The Causes Of The Beginning Of World War I

The war began in the Balkans in late July 1914 and ended in November 1918. The war would consist of Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire (Central Powers) on one side and Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy and Japan (Allied Powers) on the other. When Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in 1914, Austria would use this event to help push them into war with Serbia. This is the event that most feel was the start of World War I. Even though there had been trouble in the Balkan region the year leading up to it. With the war starting, there was excitement at the beginning from the people. Europeans felt a since of pride and duty towards their countries. Many people believed that the war would be done and over within months. Contrary to the belief of a short war, there was those who believed it would last anywhere from 18 months to a couple of years. With the advances in technology, they thought it would be quick compared to wars of the past. There to was the assumption that because some of the wars that were prior to this one had been shorter that nothing would be any different in this one. But, we wouldn’t see it end so quickly. Among some, the thought that a country couldn’t maintain a war for long periods of time because of …show more content…
They had thought that they would be able to put a quick end to the war by using the Schlieffen Plan of attack. This plan was to move into northern France, sweep around Paris and surround most of the French army (767). Some German leaders worried that an invasion from Russia to the east was an issue. With that logic, the Schlieffen Plan would be hard pressed to work as designed with a strong right flank to help in the taking of Paris. The French would hunker down in the trenches making it difficult for the German’s to advance. It would turn into a stalemate, where they come to the conclusion that neither side was going to give