August 3.
7. When the Germans invade Belgium, England enters the conflict. Most people in England were not interested in events developing in the rest of Europe (ISOLATIONISM), until the Germans threatened Belgium (MILITARISM), when it caused a massive outcry among the British public. The British government quickly sent an ultimatum to Germany demanding it respect Belgium's independence. There was to be no answer from the Germans, so on August 4, 1914, England declared war upon Germany. When England declared war, she also brought the full weight of the British Empire. Countries like Canada, South Africa, Australia and India were all to play an important role in the allied war effort.
8. Italy stayed true to its promise to France that it wouldn’t get involved in the war if its agreement with Germany held true. The Italian government then told the German government that they did not have to go to war because Germany had started an offensive war. The conditions of the Triple Alliance stated that Italy only had to fight if two or more countries attacked Germany or Austria-Hungary. In this case, Germany declared war on Russia and France not the other way around. Therefore, Italy did not have to go to war and declared itself neutral.

Canadian Expeditionary Force - Off to Europe
Most Canadian men were eager to sign up. We also thought we’d be home by Christmas.
German Kaiser (King) Wilhelm also promised his troops they’d be home by Christmas.

Sam Hughes was Canada’s Minister of the Militia. He recruited Canadian soldiers. Canadian soldiers weren’t as respectful. They weren’t trained. They didn’t respect the class system. The British often complained about Canadian soldiers due to lack of respect and poor discipline. We began fighting in 1915 in Belgium near a town called Ypres.