Three long-term factors that contributed to the outbreak of World War I include militarism, alliances, and imperialism. Militarism involved the arms race among the great powers of Europe, where countries expanded their armies and navies significantly in a bid to assert dominance and ensure national security. This buildup of military capabilities created an atmosphere of tension and competition. Alliances, such as the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy) and the Triple Entente (France, Russia, and the United Kingdom), formed to provide mutual defense and security, ultimately meant that a conflict involving one nation could quickly escalate into a larger war involving multiple countries. Furthermore, imperialism fueled rivalry as nations competed for colonies and influence in Africa and Asia, creating animosities that heightened existing tensions.
The immediate chain of events that triggered World War I began with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary on June 28, 1914, by a Serbian nationalist, Gavrilo Princip. This act unleashed a series of diplomatic crises and mobilizations. Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia, which, despite accepting most terms, rejected some demands, leading Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. Russia, bound by its Slavic ties to Serbia and its alliance obligations, mobilized its forces in defense of Serbia. This prompted Germany to declare war on Russia on August 1, 1914, and soon after, on August 3, it declared war on France. As a result of the intricate web of alliances and mutual defense agreements, nations rapidly entered the conflict, leading to the full-scale outbreak of World War I by early August 1914.
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