World War 1 Dbq

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, however he wasn't popular due to his marriage with Sophie, a lower class woman. On June 28, 1914, he went on a peace mission to Sarajevo, but was killed by a man named Gavrilo Princip. First, his wife was shot and died on impact, and then he was shot in the jugular. The assassination of the Archduke and his wife didn't really affect the war. Some would say that war was going to happen whether they were dead or not. While others might state that the main reasons that caused World War 1 were militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism.
One reason of World War One was militarism. Militarism is people having strong feelings of patriotism for their country, mobilizing,

organizing, and moving troops, and keeping up with the Joneses. Keeping up with the Joneses mean to be up-to-date with any new technologies or techniques in order to be stronger than the opposing team. Many countries practice this in order to have a good defense and an offense protection system. In document 1, there is a chart revealing the increased amount of money spent on weapons from the year 1870 to 1914. Three countries that had the most money spent in weapons between 1870 and 1914 are Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. In 1870, Russia started with about thirty million British pounds spent on their army and navy, and by 1914, they were spending roughly ninety million British pounds on their army and navy. Germany spent about thirty million British pounds on their army and navy in 1870, and practically one hundred sixteen million British pounds in 1914. Lastly, in 1870, Austria-Hungary spent around sixteen million pounds on their army and navy, and relatively thirty-nine million pounds on the army and navy. This source proves that the world came closer to war because when a country has a lot of weapons; it tends to make other countries nervous and want to attack first. When countries are being militaristic, they will be less vulnerable to any attacks given to them. However, that country could possibly become over-confident and “cocky”, and prone to attack other countries. Militarism leads to World War 1 because it caused countries to become competitive with each other. When one country obtains amazing and advance technologies and techniques, another country would counter back by increasing their military, this will continue on like a race to be the best..
Another reason of the war happening is because of alliances.

Alliances are designed to keep peace between countries and were born out of mutual distrust. Many countries practiced this, that way if they were attacked, they’ll have someone to help and back them up. Having alliances will allow countries to have more protection in wars, nevertheless, you’ll be dragged into a battle that isn't your own. In document two, there is a map showing the alliance systems, such as the Triple Alliance, and the Triple Entente. The map also reveals any neutral nations. The Triple Alliances consist of Italy, Austria-Hungary, and Germany. The Triple Entente includes Great Britain, Russia, and France. This source proves that the war is coming soon because alliances tend to cause chain reactions when countries are defending their allies. Alliances lead to WW1, because if and when one country is attacked, their ally will come and assist them in battle. When Austria-Hungary proclaimed war with Serbia, Russian joined in, being an ally of Serbia. Afterward, Germany joined in, which started a chain reaction of the countries joining in to help their allies. If alliances didn't exist, then the war would have only been between Austria-Hungary and

Serbia.
A third reason of World War 1 is because of the countries being imperialistic. Imperialism is having the motivation to fight in the wars and having raw materials for the economics. The ones who practice this, are the ones who want to grow and expand. Being imperialistic leads to having more resources for the colonies and countries, however it’ll be difficult to care for a colony when there is war. In document 10, there is a chart that displays the Colonial Empires’ sizes in 1913. Britain was the largest colonial empire with 33,000,000 sq. km of land and a population of 400,000,000. France was the second largest with 11,500,00 sq. km and 58,000,000 as their population. The third largest was Germany with 2,950,000 sq. km of land and 12,000,000 people residing there. This source proves that the war is coming closer by revealing information about each countries’ area size and the colonies’ population. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia, which made the Bosnians furious because they wanted to be free and to form a strong Slav state with Serbia. Serbia was concerned when they saw Austria-Hungary’s aggressive nature towards Bosnia, and wanted to help Bosnia. After being declared war on by Austria-Hungary, Serbia turned to Russia for help, and Russia agreed to help. Once Austria-Hungary noticed that Russia joined in, they went and asked Germany to be their ally. From that point on, Germany announced war against Russia, and more countries joined the battle.
The fourth reason of World War 1 is nationalism. Nationalism is having military pride, being patriotic to their country, and thinking that they’re better than the rest. A few countries that practiced this are Serbia and Austria-Hungary. Serbia wanted to form a large Slav state with Bosnia with the help of Russia. However, Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia, ruining Serbia’s plan. As James Joll said, “...we realize that without power, without a strong army and a strong navy, there can be no welfare for us...” (The Origins of the First World War, Document 11. That quote is explaining how without any wars, armies, navies, and powers, there wouldn't be any welfare or good things in life. The balance between fighting and peace need to be equaled out. Nationalism is also the cause of the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie. Without nationalism, countries would have the need to show the others that they are the best.
In the end, the main causes of World War 1 were militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism. Having great military skills helped in the war. Countries defending each other led to a chain reaction of more countries joining in to help their allies. People were motivated to fight and participate in battle. Being proud of your country is a good thing. World War 1 probably would have had happened even without the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie.