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Prussia's blood-and-iron chancellor, Otto von Bismarck wanted to maintain peace in Europe. He thought the France was the greatest threat to peace because he believed France still wanted revenge after being defeated in the Franc-Prussian War. Bismarck wanted to isolate France because he thought it France had no allies it would pose no danger. In 1879 he formed the Dual alliance between Geramany and Austria-Hungary.
Alliance System - a union or association formed for mutual benefit, esp. between -
Italy joined Germany and Austria-Hungary in their alliance forming the Triple Alliance. In 1881 Bismarck made a treaty with Russia.
Triple Alliance - a union or association between three powers or states, in particular that made in 1668 between England, the Netherlands, and Sweden against France, and that in 1882 between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy against France and Russia. -
Kaiser Wilhelm II, the ruler of Gremany, forced Bismarck to resign. Wilhelm II did not want to share power with anyone. Wilhelm lapsed his treaty with Russia in 1890.
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After Wilhem llapsed his treaty with Russia, Russia responded by forming an alliance with France. This had been Bisarck's fear.
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In Europe people believed in order to be truly great they needed a strong military. For some people having a large and strong standing army made them feel patriotic, but for others it frightened them. Another force that helped set the stage for war in Europe was imperialism.
Militarism - the policy of golifying military power and keeping an army prepared for war.
Imperialism - a policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force -
Kaiser Wilhelm declares his support for the sultan of Morocco. This angers France and Britain and provokes theme to start the First Moroccan Crisis.
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Wilhelm began a shipbuilding program in order to make the German navy equal to the British fleet. Alarmed, Great Britain formed an entente (alliance) with France. In 1907, Britain made another alliance, but this time with both France and Russia.
Triple Entente - an early-20th-century alliance between Great Britain, France, and Russia. Originally a series of loose agreements, the Triple Entente began to assume the nature of a more formal alliance as the prospect of war with the Central Powers be -
With a long history of nationalist uprisings and eth- nic clashes, the Balkans was known as the “powder keg” of Europe. In 1908, Austria took over, Bosnia and Herzegovina. This angered Serbian Leaders whou wanted to rule the areas. This caused a lot of tension in the following years. Serbians pledged to Take the countries away from Austria. Austria-Hungary pledged to crush any Serbian effort to take away Austria-Hungary's authority in the Balkans. Nationalism - advocacy of political independence
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On June 28, 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife, Sophie visited Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. They were shot as they drove through the streets of Sarajevo in an open car. Gavrilo Princip, a 19-year-old Serbian member of the Black Hand was the killer. The Black Hand was a secret society that tryed to rid Bosnia of Austrian rule.
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Austria-Hungary’s declaration of war against Serbia set off a chain reaction and the countries of Europe followed through on their pledges to support one another. As a result In the late summer of 1914, millions of soldiers marched off to battle. They were convinced the war would be short. Summer turned to fall and the war turned into a long and bloody stalemate, along the battlefields of France. This deadlocked region in northern France became known as the Western Front.
