‘World War I was a European war.’ To what extent do you agree with this statement?
World War I “sparked” in 1914, between Serbia and Austria-Hungary, then turned into a chain reaction of declarations of war that spread throughout Europe, and to other areas of the world. Because this became such a widespread war, but began in Europe and was caused by Europe, there is controversy and question as to whether the Great War was a world war, or in fact a European war.
On one hand, World War I can be considered a European war, because of the location of the most decisive battles, and the countries involved. World War I originated in Europe and began when Austria declared war on Serbia. The war then expanded because of alliances formed prior. The …show more content…
Although it originated in Europe and most of the battles that took place, took place on European land, there was not a lack of involvement from other countries in other areas of the world. There were countries involved in the war in almost every continent, and there was extensive fighting in the Middle East and in Africa, and although out of Germany’s enemies, the original Triple Entente is generally referred to the most, there were many more. Looking at Germany’s enemies is a clear way to show how widespread this war actually was. It is generally left unmentioned, but the number of South American countries that declared war on Germany is quite large. The involvement from Asia was also quite large, including countries like Japan, China and Siam. In total, considering Russia and the Ottoman empire to be part of Europe, there were around 40 countries outside of Europe that were involved in some way, whether it be through alliances, direct involvement in battle or through supplying resources. Quite a few of those countries involved, were involved because at the time they were colonies of one of the European countries fighting. This is the reason that there was conflict in Africa, because European countries had claimed sections of it, and fought over their “place in the sun”. Most German colonies in Africa eventually fell to the allies, but there were still hostilities until 1917. Some countries got
World War I “sparked” in 1914, between Serbia and Austria-Hungary, then turned into a chain reaction of declarations of war that spread throughout Europe, and to other areas of the world. Because this became such a widespread war, but began in Europe and was caused by Europe, there is controversy and question as to whether the Great War was a world war, or in fact a European war.
On one hand, World War I can be considered a European war, because of the location of the most decisive battles, and the countries involved. World War I originated in Europe and began when Austria declared war on Serbia. The war then expanded because of alliances formed prior. The …show more content…
Although it originated in Europe and most of the battles that took place, took place on European land, there was not a lack of involvement from other countries in other areas of the world. There were countries involved in the war in almost every continent, and there was extensive fighting in the Middle East and in Africa, and although out of Germany’s enemies, the original Triple Entente is generally referred to the most, there were many more. Looking at Germany’s enemies is a clear way to show how widespread this war actually was. It is generally left unmentioned, but the number of South American countries that declared war on Germany is quite large. The involvement from Asia was also quite large, including countries like Japan, China and Siam. In total, considering Russia and the Ottoman empire to be part of Europe, there were around 40 countries outside of Europe that were involved in some way, whether it be through alliances, direct involvement in battle or through supplying resources. Quite a few of those countries involved, were involved because at the time they were colonies of one of the European countries fighting. This is the reason that there was conflict in Africa, because European countries had claimed sections of it, and fought over their “place in the sun”. Most German colonies in Africa eventually fell to the allies, but there were still hostilities until 1917. Some countries got