Alolan_Apples
“Assorted” Collector
Today is the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. Four years ago, I paid attention to the 100th anniversary of when it started (June 28th, 2014). Now the entire war is 100 years out.
The 20th century was a very long and interesting century. In terms of the social issues, World War II was the most significant event, but it wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for World War I.
Just for a review, here are the four MAIN causes of the war.
The 2010’s decade was pretty relevant to World War I in some ways. As of 2010, Germany was free from its World War I debt. In 2011, the last World War I veteran died. In 2014, it was the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In 2015, we passed a couple WWI anniversaries, including the sinking of the Lusitania. In 2017, we got to the 100th anniversaries of the Russian Revolution and the Zimmermann Telegram (the event that got the US involved). This year, it’s the 100th anniversary of the war’s end. In 2019, we will pass the 100th anniversary of the Treaty of Versailles.
When I look into the past centuries, there are hardly any significant events at this level within the first 20 years of a century. But the 20th century had a lot.
The 20th century was a very long and interesting century. In terms of the social issues, World War II was the most significant event, but it wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for World War I.
Just for a review, here are the four MAIN causes of the war.
- M - Militarism: This is a key piece in war. You’ll need an army to start a war or fight in war. You see, there were a lot of weapons and types of battles in World War I. There were people hiding in the trenches to fight others, new weapons like poisonous gas and grenades were invented, and I believe this is the first major war to involve submarine warfare. In the Treaty of Versailles, one of the punishments Germany faced was a limit in army size, which could prevent wars. But the treaty as a whole did make things worse.
- A - Alliance: What did World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War all had in common? Alliances. In World War I, after Austria-Hungary declared war against Serbia, Russia (an ally of Serbia) declared war against Austria-Hungary. But Austria-Hungary had another powerful ally - Germany. When they were threatened by Russia, Germany had to step in. They also invaded Belgium, and what happened after that? The United Kingdom declared War on Germany. It wasn’t two countries fighting each other. It’s two alliances of countries. With the UK, France, Italy, Russia, and Serbia on one side and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire on the other side, it created a huge war.
- I - Imperialism: In addition to the alliance system, the countries fighting had huge empires across the world. The United Kingdom had the largest one. They got Canada, Australia, India, many more colonies. France also had several colonies. Germany had a couple colonies too. So it’s more than just a war involving most of Europe. It was a war involving the whole world.
- N - Nationalism: This was the greatest cause of the war. The Serbs want Serbia to be independent, and believe only the Serbs can rule Serbia. Austria-Hungary wanted to take over Serbia. What happened after? The Archduke of Austria-Hungary was assassinated during a visit to Sarajevo. And it was done by a Serbian nationalist. This is extreme nationalism at its finest. This was also part of the reason why the United States got involved. When Germany sent a telegram to Mexico, promising them that they will get their land back if they fight in war, the United States declared war on Germany. They did not want to give up their states. And the United States had a horrible history of nationalist attitudes.
The 2010’s decade was pretty relevant to World War I in some ways. As of 2010, Germany was free from its World War I debt. In 2011, the last World War I veteran died. In 2014, it was the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In 2015, we passed a couple WWI anniversaries, including the sinking of the Lusitania. In 2017, we got to the 100th anniversaries of the Russian Revolution and the Zimmermann Telegram (the event that got the US involved). This year, it’s the 100th anniversary of the war’s end. In 2019, we will pass the 100th anniversary of the Treaty of Versailles.
When I look into the past centuries, there are hardly any significant events at this level within the first 20 years of a century. But the 20th century had a lot.
