Week 2 - From the Concert of Europe to the Paris Peace System (1900-1919)

The World before WWI

Domination of Europe

  • Population: 27% of the world population; 55 million European emigrants (1850-1910).

  • Capital: Total of 210 billion Gold Franc.

    • Britain: 98 billion

    • France: 43 billion

    • Germany: 28 billion

    • United States: 18 billion.

  • World Trade: Europe accounted for 60%, while the US had 10%.

  • Colonial Empires:

    • Britain: 30 million km² (400 million people)

    • France: 11 million km² (48 million people)

    • Germany: 3 million km² (16 million people)

Globalization

  • Adoption of the gold standard.

  • Advancements in communications, transport, and trade.

  • Migration patterns shifted due to industrialization and urbanization.

Culture and Multilateralism

  • Cultural events such as the Olympic Games (1896).

  • Birth of multilateralism (Concert of Europe, Administrative Unions, The Hague Peace Conferences 1899/1907).

  • Titanic disaster happened in 1912.

Great Powers in Europe: Alliances

  • Germany-Austria: Dual Alliance (1879)

  • Germany-Austria-Italy: Triple Alliance (1882)

  • France-Russia: Alliance (1891-1894)

  • France-Italy: Secret agreement (1902)

  • Britain-Japan: Anti-Russian alliance (1902)

  • France-Britain: "Entente Cordiale" (1904)

  • Russia-Britain: Agreement regarding Persia and Afghanistan (1907)

  • Formation of Triple Entente.

New Great Powers

Japan

  • Meiji Era: Began in 1868.

  • Transitioned into a major power through:

    • War against China (1894-1895).

    • War against Russia (1904-1905).

United States of America

  • Emerged as the first world economy post-1870.

  • Notable conflict: War against Spain (1898).

Ideology

  • Conservative values: Emphasis on religion and aristocracy.

  • Liberal values: Focus on democracy, human rights, free trade, and international law.

  • Nationalism: Including racism, antisemitism, Darwinism, imperialism, protectionism, and arms race.

  • Socialism: Rise of socialist movements exemplified through the First International (1864) and Second International (1889).

The Last Crises & Role of Diplomacy

  • 1894-1895: China defeated by Japan.

  • 1900: European intervention in China.

  • 1903: Pro-Russian coup in Serbia.

  • 1905: Russia defeated by Japan; focus shifts to the Balkans.

  • 1905-1906 & 1911: Morocco Crises (involving France and Germany).

  • 1908: Annexation of Bosnia by Austria.

  • 1911-1912: Italy-Ottoman Empire conflict.

  • 1912-1913: Balkan Wars.

WWI (1914-1918)

The Path to War (1914)

  • June 28: Assassination of Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo.

  • July 23: Austria issues ultimatum to Serbia.

  • July 28: Austria declares war on Serbia.

  • July 29-30: Mobilization of Russia.

  • August 1: Mobilization of France; Germany declares war on Russia.

  • August 3: Germany declares war on France and invades Belgium.

  • August 4: Britain enters the war against Germany.

Stalemate

  • 1914: Germany fails in the West (Battle of Marne) and Russia fails in the East (Battle of Tannenberg).

Trench and Submarine Warfare

  • Introduction of Trench Warfare.

  • Submarine warfare: Notably involving the Lusitania incident in 1915.

  • 1915: Failure of the Dardanelles Campaign.

  • 1916: Heavy fighting at Verdun.

The War Becomes Global

  • 1914: Engagement of Japan and the Ottoman Empire.

  • 1915: Entry of Italy and Bulgaria.

  • 1916: Involvement of Romania.

  • 1917: United States and Greece join the war effort.

Soviet Revolution

  • February 1917: Russian Revolution.

  • October 1917: Bolchevik Revolution.

  • Outcomes included Brest-Litovsk Armistice (March 1918).

  • Failure of Germany on the Western Front.

  • Revolutionary movements spread to Germany and Austria.

  • Armistice declared on November 11th.

The Paris Peace

Paris Peace Conference

  • Convened in January 1919 at Versailles.

  • Purpose: Establish terms of peace post-WWI.

  • Nearly thirty nations participated, but the “Big Four” dominated: United Kingdom, France, United States, and Italy.

The Big Four

  • Dominantly led proceedings that formulated the Treaty of Versailles, ending WWI.

  • The treaty outlined compromises reached during the conference and established the League of Nations.

  • Woodrow Wilson advocated for the League as a means to prevent future conflicts.

Peace Treaties

  • Treaty of Versailles with Germany (June 28, 1919).

  • Treaty of Saint-Germain with Austria (September 10, 1919).

  • Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria (November 27, 1919).

  • Treaty of Trianon with Hungary (June 4, 1920).

  • Treaties of Sèvres (1920) and Lausanne (1923) with Turkey.

Treaty of Versailles Specifics

  • Viewed as a “Diktat” in Germany.

  • Territorial and colonial losses imposed on Germany.

  • Demilitarization: Limited to 100,000 personnel; no heavy weapons allowed; demilitarization of the Rhine West Bank.

  • Imposition of reparations, accepting Germany's guilt.

Weaknesses of Paris Peace

  • Exclusion of Germany and Russia from the peace discussions.

  • Lack of shared values (liberalism, communism, fascism).

  • U.S. stance of isolationism (refusal to ratify the Versailles Treaty).

  • UK opportunism and dissatisfaction from Italy.

  • France established alliances with Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Romania.

Key Takeaways

  • Before WWI: Emergence of new great powers (Germany, Japan, USA), Europe polarization, and series of crises in the Balkans.

  • WWI (1914-1918): Marked decline of Europe, rise of U.S. global influence (1917), communism in Russia (1917), and defeat of Central Empires (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire).

  • Paris Peace Conference (1919): Resulted in the Treaty of Versailles (Germany), establishment of the League of Nations (absent U.S.), highlighting fragility of the new order (lack of common values).

Readings

  • Required Reading: Best, et. al., International History (2014), Chapters 1 & 2.