Causes of WWI Flashcards
Why was there a surge in nationalism after the annexation of Bosnia in 1908?
The annexation of Bosnia meant that Serbia was denied the chance of an Adriatic port by the Austrian expansion into 375 miles of predominantly Slavic territory.
More slavs were also under foreign control
What affect did the fall of the ottoman empire have on the aims of Balkan powers
It was the Balkan States who wanted to support those ethnic minorities they believed to be living under Turkish oppression
What year was the Italian attack on Tripoli
1911 - war with Turkey in 1912
Who was the Russian Ambassador to Serbia, was instrumental in forming the Balkan League
Nicholas Hartwig
When did Bulgaria and Serbia form an alliance
Spring 1912
What did Greece and Montenegro do in May 1912
Join Serbia and Bulgaria to form the Balkan League
The league only agreed on one thing …
The removal of the ottomans from the Balkans
What year and months did the various nations in the league declare war
September (Bulgaria) and October 1912
what treaty after the First balkan war failed to properly address the desires of the Balkan nations
Treaty of London 1913
When did Bulgaria launch their surprise attack on Serbia
28th June 1913
After the defeat of Bulgaria what happened to Serbia
The Treaty of Bucharest granted them significant amounts of Bulgarian land and the country doubled in size.
Consequences of the Balkan wars for Serbia
- Now the significant power in the region
- Angry at Austria-Hungary for their part in the treaty of London
- Nationalist groups such as the Black hand began to emerge
- HOWEVER Bulgaria lost hope in pan-slavism and moved towwards the control of A-H
In july 1913 the German Army reached what milestone
Largest army it had ever had
What was signed between Britain and France in 1912
Anglo-French Naval agreement - British naval protection given to France in case of German attack
What date was the assasination of AD Franz Ferdinand
28th June 1914
What was the Austrian reaction to the assassination
a personal level Emperor Franz Joseph was far from devastated by the death of his nephew; he didn’t think he was conservative enough and he disapproved of his marriage to the non-royal Sophie Chotek - Austrians, however, were appalled by the assassination
Who was pushing for an immediate invasion of serbia
Chief of Staff Conrad von Hotzendorf
The Austrians knew that Russia would support their client state so what did they do
Look for a guarantee of German support
What date was the ‘blank cheque handed to Austria
5th July
What promise did Germany make in the Blank cheque
‘Austria can rest assured that His Majesty will faithfully stand by Austria Hungary as is required by the obligations of its alliance’
By the 14th of July what had Austria decided
they would go to war but they decided to first draw up an ultimatum
When did the Austrians send the ultimatum
23rd July - it must be responded to in 48 hrs and the Serbians must agree to all terms
what are some areas of debate around the ultimatum
- the ultimatum was meant to be impossible to agree to however serbia nearly agreed to all terms due to their exhausted army this shows that war could have been easily avoided if A-H had been willing to have further negotiations
What was Russia’s response to the ultimatum
25th they promised to go to the limit in defence of Serbia - not necessarily military support
