Lets blame WW1 on a country!

• Germany
  • Problems within Germany
    • Prussian militarism
    • alliance with Austria-Hungary
  • France
    • Early Issues through 1870
      • Revanchism: the French idea of revenge against Germany
      • Franco-Prussian War was in 1870, and resulted in a German victory.
      • Alsace Lorraine: was won by the Germans. Its important because is has strategic location and iron resources.
      • Reparations: the French had to pay 5 billion gold francs, "Well you started it!" They were tricked by the Ems Dispatch
      • Versailles: the Germans crowned Kaiser Wilhelm II in the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles.
    • Later Issues
      • The Reinsurance Treaty: kept France isolated
      • The Triple Alliance with Italy, A-H, and Germany
      • These two alliance systems make up Bismarckian diplomacy, but Kaiser Wilhelm II "drops the pilot."
      • The Kaiser allows the Secret Reinsurance treaty to lapse, so the Franco-Russian alliance forms.
      • Causes the Germans to face a 2 fronted war
      • Schlieffen Plan (attack France first)
      • Issues of mobilizations
      • The Blanque Cheque to Austria
  • Great Britain
    • High Seas Fleet
    • Risk Theory
    • Wilhelm II wants an alliance with Great Britain
    • Uncle Peetie or Kind Edward IIV
    • Britain and splendid isolation
    • Gibraltar is the British Lifeline
    • British German economic concnetration
    • Imperialism
    • Jameison Raid, Boer War, and Kruger Telegram
    • Capetown to Cairo Railway
    • China, Pacific
    • The Belgian neutrality Treaty 1839- relates to the Schlieffen Plan
• France
  • French Issues
    • All the Issues with Germany mentioned above
    • Internal issues
      • Dreyfus Affair shows French militarism
      • French are allied with Russia
      • Entente Cordiale with Britain, tested by the Moroccan Crises
      • Instability of the 3rd Republic (1874-1914) there are 50+ governments. If they are weak internally, then countries can go to foreign policy and try to blame other countries
      • Triple Entente
      • Illusory Greatness
• Austria-Hungary
  • Internal Issues
    • Ausgleich or 1867
    • Magyar Nationalism
    • Slavic Nationalism
    • Austroslavism: germanize the slavs
    • Franz-Ferdinand wants a Magyar Solution for the Slavs, and the Serbs don't like this idea
    • They are the weakest power
      • lost majorly in these wars:
        • Crimean War 1854
        • Italian Reunification War by the French 1859
        • 7 weeks' war got beaten by Prussia
      • They also are in the Triple Alliance with Germany and Italy (the Treaty of London 1915)
  • Inner Zone Outer Zone fro each other. Low Exports, No colonies
  • Militarily weak (decent army)
• Russia
  • Warm Water Port
  • Expansionism
  • Third Rome
  • Constantinople represents these first three desires
  • Pan-slavism unites and rules the Slavs
• Ottomans
  • weak and crumbling
  • target for expansion mainly for Russia
  • Politically backward
  • Young Turks take power in1908 which is a catalyst
  • 1861 was this Emancipation of the Serfs
  • industrially and agriculturally underdeveloped.
  • Unhappy Intelligentsia who hate the Autocracy
  • The Russo Japanese war has exposed Russian weaknesses.
  • Russo Japanese war overexposed Russia's weakness; it changed the expansionist focus for the Pacicifc Balkansl
  • Alliances (1894) Prove in 1847, 1897 Russia joins Entente
  • Austria annexes Bosnia also wanted Serbia.
  • Serbia was hacked with Russia mYugoslavism
  • unite and rule all south slavs
  • Serbian annexation gives serbia a WWP. this leads to Russian wold power
• Bosnia
  • Austria has had a protectorate since 1878
  • In 1908 is the Trukish Revival, which modernizes on western mondel.
    • 1908 The Buchlaw Conference
      • Austria annexe Bosnia
      • Austria annexeds Serbia
  • The 1st Balkan Crisis
    • Austria annexes Bosnia, who Serbia also wanted
    • Serbia, backed by Russia, advocates for Yugoslavism which would unite and rule all the South Slavs (a minority in Austria)
    • Serbian annexation of Bosnia gives Serbia a WWP
    • The Serbs are Russia's Little Sons
  • 2nd Balkan Crisis 1912
    • Russia helps form an alliance system against Austrians called the Balkan League.
    • The Balkan league attacks the Ottomans and wins.
    • Serbia takes land on land on the Adriatic from the Ottomans
    • The West says hell no and creates an independent Albania
    • Russia is in the process of rebuilding the military (ready in 1917)
  • 3rd Balkan Crisis
    • The assassination of Franz-Ferdinand: (Ass)ˆ2 of (F)ˆ2 = (WWI), by the Serbian Black Hand backed by Russians
    • Occurred at a parade in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
    • The Austrians quickly discover Serb Complicity, and now they want to crush the Serbs
    • They need reassurance from the Germans, so the Kaiser issues the Blank Check
    • Austria Hungary extends an ultimatum to Serbia:
      • Russia can't deny the Serbs thrice, so they potentially mobilize
      • France also issues a blank check to they mobilize
      • TOW FRNT WAR ERMERGERD SCHLIEFFEN!!