How Did Imperialism and The Alliances Cause WW1?

Two of the leading causes of WW1 were Imperialism and the Alliances formed. The
amount of competition and opportunity while the Great Powers of Europe were imperializing
different territories, inevitably fueled rivalries and increasing tensions. The alliances, however,
caused all of Europe to be at war with itself by pulling in each country one after another in a
snowball effect.

Imperialism can be defined as when a powerful nation or state takes control of territories
outside its borders. These territories are governed as colonies, as the Empire's own.
Imperialism and imperial rivalries are widely considered to be one of the major causes of WWI.
The empires' which propagated imperialism was motivated by profit, and desire to enrich the
motherland. This profit was mainly through the supply of precious metals or other valuable
resources, such as timber, rubber, or other foodstuffs. Britain was the most dominant imperial
power before WWI. By the late 1800s, Britain's colonies included Canada, India, Australia,
several Pacific, and the Caribbean Islands, including parts of Africa. France was also a super
imperial power following behind the British Empire. French imperial colonies included Vietnam,
some Pacific Islands, and several territories in the west and north-west Africa. Russia also
attempted to expand its imperial reach further into Korea and northern China. Rising
nationalism, the increase in the demand for land, and fewer opportunities at home caused
European nations to rush to expand their empires. Additionally, Germany was also another
empire that tried to expand its Empire through imperialism, and though it had several colonies in
central and south-west Africa. Austria-Hungary also wanted to expand to the Balkans, to gain
direct access to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. However, Austria-Hungary, Russia,
Britain, and France, all had colonial and trade interests in the region. This caused a lot of
competition in this area and was one of the many logs fueling the tensions between the
colonies. 'The Scramble for Africa' is also another way the European powers took several
imperialistic strides. This was due to the abundance of raw materials in Africa such as rubber,
palm oil, gold, copper, and diamonds; which were all vital for the success of the European
economy. This also led to the partitioning of several ethnicities across newly created African
states and created a lot of tension between the European powers, then leading further into the
beginning of WW1. Another targeted African colony was Morocco. Morocco was not a French
colony, but its location placed it within France's area of influence. However, the German Kaiser
Wilhelm II traveled to Morocco and delivered a speech supporting the idea of Moroccan
independence. This speech was done with the intent of Germany to drive a wedge between
France and Britain. This angered the French government, as they wanted to establish a
protectorate in Morocco, and it caused a series of unhappy diplomatic responses. The next
crisis began in 1911 when the French were attempting to suppress a rebellion in Morocco. The
Germans, without French permission, landed an armed vessel at the Moroccan port of Agadir.
This brought France and Germany to the brink of war. All of these tensions are the reason for
the Austrian government hastily declaring war on Serbia. After the Serbian government could
not meet a list of demands, Austria had sent them; as collateral for the Serbian extremist group
assassinating the Austrian Archduke.
 Alliances are unions or associations formed for mutual benefit, usually between
countries or organizations. This Alliance system was also a key factor that contributed to the
beginning of WWI. WWI started on the 28th of July 1914 between two main alliances; The Triple
Alliance, which consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, and The Triple Entente,
which included Britain, Russia, and France. The alliance's system meant that a local conflict
could easily result in a global one due to a chain reaction. This is what happened in the case of
WWI, due to a Serbian group performing an act of extreme nationalism, and assassinating the
Archduke of Austria, the Austrian government declared war on Serbia. This caused Russia,
Germany, and France to get involved within a week, due to alliances they had formed.
Additionally, Belgium had hoped to remain out of the war and remain a neutral ground.
However, when German soldiers marched across the Belgian border to reach France quickly,
the Belgians called on an alliance with Britain to help resist the Germans. Each Empire was
heavily armed, and all had reasons for distrusting one another. Russia allied itself with Serbia,
while Britain had joined forces with France and Russia because it feared Germany's militias and
naval improvements. Britain's real ally was Japan at the time. Additionally, the abandonment of
Otto von Bismarck's alliance system led to a situation where Europe was split into two rival
alliances. Bismarck's alliance system was also known as the Dual Alliance, which was a
defensive alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary, to limit war. Germany and Austria-
Hungary promised each other support in case of an attack by Russia, which meant that when
Germany threatened France and Russia, the allies felt strong enough to refuse to back down.
That left Germany in the uncomfortable position of either having to admit they were bluffing, or
carry through their threats and declare war. Germany chose war, and due to this, and all of the
alliances made, each country had to follow suit, and all of the other wars, snowballed after one
another.

Out of the two leading causes of WW1, the Alliance system was more significant in
perpetuating WW1 than Imperialism. Even though the imperialistic nature of all the European
powers caused the territorial seizures of African and Mediterranean colonies, which in turn
caused a lot of aggravation and restlessness between the Empires, it wasn't enough to drag in
other countries as the Alliance system did. The imperialism caused the tensions inciting Austria
to declare war on Serbia; however, the Alliances caused other people to become involved.
Additionally, one could argue that without Alliances, this war would have only been between
Austria and Serbia. Due to Serbia being allied with Russia, Russia then got involved. Germany
saw Russia starting to mobilize, and immediately implemented The Schlieffen Plan, which called
for them to go through Belgium to attack Russia; the neutral Belgium ground was compromised
due to this. This then caused France and Britain to then also get involved as well. Overall, the
alliances are what caused all of Europe to be at war with itself, by pulling in each country one
after another in a snowball effect.