Origins of World War I

Paper Summary:

The paper reviews Chapter 2 of "Origins of the War" by Sidney B. Fay entitled "The System of Secret Alliances, 1871-1890: Domination of the Eastern Empires". The paper looks at Fay's analysis of the consequences of the Franco-Prussian War, the allegiance of Russia, Austria and Germany known as the League of the Three Emperors and its dissolution. The paper also outlines Fay's perspective on the Austro-German Alliance, the recreation of the Alliance of the Three Emperors, the Russo-German "Re-Insurance Treaty," the Triple Alliance, Romania Alliance and Franco-Russian Alliance. In addition, the paper looks at how Fay highlights the end of the Eastern Empire domination and the wheels being set in motion toward World War I.

Outline:
Consequences of the Franco-Prussian War
League of the Three Emperors, 1872-1878
Near Eastern Crisis, 1875-1878
Austro-German Alliance of 1879
Alliance of the Three Emperors, 1881-1887
Russo-German "Re-Insurance treaty," 1887-1890
Triple Alliance of 1882
Romania Alliance of 1883
Breakdown of the Wire to Russia in 1890
German Relations, 1871-1890

From the Paper:

"In this section, Fay discusses how Germany had remained politically and socially weak from the time of the Thirty Years War in the seventeenth century, and was subject to French policy, which was determined to keep Germany weak and divided. Germany dealt with the problem directly and expelled Austria from its rule by the Prussian victory at Sadowa, and established the North German Federation, although under Prussian rule. France was now the underling and Germany was the strong enemy. Bismarck was highly criticized by the French for the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine, however, Fay's view is that Bismarck was just doing what is common during war and after victory. Nonetheless, Fay surmises that this decision was so pervasive and so angered France that it became one of the main underlying causes for World War I. In essence, Fay lays the fault of World War I right on the doorstep of Germany."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Fay, Sidney B. Origins of the World War. New York: Free Press, 1967

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