"The main long term cause of World War I is nationalism." Discuss this statement.

Toward the end of the nineteenth century a policy which had controlled many countries for hundreds of years reached a zenith due to the strong force called nationalism, this policy was the expansion of countries to create colonies all over the world and thus create an empire which was the overall goal of most of the European powers at the time. Economic expansion, trade flow and military strength were all major positives of rapid imperialism. Britain had the most envious empire in the world and new countries such as Germany and Italy were resentful of this vast empire and hoped that it would also be able to expand and gain power through imperialism. Although imperialism alone had existed for years at this time, it was the zealous nationalism that existed at this time that led to problems and disputes involving colonies and European powers. This fervent nationalism led to large amounts of time and money being spent to acquire “worthless pieces of land that cost more to administer than they yielded in revenue.” These nationalistic feelings were the basis for imperialism even existing at that time, when the land, especially in central Africa were worth very little however as one source indicates, “it was sheer national pride” that drove the European powers to obtain overseas territories. Whether the colony was profitable or not was irrelevant as the nationalistic feelings pushed countries to expand for reputation and a veneer of power and control. This ‘sheer national pride’ was also elevated due to imperialism; “nationalistic passions could be raised to a fever to a fever-pitch over the possession of a relatively worthless piece of territory in a distant land.” This further illustrates how as nationalism was the main reason imperialism became a cause in Europe at this time, nationalism was the basis for all long term causes in Europe and thus, was the main reason for World War One.

Industrialization is another example of a nationalist-motivated cause of World War One which also led to militarism. Industrialization started to occur in the eighteenth century and continued through to the turn of the twentieth century. Countries industrialized at varying times for example Britain was the first country to undergo an industrial revolution whilst Russia was the slowest of the major European powers to industrialize which affected their military strength and their ability to mobilise. Nationalism had a major influence on industrialization because countries battled to have the strongest military and to do this needed mass production and industrialization. The classic example of this was the naval-orientated battle for supremacy of the seas between Britain and Germany. The specialisation that occurred due to industrialisation meant that the production of the Dreadnought was rapid as both empires attempted to out build each other through effective industrialization through mass production. This is a perfect example of the direct connection between nationalism and industrialization. German and British nationalists used industrialization to satisfy the wants of the nation. Thus, nationalism motivated the use of industrialization and this further shows that nationalism stimulated the other main causes of World War One and was the main cause of the war.

Nationalism was a main cause behind the fierce and aggressive arms race that developed leading up to World War One. The arms race, also known as militarism and can be defined as, “a preference for force as a solution to problems” and involves increases in military expenditure, military and naval upgrades and an overall emphasis on the military as a form of defence or attack. As feelings of nationalism swept across Europe in the late nineteenth century, all the major powers began to feel suspicious about other countries and thus relied on military power to protect them against any attacks from other countries. Between the years 1870 and 1914 military expenditure of the major powers increased 300% illustrating the suspicion and doubt that surrounded Europe at that time. This suspicion and doubt was indeed enlarged by the nationalistic idea that if another country expanded their military then they were the target of this expansion and thus had to increase their own military. Militarism became a cause of World War One as a result of the nationalistic fear that engulfed Europe leading up to World War One and if not for nationalism, none of the major powers would have had a solid reason for this rapid militarization that occurred in Europe and thus nationalism was the main cause of World War One.

The alliance system, on the outset appears to be a main cause of World War One as due to its development over time it basically divided Europe in two parts making war more likely. Nationalism was the major factor behind these alliances which were basically created for two reasons. The first reason was protection which stems from the suspicion and doubt created by nationalism. Countries were generally fearful of other countries and thus made alliances in case of attack just as they turned to militarism to cope with this fear. After the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1871, France genuinely feared Germany and thus when the opportunity arose aligned themselves with Russia as protection from Germany. This formed the Dual entente which ensured protection if either country was attacked by Germany. The second reason these alliances were formed was to basically look after the nationalistic needs of the empire or country. Austria-Hungary aligned with Germany so that if a war developed in the Balkans they had back up from the Germans. Very rarely are alliances created because one country likes another country and genuinely wants to help out the other country, all alliances are simply based upon nationalism. Thus, one can say that nationalism is the sole reason Europe was divided up by 1907 and was in a position where war was possibility, therefore nationalism was not only sole reason for the alliance system but the main cause for World War One.

Imperialism, industrialization, militarism and the alliance system were all minor causes for World War One. Nationalism not only stimulated all of these other causes but created an environment where these causes were allowed to affect European affairs to the point where war eventually broke out in 1914. Nationalistic movements swept across Europe in the years prior to 1914 and all these other causes stemmed from this violent movement that led to World War One. Thus, nationalism was not only the foundation and origin of these other causes but was the main long term cause of World War One.    

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Bibliography

World War I.

McAndrew, M. et al, The Great War. 1914-1918. Problems, Issues, Sources, Skills. Hodder Education, Sydney. 1997.

Cowie, H. R., The Modern State, Nationalism and Internationalism. Nelson, South Melbourne. 1992.

Cowie, R., Obedience or Choice. Jacaranda Press, Brisbane. 1987.

Militarism, http://www.thecorner.org/wwi/military.htm.