What were the reasons for the world wars
Welcome to fixya,
There were many reasons for the world war I .It is broadly divided into long term and immediate causes.The
immediate cause of the Great War was the assassination of Archduke
Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. He was visiting
Sarajevo when he was assassinated on 28 June 1914 by a Serbian
nationalist society known as the Black Hand. Austria-Hungary claimed
that the Serbian government was implicated in the plot and made demands
upon Serbia which Serbia was unable to fulfill. Using that as an excuse
and desiring to crush the nationalist movement in Serbia, wishing to
control the area of the Balkans, and backed by Germany, Austria-Hungary
declared war on Serbia on 28 July. The alliance systems then in effect
caused the other major powers to enter the war. Russia was bound by
treaty to come to the aid of Serbia. Germany viewed Russia's
mobilization as an act of war against Austria-Hungary and declared war
on Russia on 1 August. France was bound by treaty to come to the aid of
Russia. When Germany invaded Belgium to attack France, Great Britain,
allied to France, declared war against Germany. Attempting to remain
neutral as long as possible, the United States entered the war as a
result of German unrestricted submarine warfare. Our freedom of the seas
was threatened by German activity on the high seas.
Underlying causes of the war included militarism, the build up of German
military force, especially the Navy, which was seen as a threat to
Great Britain. The desire for colonies, especially by Germany, since she
entered the quest for colonies (imperialism) late in the game and,
again, that was viewed as a threat to Great Britain and France. And
nationalism, especially in the area of Europe known as the Balkans. The
various nationalities were demanding independence or a larger part in
the government of those nations that presided over them.
Hope this helps.
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