In 1871 two new major states of Europe had been formedthe German Empire and the kingdom of Italy. The new German Empire, under the hand of Otto von Bismarck, was steered carefully, always with an eye upon France, for the Franco-Prussian War (187071) had left France thirsting for revenge and for recovery of the lost provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. 2 Germany had allied itself with Russia and Austria-Hungary in the Three Emperors League, but Austria-Hungary and Russia were not the best of friends, partly because they were at odds over the Balkans and partly because Russia represented the Pan-Slavic movement, whose program threatened the very existence of Austria-Hungary. The Treaty of San Stefano (1878), following the Russo-Turkish War, furthered the cause of Pan-Slavism through the creation of a large Bulgarian state and offended Austria-Hungary as well as Great Britain. A European conference (1878; see Berlin, Congress of), called to revise the treaty, caused a sharp decline in the friendship between Russia on the one hand and Austria-Hungary and Germany on the other; Bismarck formed (1879) a secret defensive alliancethe Dual Alliancewith Austria-Hungary. 3 In 1882 Italy, angry at France chiefly because France had forestalled an Italian advance by occupying Tunis, signed another secret treaty, which bound it with Germany and Austria-Hungary. Thus was the Triple Alliance formed. It was periodically renewed until 1913. In 1882 Serbia joined the alliance, in effect, through a treaty with Austria-Hungary.
The Term Paper on Totalitarianism In The 20th Century China Russia Nazi Germany
Totalitarianism in the 20th century China, Russia, Nazi Germany It's incredible to me that after fifty years of Soviet power, paradise should be kept under lock and key. Nikita Khrushchev Totalitarianism is a synonym of authoritarianism or political collectivism taken to its logical and physical conclusion the state in which government possesses total control over the individual. Totalitarianism ...
Romania joined the group in 1883, and a powerful Central European bloc was created. Italy was from the first not so solidly bound to either of its allies as Germany and Austria-Hungary were to each other. Italy was in fact a rival of Austria-Hungary in the Balkans and particularly for control of the Adriatic; moreover, there remained unsettled territorial problems (see irredentism).
The Triple Alliance, however, turned diplomatic history into new channels. 4 Formation of the Triple Entente The Three Emperors League died a slow death, but in 1890 its day was over: Germany refused to renew its reinsurance treaty with Russia, and Russia in consequence sought a rapprochement with France. At the same time France, face to face with an increasingly powerful Germany and a hostile Central European combination, felt great need of an ally, and French diplomats began to make overtures to Russia for an agreement to counterbalance the Triple Alliance.
French capital aided Russian projects, especially the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and friendly diplomatic visits were exchanged. In 1891 there was a definite understanding between the powers; this was strengthened by a military convention in 1893, and by 1894 the Dual Alliance between Russia and France was in existence. It was publicly acknowledged in 1895. 5 Meanwhile, the fall of Bismarck, after the accession of William II to the throne of the German Empire, was followed by the appearance of more adventurous foreign policies. Germany committed itself to colonial and commercial expansion. The German plan for a Baghdad Railway was viewed with alarm by the powers with interests in the Middle East. The German commercial rivalry with Great Britain not only brought direct trouble but nourished German desire for sea power and a large navy.
6 Great Britain, long in splendid isolation from the other European nations, was being propelled by its interests to make some move toward protective international alliance. There had been some efforts to achieve a Franco-German rapprochement, but these ultimately had no effect. In 1898 Thophile Delcass took control of French foreign policy; he was opposed to Germany and hoped for a rapprochement with Great Britain, his object being the isolation of Germany. Friendship between Britain and France did not seem possible because of their traditional enmity and, more important, their colonial quarrels in Africa. Moreover, Great Britain and Germany were traditional friends, and the two countries were bound by dynastic and cultural ties. There had been and continued to be active expressions of Anglo-German amity, but Delcasss diplomacy, aided by the accession (1901) of Francophile Edward VII to the British throne, ultimately bore fruit.
The Essay on The Great War Germany Germans America
... between the Allied Powers; Great Britain, France, Russia, and the United States along will other smaller nations and the Central Powers; Germany, Austria - Hungary, Turkey/Ottoman ... of 1839, in which Great Britain guaranteed to help defend Belgium's independence. Great Britain then issued an ultimatum to the Germans to withdraw from Belgium ...
Although Great Britain and France had been on the verge of war over the Fashoda Incident in 1898, the matter was settled and the way opened for further agreements between the two powers. Though there was no alliance, the Entente Cordialea friendly understandingwas arrived at in 1904. 7 Colonial rivalries between Russia and Britain had in the late 19th cent. made those powers hostile; the field of contest was AsiaTurkish affairs, Persia, Afghanistan, China, and India. But after the defeat of Russia in the Russo-Japanese War, and particularly after Sir Edward Grey gained influence in the British foreign office, Britain came to favor a friendly settlement. This was finally achieved in the Anglo-Russian entente of 1907.
That agreement created the international group opposing the Triple AllianceFrance, Great Britain, and Russia had formed the Triple Entente. Bibliography www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWtriple.htm www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwi/1914m/tripally.html.
