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Example research essay topic: Anglo German Relations Prior To World War I - 1,361 words

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The origin and causes of World War I have been subjects of great interest to many 20 th century historians. The history, policies, and controversies surrounding the major countries involved in WWI have evoked many discussions on whether or not the war could have been avoided, as well as various accounts of what actually took place. The focus of this essay will be to examine the entering of England into WWI, in particular her relations with Germany prior to the war, and the degree to which these relations influenced England's eventual participation in the war. The main sources for this essay were the works of Joachim Remak The Origins of World War I, 1871 - 1914, AJP Taylor, The First World War, Edward McCullough, How the First World War Began, and Zara Steiner, Britain and the Origins of the First World War. All had varying views on England's position prior to entering the war. The different opinions offered by these sources, aided me in trying to remain impartial until the end of the essay, where, based on the various arguments, I made my own conclusions.

In order to better understand the circumstances under which Britain became involved in WWI, it is important to first try and establish the basic facts and historical sequence of events that led to the war itself. In 1907, Europe was divided into two basic groups: the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy, and the Triple Entente of Great Britain, France, and Russia. There were various conflicts among the members of these opposing groups, which need be taken into account when examining their eventual participation in the war. The French and the Germans had been involved in several conflicts over the territory of Morocco, and this led to a possibility of war between the two nations. Britain and Germany were both trying to establish their supremacy on the seas and had become international rivals.

The great naval race that ensued gave rise to tension between the two countries. Germany's new naval developments led to her being more competitive in trade, and this new competition arose a feeling of concern and resentment in Britain, as did an increase in the importation of British goods. Adding to British alarm was the competition from the Germans in the British colonies. It was the growing rivalry between Austria and Russia for control over the Balkans that was the actual trigger for the eventual international disaster. Bosnia was a recent Austrian acquisition and many of its inhabitants resented having been brought under Austrian rule, instead of being allowed to join Serbia.

On June 28, 1914, the heir to the Habsburg throne Archduke Francis Ferdinand visited Sarajevo in an Austria-ruled Bosnia. The Archduke and his wife were assassinated on this visit, and this assassination was a blow to Austria's position as ruler of Bosnia and to her already declining position as a Great Power. It provided Austria with a reason for military action against Serbia, of whom was suspected the plotting of the assassination. In an effort to avoid humiliation and to retaliate against the assassination, Austria sent an ultimatum to Serbia.

Serbia refused it and Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28. It has been suggested that perhaps one of the Great powers was simply waiting for this trigger as an excuse for war, and that the pre-existing tension between the Great Powers would have snapped eventually, trigger or not. Now although it seems this trigger was a conflict between Austria and Serbia alone, due to the tensions and relationships that already existed between the major alliances, this is not what occurred. Russias role as a great power would not allow it to let one of its client states be defeated, and so Russia was determined to help Serbia. Germany's only real ally was Austria, and could not afford for Austria to lose to Russia, so Germany supported Austria.

Germany assumed that France would support Russia, and strategically decided to invade France first, through Belgium. The British, concerned for the attack on their ally France as well as for the preservation of Belgian neutrality (which had been guaranteed since 1839), declared war on Germany on August 4. This essay will look to examine the views of several historians on the extent of the tension between England and Germany prior to the war, and whether that tension made the ensuing war inevitable. Prior to World War I, most of the power in Europe was found in two countries, Britain and Germany.

Both countries were dominating over the rest of Europe in arms, in navy, in colonization, and in trade, and Anglo-German economic rivalry was great. In the past, Britain had been more dominant, and saw her navy as second to none. But German industrial growth had been phenomenal, and she was now threatening Britains supremacy on the seas. As Britain was dependent on her navy for economic survival, this raised the level of tension between the two countries, and the British became suspicious of Germany when rumors reached Britain that Germany was secretly accelerating her naval building program. Some historians have claimed that the British had become so alarmed at having lost some of their European monopoly to Germany, that they took preventative actions against the advancement of Germany. For example, Edward McCullough, in his How the First World War Began, devotes an entire chapter of his book to England's Estrangement from Germany.

He claims that the British government attempted to block German colonial expansion all over the world, and that British representatives abroad worked to thwart German colonial ambitions at every turn. He writes that although the injury to the British by the Germans trade advancement was exaggerated, it should be considered as a reason for the growing resentment in England towards Germany. Zara S. Steiner, in her Britain and the Origins of the First World War, tends to agree with McCullough, and suggests that no amount of goodwill between Germany and Britain could ever overcome the fact that Germany was a European power embarking on a world stage and that Britain was an imperial power with few European interests. Steiner asserts that a German alliance with Britain was never within the realm of practical politics and that British and German politics did not mesh. She claims that the domestic situation was so difficult that the temptation to exploit the prevailing hostile mood was always present.

In contrast, Joachim Remak in The Origins of World War I, 1871 - 1914, contends that the relations between England and Germany were not as tense as they seemed to have been, and that although the friction between the countries was not insignificant, it was not irreparable either. Trade rivalry there was, but there was also beginning to be an understanding on the peaceable division of the worlds markets, with the British concentrating on trade with the Empire, the Germans on that with continental Europe. Remak goes on to argue the opposite of Steiner, that There was no immutable rule which stated that Britain and Germany could never again inhabit a world in which their interests would once more run parallel. The French were also concerned with German expansion, and as a result of the Moroccan crises, they were not particularly friendly with Germany, despite the French foreign ministers claim that France was a resolutely pacific nation.

The result of Britains heightened sense of insecurity over German competition, was that she was less willing to stay isolated and without allies as she had done when shed dominated most of Europe. France saw common ground between Britain and herself, and became a suitor for British friendship. In 1904, the two countries formed the Anglo-French Entente, an entente which was based upon supporting colonial arrangements. Although the British claimed that any friendship between Britain and France did not imply any hostility towards Germany, nor that Britain would support France should a Franco-German war break out. Historians differ again on this point as well, some claiming that Britain had no desire to participate in a war with France against Germany, others saying that Britain knew of Frances aggressive intentions and that Britain was enthusiastic about the possibility...


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Research essay sample on Anglo German Relations Prior To World War I

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