AP World History 7.1-7.2: Shifting Power and WWI

What event immediately triggered the July Crisis of 1914?

On 28 June 1914, Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb nationalist, assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo. Austria-Hungary treated the assassination as an existential challenge and a possible justification for war against Serbia.

Gavrilo Princip

A Bosnian Serb nationalist who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Sophie in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. He was one of several conspirators linked to Serbian nationalist networks.

Casus belli

A circumstance or event used to justify beginning a war. Austria-Hungary regarded the assassination of Franz Ferdinand as a casus belli against Serbia.

Why did Austria-Hungary view Franz Ferdinand's assassination as a casus belli?

The attack was seen as a direct challenge to the empire's authority and its control over South Slav populations. Because Franz Ferdinand was heir to the throne, Austrian leaders believed the assassination threatened the survival and unity of the multinational empire.

What was Austria-Hungary's immediate objective after the assassination?

It sought to deliver a military blow against Serbia to punish it, demonstrate Austro-Hungarian strength, and suppress Serbian support for South Slav or Yugoslav nationalism.

Why did Austria-Hungary delay before issuing its ultimatum to Serbia?

Vienna feared that action against Serbia would provoke Russia, Serbia's major supporter. Austro-Hungarian leaders deliberated until mid-July and sought German backing before presenting demands designed to be difficult for Serbia to accept.

What was the German 'blank cheque' during the July Crisis?

Germany promised Austria-Hungary support in its conflict with Serbia, even if Russia intervened. Berlin nevertheless urged Vienna to act quickly so the conflict might remain localized.

How did France and Russia respond during the July Crisis?

France reaffirmed its alliance with Russia and indicated that it would support Russia and Serbia if Austria-Hungary attacked Serbia. This made a localized Austro-Serbian conflict more likely to expand into a European war.

What communication and decision-making problems intensified the July Crisis?

Misperceptions about other governments' intentions, delays in diplomatic communication, rapid mobilization plans, and the belief that war was inevitable accelerated the crisis. Leaders often made decisions based on assumptions rather than reliable information.

How did the July Crisis become a general European war?

Austria-Hungary's conflict with Serbia activated the rival diplomatic alignments: Germany supported Austria-Hungary, while Russia supported Serbia and France supported Russia. Britain and Belgium were ultimately drawn in as the crisis widened and Germany violated Belgian neutrality.

Reinsurance Treaty

A secret 1887 agreement that temporarily maintained alignment between Germany and Russia. After Bismarck's removal, Germany allowed it to lapse, contributing to Russia's eventual alignment with France.

What was the consequence of Germany allowing the Reinsurance Treaty to lapse?

Russia lost an important understanding with Germany and increasingly sought security through cooperation with France. This helped create the opposing diplomatic blocs that later confronted one another in 1914.

Dual Alliance

The 1879 defensive agreement between Germany and Austria-Hungary, formed partly in response to growing Russian influence in the Balkans. It became the core of the later Central Powers alignment.

Triple Alliance

The 1882 expansion of the Dual Alliance to include Italy. Although Italy was formally part of the alliance, it remained neutral in 1914 and joined the Allies in 1915.

Franco-Russian Alliance

A military and diplomatic partnership established in the 1890s between France and Russia. It counterbalanced the German-Austro-Hungarian alliance and helped make a conflict involving one power more likely to involve the other.

Revanchism

A desire for revenge and the recovery of lost territory. In France, revanchism was associated with resentment over Germany's annexation of Alsace-Lorraine after the Franco-Prussian War.

How did the Franco-Prussian War contribute to later tensions?

Germany's victory and annexation of Alsace-Lorraine generated French resentment and fear of Germany's military and industrial power. Although revenge was less central to French leaders by 1914, anti-German sentiment remained influential in public opinion.

Why did Britain move away from 'splendid isolation' before World War I?

Britain increasingly sought diplomatic partners after imperial and strategic pressures, including its isolation during the Second Boer War and concern about German naval expansion. It reached understandings with France in 1904 and Russia in 1907.

Entente Cordiale

The 1904 understanding between Britain and France that settled several colonial disputes and improved their diplomatic relationship. It helped create the broader alignment later known as the Triple Entente.

Anglo-Russian Convention

The 1907 agreement that reduced colonial tensions between Britain and Russia. Together with the Entente Cordiale and the Franco-Russian Alliance, it helped form the Triple Entente.

Triple Entente

The informal alignment of Britain, France, and Russia created through the Entente Cordiale, the Anglo-Russian Convention, and their broader diplomatic cooperation. Unlike the Triple Alliance, it was not a formal mutual-defense alliance.

Why is it misleading to treat the Triple Entente as identical to the Triple Alliance?

The Triple Alliance was a formal alliance with military commitments, whereas the Triple Entente was primarily a set of diplomatic understandings and shared policies. In 1914, Britain retained greater freedom to decide whether and how to enter the war.

What was the effect of the Anglo-German naval arms race?

Germany's naval buildup, especially after 1898, increased British suspicion and encouraged Britain to improve relations with France and Russia. The competition deepened Anglo-German hostility and contributed to the polarization of Europe.

What was the First Moroccan Crisis, and why did it matter?

It was a 1905–1906 dispute over Morocco in which Germany challenged French influence. The crisis strengthened cooperation between Britain and France and increased German fears of diplomatic isolation.

What caused the Bosnian Crisis of 1908?

Austria-Hungary formally annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, territories it had administered since 1878 but that were nominally Ottoman. The annexation angered Serbia and Russia and intensified Slavic nationalism and Austro-Russian rivalry.

How did the Bosnian Crisis alter relations among Austria-Hungary, Serbia, and Russia?

Serbia opposed the annexation because it wanted influence over South Slavs, while Russia viewed Austria-Hungary's move as aggressive. Russia was forced to back down, but the humiliation encouraged stronger Russian support for Serbia and increased hostility toward Austria-Hungary.

What was the significance of the Agadir Crisis of 1911?

Germany sent the gunboat SMS Panther to Agadir after France deployed troops in Morocco. The episode increased British support for France, strengthened Anglo-French military cooperation, and deepened Anglo-German suspicion.

How did the Agadir Crisis affect British and French military planning?

A secret naval understanding provided for Britain to protect France's northern coast while France concentrated more of its fleet in the western Mediterranean. The arrangement allowed each country to focus forces against perceived German threats.

How did the Italo-Turkish War affect the European balance?

Italy's victory over the Ottoman Empire in North Africa demonstrated that the Ottomans could no longer rely on a Great Power to protect their territories. This encouraged opportunistic attacks on Ottoman lands in the Balkans.

What were the consequences of the Balkan Wars for European diplomacy?

The Ottoman Empire lost most of its European territory, Serbia expanded, and Russia's influence in the Balkans increased. Austria-Hungary feared Serbian growth, while tensions between Austria-Hungary and Russia became more severe.

Why was Serbia viewed as a threat by Austria-Hungary?

Serbia promoted or attracted South Slav nationalism, which could encourage Slavic populations inside Austria-Hungary to seek union with Serbia or independence. Austrian leaders feared that Serbian expansion would undermine the empire's territorial integrity.

How did the Balkan Wars damage the German-Austro-Hungarian relationship?

Germany was hesitant and inconsistent in supporting Austria-Hungary against Serbia and its likely allies. Austro-Hungarian leaders increasingly felt that Berlin was not providing dependable diplomatic backing.

Imperialism as a cause of World War I

Competition for colonies, markets, strategic routes, and global influence produced repeated disputes among the Great Powers. These conflicts heightened mistrust and encouraged governments to interpret international politics as a zero-sum struggle.

How did the decline of the Ottoman Empire contribute to World War I?

The weakening Ottoman Empire created a power vacuum in the Balkans and the eastern Mediterranean. Austria-Hungary, Russia, Serbia, Italy, and other powers competed to expand their influence in regions previously controlled or dominated by the Ottomans.

Militarism

The elevation of military power, preparedness, and military solutions in national policy. Before 1914, arms races and military planning made leaders more willing to use force and less able to respond flexibly during a crisis.

Nationalism as a cause of World War I

Nationalism encouraged states to pursue power and prestige while intensifying hostility toward rival nations and empires. In the Balkans, Serbian and other South Slav nationalism challenged Austria-Hungary's multinational structure and helped make the assassination of Franz Ferdinand possible.

What was the security dilemma before World War I?

When one state increased its military strength for protection, other states interpreted the move as threatening and responded with their own buildup. This cycle made all powers feel less secure even when their stated intentions were defensive.

What was the 'cult of the offensive'?

A widespread belief among military leaders that attacking quickly and aggressively would produce victory. This encouraged offensive strategies, rapid mobilization, and decisions that made diplomatic compromise more difficult.

Why did military timetables make the July Crisis especially dangerous?

Mobilization plans were complex and difficult to pause once begun. Because leaders feared that delay would leave them strategically vulnerable, military schedules pressured governments to act rapidly and contributed to escalation.

What was the short-war illusion?

Many European leaders and military planners expected a brief, decisive conflict rather than a prolonged industrial war. This mistaken assumption reduced their appreciation of the potential human and economic costs of escalation.

What major long-term explanations do historians examine for the origins of World War I?

Common explanations include alliance formation, nationalism, imperialism, militarism, arms races, unresolved territorial disputes, domestic political pressures, economic competition, and the decline of the Ottoman Empire. Historians disagree over which factors mattered most and whether the war was planned, accidental, or made likely by structural conditions.

What is the central historiographical debate over responsibility for World War I?

One interpretation emphasizes deliberate or reckless policies by Germany and Austria-Hungary. Other interpretations stress the wider power struggle and argue that Russia, France, Serbia, Britain, or broader structural forces also significantly contributed.

Why does historical consensus about the causes of World War I remain limited?

Historians assign different weight to long-term structures and short-term decisions, and new archival evidence can change interpretations. National perspectives and changing ideological assumptions also influence how responsibility is assessed.