International Relations 1870-1923

1. International Relations 1870-1923 2013

2. Identify the reasons for, and the effects of, Colonial Rivalry between 1870 and 1911? • Answerbothparts of thequestion • Focusonthetimeframe • Place thequestion in itshistoricalcontext (theshifting balance of Power in Europe, the Alliance System and thelongterm causes of WW1)

3. Reasonsfor Colonial Rivalry • Russian/British rivalryover India causedBritaintoassertherinfluence in Egypt • Great Power status: European Great Powersfearedthepotential of USA and Russian (Seeley, 1883, “fiftyyears”) • Prestige: Weltpolitik and Italianexpansionism (Libya 1911) • Industrialisation and Protectionismincreasedneedfor new markets (China) • DomesticpoliticalpressureE.g. Bismarck and the Reichstag • Jingoism • RelativelystableEurope, weaknesses of Africa/China (scrambleforAfrica) • Social Darwinism and itsinfluence (Max Weber)

4. Effects of Colonial Rivalry 1870-1911 • Anglo-FrenchtensionoverEgypt, Fashoda, 1898 • Entente Cordiale, 1904 • British-RussiantensionoverAfghanistan • Anglo-Japanese Alliance 1902 • Russo-JapaneseWar 1904/5; RussianattentionturnstotheBalkans; Austro-Russiantension • Weltpolitik • German-FrenchtensionoverMorocco, 1905 and 1911; strengthening of the Alliance System • Anglo-German naval race and increase in militarism • Decline of theOttomans: ItalianWarwithLibya and Balkannationalism

5. Assess the relative importance of the alliance system and militarism as causes of World War One. • Assess: Make a judgmentbasedonevidence • “relativeimportance”: isonestated factor/event/cause more importantthantheother? • Alliance system: Define in itshistoricalcontext. • Militarism: Define in itshistoricalcontext.

6. Suggestedcontent • Place the causes of WorldWarOne debate in itshistoricalcontext • Alliance system: Bismarck’ssystem; 1893 and theReinsuranceTreaty plus Weltpolitik; WoodrowWilson’s 14 points; TheMorocco Crisis 1905 and thestrengthening of the Entente Cordiale; 1907 the Triple Entente; the 1914 July Crisis • Militarism: Wilson’s 14 Points; Germany’smilitaryhistory 1864-1871; Russianarmyreform; JapanesevictoryoverRussia in 1905; Weltpolitik and German naval bills plus British response; theWilly-Nickytelegrams and thenature of Russianmobilisation; Militarydecisionmaking in WilhelmineGermany ( • Wasthealliancesystem more importantthanmilitarism as a cause of WW1?

7. Evidence of Militarism • By 1897 Germanmilitarystablishmenthadtrebledto 3.4 million; Frenchhaddoubledto 3.5 million, as hadAustria’sto 2.6 million and Russia’sto 4 million. • Armsexpenditurehadrisen in germany and Russiaby 80%, in Britain and France by 45% • By 1914 France had a population of 39 millioncomparedtoGermany’s 65 million • Mombauer has arguedthattheKaiserwasincreasinglyinfluencedbytheGermanHighCommand • Theinfluence of the Franco-PrussianWar and theimportance of mobilisationspeed • TheSchlieffen Plan • 1897 Naval Bill underTirpitz

8. Discuss the impact of World War One on the social and political position of women in one European country. • Discuss: Consider a range of viewpopints • OneEuropean Country: Britain • Identifyrange of viewpoints • Define social position before, during and afterwar in ordertoassessimpact • Define political position before, during and afterwar in ordertoassessimpact

9. Howsomewomenviewedtheir sex prior to WW1 “...To men belong the struggle of debate and legislation in Parliament; the hard and exhausting labour implied in the administration of the national resources and powers; the conduct of England’s relations towards the external world; the working of the army and the navy...In all these spheres women’s direct participation is made impossible either by the disabilities of sex or by strong formations of habit and custom resting ultimately upon physical difference...” “An Appeal Against Female Suffrage”, The Nineteenth Century (June 1889)

10. Howwouldthefollowingstatisticsimpactwomen’slivesafter WW1? • 300, 000 children never saw their fathers return from the War front • 160,000 wives received the dreaded telegram informing them their husbands had been killed. • More than 41,000 men had their limbs amputated during the war • 60,500 men suffered head or eye injuries

11. What do the following statistics tell us about the war-time workplace? • 3.2 million women were employed in industry in July 1914; by 1918 4.8 million were employed in industry. • Of the above figures 40% were married women whereas prior to the war only 14% of married women worked in industry

12. Evidencefordiscussion • Women entered the work place E.g. the Canary girls • Women proved they could help win a war E.g. the Women’s Land Army • Women were targeted by propaganda E.g. Posters that encouraged women to put pressure on their partners to sign up. • Women became more liberal in their social behaviour E.g. Women’s police volunteers patrolled back lanes and reported on girls who were courting stationed servicemen. The fact that this service was necessary indicates a change in attitude towards sex. • Some employers refused to take on women. In 1915 the government had to agree that women would be paid the same as men. • No British women fought in the war although some Russian women did.  • Women over the age of 30 gained the vote in December 1917. Some historians argue the war was responsible for this change. Other historians argue women’s efforts prior to the war were significant in preparing the way for the extension of the franchise to women. It must be noted that a stalemate had been reached between the Liberal government of Asquith and the radical suffragettes prior to the outbreak of the war (the cat and mouse Act; the death of Emily Davison). One can therefore argue that the war created an opportunity for the suffragettes and the Liberals to remove themselves from their entrenched perspectives.

13. Do you agree with the claims made by the author of the source below? “The war revolutionised the industrial position of women. It found them serfs and left them free. It not only opened opportunities of employment in a number of skilled trades, but, more important even than this, it revolutionised men’s minds and their conception of the sort of work of which ordinary everyday woman was capable.” Millicent Fawcett, prminent suffragist, 1920.

14. Do you agree with the claims of Eric Hobsbawm, the Marxist historian writing in 1991? “(The vote was) neither achieved by feminist pressures, nor did it have any immediate notable repercussion on the situation of women.” Eric Hobsbawm

15. To what extent do you agree that the geopolitical effects of the Paris post-war treaties were greater than the economic results of World War One? • Define keyterms: geopoliticaleffect of Paris post-wartreaties and economicresults of WW1 • Construct a comparativeframeworkthatallowsyoutomakemeaningfulcomparisons • Makeseveral mini-judmentsbeforecomingto a final judgment • Key debate: Which of thesefactors (geopoliticaloreconomic) wasmostimportant in layingthefoundationsforthepoliticalchanges (in international and domesticaffairs) thattook place afterWorldWarOne?

16. Geopoliticaleffects • 4 landEmpiresreplacedby New nationstates: Czechslovakia, Hungary, Austria, Poland, Yugoslavia • Loss of territory: Hungarylostlandto Romania and Yugoslavia; Bulgaria lostlandtoGreece; Austria losttoCzech; TurkeylostlandtoGreece • Turkeylostheroverseascoloniestothe LON (Mandates) • Effects: smallwars (Poland v Russia; ItaliansmarchedintoFiume) • GermanresentmentovertheTreaty of Versailles and ItalianfrustrationwithMutilatedPeaceresulted in anunstableEurope • TurkishresentmentwiththeTreaty of Sevresresulted in a revolution and theTreaty of Lausanne

17. EconomicResults of WW1 • Russiaeconomicdevelopmentdelayed-doesnotreturnto pre-war industrial levelsuntil 1927 • Germanhyperinflation crisis • Great Britainreplacedbythe USA as theworld’smostinfluentialeconomy. As a consequence of thisEuropebecomesdependenton American loanslayingthefoundationsfortheprofoundeffects of the Wall StreetCrash of 1929. • Post-warItalianeconomicproblems lay thefoundationsforMussolini’srisetopower. • Austria and Hungarywentbankruptbefore a reparations figure couldbeagreed.

18. Justify the view that the Treaty of Versailles was only a satisfactory peace treaty in the eyes of the British government.