Why Was There Tension In Europe In 1914

During the summer of 1914, tension in Europe that had been growing for many years reached its breaking point with the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian terrorist group. Following the assassination, the Austrian-Hungary government and Serbia entered into what became an intricate chain of political disputes. Within less than a month, two coalitions emerged—the Central Powers, which primarily consisted of Germany and Austria-Hungary, and the Allied Powers, which included France, Russia, and Great Britain. As confrontations between the two coalitions persisted, Russia began to mobilize its forces to strike against Germany. Germany, feeling extremely threatened, declared war on Russia on August 1, 1914. Days later, in an attempt to neutralize any opposition from France, Germany moved its army across through Belgium to strike the French nation. …show more content…
As war raged in Europe, President Woodrow Wilson argued that the United States should remain neutral in this conflict, by urging Americans to be “impartial in thought as well as in action.” Americans readily embraced Wilson’s neutral stance, given the distance between the United States and Europe Although approximately one-third of American citizens had been born in Europe or were children of European immigrants, most were relieved to stay out of the conflict. While U.S. policy remained neutral, both the Central Powers and the Allied Powers used propaganda in an attempt to sway American public opinion. German propaganda focused on Russian autocracy and anti-Semitism, which appealed only to German and Irish-Americans. Britain enjoyed certain advantages in its appeal to Americans, such as a common language and a closely aligned culture (U.S. Entry