To what extent was Russia responsible for the July Crisis in 1914 Research Paper

To what extent was Russia responsible for the July Crisis in 1914 - Research Paper Example In the Germany army, model for all others, a conscript spent the first two years of fill adulthood in uniform, effectively imprisoned in barracks. The French organized into twenty military districts, comprising four or five departments. The Germans also divided into twenty-one Corps Districts. The Russian military organization resembled Germany’s, as did that of Austria-Hungry who produced Europe’s most complex army. There was central uniformity to each of their organization. Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Austria-Hungry all felt its position threatened in some way or other. The three great European empires, German, Austrian, and Russian, felt threatened by the national dissatisfactions of their minorities. The Germans deeply resented their lack of colonies, sought to extend the few they had acquired in Africa and the Pacific and were ready to quarrel, particularly with France, over influence in the few remaining areas not yet subject to European rule.1 All Europe an armies by 1904 had military plans, notable in most cases for their inflexibility. The First World War was the true turning point of the twentieth century. It brought down dynasties and empires. It made The Second World War inevitable and the set the stage for the Cold War. In hind-sight the events that led to World War I seem foolish misunderstandings yet, while there were some moderating voices on the continent, most were not ready to listen to reason. Above all, it was national pride, a genuine lack of understanding of each other’s national positions and miscalculations that caused World War I. The mood in each of the major countries at the time was quite different. Pre-war Germany was bursting with vigor and bulging with material success. Over all reined the Army with its discipline and high standards of professional conduct.2 The German people felt they needed and deserved an acknowledged supremacy like that of the British. The French yearned for the regaining of the A lsace-Lorraine region, lost after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Many believed the army was the means of restoring the national glory.3 In European forums, Russia would listen to the arguments on behalf of the balance of power but did not always abide by agreements made. Russia expected Europe to look the other way and felt hurt when it did not.4 England had no choice but to resist Germany who was already in possession of the strongest army in Europe and who began aiming for parity with Great Britain on the seas.5 By 1914 Austria-Hungary main foreign policy goals were to gain land in the Balkans at the expense of Turkey and to prevent the growth of South Slav nationalism undermining her Empire.6 In some degree, each of the major powers had something to gain from war. For Germany and Austria-Hungary there was a lot to be gained by war. The establishment of a position on the Continent that would enable them to compete on equal terms with England and attain the status of world power was perhaps Germany’s top goal.7 Austria saw it a way to gain territory and to stop her decline. In Russia, the ambitions for Balkan expansion and the recovery of Constantinople loomed great. As for France, a successful war would certainly remove a major threat to their security.8 Britain came to two conclusions though. The first was that if France and Russia defeated Germany unaided, the