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Wwi, Europe and the World Today

In: Historical Events

Submitted By scampbell98
Words 1432
Pages 6
Sharon Campbell
World War I, Europe & the World The impact of World War I is still with us today. Modern Europe is a direct result of what happened during World War I. For a quick example: because France and England severely punished Germany with reparations, Germans were humiliated, and their economy was in shambles. This led to the rise of Adolph Hitler, WWII, The Cold War, and much of the European history that has followed through cause and effect. Causes of the war were growing nationalism, imperialism, militarism and a system of alliances in Europe. Nationalism is the love of one’s country, but it allows individuals to believe they are better than others, so it makes it easier for them to go to war against each other. Before World War I, Europeans were very nationalistic. Imperialism is the domination of one country by another, and European countries established colonies and dominated other nations around the world for their natural resources and their markets. This was no different than the relationship between England and the American Colonies. England believed the colonies existed for the good of England. They thought it was their right to control colonial trade and tax the colonies. Imperialism put European countries in competition with each other for colonies around the world. Militarism is the policy where a country builds up its armed forces. They developed their navys to protect the sea routes to their different colonies. Clearly each country wanted a military equal to if not better to their completion. This led to the Arms race. The problem with having a strong military is the temptation to use it. The European countries began to form alliances for mutual protection, which over time evolved into two rival alliance systems. The problem with alliances is, if a country goes to war, they can drag other countries in with them. This is what

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