history-alliance system and international rivarly

What are the names of the Great Powers?

Great Britain, Germany, France, Russia, Austria-Hungary

Which country had the largest Empire?

Great Britain

Which country was beginning to rival Britain in terms of industrial and economic strength?

Germany

Which country ruled an empire in the centre of Europe?

Austria Hungary

Which country considered itself a friend to the Slavs?

Russia

Which country had the biggest navy? Why might this be?

Great Britain. Large coastline all around, many docks etc.

Which piece of land did France lose in 1871?

Alsace Lorraine

Which country was considered 'backward'?

Russia

Which war had France and Germany fought in 1871?

Franco-Prussian war

Which country had the biggest army? Why might this be?

Germany: wanted to overthrow Britain as the largest empire/most powerful.

Which country had the ability to call up most volunteers if Europe erupted in war?

Russia: largest population.

Which country do you think would be least willing to get involved in an European War? Why?

Austria Hungary: smallest navy, no colonies, smaller army, doesn't produce a lot of steel or coal, empire already hard to run.

Which country was given the nickname 'the weak giant' by some historians? Why?

Russia: no empire/colonies, large population but small navy, doesn't make many goods in comparison.

What is one way that the alliance system helped to make a European war more likely?

It increased tensions and suspicions between the Great Powers. Germany, in particular, felt encircled by Russia and France and this was made worse when Britain joined the Triple Entente.

What is one way that the alliance system contributed to peace in Europe?

It 'balanced' out the powerful. No country would want to risk a war with the opposing 'team'.

Apart from the alliance system, what other reasons for tension were there in Europe at this time (1905ish)? Try to give 3 reasons.

Germany's growing strength and military - threat (to Britain especially), Austria Hungary didn't want Russia to interfere with the Slavs (tension between the two), France had lost the rich land of Alsace Lorraine to Germany and wanted it back.

Arms race

The formation of the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente made each side highly suspicious. This led to all the Great powers building up their armed forces.

Schlieffen plan

Schlieffen believed Russia would take about 6 weeks to mobilise (due to its large size and poor rail links). He planned that the Germany army would first attack AND defeat France. Once Paris was captured, France would surrender and then they could deal with Russia.

Suggest reasons why Germany built up their armed forces in the years before WW1.

Germany felt the friendship between France and Russia was an attempt to surround and threaten them. Germany wanted to be prepared. They also wanted to be the best Great Power.

Suggest reasons why France built up their armed forces in the years before WW1.

France felt the Kaiser's aim of becoming a world power was a direct threat to them (the Triple Alliance was formed against France), again they wanted to be prepared.

Suggest reasons why Russia built up their armed forces in the years before WW1.

Russia also felt Germanys want for becoming a large world power was a direct threat (the Dual alliance was formed firstly against Russia), they also wanted to be prepared and ready for attack. Russia's spending was also extremely large in response to their defeat by the Japanese in 1905, this defeat was a huge shock to the Russians.

Why did Germany want a larger navy?

Jealous of Britain's power and Empire - wanted to be just as powerful. Wilhelm II claimed that because Germany had an Empire, they needed a navy to protect it. Germany also feared a British naval blockade of its coastline. In 1897, the British foreign office threatened to blockade the German coast if Germany intervened on the side of the Boers in the African Boer war. They thought a stronger navy may prevent the British from doing this.

Why was Britain so concerned about Germany building up their navy?

Britain's an island, it needs a navy to protect its large coastline and also protect her vast overseas Empire. Britain relied on trading with other nations, it needed the navy to protect its trade ships - if Germany had a stronger navy it was a direct threat to Britain's safety and trade.

What were the Navy laws?

In 1898 and 1900 Germany passed the Naval laws. These allowed funding for a huge ship building program.

How did Britain respond to the Navy Laws? Explain why this was so significant.

Britain built new naval ports in Scotland to protect the North Sea. Britain also brought the Dreadnought - this was the most powerful battleship ever built and made all others redundant. This was significant because it led to huge battleship advances on both sides in the years to come (more damaging than other ships so now war was even more of a threat).

How did Germany react to this (Britain's response to the Navy Laws)?

Germany then developed their own Dreadnought style ship in response to Britain's.

How did Britain respond (to Germanys reaction to Britain's response of the Navy Laws)?

Britain responded by building super-dreadnoughts.

How many of these battle ships were built by Britain and Germany between 1906 and 1914?

Britain had 29 Dreadnought class ships and Germany had 17.

What effect did this tension have on Britain's attitude to alliances with other European countries?

The competition and fear generated by the naval arms race led Britain to view Germany as a threat, this only served to push Britain into a stronger partnership with France and Russia (making a larger war more likely).

Which country did not introduce conscription?

Britain

Which country had the largest increase in military spending between 1910 and 1914?

Germany followed by Russia

Which country created the BEF?

Britain - the British Expeditionary Force. A highly trained army unit which would travel to France at short notice to help the French.

Which country devised the Schlieffen plan?

Germany (named after General Schlieffen)

In what year was the Triple Entente formed?

(Franco-Russian alliance not counted) Officially begun with France and Britain's Entente Cordiale in 1904. Russia joined in 1907 making it the Triple Entente.

Who were the members of the Triple Entente?

Britain, France, Russia

Which provinces did France want to regain from Germany?

Alsace-Lorraine

What was the name of the German Kaiser?

Wilhelm II

Why did Germany want colonies?

Wanted the largest empire (bigger than Britain)

How big was the British Empire?

390 million

When was the HMS Dreadnought launched?

1906

What was the name of the German war plan?

Schlieffen Plan

What was Plan 17?

Plan 17 was a basic French war plan introduced by General Joffre. French troops would march through Alsace and Lorraine, capture these areas then continue onto Berlin. This was known as Plan 17.

Why were the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente formed?

All powers wanted to achieve security from attack and increase opportunities for trade. Germany made an alliance with Austria-Hungary (against Russia). Italy joined the Dual Alliance in 1882, making it the Triple Alliance. This time the alliance was directed against France. France and Russia were worried about the alliances which had been made against them; They decided to form their own alliance in 1892: Franco-Russian Alliance. In 1904 Britain signed the Entente Cordiale with France. In 1907 Russia joined the Entente forming the Triple Entente.

Describe two features of the alliance system in 1905.

1. It aimed to keep the peace. The idea of having alliances was supposed to "balance the power" in Europe. No one country would want to risk war with the opposing 'team'.

2. It increased tensions, suspicions. Germany in particular felt encircled by Russia and France, this was made worse when Britain joined the Triple Entente.

3. It made what could have been a small localised war into something very different. When one of the members of either alliance declared war, the other members would most likely lend their support. This meant that when a country in one alliance went to war against a country in the other alliance, all the countries would get dragged in to support their allies.

Describe two features of the naval race.

1. The Dreadnought was formed. This was the most powerful battleship ever built and made all others redundant. By 1914 Britain had 29 Dreadnought class ships, Germany had 17.

2. It increased the chances of war. The competition and fear generated by the naval arms race led Britain to view Germany as a threat, which only served to push Britain into a stronger partnership with France and Russia. The Naval Race didn't directly cause war, but like the arms race on land the naval race led a growth of suspicion and competition

Describe two features of the Schlieffen Plan (1905).

1. It aimed to avoid Germany having to fight a war on two fronts. Russia and France were on the opposing borders and if Germany had to fight them at the same time Germany's army would have to split into two - this would most likely not leave Germany with victory.

2. It assumed that Russia would be slow to mobilise (6 weeks due to its large area and poor rail tracks). This meant the plan was to attack France first and turn and fight Russia. It failed because Belgian troops delayed the German army on the way to France. Russia also mobilised quicker than Germany thought and in the end Germany ended up having to fight a war on two fronts (this is what it wanted to avoid in the first place).