WW1 causes reading 1.1
Flashpoint Sarajevo
World War I started with two fateful shots fired on the morning of 28 June 1914. The events took place in Sarajevo, a sleepy little town in what was then Austria-Hungary. This region of southeastern Europe, known as the Balkans, had been a hotbed of tensions for years. On that day in 1914, citizens in Sarajevo were getting ready to welcome Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the Archduchess Sophie. The archduke was an important visitor. He was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. For this visit to Sarajevo, he was in uniform—a light-blue tunic, black trousers, and a hat topped with large green ostrich feathers. At 10:00 a.m., the royal couple drove toward the town hall in a four-car motorcade. Suddenly, someone threw a bomb. The bomb exploded against the hood of the limousine, but the archduke was not hurt. The tour continued. At the town hall, the archduke complained angrily to the mayor, "I come here on a visit and get bombs thrown at me. It is outrageous!" Both the mayor and the chief of police assured the archduke there would be no more danger. The motorcade moved on to the governor's palace. Several minutes later, a 19-year old, Gavrilo Princip, stepped up to the car and fired two shots from a pistol at point-blank range. The first shot hit the archduke in the throat; the second hit the Archduchess Sophie in the stomach. Franz Ferdinand, blood pouring from his mouth, saw that his wife was wounded. “Sophie,” he reportedly cried, “don’t die! Keep alive for our children.” Both Franz Ferdinand and Sophie died on the way to the hospital.
The assassin Gavrilo Princip swallowed poison, but the poison failed to work. Within minutes, Princip and five others were rounded up by the police. They were members of a Serbian terrorist group known as the Black Hand. Their plan had been to murder the archduke and then to commit suicide. That day, a friend of the assassin sent a message in code to the Serbian capital. It read, "Excellent sale of both horses.” Members of the Black Hand in Serbia knew exactly what this code meant. What they could not know was the terrible effect those two shots would have on world history.
Nationalism
Nationalism is a feeling of deep loyalty to one’s people and homeland. By the early twentieth century, extreme nationalism was causing problems in Europe. Some people seemed willing to take any action to support their nation, regardless of the effects on others. They were prepared to go to war to promote the interests of their homelands. Nationalistic feelings were especially intense in the small country of Serbia in the early 1900s. Serbia bordered on the Austrian province of Bosnia. Austria-Hungary had annexed Bosnia in 1908. Many people of Serbian descent lived in Bosnia and bitterly resented being under Austrian control. Some Bosnian Serbs were determined to free Bosnia from Austrian domination and unite with Serbia into one powerful nation. They formed the terrorist organization known as the Black Hand. A terrorist organization supports violent action to gain its goals. Their motto was “Union [with Serbia] or Death.” Members threatened to kill Archduke Ferdinand if he entered Bosnia. They were true to their word.
The Austrians were also expressing feelings of nationalism when they strongly opposed the attempts of Bosnia to break away from their empire. Nationalistic feelings made the region a powder keg waiting to explode.
Alliances
In 1914, Europe was already divided into two hostile camps. France and Germany had been involved in conflicts for centuries. Each had tried to find other countries to be its allies in case of future wars. Alliances are formed when countries band together against a common threat, and pledge to support each other in times of war. France formed alliances with Russia and Britain in what was known as the Triple Entente (the Allies). Germany joined with Austria-Hungary and Italy to form the Triple Alliance or Central Powers. When the war started, Italy left the Central Powers to join the Triple Entente. The alliances were dangerous because they increased fear and suspicion among rival nations. With these alliances, a war between two countries would likely involve many more!
Imperialism
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, imperialism was gaining momentum. As the countries of Europe became more industrialized, they were increasingly interested in gaining colonies away from the home country and building huge empires. Competition for the raw materials, markets, glory, and power that colonies could provide was intense. France had colonies in northwest Africa and east Asia. Russia controlled a vast empire stretching across northern Europe and Asia. The largest empire was controlled by Britain and included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, Burma, Malaya, South Africa (as well as other parts of Africa), the East and West Indies, and islands in the Pacific. The United States had gained power in the Pacific by taking control of the Hawaiian and Philippine islands. Germany also wanted colonies and world markets. But by the time Germany began to build an empire, all that remained were some territories in Africa and the Pacific that were not particularly valuable. Competition for colonies led to frequent clashes among the major powers of Europe all over the globe. Several serious clashes had stopped just short of war.
Militarism
Closely related to nationalism and imperialism was the rise of militarism. Militarism is the belief in the power of strong armies and navies to decide issues. It was thought that the only way to guarantee peace was by preparing for war. If a nation is strong, no enemy will dare attack it. If war does break out, the militarized nation is able to defend itself. This kind of thinking led to an arms race in Europe. Each country produced steel battleships, high-powered guns, and explosives. Each tried to build a larger and more deadly war machine than its rivals. The size of armies and navies determined who would be the most powerful nation in Europe. Britain therefore became nervous when Germany started building a huge navy. Since Britain was an island nation, it depended on its giant navy to “rule the waves” and guarantee its safety. By building a powerful navy, Germany challenged Britain's supremacy at sea. The nations of Europe were becoming increasingly suspicious and alarmed by the others’ military power.
The Final Steps to War
With these tense conditions in Europe, the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand quickly set off a chain reaction of events. Within just a few weeks, the Central Powers and the Triple Entente were embroiled in a world war. The Austro-Hungarian government blamed Serbia for the deaths of the archduke and archduchess. Austria-Hungary saw a chance to crush Serbian nationalism. With the support of its ally, Germany, Austria-Hungary sent Serbia an ultimatum. An ultimatum is a demand by one government that another government accept its terms or face war. Austria-Hungary insisted that Serbia: 1. put down all nationalist hatred against Austria-Hungary; 2. punish all those involved in the assassination plot; 3. allow Austro-Hungarian officials into Serbia to help crush the Black Hand.
The Serbs were given 48 hours to reply to the ultimatum. They agreed to all the conditions except the third. They refused to allow Austro-Hungarian officials into their country. Austria-Hungary took this as a complete refusal of its ultimatum and declared war on Serbia on 26 July 1914. Russia, considering itself an ally of the Serbs, started to mobilize its armies. France, as Russia's ally, also mobilized its forces. Germany now felt threatened by the actions of its two neighbours, France and Russia. Germany ordered them to stop mobilizing. When they refused, Germany declared war on Russia on 1 August 1914, and on France the next day. Since the French border was heavily fortified, Germany planned to attack France through the small, neutral nation of Belgium. To this point, Britain was not yet involved in the war. However, Britain had signed a treaty guaranteeing that it would protect the neutrality of Belgium. Neutrality means a country does not help or support any side in a war or dispute. When Belgium was invaded, Britain declared war on Germany.
In London, England that evening, Sir Edward Grey, British foreign secretary, told a friend, “The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.” In Canada, Prime Minister Robert Borden stated, “The world has drifted far from its old anchorage and no man can with certainty prophesy what the outcome will be.” By midnight on 4 August 1914, all the countries of the two alliances, except Italy, were at war. World War I had begun!
In 1914, tensions in the Balkans of Europe contributed to the outbreak of World War I. At the turn of the twenty-first century, the Balkans were still a hotbed of unrest. In the 1990s, however, war in the Balkans was contained within the region. Canada sent peacekeepers who helped with war relief and humanitarian missions. Canada also accepted 30,000 refugees from war-torn Kosovo in 1998.
Thank you, Veronica!!😋 This is the WWI story:
The Teams
Team 1- Bad Guys
Austria-Hungary
Germany
Team 2- The Gang
Serbia
Russia
France
Britain
Canada
June 28th, 1914: The death of the archduke of Austria-Hungary
He went to the province of Bosnia and the Black Hand attacked him because Bosnia wanted to be free from Austria-Hungary and join Serbia (nationalism → Serbians of Bosnia wanted to live in their homeland of Serbia).
The archduke and his wife were in a side street, and then they got shot by a nationalist.
2 attempts had been made on their life on that trip and they went back (stupid).
Causes were simmering for a while and this just popped off. Austria gives an ultimatum because they have a lot of national pride.
Serbia said “NO!!” to arrest the Black Hand and let them in the country to police it and “Punish those involved and bring Austro-Hungary officials into Serbia to crush the terrorist group (3 things).
Serbia said “GTFO”
July 28th, 1914: WWI was declared
The two countries fought between themselves.
July 1914: Serbia brings in Russia for help
This was a secret alliance
Russia sent a message to Austria-Hungary and said stop (stop or I'll kill you)
Austria-Hungary has a friend, Germany
August 1st, 1914: Germany was not involved in the conflict, their alliance was the only tying factor
Immediately they started a fight (GERMANY DECLARED WAR FIRST they had been stockpiling weapons and had NOTHING to do with the initial conflict).
Britain was scared because Germany owned the waters.
Now the alliances needed more power over each other so Russia brought in France
France began fighting Germany due to their allies
The Teams:
Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (Italy was only a part of this allyship until WWI officially began)
Triple Entente: France, Russia, and Britain (Britain was the most powerful country in Europe at this time)
Germany had bombs and they said they wanted to use them on France 👍(STARTS THE FIRST ACTION).
Within four days they were prepared to fight, waiting for the opportunity.
Germany invaded Belgium because it was a close by country (they wanted to expand their power to be stronger than France and Britain).
They DID NOT fully take the country (hence Belgium chocolate still existing. yum!)
They sent a warning to France (hey gang, ur next)
Belgium had a secret friend, Britain. 😯
Britain had to help Belgium bc of their alliance with France which meant that they were allied with Belgium (France= friend to Belgium, France= friend to Britain. Therefore Britain= friend to Belgium)
BRITAIN DECLARES WAR ON GERMANY
- To help Belgium stay alive 👍 (friend of a friend. mutuals) (Germany warned France by taking Belgium to scare them off, France was “like wtf man that’s not cool” so they were enemies.
- France then brought in Britain for more power.
- Then Britain started a fight on Germany so to help belgium stay a thing (friend of a friend type thing)
- Britain is demanding help from Canada one day later. (because they needed help fighting germany)
- The Governor General of Canada declares war on Germany
————————————————————————————————————————-
The Teams
Team 1 - Bad Guys
Austria-Hungary
Germany
Ottoman Empire (Turkey now, but back then, big empire dude)
Italy (only for a bit, then they ditched)
Team 2 - The Gang
Serbia
Russia
France
Britain
Belgium (they were just minding their own business but got dragged in 💀)
Canada (because Britain said so)
Italy (switches sides because they realized Germany was a bad investment)
June 28th, 1914: The Death of the Archduke
Franz Ferdinand, heir to Austria-Hungary, goes to Bosnia (which Austria controlled).
The Black Hand (Serbian nationalists) were like, "nah, get out."
They tried to kill him TWICE. Failed.
The dude’s driver accidentally takes a wrong turn, and he literally drives past one of the assassins.
Assassin: "Oh hey, my bad. Bang bang."
Franz & his wife: 🚫💀
Austria-Hungary is Mad
Austria-Hungary: “Yo Serbia, hand over the Black Hand, and let us in to investigate.”
Serbia: “GTFO.”
Austria-Hungary: “Bet.”
July 28th, 1914: Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia.
Alliances Start Kicking In (Uh Oh)
Serbia secretly calls their big brother Russia for backup.
Russia tells Austria-Hungary to chill.
Austria-Hungary has Germany on speed dial.
August 1st, 1914: Germany is like, "Welp, let's fight." (Germany declares war first, even though they had nothing to do with the initial beef.)
Germany is READY. They have weapons, plans, and bad vibes.
More Alliances Join (Chaos Mode Activated)
France gets in (because they’re allied with Russia).
Germany immediately preps to attack France.
Germany needs a shortcut → Invades Belgium (neutral, but in the way).
Belgium: “BRO WHAT???”
Britain: "Oh hell no, Belgium’s our friend!"
August 4th, 1914: Britain declares war on Germany.
Britain asks Canada for help → Canada’s government is like, "Yeah, okay."
Italy & Turkey Enter the Chat
Italy was originally with Germany & Austria-Hungary (Triple Alliance).
But Italy was like, "Hmm, this seems messy. I’ll sit this one out."
Later, Italy joins The Gang (Allies) in 1915 because they realized Germany kinda sucks.
Ottoman Empire (Turkey) sees Germany doing their thing and says, "That looks fun!"
Turkey joins Germany & Austria-Hungary in late 1914.
Turkey was important because they controlled access to important trade routes.
The Middle East becomes a new front in the war.
WHY DID EVERYONE JOIN?
Serbia: "We just wanted Bosnia, bro."
Austria-Hungary: "Serbia killed our heir, gotta teach ‘em a lesson."
Germany: "We love war and have nothing better to do."
Russia: "Serbia is my little bro."
France: "We hate Germany. No further explanation."
Britain: "Germany messed with Belgium, so we’re throwing hands."
Italy: "Wait, you guys actually suck. I’m out."
Turkey: "Germany seems strong, let’s vibe with them."
Now It’s REALLY World War I
Everyone is involved.
Fighting happens in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
New weapons: Trenches, gas, machine guns, tanks, planes.
Casualties are insane.
Everyone regrets their life choices.