General opinions on WWI

I'm curious to hear comments from people in this forum on the causes and reasons for the Great War.

Nationalism was a major reason, possibly the essential one: it made some sort of conflict inevitable.

[Stephanie]

poor diplomacy

Hard to explain in short words ( and I really hope that this thread do not start another chauvinistic discussion!)

You cant't judge the war of 1914/15 without understanding the wars of 1848, 1860's, 1870's.
After 1848 the societies in Europe where over-nationalistic. Wars where always won and where fully accepted to be a legal way to make politics.

The balance of power was overstressed, at last. Imperialism does not seem to play a major part at all. As, if, a war between England and France would haven taken place more likely.

No foresight:
None of the war parties did expect what really happened afterwards. The idea that the war would be over in winter was real. Don't forget: Prussia never lost a war since Friedrich dem Grossen, and they expect a war something like the 1866 or 1870 wars. They all knew what will happen if the war will be stopped in trenches: The Crimean War, the Austrian/Prussian/ Danish War and the American Civil War showed it.

Fear:
German HQ knew that they could not win a war with two fronts. They want to beat France in a few week and the only way was the Schlieffen plan, incl. the invasion of Belgium. Thos plan nearly worked, but only nearly.

No real war goals:
The wars of 1618 to 1648 had clearer war goals than the Great War after 1915. In 1915 nothing was clear and no party had clear goals. Germany had no annexion plans, France only wanted to get the Elsass back.

But back to the first question: What where the reasons? Why did Russia mobilize in August 1914? To help Serbia? Never. Why declared Austria War to Serbia?
My personal opionion: If A.-H. and Russia would not be involved in a war, A.-H. would have been broken apart anyway and there would have been a russian revolution also. The Emperors and the ruling classes feeled that. Make war or parish!
Germany? Not the only major cause, in my opinion, but not a victim, of course.

All the replies recieved so far have merit. Hans; Why don't you think that Germany was a victim? Metaphoricaly, the entire world was a victim. However I'm asking from a real cause and effect standpoint.

From what I read recently, the causes include bad timing (A-H should have just spank ed Serbia and been done with it) , land (France and Turkey recapture lost turf and Italy gets property for throwing in with France and Britain), fear (my empire is old and tottering, so I'll throw in with a heavyweight), arrogance (diplomacy? no need, armies are on the march), nationalism (check out the parades and celbrations at the outset of hostilities), momentum (all those plans, all those generals and all those men and equipment needed to do something), ethnicity and religion (see pan-slavism and muslim calls for a holy war), transition (a horribly effective transition from one era to the next, of course if I believe that, it would negate the last reason--STUPIDITY).

[Barrett]

If people are responsible for wars, certainly one of the reasons was the pan-slav movement. ("How can you expect peace in a country where they build monuments to the guy who started World War I?")
If weapons are responsible for wars, it was a Browning FN .30 semiauto. (That was a finalist question in a round of Gunsite Jeopardy back in the 80s...)

Hate to quote Hitler but he had the right idea:

"Arm slavs to fight slavs"

[stephen]

Germany's decision to back Austria-Hungaria in a war against the Serbs, despite the fact that Serbia had met most of the demands made by A/H authorities.

That decision was made in spite of the obvious catastrophic domino effect that would surely follow.

[mike_baram]

Some of the "credit" has to go to Sir Basil Zaharoff. With all those armaments he sold lying around, it was a pity not to use them for something.