There were various underlying and immediate causes of World War One. The difference between underlying and immediate is an underlying cause is a long term event that indirectly leads to a specific event, and an immediate cause is a short term event and leads directly to another event or series of events. While the immediate cause of World War One was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, there were three main underlying causes. They are Alliances, Militarism, and Nationalism.
Alliances, a union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations. European leaders in the late nineteenth century thought that by creating a balance of power they could prevent large wars. Their idea was that if major powers of Europe were balanced in strength than no one country could dominate others. The alliances in World War One were known as the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente. The Triple Alliance was a secret agreement between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, and the Triple Entente was an agreement between France, Russia, and Great Britain. These alliances were …show more content…
Many people during this time liked the idea of war, proof of this is from a personal account given by Bertrand Russell.He said “During this and the following days I discovered to my amazement that average men and women were delighted at the prospect of war” (DBQ: “What were the Underlying Causes of World War One”.2010.p.Doc 2). Many people thought this because they thought the war wouldn't last long.Militarism was an arms race. Countries wanted a large army, so they competed for it. They would draft in more soldiers and expenses fell on civilian populations. Almost all of the major powers doubled the size of their armies. Therefore having a larger army made them more prideful and made other countries
Alliances, a union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations. European leaders in the late nineteenth century thought that by creating a balance of power they could prevent large wars. Their idea was that if major powers of Europe were balanced in strength than no one country could dominate others. The alliances in World War One were known as the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente. The Triple Alliance was a secret agreement between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, and the Triple Entente was an agreement between France, Russia, and Great Britain. These alliances were …show more content…
Many people during this time liked the idea of war, proof of this is from a personal account given by Bertrand Russell.He said “During this and the following days I discovered to my amazement that average men and women were delighted at the prospect of war” (DBQ: “What were the Underlying Causes of World War One”.2010.p.Doc 2). Many people thought this because they thought the war wouldn't last long.Militarism was an arms race. Countries wanted a large army, so they competed for it. They would draft in more soldiers and expenses fell on civilian populations. Almost all of the major powers doubled the size of their armies. Therefore having a larger army made them more prideful and made other countries