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    To What Extent Is Germany Responsible For The Outbreak of WW1

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    Isabelle Odenbach
    The document discusses the extent to which Germany was responsible for causing World War 1. It argues that Germany contributed significantly through Kaiser Wilhelm II's dissolution of important alliances established by Bismarck, which destabilized the balance of power in Europe. Germany also pursued an aggressive foreign policy called Weltpolitik that antagonized other European empires like Britain. Additionally, Germany gave Austria-Hungary a "blank cheque" to deal with tensions in the Balkans, ensuring that any local conflict would escalate into a major European war due to the web of alliances. While other factors were also involved, the document concludes that Germany's actions made World War 1 inevitable through its disruption of alliances and pursuit of imperial ambitions

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    To What Extent Is Germany Responsible For The Outbreak of WW1

    Uploaded by

    Isabelle Odenbach
    211 views4 pages
    The document discusses the extent to which Germany was responsible for causing World War 1. It argues that Germany contributed significantly through Kaiser Wilhelm II's dissolution of important alliances established by Bismarck, which destabilized the balance of power in Europe. Germany also pursued an aggressive foreign policy called Weltpolitik that antagonized other European empires like Britain. Additionally, Germany gave Austria-Hungary a "blank cheque" to deal with tensions in the Balkans, ensuring that any local conflict would escalate into a major European war due to the web of alliances. While other factors were also involved, the document concludes that Germany's actions made World War 1 inevitable through its disruption of alliances and pursuit of imperial ambitions

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    IB World History Level 6 essay

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    To What Extent is Germany Responsible for the Outbreak of WW1

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    The document discusses the extent to which Germany was responsible for causing World War 1. It argues that Germany contributed significantly through Kaiser Wilhelm II's dissolution of important alliances established by Bismarck, which destabilized the balance of power in Europe. Germany also pursued an aggressive foreign policy called Weltpolitik that antagonized other European empires like Britain. Additionally, Germany gave Austria-Hungary a "blank cheque" to deal with tensions in the Balkans, ensuring that any local conflict would escalate into a major European war due to the web of alliances. While other factors were also involved, the document concludes that Germany's actions made World War 1 inevitable through its disruption of alliances and pursuit of imperial ambitions

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    211 views4 pages

    To What Extent Is Germany Responsible For The Outbreak of WW1

    Uploaded by

    Isabelle Odenbach
    The document discusses the extent to which Germany was responsible for causing World War 1. It argues that Germany contributed significantly through Kaiser Wilhelm II's dissolution of important alliances established by Bismarck, which destabilized the balance of power in Europe. Germany also pursued an aggressive foreign policy called Weltpolitik that antagonized other European empires like Britain. Additionally, Germany gave Austria-Hungary a "blank cheque" to deal with tensions in the Balkans, ensuring that any local conflict would escalate into a major European war due to the web of alliances. While other factors were also involved, the document concludes that Germany's actions made World War 1 inevitable through its disruption of alliances and pursuit of imperial ambitions

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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    To what extent is Germany Responsible for the outbreak of WW1?

    The first world war broke out in 1914; unlike anything ever before, almost all
    empires / countries in Europe were involved. Based on alliance systems set up in the
    previous decades, it was clear that any conflict in need of an armed solution would
    lead to a world-wide situation of war. Hence, when Serbia rejected the ultimatum
    Austria-Hungary issued after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, almost
    all of Europe was at war. Although Austria-Hungary was the first to mobilize after the
    expected failure of the ultimatum, it is largely Germanys fault which caused the
    conflict in the Balkans to grow to a world war. Firstly, Kaiser Wilhelm the second,
    emperor of Germany at the time, broke many alliances that were carefully set up by
    Otto van Bismarck, and crucial to ensure peace in Europe. Furthermore, the new
    foreign politics policy called Weltpolitik, effectively put into place in 1900, instigated
    the empires increasingly aggressive international interactions which heavily affected
    the tensions in continential Europe. Whilst it is clearly evident that the tensions
    formed through both the breaking of alliances and weltpolitik, the German empire is
    not entirely to blame, as Austria Hungary was in position to prevent the war.
    Ruling as Germanys chancellor up until 1890, Otto van Bismarck succeeded
    in effectively maintaining peace within Europe through the formation of powerful
    alliances; all this was to change however, under Kaiser Wilhelm IIs rule. In respect to
    the tensions with France due to the won Franco-Prussian war, Biskmarck schemed
    the isolation of France by forming the three emperors league together with Russia
    and Austria-Hungary. Britain, enjoying the state of splendid isolation, engaged in
    many colonial matters and was very little involved in European affairs. In short,
    although the increased trend of imperialism amongst European nations, the many
    alliances in place secured international piece. Kaiser Wilhelm II was crowned in 1888

    and consequently dissolved many of the alliances in place: being very little skilled in
    diplomatic means and feeling unable to respect both Russias and Austria-Hungarys
    interests at once, the Kaiser ended the Three emperors league and did not renew the
    reinsurance treaty. This was a crucial factor affecting the war, as it not only opened
    the door for diplomatic and military relations between Russia and France, but also
    doomed Germany to a two-front war fate. Historically Germany had always been off
    to bad relations with France, and hence an alliance between France and Russia
    would jeopardize the so carefully maintained peace on the continent. Understanding
    the implications of the conflicts in the Balkans, ending the reinsurance treaty would
    also result with a threat from Russia, as Germany was now legally bound to defend
    Austria-Hungary in a war against Russia. Hence, Kaiser Wilhelm IIs careless ending
    of carefully placed alliances catapulted Europe into a powder-keggle like situation,
    where any armed conflict involving Austria-Hungary, Russia, or Germany would result
    in a continental war.
    Another mean by which Germany increased international tensions contributing
    to the start of World War 1 is the consequences of Weltpolitik, a new foreign policy
    ensuring Germanys interaction amongst international matters. Aiming to score a seat
    in the sun, the empire systematically intervened with many international affairs,
    constantly angering and siding against other powerful empires in Europe, particularly
    the British. Britain had been the most dominant and influential empire at the time, and
    hence siding against it in a situation like the Boer Wars in Africa was a critical and
    risky step and ensured a rather wary attitude in response of the British. Irritated
    anyways through the constant challenge as an effect of the naval race, Britain was
    forced to eventually give up on splendid-isolation and settled all colonial disputes
    with France, forming a diplomatic alliance. To make matters worse, Germany used
    gun-boat diplomacy as a mean of testing the strength of the alliance between France

    and Britain, when intervening with France in what became known as the Moroccan
    Crisis. Essentially many aggressions such as the ones mentioned above ensured
    that a war in Europe was inevitable, if the imperial conflicts of major empires and
    Germanys increased aggressions were to be settled.
    Hence, Germany welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate its strength at any
    given situation, when when presented with an opportunity, such as its alliances,
    Austria-Hungarys, troubles in the Balkans, did not hesitate to issue the Blank
    Cheque. Not only did this provide Austria-Hungary with the needed insurance to
    propose the infamous ultimatum to Serbia consisting of terms that were expected to
    be rejected, but also prepare and prematurely mobilize its army to attack Serbia.
    Although it was Austria-Hungary risking an armed conflict in the Balkans, Germany
    ensured that this conflict would become a world wide war: Having the Schlieffen plan
    in place, the empire did not hesitate to attack both Belgium and France in a
    premature stage of the war. Not only did this engage Britain (which held an alliance
    with both France and Belgium) in the conflict, but also plunge the empire into a
    difficult two-front war situation.
    To conclude, Germany was the main instigator of the first world war, as the
    empire jeopardized the carefully tied European place through the many international
    aggressions such as the gun-boat diplomacy during the second Moroccan crisis, or
    siding against the British empire in various other situations like the Boer wars. In
    effect did this not only cause tensions in Europe, but also draw Russia and France
    together, who due to another careless act of the German empire were able to form an
    alliance. Not renewing the reinsurance treaty, and later issuing the Blank cheque
    ensured that any armed conflict in the Balkans would amplify into a world wide
    conflict. Although Austria-Hungary could at this point still have prevented an armed
    conflict that would cease fire across Europe, any conflict at all would have caused a

    war of the dimension of WW1 due to Germanys international aggressions and


    unappreciative dispersion of in place alliances and hence made the war inevitable.

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