CHAPTER OUTLINE
I. Origins of the Crisis in Europe and the Middle East |
| A. The Ottoman Empire and the Balkans |
1. By the late nineteenth century the once-powerful Ottoman Empire was in decline and losing the outlying provinces closest to Europe. The European powers meddled in the affairs of the Ottoman Empire, sometimes in cooperation, at other times as rivals. 2. In reaction, the Young Turks conspired to force a constitution on the Sultan, advocated centralized rule and Turkification of minorities, and carried out modernizing reforms. The Turks turned to Germany for assistance and hired a German general to modernize Turkey’s armed forces. |
B. Nationalism, Alliances, and Military Strategy
1. The three main causes of World War I were nationalism, the system of alliances and military plans, and Germany’s yearning to dominate Europe.
2. Nationalism was deeply rooted in European culture, where it served to unite individual nations while undermining large multiethnic empires. Because of the spread of nationalism, most people viewed war as a crusade for liberty or as revenges for past injustices; the well-to-do believed that war could heal the class divisions in their societies.
3. The major European countries were organized into two alliances: the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy) and the Triple Entente (Britain, France, and Russia). The military alliance system was accompanied by inflexible mobilization plans that depended on railroads to move troops according to precise schedules. 4. When Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914, diplomats, statesmen, and monarchs quickly lost control of events. The alliance system in combination with the rigidly scheduled mobilization plans meant that war was automatic. |
II. The "Great War" and the Russian Revolutions, 1914–1918. | A. Stalemate, 1914–1917 |
1. The nations of Europe entered the war in high