Events leading to the World War I
Indirect Causes
* Ethnic and political rivalries
- Increasing nationalist sentiment cause anxiety in imperial countries such as England, France, Ottoman Empire, and Austria-Hungary that faces nationalism movement.
- The rise of ethnic nationalism coincided with the growth of Serbia, where anti-Austrian sentiment was perhaps most fervent. A Balkan war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia was considered inevitable, as Austria-Hungary’s influence waned and the Pan-Slavic movement grew.
- Increasing nationalist sentiment also coincided with the decline of the Ottoman Empire. Russia supported the Pan-Slavic movement, motivated by ethnic and religious loyalties and a rivalry with Austria dating back to the Crimean War.
*Economic and political competition
- The unlimited competition of searching raw materials for industry and expanding market lead to rivalries between countries both in economic and politic.
*Balance of Power and Militarism
- One of the goals of the foreign policies of the Great Powers in the pre-war years was to maintain the ‘Balance of Power’ in Europe.
- The rising needs of military alliances between countries, Germany had a treaty with both Italy and Austria – Hungary or known as Triple Alliances. France, looking for an ally to balance the threat created by Germany, found it in Russia and Britain or known as Triple Entente.
Direct Cause
- The Assassination of Franz Ferdinand, the Archduke of Austria – Hungary.
The Austro-Hungarian government used the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand as a pretext to deal with the Serbian, supported by Germany. On 23 July, an ultimatum was sent to Serbia with demands so extreme that it was rejected. The Serbians, relying on support from Russia, instead ordered mobilization. In response to this, Austria-Hungary issued a declaration of war on 28 July.
Reasons for U.S. involvement in war
• Inability to remain neutral
• German submarine warfare — the sinking of Lusitania
• U.S. economic and political ties to Great Britain
The Effects of World War I
* Politic
- The rise of new nations in Eastern Europe and Middle East.
- German and its allies lost their conquered territories to the winning countries (The Allies).
- The failure of Liberalism leads to the establishment of Totalitarianism government.
* Economic
- World’s economy in crisis, many countries suffered bankruptcy after the war ended (great depression).
- The failure of capitalism leads to the establishment of Economic dictatorship or Etatism, where government controls the nation’s economic system.
* Social
- Large casualties, prisoners of wars, and the chaos led to a collective trauma among participating countries.
- The rising supports toward peace led to the establishment of League of Nations.
- Women and labor played significance roles during the war.
U.S. leadership as the war ended
• At the end of World War I, President Woodrow Wilson prepared a peace plan that called for the formation of the League of Nations, a peace-keeping organization.
• The United States decided not to join the League of Nations.
Resources:
- Matroji, 2004, Sejarah SMP Jilid 2, Erlangga, Jakarta
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I
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