Mutual Defense Alliance Essay

* Russia and Serbia (Russia joined in first after war started between Austria-hungary and serbi, Russia was Serbias alliance, we can say Serbia triggererd the chain reaction) * Germany and Austria-Hungary * France and Russia * Britain and France and Belgium * Japan and Britain Imperialism – Imperialism is when a country increases their power and wealth by bringing additional territories under their control. Before World War 1, Africa and parts of Asia were points of contention amongst the European countries for their resources. Tension caused by this because France and Britain had colonies-Germany was trying to get in on the action-wanted more land Nationalism- Serbian black hand/Gavrilo princip Militarism-Germany and Britain were both increasing their navy power=more tension and in german and russa particularly, militarism was having an influence on public policy Immediate Causes- Theres only one immediate cause, the assassination of Franz Ferdinand :P. This one event made all the aforementioned items come into play. This was in protest to Austria-Hungary having control of this region. Serbia wanted to take over Bosnia and Herzegovina. This assassination led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia. Once that was declared Russia declared war on Austria-hungary due to their alliance which led to Germany declaring war etc etc. If we look at the causes, it seems Serbia was the main cause. Sure imperialism and militarism were part of the reason, but they didn’t start the war. Serbian nationalism and its alliance system along with the assassination from a serban nationalist are what triggered the start of World War 1. It was the significance of this particular crime for Austro-Serbian relations that mattered. Guys Important thing to know, when your talking about nationalism don’t say that the black hand was acting on behalf of the government, we’ll get slapped. â€Å"There is no evidence to suggest that Pasic planned the crime. It is unlikely that the Black Hand officers were acting on behalf of the government, because the military and the Radical Party in fact were engaged in a bitter competition to control the state.† BUT if someone does say this quote we can respond with â€Å"Pasic’s responsibility revolves around reports that he was warned of the intended crime, and took inadequate steps to warn Austrian authorities. Despite Pasic’s denials, there is substantial testimony that someone alerted him to the plot, and that Pasic ordered the Serbian ambassador in Vienna to tell the Austrians that an attempt would be made on the life of the heir during his visit to Bosnia† Instead of Pasic saying that he knew of an actual plot, he spoke in terms of a hypothetical assassination attempt, and suggested that a state visit by Franz Ferdinand on the day of Kosovo (June 28) was too provocative. Austrian diplomats failed to read between the lines of this vague comment. By the time the warning reached the Habsburg joint finance minister (the man in charge of Bosnian affairs) any sense of urgency had been lost, and he did nothing to increase security or cancel the heir’s planned visit. After the murders, the Serbian government was even more reluctant to compromise itself by admitting any prior knowledge, hence Pasic’s later denials. This is like the ultimate historiography When Serbia first received the ultimatum, Pasic indicated that he could accept its terms, with a few reservations and requests for clarification. As time passed, however, it became clear that Russia would support Serbia regardless of the situation. After that, Pasic gave up seeking peace. While a long reply was written and sent, Serbia rejected the key points about Austrian interference in domestic judicial and police work. Pasic knew that this meant war, and the Serbian army began to mobilize even before the reply was complete. ^– The Balkans in the Age of Nationalism Steven W. Sowards