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Treaty of London
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Appointed Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
Appointed Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Prussia by Kaiser Wilhelm I, Bismarck was consumed wiith a desire to acheive the creation of a German Empire out of the collection of smaller German states largly led by Austria influence. -
Franco-Prussian War
Almost immediately following her defeat by Prussia in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, together with the humiliating annexation by the newly unified Germany of the coal-rich territories of Alsace and Lorraine, the French government and military alike were united in thirsting for revenge. -
Bismark Turned Up the Heat
By releasing a doctored version of a telegram from the Kaiser to Bismarck. -
Napoleon III military commanders responed by declaring war against Prussia
Napoleon III, facing civil revolt at home over quite unrelated matters, and receving encouraging noises from his military commanders responed by declaring war against Prussia five days later. -
Ally of the salvs
Russia, ally of the salvs - and therefore of Serbia - had been struggling to hold back full-scale revolution ever since the revolution in the Japanese military disaster. -
Russia's anxiety to restore some semblance
Russia's anxiety tjo restore some semblance of national prestige after almost a decade of civil strife and battering at the hands of the Japanese military. -
Battle of Tsushima
Among other set-peices, the Japanese astonished the western powers by destroying the entire Russian fleet at the Battle of Tsushima for the loss of two torpedo boats. -
Italy versus Turkey
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Various alliances that were at play
It's possible to delve deeply into European history in the quest to unearth the roots of the various alliances that were at play. -
The first battle
The explosive that was World War One had been long in the stockpiling; the spark was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914.
