Was Germany to Blame for WW2
The question of whether or not Germany was to blame for the instigation or World War One has been a key question which many historians like, Ficher, and many others have tried to rationally answer but there is a level of controversy involved. The common belief is that the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand was the spark, which set off the war. Besides this factor, there were other contributing instances which both indicate Germany's participation and other nations in Europe creating the war such as political alliances, imperialist ambitions, nationalism and militarism. For years, the European nations had been making alliances with eachother. It was thought the alliances would promote peace in the continent. Their allies in case of war would thus protect each country. This made it a foolish mistake if one country was to instigate a war on another. The danger of these alliances was that an argument between two countries could draw all the other nations into a fight. The formation of alliances did not do what was expected to happen, instead it created conflict, and this can be said to be cause, which led to World War 1. The Triple Alliance composed of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, stood opposed to the Triple Ente
nte composed of Britain, France, and Russia were of major concern. With the formation of the Triple Alliance in 1871 two new major countries in Europe had been formed-the German Empire and the kingdom of Italy. The new German Empire, under the hand of Otto von Bismarck, was directed cautiously, with their eye on France. This was because during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870-71 France was left yearning for their revenge and for the recovery of provinces of Alsace and Lorraine that they had lost. This gave France an incentive for war against the Germans and Italians. France had the taste of bitterness in her mouth for many years, and the international tensions occurring in the area seemed a perfect time to get revenge, and their land back. This nationalistic view is troublesome. This 'plot' coincides with Keegan's view that all governments were responsible for the lead up to the Great War, and not only Germany was to blame although Germany did cause much tension. With the fear of Russia and it's shear size in numbers, the Germans asserted the decision in December 1912 that "Germany should launch a war at the first favorable opportunity". With objectives of growth and strength for the country, Germany aimed at annexing territory in the east of Europe and possibly in the west if possible. The Germans backed the Austrians also due to this factor. The Austrians had a strong grip on the Balkan states, and with this power Austria had, Germany believed it could also gather area in the Balkans (east of Europe). This push by Austria who was backed by Germany into the Slav areas would lead to the First Balkan War. In this war Russia pressed to prevent the Austrian expansion into the Balkans. An alliance made up of Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia,
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Approximate Word count = 1175
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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