World War I

Causes of WWI

1. Militarism– Countries built militaries as a symbol of power

2. Imperialism– Countries still looked to gain access to foreign

lands

3. Rival Alliances– Countries made friendships with other countries– Reinsurance Treaty – secret treaty between

Germany and Russia

– Wilhelm II came to power in Germany and let it expire

– Britain and France created Entente Cordiale (friendly understanding) to defend against Germany

Triple Entente

• Britain, France and Russia– They all had a common fear of Germany

• The spark that started WWI was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand

• Germany declared war on Russia

Central Powers

• Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy

Allies

• Russia, France, Serbia and Britain