The causes of WW1 - the alliance system Flashcards
1
Q
What was the dual alliance?
A
- In 1879 Austria-Hungary and Germany formed the dual alliance
- This was because they were natural allies given their shared language, culture and history
2
Q
What was the triple alliance?
A
- In 1882, Italy joined the dual alliance causing the formation of the triple alliance
- Italy was viewed as a minor partner
3
Q
What was the franco-russian alliance?
A
- In 1892 France and Russia formed the Franco-Russian alliance
- This was because: after the franco-prussian war, France was determined to protect itself against Germany. France had developed a close relationship with Russia and they signed a deal to protect each other if one of them was attacked
4
Q
What was the entente cordial?
A
- In 1904, Britain and France formed the entente cordial
- Britain was becoming increasingly concerned about Germany’s growing empire and navy and in one of its colonies, south africa, Britain had fought a war against the Boers
- Germany had supported the Boers, and as a result, Britain looked for an ally in Europe
5
Q
What was the triple entente?
A
- In 1907, France, Britain and Russia formed the entente cordial
- Britain joined the franco-russian alliance to strengthen it
6
Q
What started off the Moroccon crisis of 1905?
A
- Morocco was one of the few areas of Africa that had not been colonised by a European country
- As part of the 1904 deal between France and Britain, the British agreed to support France’s attempts to take over Morocco
- Spain and Italy both said they had no objection to France’s plans, but Kaiser Wilhelm II was determined to prevent this from happening
7
Q
What was Germany’s role in the Moroccan crisis of 1905?
A
- Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Morocco to pledge his support for Morocco’s leader, the Sultan Abdelaziz
- He arrived with a massive military presence, and vowed to protect Morocco from the French takeover
8
Q
What were Germany’s aims in the Moroccon crisis of 1905?
A
- He wanted to test the French to see how far they could be pushed
- He wanted to test the entente cordial
- He wanted to demonstrate that Germany would be involved in world affairs
9
Q
What was the impact of the Algeciras Conference of 1906?
A
- It was humiliating for Germany - only A-H supported Germany
- It was decided that France would have special rights in Morocco
- Kaiser could now be sure that the entete cordial was strong, and more than just a friendly understanding
- The relationship between Britain and France improved, and shortly after the triple alliance was formed
10
Q
What was the Moroccan crisis of 1911?
A
- Five years later there was a second crisis in Morocco
- In 1911, a rebellion against the ruling of the Sultan of Morocco broke out in Fez, the capital
- The Sultan asked France for help, and the French government sent 20,000 to fight the rebels
- Germany’s Kaiser accused France of invading Morocco, and sent the warship “panther” to the port of Agadir as a show of strength
- The British prepared for war
11
Q
What was the solution to the 1911 Moroccan crisis?
A
- A series of meeting between German, British and French politicians were held and a peaceful solution was found
- Britain and France stood firm against Germany, and the Kaiser decided to back down and order the warship to leave Agadir. He vowed to not back down again
- After a tense few weeks, the European nations agreed that France would gain control of Morocco, and in return Germany would get part of the French Congo
12
Q
What were the results of the second moroccan crisis?
A
- Germany was humiliated - they were not going to back down from another international crisis
- Many German people fully supported the Kaiser and his actions. When he spoke of war they supported him
13
Q
What is the Balkans?
A
- The Balkans is a Geographical region in south east Europe
- It consists of several small countries
14
Q
What was occuring in the Balkans at this time?
A
- For many years, the Balkans was part of the Ottoman empire
- However, by the early 1900s, The Turkish Empire was weak and different countries within the Balkans had rebelled against the Turkish Empire
- As a result of Turkey growing weaker, other strong nations such as A-H and Russia saw this as an opportunity to gain land themselves.
15
Q
What was the Balkan crisis 1908-1909?
A
- In 1908 there was a huge rebellion in Turkey
- A-H had been unofficially running Bosnia for many years, but thent ook advantage of the Turkish rebellion to announce that it was annexing Bosnia and absorbing it into the Austro-Hungarian empire
- This angered Serbia as Bosnia was a fellow slav nation, and asked Russia to take action
- Russia had strong cultural and religious links to Serbia and had been a supporter of Serbia for a long time
- Russia called for an international conference to discuss Austria-Hungary’s actions
16
Q
What happened after the Balkan crisis?
A
- Germany and A-H were close allies, but the German Kaiser was unhappy that A-H had taken over Bosnia
- However, he promised to fully support A-H just as A-H had fully supported Germany at the Algeciras conference in 1906
- Russia could either stand up for Serbia and Bosnia and take on Germany and A-H, or back down
- For now, Russia chose to back down. It was not prepared to risk war at this time because it felt it was not strong enough to take on the Germans
17
Q
What impact did the Bosnian crisis have on the countries involved?
A
- Most people in Bosnia resented Austro-hungarian rule and wanted to join with Serbia
- Several secret societies were formed in Serbia and Bosnia. Their main aim was to get rid of Austro-hungarian influence in the Balkans. Many were prepared to use violence to achieve this
- Russia had been forced to back down against Germany. They vowed this would not happen again and began building more weapons
- A-H felt that it now had the full support of Germany, which would affect how it acted in the years to come
- Italy was unhappy with A-H’s expansion into the balkans. As a result, this weakened the relationship between the two countries, and the triple alliance
18
Q
Who was in the Balkan league?
A
- Greece
- Serbia
- Bulgaria
- Montenegro
19
Q
What was the Balkan league?
A
- The Balkan league was initially set up in 1912 to expel the Turks from the Balkans
- The creation of the league was greatly encouraged by Russia
20
Q
What was the first Balkan war?
A
- In 1912, the war began when Turkey was attacked
- It was a quick and brutal war, lasting only about 50 days
- Turkey lost and, at a peace conference in London in may 1913, agreed to withdraw from all the areas that it controlled in europe
- Albania gained independence, and the remaining land was shared amongst the countries of the balkan league
21
Q
What was the aftermath of the first balkan war?
A
- The Balkan nations began to argue about the amount of land they had each taken from Turkey
- The King of Buglaria felt that his country deserved more, and declared war on Serbia and Greece to get it
22
Q
What was the second Balkan war?
A
- It lasted from June to August 1913
- Turkey joined in this second war and fought against Bulgaria
- Romania also joined, also against Bulgaria, hoping to gain land
- The war was a distaster for Bulgaria, and by the end of another fast and brutal conflict, Bulgaria had lost almost all of its gains from the first Balkan war
23
Q
What were the results of the Balkan wars?
A
- The country that gained the most from the Balkan wars was Serbia - the country almost doubled in size and was by far the strongest of the Balkan nations
- Serbia became even more detirmined to be the leader of all the Slav people in the Balkans, including those living in the territory controlled by A-H
- Many Serbs living in Bosnia were determined that their country should break free of Austro-hungarian rule and join Serbia
- A-H saw the growth of Serbia as a major threat, they had a large, experience army and were allies of Russia
- Bulgaria came out of the wars both weaker and intent on getting revenge on Serbia
