Dillon Milliron
4-3-14
Period 6th
WWI Essay
World War I is known as the war to end all wars. This statement was obviously not accurate. There are many topics that caused WWI but the main causes are militarism, nationalism, the building of alliances and the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The two alliances that fought against one another in this war were the Triple Entente which consisted of France, United Kingdom, Russia (whose place in the war would later be taken by the United States of America) and the Central Powers which consisted of Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary. WWI took place mainly in various parts of Europe. The Great War lasted for 4 years, from July 28, 1914 to November 11, 1918. Militarism, nationalism, and the forming of alliances are what escalated and kicked off World War I. Militarism is the belief that a country should build and maintain the strongest army. Every country in the world has the desire to possess the strongest and largest army, stronger and larger than all other countries. During the build up to WWI there was a mad scramble to build the strongest army amongst all of the countries that participated in the war. France, Germany, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Austria-Hungary, and the United States all wanted to prove that their army was superior to all others. There is no better way to prove that your military is the best then to put it into war against another military. Building a strong military was not cheap at all, “Counting only dreadnought ships, Adm. Tirpitz' mania for powerful dreadnoughts cost the German taxpayer $1.2 billion gold marks, or US $276 million at 1914 values -- this when loaf of bread cost 5 cents, with lunch thrown in; a brick row house cost US $2,700; and a good wage for a college graduate was US $750 a year (equivalent to $55,000 in today's currency)” (Schlieffen Plan). Such an outrageous