Chapter 13 Section 1Marching Toward WarObjective: Analyze the factors & events that led to World War I

Vocabulary: Militarism, Triple Alliance, Kaiser Wilhelm II, & Triple Entente

Setting the Stage•The nations of Europe had

been largely at peace with one another for nearly 30 years

•By 1900, hundreds of peace organizations were active & Europeans believed progress made war a thing of the past

•However, less than a decade later a massive war would engulf Europe & spread across the world

Rising Tensions in Europe• Nationalism: belief

that people should be loyal mainly to their nation

• Nationalism served as a unifying force within a country

• Intense competition among nations, each seeking to overpower the other

• These competitions were over materials, markets, & territories

Imperialism•Nations of Europe

competed fiercely for colonies in Africa & Asia

•As European countries continued to compete for overseas empires, their sense of rivalry & mistrust of one another deepened

Militarism• The nations of Europe

believed that to be truly great, they needed to have a powerful military

• Military experts believed they needed plans to mobilize & organize & move troops in case of a war

• Militarism: policy of glorifying military power & keeping a standing army always prepared for war

Tangled Alliances• Growing rivalries & mistrust led to

the creation of military alliances among the Great Powers

• Alliances were meant to keep peace among the Great Powers in Europe but instead it pushed the continent to war

• Otto von Bismarck, Prussia’s chancellor, used war to unify Germany

• Bismarck formed the Triple Alliance – military alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, & Italy in the years preceding World War I

Shifting Alliances Threaten Peace•Kaiser Wilhelm II –

German emperor•Wilhelm forced Bismarck to

resign because he didn’t want to share power with anyone

•Wilhelm allowed his treaty with Russia to expire & Russia immeditatly signed an alliance with France

•This would make Germany fight a two front war on both its eastern & western boarders

Shifting Alliances Threaten Peace• Wilhelm started to make the

Germany navy equal to Britain’s fleet

• Alarmed, Britain formed an entente “alliance” with France

• Triple Entente – military alliance between Great Britain, France, & Russia in the years preceding World War I

• With two rival alliances in Europe, a dispute between two rival powers could draw all European nations into war

Crisis in the Balkans• With a long history of

nationalist uprisings & ethnic clashes, the Balkans was known as the “power keg” of Europe

• Serbia hoped to absorb all the Slavic people in the Balkans into one nation

• Russia supported Serbian nationalism

• Austria-Hungary opposed Serbian nationalism because they feared it would stir rebellion among their Slavic population

A Restless Region•In 1908, Austria annexed

Bosnia & Herzegovina•Serbian leaders who

wanted control over this region were outraged

•Tensions between Serbian & Austria continued to rise

•Austria-Hungary vowed to crush any Serbian effort to undermine its authority in the Balkans

A Shot Rings Throughout Europe• Heir to the Austro-Hungarian

throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand & his wife Sophia visited Bosnia

• On June 28, 1914, the royal couple were shot & killed by Serbian member of the Black Hand – Gavrilo Princip

• Austria presented Serbia with an ultimatum with numerous demands

• Serbia agreed to most of the demands however, Austria rejected Serbia’s offer of negotiation & declared war

• Serbia’s ally Russia, mobilized against Austria