Europe Before World War I: Alliances and Revolutions
The Belle Epoque: An Era of Rivalry
The Belle Epoque is the name given to the decades preceding World War I. Much evidence indicates the beginning of an era characterized by competition, national economic rivalries, and imperialism.
An Era of Revolutions
Working conditions improved in most advanced societies: social democratic parties participated in elections to promote reforms.
- In Russia, Tsar Nicholas II ruled as an autocrat in a climate illustrated by pogroms; rapid industrialization provoked misgivings. Bloody Sunday started the revolution of 1905; the Tsar had to concede a consultative parliamentary aspect, the Duma.
- In a rising China, the anti-foreign Boxer Rebellion was directed against the imperialist powers that had wrested concessions from China; the Manchu dynasty was totally discredited.
Armed Peace and the Arms Race
The most alarming sign of the Belle Epoque‘s difficulty was the arms race. Powers competed in weapons and were monitored with suspicion. Decadent powers, such as the Ottoman Empire, were prey to the ambition of their neighbors. Others, emerging as Italy or Japan, were dissatisfied and waited for an opportunity to expand.
- The Triple Alliance consisted of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Italy.
- The Triple Entente, arranged around France, was haunted by the defeat of 1871 against Prussia. The alliance between France and Russia had the reluctant support of the United Kingdom.
The Outbreak of the Great War
The outbreak of the Great War surprised Europe in 1914. An assassination served as casus belli: on June 28, a Serbian nationalist murdered the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne in Sarajevo. Vienna sent a tough ultimatum, which was partially accepted. But the Russian mobilization provoked nervousness among Germany and its allies.
The War of Positions
- On the side of the Central Powers came the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. The British failed in their attempt to occupy the Straits, while the Russians were attacking from the Caucasus. The Allies encouraged the Arab revolt against the Turks. It flowed into the Armenian genocide of over a million and a half civilians.
- On the Allied side, the main additions were those of Italy and Romania. Despite the tremendous human cost, new fronts, such as Verdun, the Somme, and Ypres, did not relieve tension on the West. Submarine warfare became the core of the conflict. The balance began to falter in 1917 due to two events:
- The Russian Revolution benefited the Central Powers.
- The United States declared war on Germany in response to submarine attacks.
The Bolshevik Program
Lenin summed up the Bolshevik program in a thesis:
- Delivery of supreme power to the Soviets.
- Immediate runoff war at any price, redistribution of land, and collectivized industries.
The Russian Civil War
In March 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed. At this moment of weakness of the regime, the non-Russian peoples of the former empire became independent. A civil war ensued in which the Bolshevik government faced a heterogeneous conglomeration of counterrevolutionary troops, the Whites. The Bolshevik victory in the Civil War rested on two pillars:
- The Red Army, created by Trotsky, was disciplined and well-equipped. It reestablished the applets on the majority of the country.
- The political police, or Cheka, directed the repression at home, establishing a regime of terror.
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
- Free navigation and trade.
- Right of peoples to self-determination.
- Waiver of secret diplomacy.
- Foundation of a Society of Nations.