Causes of the Great War

1
Causes of the Great War
Who is to Blame?
2

• Source A
• On 6 July, Bethmann, the German Foreign
  Minister, told the Austrians, "Austria must judge
  what is to be done with Serbia. But whatever
  Austria's decision, you can count upon it that
  Germany will stand by you as an ally." He added,
  "If war must break out, better now than in one or
  two years' time when .the Triple Entente will be
  stronger."
• Kaiser Wilhelm and Bethmann did more than give
  Austria-Hungary a free hand. They encouraged the
  Austrians to start a war and to risk the
  consequences. If it came to world war, they were
  confident of winning now but less confident of
  winning later. If they had wanted a peaceful
  solution, they would have approached the British
  at once. Instead, they did nothing, hoping to
  keep Britain neutral in a continental war.
• From A. J. P. Taylor, 'The Struggle for Mastery
  in Europe', 1954.

3
Source B A British postcard from 1914 showing
Kaiser Wilhelm.




4

• Source C
• A German cigarette card from about 1900, with a
  quotation from a famous German General, Moltke,
  who said, 'War is an element in God's natural
  order of things.'

5
Source D A cartoon drawn during the
Moroccan crisis of 1911. The French and Spanish
children playing round the pond turn to Uncle
John Bull (Britain), who looks sternly on at the
German boy who is interrupting their game.
Britain's strong stand in support of France over
Morocco forced Germany to withdraw its demands.
Look carefully at the boats floating in the pond.
6

• Source E
• A German cartoon from about 1910. Germany is
  shown peacefully watering his garden. An
  uncivilized bully, his Russian neighbour,
  threatens him from over the fence.

7

• Source F
• A cartoon dated about 1900. It shows Germany
  breast-feeding the Prussian army and kicking away
  the thinker. The cartoonist believed that Germany
  gave too much influence to generals and that this
  made it a warlike state.

8
Source I A British propaganda Poster from
World War I. Try to pay particular attention
to the small text in this poster.
9

• Source G
• The Kaiser's aims were largely defensive. He
  had to prop up his ally, Austria. The longer
  Austria's decline went on, the weaker the Triple
  Alliance became. He needed to break free of the
  encircling powers of the Triple Entente he
  needed to fend off Russia, the military revenge
  by France and trading domination by Britain. He
  dreaded war on two fronts. He felt that war was
  bound to happen so he had to decide the timing.
  He had to create a mighty army and navy and give
  power to their leaders.
• From Ed Rayner and Ron Stapley, 'GCSE World
  History', 1988.

10

• Source H
• Lord Grey could have prevented war. Early in the
  crisis he could have responded to France and
  Russia and given a strong warning to Germany that
  Britain would take the side of the Franco-Russian
  Alliance. This would have led Germany to try to
  hold back the Austrians. It might have prevented
  the declaration of war on Serbia. Or Lord Grey
  could have warned France and Russia that Britain
  would remain neutral. Russia would then have
  hesitated with its mobilization against Austria
  and Germany.
• From Sidney Bradshaw Fay, 'Origins of the World
  War', 1930.

11

• Source J
• In Germany, fear of growing isolation dominated.
  Austria-Hungary was Germany's last ally and thus
  seemed to deserve support at all cost. The
  German government, in particular, felt under
  increasing pressure from the generals and from
  right-wing opinion to wage war at the next
  feasible opportunity. Diplomatic means to
  counteract the encirclement of the country had
  proven counterproductive and seemed exhausted.
  Russia, moreover, was industrializing rapidly,
  its population grew at a pace that alarmed
  Germans, and their concern heightened when
  Russia, with French money, began to build
  railways to the German border and alongside it.
  Germans now feared that they could be crushed
  within a few weeks if France and Russia decided
  to wage a two-front war against Germany.
• Raffael Scheck, Associate Professor and Chair
  History Department, Colby College, USA