Depth of War - Episode 1 and 2

The podcast discusses the causes of World War I, including the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and the alliances between countries. The Triple Alliance of Austria-Hungary, Italy, and Germany, and the Triple Entente of France, Russia, and England played a role in triggering the war. The rivalry between Germany and France over the balance of power also contributed. Germany's military victories led to the formation of the German Empire in 1871, which caused concern among other European nations. Hello, our names are Carter and Matthew, and this podcast will describe the sparks of WWI and its effect on Europe's politics in this day. While the assassination of Franz Ferdinand is widely agreed upon as the main spark of WWI, there were other things at play. Alliances between countries, secret diplomacy, and militarism. The alliance system of Russia, England, and France, and the alliance system between Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary caused WWI along with the assassination. Simplified, Austria-Hungary allied with Italy and Germany, named the Triple Alliance. If any of them were attacked, the Allies would send help. Opposing them were France, Russia, England, named the Triple Entente. The heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Franz Ferdinand, was killed in Bosnia. The Triple Alliance gets angry, everyone blames each other, and the Triple Alliance feeds into the Allies by exaggerating the idea of Serbia being behind the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, therefore triggering WWI. For most of the 1800s, Germany was a hot mess of small macro-states bordered by stronger German states like Prussia or Bavaria. After Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire and sealed the smaller German states that formed the North German Confederation. This scared France, who feared a unified Germany could lift the balance of power into Prussia's hands. But this wasn't the end. After the Spanish throne was best made to him, a German king was a candidate for the Spanish throne. France feared that if he wouldn't succeed to the Spanish throne, Germany and Spain would launch a war against France. Prussia, while aware France was preparing to declare war, published the Ems telegram to provoke them to declare war, and France declared war shortly after. After France declared war, all of the other German states sided with Germany. France, outnumbered and not properly geared for war, scored several military defeats against German states. Paris shortly surrendered, and Germany would go on to annex all of Alsace and half the Rhine. The German Empire would later be formed after William I of Prussia was proclaimed German Emperor in 1871, and finally united all of Germany for good. The rest of Europe was well aware of the new powers that had just been created, and many feared the strength of its economy and military.