Great War Causes

According to Merriam-Webster, historians define a world war as “a war involving many nations of the world.” World War I, also known in Great Britain as “The Great War,” had a tremendous financial and psychological impact on western civilization and the world. World War I marked the beginning of great technological achievements, which lead to the inventions and use of mustard gas, tanks, submarines, and airplane bombs. However, World War I merits the title “The Great War” because of its immediate and long-term causes, devastating major battles, treaty that settled peace to the world, and provoking results.
World War I has short-term and long-term causes. The immediate cause of the world war was the assassination of Habsburg Archduke Franz
Initially, these alliance systems were intended to preserve peace in Europe; on the contrary, it drove them into world war. These alliance systems developed their roots when Prussia’s chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, claimed Germany to be a peaceful power, even though he assumed France wanted revenge for its defeat in the Franco-Prussian war. Thus, Beck states that “in 1879, Bismarck formed the Dual Alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary; three years later, Italy joined the two countries, forming the Triple Alliance.” During the same year, to ensure that France did not make an alliance with Russia, Bismarck immediately formed an alliance with Russia. Nonetheless, under the reign of Germany’s new leader Kaiser Wilhelm II, Germany’s treaty with Russia broke and Russia later formed a defensive military alliance with France in 1892 and 1894. Although outraged by this alliance, Wilhelm II focused on starting a shipbuilding project in order to make the German navy identical to the famous British fleet. Based on the distrust of attack, Britain formed an alliance with France and Russia, named the Triple Entente. These alliances faced off at the Austria-Hungarian and Siberian assassination conflict. Even though Germany did not give support to its ally Austria-Hungary, Tsar Nicholas ordered
As per Anderson, “nearly twenty million people died in WWI; half were civilians.” In addition to the many who died in the war, Germany lost most of its privileges as stated on the Treaty of Versailles; including losing all of its colonies and about 13 percent of its prewar territory (along with 10 percent of its population), the depletion of its armed forces, the responsibility of paying approximately $32 billion dollars in reparations for the war, and having limitations on their industry and commerce. Above all, in article 23 of the Versailles Treaty, to impose a legal basis for claims of reparations, Germany had to accept the blame for World War I. It was these harsh punishments on the Germans that created the main spark which led to another world war.
Overall, World War I is credited with the title “The Great War” because of its long-term and immediate origins, overwhelming major battles, treaty that settled peace to the world, and aggravating consequences. Indeed, the Great War affected the world in different ways, including exposing the horrors on the battlefield and the worries at home. Most importantly, World War I created a sorrow and destructive environment that resulted from the fear of seeing so many