Origins of the First World War (Seminar Studies In History) - Softcover

This essential introduction provides an invaluable study aid to students. The book deals with the policies and the issues that brought Europe to war in 1914. The position of each of the great powers within the international framework is concisely explained. The problems confronting them are also carefully analysed, as is the influence of political and economic structures on the decision-making process. Professor Martel shows how and why the confrontational alliance system came into being and considers the impact upon it of the series of crisis that brought the major powers close to conflict in the opening years of the twentieth century. He outlines the terms and obligations that these alliances entailed and discusses the extent to which they were responsible for the outbreak of war.

The Origins of the First World War summarizes and analyses the policies, issues and crises that brought Europe to war in 1914. The position of each of the great powers is clearly explained, including their place in the system of alliances that dominated international politics. The strategic and the political problems that confronted each power is considered, as is the way in which society and economics influenced the decision-making process.

In a clear and accessible manner, the book demonstrates:

• how and why the alliance system was created
• how it led to a network of complicated strategic commitments
• how an escalating series of international crises from the turn of the century fuelled preparations for war
• why the peculiarities of the Balkans are essential in understanding why war broke out in 1914

As well as being revised throughout to incorporate the latest scholarship on the subject, this third edition provides a completely new Guide to Further Reading and an expanded selection of Documents that includes key treaties, crises and representations of popular militarism and nationalism. It provides students with the clearest, most concise, accessible and up-to-date account of the Origins of the First World War available.

Gordon Martel is Professor and Chair of History at the University of Northern British Columbia and Senior Research Fellow, De Montfort University