IGCSE History:

World War 1

Week 15: Causes of WW1

 What caused World War I?
STARTER:
Source analysis – a
map of Europe in
1914 and in 2017.

Study the maps you

have been given,
then spend five
minutes answering a
challenge from
below.

Challenging: Describe five differences you notice between the maps.

More Challenging: Explain why these maps have changed so much in

100 years (using your own contextual knowledge) and explain one
inference about the largest European powers in the 1914 map.

Mega Challenging: Analyse why there are so many smaller countries

in the second map and what the different colours of the countries in
the 1914 map might signify.
Starter
 Key terms:
• Triple Entente: Alliance between Britain, France and Russia
What caused • Triple Alliance: Alliance between Germany, Italy and Austria-
World War I? Hungary.
• Balkan Wars – wars for independence after the Ottoman
Empire lost control over the Balkans.
Watch the clips and complete one set of
the questions below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmTMJ_yMZrk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anwPsESzrF0

Challenge:
1. Who had controlled the Balkans?
2. Who mainly occupied the Balkans and what did they want?
3. Which countries bordered the region?
4. What happened in 1908?
5. What happened in 1914?
6. Who were enlarged by the Balkan wars and when were these?

More challenging:
1. Why did the Ottoman Empire leave the Balkans?
2. Why did Austria and Russia want the Balkans?
3. Why did Russia and Serbia back down in 1908?
4. Why weren’t Austria happy with Serbia becoming powerful?

Mega challenging:
1. Explain who was killed, why, by who and the implications of this.
2. Why was War declared? What were the different reasons.
3. What affected how Austria-Hungary acted? Why and how?
 • Germany hadn’t really been the country we would recognise
it as today until 1870. Before then it was just a collection of
small states with no central government controlling them. It
was only after a series of wars that Count Von Bismark
unified Germany under the rule of the emperor, which
Germans referred to as ‘the Kaiser’.
• During a war with France in 1870, Germany had taken from
Alliances and France an area of land called Alsace-Lorraine, in an attempt
to weaken its rival, build German territory further and keep
Rivalries France isolated.
• At this point Britain, separated by sea from these wars, was
not really interested in alliances with its continental
neighbours. Britain ignored Germany’s progress as she
successfully allied herself to Austria-Hungary, Turkey and
also Russia. This really did leave France isolated and without
useful allies. When Bismark was dismissed in 1890, the
alliance with Russia began to collapse under Kaiser Wilhelm
II. This would in time prove to be disastrous for Germany.
 Alliances
• To recap, because of its alliances, Germany became the most powerful
country in Europe, and head of the alliance group the ‘Central Powers’
(Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Italy). France on the other hand was
falling behind not only in diplomacy with other countries but also in
terms of growth, population and industry. However, during the 1890s,
France began to develop closer diplomatic ties with Russia – taking
the place of Germany, which forced growth in both countries.
Britain steps in
• At this point Britain began to grow concerned about Russian interests
Alliances and in India and their plans to expand their trade and territory into the
British Empire. They almost joined Germany in the Central Alliance.
However, when Japan defeated Russia in the 1904-5 War, Britain
Rivalries realised that perhaps an alliance with France and therefore with
Russia, was a safer bet than their current policy, which had isolated
them. By 1907, France, Britain and Russia had all joined a group called
the ‘Triple Entente’ (triple friendship). This bound them not to fight
against each other, but they could still start wars with other countries
outside the entente. It didn’t mean the other members of the group
had to lend support or fight with them however.
• The groups were formed for reassurance. They weren’t formed to
pitch war against each other, although they certainly increased rivalry,
as both groups began to realise the other was a potential threat and
therefore began to stock pile arms, as part of their contingency plans.
This arms race made war seem inevitable as tension and nationalism
amongst the two alliances increased.
Alliances and Rivalries
Colonial Rivalry
Britain already had a very large Empire and France and Germany both
wanted the same and were trying to out-do each other. They were both
after Morocco, in North Africa. When the Kaiser suffered a setback in his
plans through the Conference of Algeciras in 1906, he was sure that it was
because France and Britain had been working together to out-do him.
The French then tried to take to take over Morocco, the Kaiser then sent a
military boat called the Panther to Agadir. Britain did not want the Germans
to have a naval base in the Mediterranean and so at a conference with
France the two decided to stand firmly together on the issue and defend
each other’s interests. France succeeded in taking Morocco and so
Germany instead expanded its territory in central Africa. The Kaiser cut
friendly ties with his British cousins and never again visited, France and
Britain decided to use their navy to defend each other’s interests. The
entente became a true alliance.
 Reasons tensioned increased and category: Reason I think this is the category it belongs to: Significance overall for starting World War I and why.

Activity: write down six different

reasons why tensions increased
between the European powers
during this time.

Ideas for categories –

Increased rivalry Increased
nationalism Lack of stability
Colonial ambitions
 What were the most significant causes for the
increase in tensions and eventual outbreak of
WWI?
Activity: