WW1 History

This topic begins in 1905 and you won’t be expected to answer questions in the exam on events before then. But there are a few things you do need to know about to help you understand the tensions existing in 1905. One of those is the reasons why some countries were rivals with others.

How many ‘Great powers’ were in Europe in the early 20th Century

6

Who were the 6 Great Powers

1. Germany,

2. Austria-Hungary,

3. Italy,

4. France,

5. Russia

6. Great Britain.

What common aims did the 6 Great Powers have ?

They all wanted to make sure they were safe from attack and that they had the best opportunity to increase their prosperity by trading in as many overseas markets as possible.

By the end of the 19th century how were the great powers protecting themselfs

By the end of the 19th century they had begun to protect themselves from their rivals by joining together in a system of alliances.

When was the Triple Alliance created

1882

Who was in the Triple Alliance

1. Germany

2. Austria-Hungary

3. Italy

When was the entente Cordiale created

1892 - France + Russia (as allies not the cordiale)

1904 - France + Great Britain

**1907** - France + Great Britain + Russia

this made it the Triple entente

Who was in the triple entente

1. Russia

2. Britain

3. France

How did the alliances reflect on each other

Britain and France had a friendly agreement called the Entente Cordiale. These alliances reflected which countries considered themselves to have similar aims and who they considered to be their greatest rivals.

How was Germany formed

Germany was a new country, formed following unification of the German states in 1871, after the Germans had defeated France in the Franco-Prussian war.

Before 1905 who owned alsace-lorraine

As part of the peace treaty after the war, Germany took Alsace-Lorraine from France. This was an important industrial area.

What were the German politicians afraid of surrounding Alsace-Lorraine

German politicians were afraid that the French might attack Germany to get Alsace-Lorraine back. So Germany and France were rivals.

What was Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary was a large empire in central Europe.

What type of people lived in Austria-Hungary

It contained people of many different nationalities, some of whom wanted independence.

Which other nationality lived in Austria-Hungary (which caused issues)

Serbia was already an independent country and there were Serbs living in Austria-Hungary who wanted to join with Serbia.

Why did Russia and Austria-Hungary have a rivalry

The main concern of the Austrian emperor was to keep the empire together, but Russia supported the Serbs and so Austria- Hungary and Russia were rivals.

What was Italy

Italy was another new country, which had been formed in 1861.

why did Italy want to ally with other countries

It was not a strong industrial or military power, and so it wanted to ally with other countries to make itself more powerful.

What happened to Italy when it joined the Triple Alliance in 1905

When Italy joined Germany and Austria-Hungary in the Triple Alliance in 1882, it became part of an anti-France, anti-Russia alliance.

What was France’s main concern

France’s main concern in 1905 was to make sure that it would never again be attacked by Germany and to get Alsace-Lorraine back.

Who did France Allie with

France allied with Russia

When did France ally with Russia

1892, (this was not the entente cordiale)

Why did France Ally with Russia

because it wanted support against Germany.

What was Russia like in comparison to the other 6 powers

Russia was the largest of the six powers, but the least developed.

What were Russia’s main concerns

Russia’s main concerns were that Germany would expand into Russian territory in central Europe and that Austria-Hungary would take measures against Slavs in Austria-Hungary (Russians and Serbians were both Slav peoples).

Who did Russia ally with

France

When did Russia ally with France

1892

Why did Russia ally with France

it wanted support against Germany.

In the 19th century what policy did Britain use

splendid isolation

Britain had tried not to get involved in European politics.

Why had Britain used splendid isolation

isolation’. British had a powerful navy and overseas empire and didn’t see a need to form alliances with European countries.

Why did Britain get involved with EU politics

the German Kaiser had shown that he wanted Germany to have an empire and a strong navy, which was a direct threat to the British Empire and its naval dominance.

Which countries did Britain become allies with

Britain joined with France in the Entente Cordiale.

When did Britain join the entente cordiale

1904

Agreements made in the Triple Entente Cordiale

There was **no** formal agreement to go to **help each othe**r if one of them was **attacked**. However, it was agreed that they had a **moral obligation to support each other.**

Why were colonies wanted

**Colonies provided raw materials and were markets for goods** produced by the European powers that governed them.

In this way the colonies were linked to the strength of different European countries.

Which countries had colonies

• britain

• france

• Germany

What is the imperial rivalry

who could get the largest empire.

Who wanted to expand their influence on mainland europe

Some of the Great Powers, like **Russia** and **Austria-Hungary**, were hoping to expand on mainland Europe.

Which countries were trying to expand their colonies outside of Europe

Others, like Great Britain, France and Germany, focused on countries outside Europe.

How did the EU Powers claim rights over their colonies

They did this usually by invading and simply taking over, or by being given a country as part of a treaty arrangement.

In 1905 which country was the most powerful

**Great Britain**

is a small island country off the coast of Europe. In 1905, it was the most powerful country in the world.

Why was Britain so powerful in 1905

The British Empire took up nearly a quarter of the world’s land surface area and a quarter of the world’s population lived in the British Empire under its control.

How did Britain control its colonies

It was important that Britain kept in close contact with its colonies. This was partly because of the need to control and to manage them, and partly because of the need to trade with them.

How did Britain travel to its colonies

**Merchant ships sailed the sea routes to the British colonies and the Royal Navy kept the sea routes open and clear of enemy shipping**. Any challenge to the navy would endanger the security of the empire.

Who had the second largest empire in the world

The republic of France had the second largest empire in the world.

Where were most of the French colonies

Most of the French colonies were in West Africa where France exercised control with little opposition.

Where did France face lots of opposition for their colonies

French colonies in the Far East.

Who opposed the French for their Far east colonies

The French army in **Indo-China** frequently fought with **rebels** who wanted independence.

How did France feel about the rebels fighting for their independence

The cost of fighting was a strain on the French economy. However, France was very keen to keep those colonies. Having already lost Alsace-Lorraine, France’s reputation would be severely damaged if any overseas colonies were to be lost, too.

Why did both Britain and Germany see each other as a threat

German politicians had wanted to see the new country develop to be strong and powerful. One way of doing this was by acquiring colonies. If colonies overseas were to be gained, and held, then a strong navy was essential.

How did the British regard Germany

Britain regarded German ambitions as threatening the already established British Empire;

How did Germany regard Britain

Empire; German politicians came to see Britain as standing in the way of Germany becoming a world power.

In 1914 what was the population of Great Britain

40\.8 million

In 1914 what was the population of colonies of Great Britain

390 million

In 1914 what was the number of colonies of Great Britain

56

In 1914 what was the size of the colonies of Great Britain

27 million squared km

In 1914 what was the population of France

39\.6 million

In 1914 what was the population of the colonies of France

58 million

In 1914 what was the number of the colonies of France

29

In 1914 what was the size of the colonies of France

11 million squared km

In 1914 what was the population of Russia

159 million

Did Russia have any colonies

No

In 1914 what was the population of Germany

65 million

In 1914 what was the population of colonies of Germany

15 million

In 1914 what was the number of colonies of Germany

10

In 1914 what was the size of colonies of Germany

2\.5 million squared km

In 1914 what was the population of Austria-Hungary

50 million

Did Austria-Hungary have any colonies

No

Where did Russia want to expand too

Russia stretched from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Bering Strait in the east.

Russia wanted to **expand south-east into Manchuria** in order to have ice-free ports.

Russia also wanted to **expand into the Balkans** so that Russian ships would have **access to the Mediterranean Sea** and, by sailing through the Strait of Gibraltar, to the Atlantic Ocean.

What did Austria-Hungary want

Austria-Hungary was a union of two separate countries: Austria and Hungary.

**Franz-Joseph** ruled an empire containing **11 different nationalities**. The government was struggling to **hold them together in one empire**.

For example, a move to force all Czechs to use German – the language of Austria – in schools and workplaces led to riots.

Austria- Hungary was afraid, too, that the Serbs within its borders might want to break away and join Serbia.

What is nationalism

Nationalism, the love of one’s country, is usually considered to be positive.

Loyalty to the same set of values and beliefs is what unites the people of a country.

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However, when nationalism becomes too strong, and the supporters of a country too extreme in their support, nationalism becomes aggressive.

How did Nationalism help the war effort

It was the build-up of nationalism in the years to 1914 that helped to prepare people for war and inspired young men to join up and fight.

Economic rivalry

The wealth of a country is very important when there are international disagreements. If a country is wealthy, it has money to build an army or navy to protect itself.

What was the comparison between britain and germanys economy

By 1890, German manufactured goods were competing with British ones in all the markets that had previously been dominated by Britain. German merchant ships competed with British merchant ships to carry goods around the world.

in 1914 who was the strongest power, economically

By 1914, Germany was producing more iron, steel, coal – and even cars – than Britain. Britain’s economic lead had gone. **Germany** had taken over from Great Britain as the strongest power, economically.

What was France’s economy like after loosing Alsace-Lorraine

When France lost Alsace-Lorraine to Germany, it had to import coal from other countries. This seriously weakened the French economy because of the cost involved.

How did France bring its economy back up after loosing Alsace-Lorraine

France began to explore the possibilities of mining minerals in Morocco. These could be used in agriculture and industry but would also bring France into competition with Germany.

Why did Germany and Austri-Hungary not like the idea of Russia builidng a railway near the Balkans

Germany and Austria-Hungary had well-established commercial markets in the Balkans.

When did Russia start to build a railway system near the balkan area

1888

How much coal was produced by Great Britain in 1914

292 million tonnes

How much coal was produced by France in 1914

40 million tonnes

How much coal was produced by Russia in 1914

36\.2 million tonnes

How much coal was produced by Germany in 1914

277 million tonnes

How much coal was produced by Austria-Hungary in 1914

47 million tonnes

How much steel was produced by Great-Britain in 1914

11 million tonnes

How much steel was produced by France in 1914

4\.6 million tonnes

How much steel was produced by Russia in 1914

3\.6 million tonnes

How much steel was produced by Germany in 1914

14 million tonnes

How much steel was produced by Austria-Hungary in 1914

5 million tonnes

What was the tensions between Britain towards Germany

British politicians came to believe that Germany was aiming at **European**, and possibly world, **domination**.

**Britain wanted to remain the most powerful country**

reasons that Britain relied on its navy

Britain relied on its massive navy to keep the sea routes open to the furthest parts of its empire, and to protect its economic interests and the people there. The navy was essential, too, to protect Britain, an island nation, against any European aggression.

When did Germany pass the Navy Laws

1898 and 1900

What was the first navy law giving Germany permission ti di

The first one gave permission for the building of 16 battleships.

What did the second navy law give permission for

the second increased this number of battleships to 46. and 60 cruisers

How did Admiral Tirpitz encourage Germany people to take interest in the navy

So by 1905 Germany had begun to build more battleships and cruisers. The German naval chief, Admiral Tirpitz, set up the Naval League. This was intended to encourage the German people to take an interest in their navy. Tours of German ports were organised, and lectures about the naval fleet were given all over Germany.

How did the British respond to Germany building their navy

The British response was to build the best ever battleship – HMS Dreadnought. it was so advanced that its revolutionary design made all other battleships instantly out-of-date.

1905

When was the HMS-Dreadnought launched

1906

What was the Rheinland

the Germans own version of HMS Dreadnought.

When did the Naval Race start and finish

Between 1906 and 1914,

Throughout the whole naval race how many Dreadnoughts did Britain build

29