Many have speculated the primary cause of the first world war. Britain, Germany, Austria, Russia, France, Italy, and Serbia all took part in World War One, which was set off by the assassination of the Austrian Archduke and his wife. Many ask, “What was the unknown, very essential cause of World War One?” While there were countless causes of the Great War, the three major causes were the alliances between nations, imperialism, and the arms race.
One of the influential causes of the first world war was imperialism. A german propaganda cartoon from 1917 shows an octopus extending its tentacles around the world (German propaganda cartoon, 1917, GE104A, Poster Collection, Hoover Institution Archives). The cartoon shows how the …show more content…
Germans didn’t respond kindly to the British control of other lesser nations. This drawing shows how imperialism drew Britain and other nations to spread their influence. Since Britain was getting powerful, the other nations needed to be just as strong in the case Britain decided to attack them.
The Arms Race was another crucial cause of The Great War. In a speech by Bernhard Von Bulow, the chancellor of Germany at the time, he announced, “There’s no welfare for us without power, without a strong army and a strong fleet” (Bernhard Von Chancellor, spoke these words in a speech before the Reichstag on December 11, 1899). Bernhard spoke this line in his speech in front of the Reichstag. This quote shows how Germany believed they should have a great military in order to not be attacked. Like Germany, many countries wanted to have an outstanding military and soon strived to have the best military of all to avoid being attacked. Many people have speculated that World War One was also made possible by the Naval Arms.
The Naval Arms Race has been powerful nations trying to gather as many powerful ships and naval vessels as they can. This was very similar to the Arms Race, which was about nations trying to gather as powerful a military they could muster. This was a possible cause of The Great War because of Britain would often engage with Germany in an Arms Race because they were both large superpower nations. Superpower nations often engage in Arms Races because they all wanted to be prepared in case another country battled with them.
The most meaningful cause of the first world war the alliances. A map of European alliances from 1914 was created by various sources (Map created from various sources). It shows the alliances in Europe during the beginning of World War One. This map shows that alliances were made frequently in 1914 and caused many countries to enter the Austrian-Serbian war that turned into the Great War.
While there were a lot of reasons for World War One, the major cause of the war was the alliances that leading nations involved in the war were a part of. These are the significant causes and the major cause of World War
One.