-
End of the Franco-Prussian War
France lost Alsace-Lorraine and had to pay reparations to Prussia - motivated for revenge/protection -
German Empire established by Wilhelm I
A unified Germany is made official at Versailles -
Dual Alliance signed
Austria-Hungary and Germany
Otto von Bismarck viewed the treaty as way to prevent German isolation -
Triple Alliance formed
Italy joins A-H and Germany
Russia and France become concerned due to geographical threat -
Kaiser Wilhelm II comes to power in Germany
He wanted to find Germany a "a place in the sun" through aggression if necessary -
Franco-Russian Alliance signed
Signed in response to Kaiser Wilhelm's apparent desire to align with Austria
Russia wanted to avoid isolation against a unified Germany and Austria-Hungary
France and Russia agreed to give military support to each other should Germany invade one of them -
First German Naval Laws are signed
Germany officially states their intentions to compete with Britain in naval development
They sign several more laws to this effect through 1912 -
Anglo-Japanese Alliance
Intended to protect Japanese and English interests in Korea and China - directed against Russian expansion -
Russo-Japanese War
France discouraged from joining the war on Russia's side due to Japan's ties with Britain -
Entente Cordiale
Britain and France come to agreement of colonial concerns in Africa
Join together against German threat -
First Moroccan Crisis
Kaiser Wilhelm II declares his support for Moroccan independence from France -
Algeciras Conference
Intended to end the First Moroccan Crisis
France gets a controlling interest in Morocco but must consult other European powers before expanding -
Anglo-Russian Entente
Settled colonial disputes between Russia and Britain
Germany begins to feel geographically threatened -
Triple Entente formed
Britain, France, Russia -
Annexation of Bosnia by A-H
Stressed A-H relations with Serbia and therefore Russia - further collapse of the Ottoman empire caused anxiety -
Second Moroccan Crisis
Agedir Incident - Germany responds aggressively to France's attempt to expand influence in Morocco
Algeciras Conference agreed France needed to consult Germany beforehand -
First Balkan War
The Balkan league successfully went to war with the Ottomans over territorial interests
The Ottoman Empire lost most of its remaining European territories -
Second Balkan War
The victors of the First Balkan War went to war with each other over the division of Macedonia
Austria backed Bulgarian interests, angering Serbia -
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
-
Germany give A-H 'blank check'
Germany pledges unconditional support to A-H in its conflict with Serbia -
A-H ultimatum to Serbia
Put the burden on avoiding war on Serbia - Serbia accepted some of the demands but not all 10 -
A-H declare war on Serbia
Russia reacts to protect the Slavs of Serbia, something they see as their duty -
Russia begins mobilization
Russia assures Germany it is not against them
Reaction to A-H aggression against Serbia -
Germany declares war on Russia
-
Germany invades Belgium
Belgium refuses to let German troops pass so they enter by force -
Germany declares war on France
Germany claims it was the French airforce which had bombed Nuremburg -
Britain and France declare war on Germany