Lecture 1

Question 1

Concert diplomacy

Answer 1

Since the Napoleonic Wars concluded, Euro states have been using formal meetings (Congresses/Conferences) among the great powers to manage European politics. Up until the 1860s/70s this system was built around preventing a single power from dominating Europe (the source of the problem with Napoleon). It is beginning to shift away from this view and more towards using conferences/diplomacy to manage international problems. This has been done with some success: The Congress of Berlin, 1878, sorts out some disputes relating to the bits of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans gaining independence and the Berlin Conference of 1885 (also known as the Congo Conference) sorts out colonial rights and possessions in Africa (organized by Bismarck). Worth considering why this system stops working in 1914.

Question 2

‘Sick man of diplomacy’

Answer 2

The Ottoman empire had been losing control over its component states since 1878; considerable unrest; ‘sick man of Europe’. Important to recognize that it stretched between Europe (eg Greece, the Balkans); and the middle east (Iraq) and Africa (Tunisia).

There is a power vacuum when there is a declining power in the international system. Realists tell us someone will try to fill the vacuum. Independence trying to fill vacuum, potential birth of a range of new states. Austria Hungary want territory but aren’t trying to take it. They have minorities, giving people inside their empire ideas about independence.

From feedback
The “Sick man of Europe” is a term referring to the Ottoman Empire. From 1878 onwards, the Ottoman Empire began to lose a lot of territory because certain areas of
the Empire were becoming independent states such as Greece and Bulgaria. The Ottoman Empire had originally encompassed parts of Southern Europe, such as the
Balkans, the Middle East, such as Iraq, and Africa, such as Tunisia.. The term ‘sick man’ was derived particularly from the considerable unrest within the Empire during this time.
As a result of the Ottoman Empire beginning to dwindle in power, it created a potential source of conflict between other European states due to the imbalance of power created
by the decrease in the OE’s influence. Other European states strived to encompass the states previously part of the Ottoman Empire in order to increase their power and
influence over international politics. This idea is similar to realists’ idea that a balance of power is required between states to maintain international order, with an imbalance of
power creating potential conflicts between states.

Question 3

Russo-Japanese War

Answer 3

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Question 4

Scramble for Africa

Answer 4

Spread of colonization is extremely rapid from the 1850s onwards; this means that Euro states have potential flashpoints for conflict all over the world, in addition to issues on European soil. Serious colonial wars (eg the Opium Wars) are recent. Anti-colonial pressures already exist, particularly in Asia.

If you want to compete/great power you need a colony for its status symbol, its resources, raw materials, people. Colonies as status symbols and real contributors to a state’s power. From 1880-1913 there is significant increase in number of colonies in Africa. Italy and Germany don’t get significant colonial possessions.
People who missed out on colonies feel it acutely because it just happened. People understand warfare and are trained in warfare with a colonial lens. The British are not used to fighting other Europeans, they are used to fighting the people in colonies. France and Germany are used to fighting each other. Everybody else preoccupied with colonial warfare. People coming to WW1 with training in a very different type of warfare.
Anti-colonial agitation all over colonial world, most intensely in modern-day India and Pakistan. Colonial administrators cannot hold colonies without a significant amount of force.

From feedback

• The Scramble for Africa reflects the rapid colonization and partition of the African
  continent by the European powers from the 1880s onwards. The process was
  accommodated by concert diplomacy occurring at that time, particularly the
  Berlin Conference of 1885, where European powers discussed and distributed
  various colonial possessions between themselves.
• The Scramble for Africa is significant because it represents a paradigm shift in the
  international order where great powers essentially required colonial possessions
  for their status. The scramble also exemplifies realist theory of international
  relations, which predicts that states will take advantage of power vacuums to
  advance their geopolitical or strategic interest. The scramble also contributed to
  European tensions in that rising powers like Germany felt they were unfairly
  denied the opportunity to acquire colonial possessions. The lasting deleterious
  effect of the scramble are still felt today through various post-colonial human
  rights critiques, and the effort for previously colonial states to gain independence.