I think that any general history of WWI would show that Austria used the murder of its Crown Prince (and by the way, the murder of the heir to the throne would be no joke at any time; imagine what would happen if Prince Charles were shot to death and the trail led to a neighbouring country) to try and settle accounts with Serbia, which it regarded as a dangerous neighbour. Serbia was an ally of Russia, and Russia - in spite of the bloody lesson taught by Japan nine years earlier - not only prepared for war but insisted that once mobilization had started, there was no way back - which was nonsense. Germany could have held back Austria - which was not insane enough to go to war against Russia without a strong ally - but, to the contrary, handed it a blank cheque to do what it wanted, and showed in every way that war would please them mightily.
Germany, however, was guilty at a deeper level; for a couple of decades before WWI, it had been the wild man of Europe, unsettling and threatening, clumsy, arrogant, and pretentious. Europe had spent fifteen years or more in an atmosphere of unspecified but urgent demands backed by constant shows of force. That these shows of force had been ineffective had not made them less frightening. Once Germany went to war, the whole world felt as if "Well, this was what they wanted, after all!"
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Date: 2008-08-07 11:02 am (UTC)Germany, however, was guilty at a deeper level; for a couple of decades before WWI, it had been the wild man of Europe, unsettling and threatening, clumsy, arrogant, and pretentious. Europe had spent fifteen years or more in an atmosphere of unspecified but urgent demands backed by constant shows of force. That these shows of force had been ineffective had not made them less frightening. Once Germany went to war, the whole world felt as if "Well, this was what they wanted, after all!"