sondhaus Flashcards
Who said “Thank God, it is a Great War!”?
General Viktor Dankl, commander designate of the Austio-Hungarian First Army said these words on July 31, 1914, the day it became clear that that the dispute between Austria-Hungary and Serbia would not be resolved peacefully or limited to a Balkan War.
What made the Great War a “World War”?
the action extended to the Far East, the south pacific, Sub-saharan Africa
more than one million men from the British and French Empires would see action on Eiropean battlefields
the United states had an army of more than two million men in France by 1918
european countries accounted for a minority of states participating in the postwar peace conference
What were some of the conditions in Europe pre WWI that contributed to it?
The Anglo-Boer War
The Russo-Japanese War
The Balkan wars of 1912-1913
Darwinism
Militarism, including the fighting in South Africa, Manchuria, and the Blkans
What was the Anglo Boer War? What was its impact on Europe?
The Anglo-Boer war (1899 - 1902)
underscored the isolation of Britain, made its leaders self-conscious about continuing teh “special isolation” of teh Pax Brittanica, and led to its partnerships with Japan, France, and and Russia
What impact did the Russo Japanese War have on pre-WWI Europe?
The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) confirmed Japan’s emergence as a great power and exposed Russia’s weaknesses
When did Japan enter WWI?
In 1914, and embolded Japan used its tie to Britain as a pretext for intervening in WWI.
What did Russia want to demonstrate by entering into WWI?
That it had recovered from the outcome of teh Russo-Japanese War
What impact did the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913 have on the Balkans?
It made them more volitile than ever, as each of teh Blakan countries emerges with more territory and larger populations, but harbored grander ambitions. Serbia, in particular, had the highest of those ambitions and those ambitions could only be fulfilled at the expense of Austria-Hungary.
What other dynamics contributed to Europe’s appetite for war by 1914?
Overheated nationalism, sharpened by Darwinism, established a context in which both the general public and political and intellectual leaders would accept, if not welcome, the prospect of a general war.
What military experiences should have provided Europe with insight into the potential consequences of a total war?
The fighting in Manchuria, South Africa, and the Balkans should have provided some insight, but strategists and tacticians refused to abandon their faith in offensive warfare (over -confidence).
The wars of 1889 -1913 served notice that a successful modern war effort required the wholehearted support of the home front. The anti-peace riots in Tokyo that gretted the treaty ending the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, along with the Bulgarian public’s rejection of the treaty ending the First Balkan War in 1913, served as reminders that when civilian populations supported a war, they would accept nothing less than total victory.
What is Sondhaus’ view of the start of WWI and its first casualties?
Sondhaus writes that the shots fired by Gavrilo Princip on June 28, 1914 to assassinate Archduk Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophia, were the first shots of the war and that the Archdule and Sophia were its first casualties.
Who does Sondhaus say started WWI?
Sondhaus says that Serbia started WWI on the morning of June 28, 1914 in Sarajevo, with the shots that killed the Archduke and Sophia.
How does Sondaus characterize Serbia in 1914?
Sondhous characterizes Serbia as a dysfunctional or semi-failed state that operated like a revolutionary state becasue a rogue element within its own army, supported or tolerated by elements within its political mainstream operated an international terrorist organization.
How does Sondhaus dintinguish Serbia from revolutionary states?
Sondhaus points out that revolutionary states like the later Soviet Union and Islamic Republic of Iran had central authorities that dictated its interactions with the outside world on two levels:conventionally, via embassies and international organizations; and covertly, via revolutionary or terrorist activity.
How does Sondhaus distinguish Serbia from a weak or failed state?
Sondhaus points out that Afganistan, a weak and failed state at the end of the 20th century, played host to radical foreign non-state actors with whom its leaders shared a general sympathy.
He also points out that unlike a tue failed state, Serbia was internally unified behind a single national idea; the strength of that idea made Serbia dangerous, because it caused so many Serbian leaders to condonr the terrorists on the grounds that their national goal was to fulfill the national idea.
According to Sondhaus, what provided the context for Austria-Hungary’s decision to resolve its Serbian problem by war in 1914?
Serbia’s program of state-sponsored or state-condoned terrorism against Austria-Hungary.
Was Austria-Hungary willing to risk a broader conflict with Russia to solve it Serbian problem?
Yes, so long as it had the support of Germany?
Why
Why did Austria-Hungary expect Russia to back down?
Austria-Hungary expected Russia to back down and abadndon Serbia once it heard of German intervention because Russia backed down for that reason in the bosnian crisis of 1908-1909.
