Various events led to the First World War. In this context, explain the following:
(a) Division of Europe into two hostile camps.
(b) Militant Nationalism.
(c) Race for armaments in the beginning of the 20th century.
(a) Division of Europe into two hostile camps.
(b) Militant Nationalism.
(c) Race for armaments in the beginning of the 20th century.
a) Two hostile
camps: Germany entered into an alliance with Austria-Hungary.In 1882, Italy joined the alliance and it came to be known as the Triple Alliance.
England, France and Russia formed the Triple Entente in 1907 to counter the Triple Alliance.
b) Militant nationalism: it emerged in Europe in the latter part of the 19th century. It meant outright wars by the European countries to achieve their goals. Militant nationalism was caused by aggressive nationalism, economic competition and international tension.
Aggressive nationalism meant love for your own country and hatred of other countries. Each nation thought about its own interests and did not care for the interests of other nations.
Fierce economic competition among the nations also led to the rise of militant nationalism. Countries such as Germany, Italy, Russia, etc. wanted to increase their spheres of influence in Asia and Africa like England and France. This led to a clash of interest among the countries.
c) Race for armaments in the beginning of the 20th century: The mad race for armaments which began soon after the Franco-Prussian war was one of the reasons for the First World War. Every major power began stockpiling arms in the name of self-defence and preservation of peace.As a result if one country increased its armaments , other countries were compelled to do the same. It filled the atmosphere with fear, apprehension and mutual hatred.
a) Two hostile camps: Germany entered into an alliance with Austria-Hungary.In 1882, Italy joined the alliance and it came to be known as the Triple Alliance.
England, France and Russia formed the Triple Entente in 1907 to counter the Triple Alliance.
b) Militant nationalism: it emerged in Europe in the latter part of the 19th century. It meant outright wars by the European countries to achieve their goals. Militant nationalism was caused by aggressive nationalism, economic competition and international tension.
Aggressive nationalism meant love for your own country and hatred of other countries. Each nation thought about its own interests and did not care for the interests of other nations.
Fierce economic competition among the nations also led to the rise of militant nationalism. Countries such as Germany, Italy, Russia, etc. wanted to increase their spheres of influence in Asia and Africa like England and France. This led to a clash of interest among the countries.
c) Race for armaments in the beginning of the 20th century: The mad race for armaments which began soon after the Franco-Prussian war was one of the reasons for the First World War. Every major power began stockpiling arms in the name of self-defence and preservation of peace.As a result if one country increased its armaments , other countries were compelled to do the same. It filled the atmosphere with fear, apprehension and mutual hatred.
