A History of Modern Europe - From the Renaissance to the Present

888 Ch. 22 • The Great War

The relentless logic of the entangling alliances and military plans pro­
pelled Europe to war, as if the great powers were being pitched forward on
an enormous wave. In Britain, Grey’s frantic attempts to arrange a direct
negotiation between Russia and Austria failed. The struggle of socialists in
many countries to rally opposition against the war fell far short. On July
31, a rightist assassinated the popular French socialist leader Jean Jaures.
But Jaures, too, had apparently just come to the conclusion that he should
support the war against autocratic Germany. The Austrian socialist leader
Victor Adler predicted: “Jaures’s murder is just the beginning. War unchains
instincts, all forms of madness.”
Of the powers, only Italy was not committed by alliance to fight, unless
its allies in the Triple Alliance were attacked, and Italy could now reason­
ably claim that Austria-Hungary and Germany were launching hostili­
ties. France ordered mobilization after receiving the impossible German
demands. Germany declared war on Russia that same day, August 1. This
obliged France, by virtue of its alliance with Russia, to fight Germany. Ger­
man troops invaded Luxembourg, claiming falsely that a French attack on
them was imminent and that they needed to seize the small duchy’s rail­
roads to defend themselves. On August 2, the German ambassador in Brus­
sels handed the Belgian government the letter requesting permission to
march armies through its territory. The negative reply came the next morn­
ing. Britain assured France that the Royal Navy would defend its Channel
ports. On August 3, Germany declared war on France, falsely claiming that
French planes had attacked Nuremberg. When Moltke’s army marched
into eastern Belgium and the German government ignored the British gov­
ernment’s formal demand that they withdraw, Britain declared war on
Germany on August 4, 1914. Enthusiastic crowds toasted departing sol­
diers in Paris and Berlin. The German crown prince anticipated “a jolly
little war.”

The Outbreak of War

When war was declared, eager commanders put long-standing military

plans into effect. The German general staff counted on a rapid victory

against France in the west before the giant Russian army could effectively

be brought into action in the east. German troops outflanked French

defenses by invading Belgium. However, this violation of Belgian neutral­

ity brought Britain into the war on the side of France and Russia. Thus, the

Great War pitted the Triple Alliance (Germany and Austria-Hungary, minus

Italy, which for the moment remained neutral) against the Triple Entente

(France, Great Britain, and Russia). These alignments had been shaped by

the international tensions of the past decades.