Events Leading Ti World War 1
Final Essay- Events before World War I
World War 1, one of the biggest wars in history, did not begin because of one problem; it was a mixture of many different factors that eventually caused the final outcome. This war was so great because it basically included all of Europe. As we look back to the events that led up to the war, we see that one country looks like they are the cause of most of the problems; this country was Germany. Because of their great obsession with gaining power, they will make many enemies and finally fall into their own demise. In the years before the war, around 1848-1914, the period of Nationalism began, where each country was unifying their states. These states wanted national identity, meaning similar language, mission, religion, territory, etc. The German unifier was the chancellor of Prussia, known as Otto Von Bismark. He was a very romantic nationalist and believed in the quote "might makes right", believing that you get what you want through force. He was very powerful and it showed in the three steps he took to unify the country of Germany. He won the war with Denmark in 1864, won the Autro/Prussian war in 1866, and won the war of 1871, finally unifying the country on January 18, 1871. Western Imperialism was also going on during this time. This was actually a period of peace in Europe. The main priority of Europe was to scramble and grab overseas territory to spread their reign. There was a wave of colonization, like a "gold rush". Around 1885 an organization was set up called the Berlin Conference. Bismark, the German ruler at the time, calls the conference "mainly" between France and Germany, who is still an aspiring power. The person representing France was Jules Ferry. The main principle for this conference was "effective occupation", meaning no country can just come into another state and stick their flag there, and call it their own. There had to be recognition by other states. This conference
World War 1, one of the biggest wars in history, did not begin because of one problem; it was a mixture of many different factors that eventually caused the final outcome. This war was so great because it basically included all of Europe. As we look back to the events that led up to the war, we see that one country looks like they are the cause of most of the problems; this country was Germany. Because of their great obsession with gaining power, they will make many enemies and finally fall into their own demise. In the years before the war, around 1848-1914, the period of Nationalism began, where each country was unifying their states. These states wanted national identity, meaning similar language, mission, religion, territory, etc. The German unifier was the chancellor of Prussia, known as Otto Von Bismark. He was a very romantic nationalist and believed in the quote "might makes right", believing that you get what you want through force. He was very powerful and it showed in the three steps he took to unify the country of Germany. He won the war with Denmark in 1864, won the Autro/Prussian war in 1866, and won the war of 1871, finally unifying the country on January 18, 1871. Western Imperialism was also going on during this time. This was actually a period of peace in Europe. The main priority of Europe was to scramble and grab overseas territory to spread their reign. There was a wave of colonization, like a "gold rush". Around 1885 an organization was set up called the Berlin Conference. Bismark, the German ruler at the time, calls the conference "mainly" between France and Germany, who is still an aspiring power. The person representing France was Jules Ferry. The main principle for this conference was "effective occupation", meaning no country can just come into another state and stick their flag there, and call it their own. There had to be recognition by other states. This conference