10 Events that Led to World

War I
World War I was caused by a combination of several factors but above
all, it was caused by the tensions between the European powers and
crisis of the balance-of-power system that divided Europe into two
camps. While one camp, joining Great Britain, France and Russia (Triple
Entente) strove to preserve the fragile balance between the European
great powers, the second camp that formed around German Empire,
Austria-Hungary and Italy (Central Powers) was challenging it.
Discussed below are specific events that led to one of the most
devastating military conflicts in history.

Franco-Prussian War

The war between France and Prussia (the future German Empire) that
lasted from 1870 to 1871 ended with a humiliating defeat for France. It
lost the regions of Alsace and Lorraine, and was forced to pay a huge
indemnity to Prussia. The Franco-Prussian War led to creation of a
powerful German Empire with a military and industrial potential to
further disrupt the European balance of power on the one hand and
widespread resentment and desire for revenge among the French
(revanchism) on the other.

Accession of Wilhelm II to the German Throne

With the accession of Wilhelm II to the German throne in 1888, the
German foreign policy became more bellicose. The new German
Emperor dismissed the skillful Otto von Bismarck as Chancellor. He also
refused to renew the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia that maintained
the fragile peace between Russia and Austria-Hungary as well as kept
France isolated. That way Wilhelm II helped create an alliance between
France and Russia (formed in 1892) that became the basis for the future
Triple Entente.

Russo-Japanese War

Russo-Japanese rivalry over Manchuria and Korea reached its height

with the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). The outcome of the war
against the Japanese was a major blow for the Russians who lost almost
entire Baltic and Pacific fleet. The defeat also provoked a serious political
crisis that led to the Russian Revolution of 1905. But the Russo-Japanese
War also made an end to the Russian ambitions in the Far East and as a
result, the Tsarist government focused its attention to Europe, in the first
place to the Balkans. This intensified the old rivalry with Austria-
Hungary that also had a great interest in the Balkans.

Entente Cordiale

German militarism and especially the buildup of naval power convinced

Great Britain that Germany may soon establish itself as a dominant
power on the Continent. In order to create a counterweight to the
German Empire, the British decided to enter into an alliance with France
that came to be known as Entente Cordiale. In 1907, Britain also entered
into an alliance with Russia that was already in alliance with France.
This formed the Triple Entente which in turn became the core of the
Allies during World War I.

Moroccan Crises

The Moroccan Crises - the Tangler Crisis (1905-1906) and Agadir Crisis
(1911) - brought the European powers on the brink of war. Both crises
were provoked by the Germans with an aim to cause tensions between
France and Britain that just concluded an alliance. The result, however,
was right the opposite. Instead of ‘softening’ Britain and bring it closer
to the Central Powers, the Moroccan Crises further reinforced the
Entente Cordiale and increased the British hostility towards Germany.

Bosnian Annexation Crisis

In 1908, Austria-Hungary decided to annex Bosnia and Herzegovina that

was formally an integral part of the Ottoman Empire. The annexation of
the provinces that were occupied by the Dual Monarchy since 1878 was
bitterly opposed by Serbia that was closely related to the provinces both
ethically and geographically. Serbia was supported by the Tsarist
government and the crisis persisted into 1909. Russia failed to win as
firm support from France or Britain as Vienna enjoyed from Germany
and accepted the annexation of the provinces. Serbia was forced to back
down and the crisis ended. But it permanently damaged the relationship
between Russia and Serbia on the one hand and Austria-Hungary on the
other. The annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina caused embitteredness
in Serbia, while the way it was carried out humiliated the Russian
government that could not afford a similar humiliation during the 1914
July Crisis.
Italo-Turkish War

The Italo-Turkish War that took place between 1911 and 1912 did not
pose any major threat to peace in Europe. But the Turkish defeat
revealed the weakness of the Ottoman army and disagreement between
the European powers about the so-called Eastern Questions - the fate of
the decaying Ottoman Empire. The war between the Kingdom of Italy
and the Ottoman Empire was also a strong incentive for the Balkan
League which would capture the Balkan peninsula from the Turks
independently from the great powers.

Balkan Wars

In 1912, Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and Bulgaria formed the Balkan

League, a military alliance against the Ottoman Empire. Within a few
months, the Balkan allies stripped the Ottoman Empire of its possessions
in the Balkans and divided the conquered territory among themselves.
In June, Bulgaria turned against its allies of Serbia and Greece due to a
dispute over partition of Macedonia. But the Bulgarians were defeated
within a month and forced to give up their claims in Macedonia. The
success of the Balkan League shocked most European powers including
the Russian allies of France and Great Britain. But it especially disturbed
Austria-Hungary that strongly opposed a strong Serbian state. Vienna
saw Serbia both as a rival in the Balkans and as a direct threat because it
feared that its small Balkan neighbor may become the core of a future
South-Slavic state. The Balkan Wars made Austro-Hungarian statesmen
even more determined to take concrete action to prevent further
strengthening of Serbia.
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria

On June 28, 1914, a group of conspirators from the revolutionary

movement called Mlada Bosna (‘Young Bosnia’) carried out the
assassination of the Austro-Hungarian heir presumptive, Archduke
Franz Ferdinand and his wife while they were visiting Sarajevo. Since
the assassin, Gavrilo Princip and his 5 accomplices were Bosnian Serbs,
the Dual Monarchy accused Serbia to stand behind the assassination.
The event triggered the course of events that directly led to the outbreak
of World War I but it did not cause it. Austria-Hungary was determined
to eliminate the ‘Serbian threat’ before the assassination of its heir
presumptive and it only needed an excuse to declare war on its Balkan
neighbor.

July Ultimatum

On July 23, Austria-Hungary presented an ultimatum to Serbia. Vienna,

however, intentionally imposed impossible demands to Serbia in order
to be able to declare war on its neighbor for ‘orchestrating’ the
assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. A few days later,
the Austro-Hungarian troops invaded Serbia and started the devastating
World War I.