1 THE TROUBLED CONTINENT 1870 – 1914 In the early 20th century, Europe was dominated by ambitious imperial states. This produced an unstable international system and fueled an arms race. War broke out in Europe with the assassination of Austrian archduke Franz Ferdinand in the summer of 1914. THE TROUBLED CONTINENT 1870–1914 THE TROUBLED CONTINENT German chancellor The assination of German propaganda Otto von Bismarck Archduke Franz Ferdinand, portrayed Germany in 1914 as a masterminded the heir to the Austrian throne, chivalrous and heroic defender creation of a united and his wife by Bosnian Serb of civilization against the Germany in the 1860s Gavrilo Princip, in Sarajevo barbarism of its enemies. and 1870s. He created on June 28, 1914, led the Dual Alliance with Austria-Hungary to declare Austria-Hungary and war on Serbia. kept friendly relations Y with Russia. A N ICELAND E W D R E O N W S EUROPE BRITAIN Y N GERMANY FAEROE ISLANDS A RUSSIAN EMPIRE (Denmark) E W ATLANTIC AUSTRIA- D FRANCE HUNGARY R C E a ITALY s p O a OCEAN Black Sea i a W e n N S SPAIN S S e PORTUGAL T OTTOMAN a U N North c N A i SPANISH MOROCCO EMPIRE T I IS t S CYPRUS DENMARK l I N Sea a A PERSIA A B MOROCCO H FG TIBET KUWAIT A (autonomous) BRITAIN LIBYA BAHRAIN NEPAL NETH. RUSSIAN ALGERIA EGYPT QATAR GERMANY RIO DE ORO HEJAZ NEJD EMPIRE (Saudi) TRUCIAL INDIA BEL. LUX. OMAN ANGLO- OMAN EGYPTIAN FRENCH WEST AFRICA HADHRAMAUT AUSTRIA- SUDAN FRANCE GAMBIA TOGO FRENCH (British mandate) ADEN PROTECTORATE SWITZ. HUNGARY PORTUGUESE GUINEA EQUATORIAL ERITREA FRENCH SOMALILAND NIGERIA SIERRA LEONE AFRICA ABYSSINIA BRITISH CEYLON S ROMANIA LIBERIA SOMALILAND E CAMEROON ITALIAN IT R GOLD B Black Sea BRITISH EAST SOMALILAND COAST A MONT. I BULGARIA L A AFRICA L FRENCH A Y RIO MUNI BELGIAN (Spain) CONGO G ALB. SPAIN CONGO U GERMAN EAST T OTTOMAN AFRICA INDIAN R M e d O i t GREECE EMPIRE P e ANGOLA r r NORTHERN OCEAN a DODECANESE RHODESIA MADAGASCAR ALGERIA n (Italy) TUNISIA e SOUTHERN (France) (France) a n MOROCCO S e a CYPRUS GERMAN RHODESIA (France) (Britain) SOUTH WEST BECHUANA- PORTUGUESE AFRICA LAND EAST LIBYA AFRICA (Italy) EGYPT (Britain) UNION OF SOUTH AFRICA Austro-Hungarian emperor In the Balkan Wars of Franz Joseph, here holding court in 1912–13, Serbia, Greece, The arrival of the German Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, was Romania, and Bulgaria fought gunboat Panther off Agadir in head of a vast but restless empire against Ottoman Turkey and July 1911 was a challenge to with a large Slav population. Its against one another. Serbia French imperial ambitions in annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina gained military strength and Morocco. The episode brought in 1908 angered Serbia. confidence in these conflicts. Europe to the brink of war. series of wars in the 1860s and 1870s established Germany leading up to World War I, peace was maintained by a balance of A as Europe’s dominant military power. In the 1890s, France power between the two hostile alliance systems. The European states and Russia formed an alliance to counter the might of Germany and expanded their armed forces and equipped them with the latest its close ally, Austria-Hungary. In the first decade of the 20th century, technology. They developed plans for the rapid mobilization of Britain, feeling threatened by the growth of the German navy, mass conscript armies that threatened to turn any confrontation abandoned its traditional isolationism and a formed an entente— into full-scale war. Every country felt that the side that struck first a loose unofficial alliance—with France and Russia. In the years would have a decisive advantage. 12 THE TROUBLED CONTINENT 1870–1914 1870 – 1914 New technology transformed the nature of warfare. This Russian Ilya Mourometz was the world’s largest aircraft on the eve of World War I. Capable of carrying bombs, it was widely imitated. CANADA Woodrow Wilson, U.S. president from 1913, here addressing an American audience, was a UNITED STATES high-principled political leader who, JAPANESE CHINA OF AMERICA in August 1914, declared the EMPIRE United States strictly neutral. BRITISH HONDURAS MEXICO DOMINICAN REPUBLIC PACIFIC CUBA VIRGIN ISLANDS ATLANTIC Mariana Hawaiian Islands LEEWARD ISLANDS Islands HAITI WINDWARD ISLANDS SIAM PHILIPPINE HONDURAS FRENCH GUATEMALA BARBADOS INDOCHINA ISLANDS GUAM OCEAN NICARAGUA OCEAN Marshall Islands EL SALVADOR TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO BRITISH COSTA RICA GERMAN PACIFIC TERRITORIES VENEZUELA BRITISH GUIANA NORTH BORNEO CANAL ZONE PANAMA DUTCH GUIANA BRUNEI Caroline Islands Christmas COLOMBIA FRENCH GUIANA SARAWAK Gilbert Island Islands MALAYA Bismarck Nauru ECUADOR KAISER Archipelago Cook WILHELMSLAND Islands DUTCH EAST INDIES Solomon P Islands Ellice PAPUA Islands E BRAZIL German Samoa R PORTUGUESE (Western) U TIMOR New French Polynesia Hebrides Tonga Fiji BOLIVIA PA New RA G Caledonia U AUSTRALIA A E Y L I H URUGUAY C ARGENTINA An industrial giant by the beginning of the 20th century, the United States was manufacturing munitions for the European arms FALKLAND ISLANDS race well before 1914. America’s own army was small, and it relied THE WORLD IN JULY 1914 upon its navy for defense. Frontiers The behavior of Germany’s leader, Kaiser Wilhelm II, was aggressive minorities, including Serbs, within its own borders. In June 1914, and erratic, particularly during the Moroccan Crisis of 1911. But the a Serb terrorist assassinated the heir to the Austro-Hungarian spark that ignited war came in the Balkans, where states such throne. Austria-Hungary was determined to use this as a pretext as Serbia had become independent of Ottoman Turkish rule in the for a war with Serbia. 19th century. Russia had ambitions to spread its influence in the When Russia mobilized in defense of Serbia, Germany declared Balkans as the champion of the Slav peoples. This led to hostile war on Russia and France. The German invasion of neutral Belgium relations with Austria-Hungary, which was at odds with restless Slav then ensured that a hesitant Britain would enter the conflict. 13 THE TROUBLED CONTINENT 1870–1914 TIMELINE 1870 – 1914 Franco-Prussian War ■ Rival military alliances ■ Wilhelm II is Kaiser ■ Boer War ■ Anglo-German naval race ■ Moroccan Crises ■ Wars in the Balkans ■ Assassination in Sarajevo ■ Declarations of war 1870 – 1880 1881 – 1890 1891 – 1900 1901 – 1902 1903 – 1904 1905 – 1906 JULY 1870 1881 1891 1901 Outbreak of the Russia joins Germany Architect of Germany’s Discussions about Franco-Prussian War. and Austria-Hungary prewar planning Alfred a possible alliance in the League of the von Schlieffen becomes between Britain JANUARY 1871 Three Emperors. German Chief of the and Germany come France is defeated. General Staff. to nothing. The King of Prussia 1882 is declared Emperor The Triple Alliance JANUARY 1894 JANUARY 1901 of Germany. is formed between Franco-Russian Alliance Death of Queen Germany, Austria- is concluded. Victoria. Hungary, and Italy. Alfred von Schlieffen 1884 MARCH 1901 MARCH 1903 King Edward VII visits Paris for the Entente Cordiale The Maxim gun, the In the Boer War, the Germans make plans first true machine gun, British adopt the policy of with Ottoman Turkey is invented. The Berlin moving Boer civilians into to build a railroad 1905 Conference formalizes concentration camps. between Berlin German army adopts the the division of Africa and Baghdad. Schlieffen Plan for fighting between European SEPTEMBER 1901 a war on two fronts. colonial powers. China signs a humiliating DECEMBER 1903 treaty with foreign The Wright brothers powers after suppression make the first powered of the Boxer Rebellion. heavier-than-air flight. JUNE 1888 1898 JANUARY 1902 FEBRUARY 1904 MARCH 1905 Wilhelm II becomes Germany begins naval Britain establishes Russo-Japanese War begins. Japanese army defeats emperor (Kaiser) expansion, starting a military alliance the Russians at the Battle of Germany. an Anglo-German with Japan. APRIL 1904 of Mukden. Germany naval race. Britain forms the Entente provokes the First Cordiale with France. Moroccan Crisis to test the OCTOBER 1899 Anglo-French Entente, 1889 The Boer War in South which holds firm. Russia begins a Africa reveals rapprochement deficiencies in the with France. British Army. 1890 1900 MAY 1902 MAY 1905 European armies begin First effective Boer War ends in The Imperial Japanese to adopt bolt-action submarines come into British victory. Navy destroys a Russian repeater rifles, service. First flight of fleet at the Battle of French Legion of Honor increasing infantry Zeppelin airship. Tsushima. medal rate of fire. SEPTEMBER 1905 MARCH 1878 Russo-Japanese War Defeated in war with Russia, ends in humiliating Ottoman Turkey is forced to defeat for Russia. recognize the independence of Serbia and Romania. 1879 JUNE 1902 FEBRUARY 1906 Germany and Triple Alliance HMS Dreadnought is Austria-Hungary form between Germany, launched, rendering the Dual Alliance. Austria-Hungary, and all earlier battleships Italy is renewed. obsolete. Belgian machine gun Kaiser Wilhelm II 14 TIMELINE 1870–1914 “The accelerating arms race is… a crushing burden that weighs on all nations and, if prolonged, will lead to the very cataclysm it seeks to avert.” TSAR NICHOLAS II, ADDRESSING THE HAGUE CONFERENCE, 1899 1907 – 19081909 – 1910 1911 19121913 1914 MARCH 1909 JULY FEBRUARY 12 MARCH 23–MAY 30 Germany backs General Joseph Joffre is China becomes a Bulgarians capture Austria-Hungary over appointed commander-in- republic as the last Adrianople, Turkey, the annexation of chief of the French army. emperor abdicates. in First Balkan War. Bosnia-Herzegovina, Treaty of London forcing Russia to redraws boundaries. withdraw its opposition JULY 1 by threatening war. Arrival of German gunboat JUNE 29 in Tangier provokes the Second Balkan War Second Moroccan Crisis, begins. Bulgaria fights Political postcard of taking Europe to the Serbia, Greece, and European balancing act brink of war.