In 1914, the wife of Archduke Ferdinand, the crown prince of Austria-Hungary, was shot dead in Sarajevo by the Serbian nationalist Princip.
Archduke Ferdinand, who was a keen hunter, may never have imagined that his life would end at the mouth of a hot gun, but in line with his illustrious past, his death was enough to "go down in history" and usher in a new era.
From the death of Archduke Ferdinand to the outbreak of World War I, the historic event of "the shooting of the Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary" completely broke the apparent peace between the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente. Grievances and feuds in the Balkans boiled like hot oil and quickly spread from Eastern Europe to Western Europe.
And as the forces of all sides came to an end, one of the most destructive wars in human history began.
According to later historians, the First World War was an inevitable product of the transition from capitalism to imperialism. It is accompanied by the intensification of the contradiction between the old and new colonialism, the redivision of the global order by the Western imperialist countries, and the "nationalism" that prevails in Europe.
But now that we look back at this period of history, we can uncover more bloody incidents under the smoke of war, and at the same time, we can also make a more profound interpretation of the direction of the world situation after that.
From the Balkans to the Group of Three
If the "Sarajevo Incident" was the trigger for World War I, then the operation of the Allies led by Germany on the Eastern and Western Fronts really kicked off the First World War.
The significance of Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on Serbia was not only a "revenge plan", but also to put all kinds of contradictions on the European continent on the table, and to solve them once and for all with guns and sacrifices.
On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary officially declared war on Serbia, two major wars had already broken out in the Balkans in the two years earlier.
Therefore, from this point of view, the First World War was definitely the outbreak of contradictions after the accumulation, in this process, whether it is the old rivals Germany and France, or Russia and Austria with conflicting interests, they are closely arranging around the struggle for power.
Therefore, the far-reaching impact of the First World War was not only because it broke the ruling order of the European powers in Europe and even in the world, but more importantly, it did not fundamentally solve all the contradictions, but instead laid the groundwork for the outbreak of the Second World War through almost brutal means.
Austria-Hungary and Russia had a long history of contradictions, and as early as 1853, when war broke out between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, Austria, the predecessor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, formed a bitter hatred with Russia.
It was precisely because of Austria's stab in the back that Russia finally swallowed the bitter fruit of defeat in this war, and as the ethnic contradictions in the Balkans intensified and the pace of Austria-Hungary's southern invasion continued to accelerate, Russia also stepped up its penetration into the Slavic countries, trying to use the national question to compete with Austria-Hungary on the Balkan Peninsula.
Of course, from the point of view of the national question, the cause of the incident was indeed the relentless expansion of Austria-Hungary in the Balkans and the bloody national policy that caused the Slavs to fight back.
However, the "weak" Slavic states dared to argue with the powerful Austro-Hungarian Empire and even the Ottoman Turkish Empire, but behind them was inseparable from the support of Russia.
Situated at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, the Balkan Peninsula is geographically crucial. Austria-Hungary aspired to conquer the Balkans to complete its southward expansion, while Russia also wanted to use the Balkans from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea to usher in its Age of Discovery.
Thus, the Balkans, as a battleground for war, carry the strategic blueprint of many countries, but unfortunately, when all countries are determined to win it, what awaits it will be a ruin.
From the murder of Archduke Ferdinand on 28 June to the official declaration of war on Serbia by Austria-Hungary on 28 July, the European powers were the subject of intense debate on this important event.
The Austro-Hungarian Emperor Josephine I made ten demands on Serbia and asked Serbia to allow Austria-Hungary to open an independent investigation into the killing of the Grand Duke on its territory.
Serbia agreed to nine of these demands, but Austria-Hungary did not accept British mediation at all and directly declared that it would declare war on Serbia.
On the one hand, it was in contact with Germany to win Germany's support, and on the other hand, it was to negotiate with Serbia and prepare for war, it can be said that from the very beginning Austria-Hungary did not think of a peaceful settlement with Serbia, and at this moment Austria-Hungary was keenly aware that its opponent was not Serbia, but Russia and even the Entente bloc behind it.
War was on the verge of breaking out, and perhaps from the moment Germany promised Austria-Hungary, the smell of gunpowder was already spreading throughout Europe.
There are two or three contradictions between major powers
Although the first shot was fired by Austria-Hungary in this war, it is Britain, France and Germany that have the protagonists in it.
With the transition from capitalism to imperialism, with the colonial expansion of European powers around the world, and around historical contradictions and territorial divisions, fierce conflicts broke out between Germany, Britain and France.
When the divided Germany finally established a unified empire, when Germany seized the opportunity of the second industrial revolution and finally walked in the forefront of the world, the proud Germans discovered a cruel fact - Britain and France, which were the first to achieve results in the first industrial revolution, had completed the division of the world.
Britain accounted for 29 per cent of Africa's colonies, while France accounted for a staggering 35.6 per cent. By comparison, only 7.7 per cent of Germany's colonies were located, and most of them were barren rainforests and deserts.
The small colonies could not provide a steady supply of raw materials and labor for the development of German industry, and the protectionist policies promulgated by various countries seriously hindered the export of German goods.
With its strength already at the top of the list, Germany became increasingly dissatisfied with its unmatched international status, so choosing to go to war was a brilliant way to overcome this dilemma.
On an economic level, the outbreak of the First World War was the need of the capitalist countries to raise their industrial and economic levels, and geographically, it may have been the dissatisfaction of the Allied bloc with the space it occupied.
From the perspective of the division of overseas colonies, the colonies occupied by the Allied bloc are generally small in size and of low quality, while in Europe itself, the Allied bloc is even more encircled and squeezed by the Entente powers, and it is difficult for them to develop at a high speed.
Germany is struggling to break the shackles, while its immediate neighbour France and the United Kingdom, across the sea, are already wary of Germany's rise. The construction of railways to the east had already touched British interests in the Far East and even in India, and Britain had to find a way to curb German expansion to the east, while at the same time continuing to block Germany's westward access to the sea.
If the conflict between Germany and Britain can be regarded as a simple conflict of interests, then in contrast, France and Germany are mixed with too many historical grievances.
The love-hate relationship between France and Germany, which is "born from the same roots", can be traced back to the Franco-Prussian War. The "Emesmi Telegram" issued by Bismarck, the "iron-blooded prime minister" of Prussia, aroused strong dissatisfaction in France, which made France take the lead in launching the war, but unexpectedly, the French army was defeated one after another in this war and finally had to surrender.
The defeated France not only ceded Alsace and other places, but also indirectly ceded the throne of the hegemon of the European continent, while on the other hand, Germany completed the unification under the leadership of Bismarck and established a powerful German Empire.
King Wilhelm I of Prussia held a ceremony at the Palace of Versailles in France, giving France an unspeakable disgrace, which further intensified the contradictions between France and Germany, until they eventually evolved into a pair of old enemies.
The contradictions between the three great powers of Europe were intricate, but on the principle that the enemy of the enemy is the friend, Britain, France and Russia formed an alliance. Long before the birth of the Entente, Bismarck decided to preemptively form the Triple Alliance, and the other two countries chose Austria-Hungary and Italy, which were also restricted by Britain, France, and Russia.
Today, from the perspective of justice, we can denounce the crimes committed by the Allied bloc during the war. But from another point of view, perhaps Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, etc. at that time just wanted to strike first and strive for more development opportunities under the pressure of Britain and France.
The German Emperor Wilhelm II, who succeeded to the throne, also chose to strike first. He did not believe that France would not turn its guns on himself after the Balkan War began, so he decisively decided to attack westward, and by capturing Belgium, he directly took Paris, the capital of France.
The well-armed and disciplined Germans occupied most of Belgium in two months, but were met with fierce resistance from the British, French, and Belgian forces. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army also began to engage the German army in East Prussia, and for a time Germany was under attack.
The Battle of Verdun became a major turning point in World War I, and after 300,000 casualties, France finally defeated Germany, slowing down the pace of German advance, and the war entered a phase of stalemate.
The three-year-long war left the whole of Europe deeply weary after a brief period of frenzy. In the end, the shortage of supplies became the biggest problem plaguing the countries, and the already crazy Wilhelm II used indiscriminate offensive means to attack the merchant ships of various countries, but finally led the United States into the war and made it a decisive one.
In retrospect, this was perhaps the worst decision the Germans ever made, as the United States not only hastened Germany's defeat, but also forced Germany to face harsher sanctions in the post-war trial.
The Treaty of Versailles and the Second World War
On November 9, 1918, Kaiser Wilhelm II was exiled to the Netherlands, and two days later, World War I ended. The war ended with the victory of the Entente, but behind the victory, there was countless bloodshed and death.
France, which was in direct confrontation with Germany, suffered heavy losses in the war and its strength plummeted, and the surviving French began to do everything they could to "annihilate" Germany in one fell swoop in the post-war trial. Britain, which had preserved its strength far away from the English Channel, did not want to see Germany turn over, and at the same time did not want to see France take advantage of its status as a victorious power.
As for the distant United States, it holds democracy in one hand and full of money in the other, and wants fame and fortune. Therefore, although the First World War came to an end, the problems that needed to be solved urgently and the world map that needed to be redrawn were bound to draw the capitalist world into a new round of whirlpool.
During the post-war trial, France imposed a series of harsh conditions on Germany, including reparations, land cession, and many terms within the scale of the army, all of which were huge obstacles to Germany's future rise.
Britain, on the other hand, played tricks on some terms that were clearly favorable to France, making it difficult for France to pocket all the benefits, and at the same time held high the banner of "democracy", rejecting the proposal for national self-determination of the German people, and thus declaring that the defeated countries had no rights.
With the signing of the Treaty of Versailles and the joint suppression of various countries, Germany fell into a serious economic crisis. The advanced industrial system could not compensate for the high tariffs, and as inflation intensified and life became more and more difficult, the discontent of the Germans grew.
The glory of Versailles' accession to the throne was still in sight, but in the blink of an eye, the German nation became a slave of Europe. This led directly to the fact that the self-confident Germans began to turn their minds towards the rising Nazism after they could not accept such a blow.
In the process of Germany's development towards ultra-democracy, history has given Stresemann a great mission, making him a hero to save Germany. It was also Stresemann's unity that gave Germany a respite.
Unfortunately, however, the sudden death of Stresemann and the outbreak of the economic crisis in 1929 led to widespread discontent, and Germany finally embarked on the path of fascism.
On the other hand, with the support of the United States, Germany refused to pay war reparations, which made France's plan to bring down Germany stillborn, and at the same time laid a certain industrial and military foundation for the Nazis to come to power.
Ironically, the Germans, holding the banner of "democracy" advocated by Britain and the United States, put the Nazi Party and Hitler on the stage of history. In a way, this is still the storm caused by the Treaty of Versailles, and countries such as Germany, Britain, France, and the United States are to blame.
From a deeper level, the extreme nationalist tendencies of the Nazis are the product of nationalist extremism since World War I. Many contradictions led to the outbreak of the First World War, but the death of more than 10 million people did not pay attention to and study the national and colonial issues in exchange for the attention and study of the national and colonial issues, on the contrary, they pushed these problems to the other extreme in the bloodshed and death.
The end of the First World War was more like a last resort, and in the future, the contradictions between countries will only deepen around these problems and new problems that will arise.
The First World War poured cold water on the whole world. But as long as the flame is still there, there will be a day when it will be rekindled. Therefore, what awaits the peoples of the world is the more brutal World War II and all kinds of crimes against humanity under fascism.