The Alliance System Flashcards
All 15 cards in this deck
Which three countries made up the Triple Alliance?
Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. Formed in 1882.
What was the Franco-Russian Alliance?
An alliance (1894) in which Russia and France agreed to help each other if either was attacked by Germany. France wanted protection after the Franco-Prussian War.
Which three countries made up the Triple Entente?
Britain, France and Russia. Completed in 1907.
True or false? The Alliance System on its own made war inevitable.
False. It was a long-term cause that created a framework for conflict, but war also needed other factors such as imperial rivalry and the 1914 crisis.
How did the Moroccan crises of 1905 and 1911 affect relations between the Entente powers?
Britain backed France against Germany in both crises (and Russia backed France at the Algeciras Conference in 1906), so German pressure drew the Entente powers closer together.
What happened in the Balkan (Bosnian) crisis of 1908–1909?
Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia, which it had already run since 1878, making it formally part of its empire; this angered Serbia, which wanted Bosnia's Slavs for itself.
What was the effect of the Bosnian crisis of 1908–1909 on Russia?
Russia's status and influence in the Balkans were diminished, because it was not strong enough to risk war with Germany; humiliated, Russia began military improvements.
Why did Austria-Hungary feel able to defy Russia's objections over Bosnia in 1908?
Because Germany promised to back Austria-Hungary against Russia.
Why did the Balkans become a focus of tension between the European powers from 1908?
The decline of Turkish influence left a power vacuum, and Austria-Hungary, Russia and Serbia competed to fill it.
What was the Entente Cordiale (1904)?
An agreement in which Britain and France settled their old colonial quarrels in North Africa. It was not a military alliance, but it was Britain's first step towards the Triple Entente.
Give one reason Britain was willing to reach an agreement with Russia in 1907.
Russia had been weakened by its defeat in the war with Japan (1904–05), so it was less of a threat to Britain's empire, while Germany now looked like the bigger danger.
What happened in the first Moroccan crisis (1905)?
Kaiser Wilhelm II landed at Tangier and declared that Germany backed the Sultan's independence, a direct challenge to France's plans to make Morocco its own.
What was the Agadir crisis (1911)?
Germany sent a gunboat to the Moroccan port of Agadir in protest at France taking over Morocco. Neither side went to war, and Germany accepted land in the French Congo in return for recognising French control.
Give one consequence of the Agadir crisis (1911) for Britain and France.
In 1912 they agreed to share out naval duties: the Royal Navy would guard the North Sea and Channel against Germany while the French fleet concentrated in the Mediterranean.
Why did France want revenge on Germany before 1914?
Germany had taken Alsace-Lorraine, a valuable border region, from France after defeating it in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71).