British Empire For much of the 19th century, Britain sought to maintain the European balance of power without formal alliances, a policy known as
splendid isolation. This left it dangerously exposed as Europe divided into opposing power blocs. In response, the
1895–1905 Conservative government negotiated first the 1902
Anglo-Japanese Alliance, then the 1904
Entente Cordiale with France. The first tangible result of this shift was British support for France against Germany in the
1905 Moroccan Crisis. The
1905–1915 Liberal government continued this re-alignment with the 1907
Anglo-Russian Convention. Like the Anglo-Japanese and Entente agreements, it focused on settling colonial disputes but by doing so paved the way for wider co-operation and allowed Britain to refocus resources in response to
German naval expansion. ; the 1902, 1904 and 1907 agreements with Japan, France and Russia allowed Britain to refocus resources during the
Anglo-German naval arms race. Since control of Belgium allowed an opponent to threaten invasion or blockade British trade, preventing it was a long-standing British strategic interest. Under Article VII of the 1839
Treaty of London, Britain guaranteed Belgian neutrality against aggression by any other state, by force if required. Chancellor
Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg later dismissed this as a 'scrap of paper,' but British law officers routinely confirmed it as a binding legal obligation and its importance was well understood by Germany. The 1911
Agadir Crisis led to secret discussions between France and Britain in case of war with Germany. These agreed that within two weeks of its outbreak, a
British Expeditionary Force of 100,000 men would be landed in France; in addition, the
Royal Navy would be responsible for the
North Sea, the
Channel and protecting Northern France, with the French navy concentrated in the
Mediterranean. Britain was committed to support France in a war against Germany but this was not widely understood outside government or the upper ranks of the military. As late as 1 August, a clear majority of the Liberal government and its supporters wanted to stay out of the war. While Liberal leaders
H. H. Asquith and
Edward Grey considered Britain legally and morally committed to support France regardless, waiting until Germany triggered the 1839 Treaty provided the best chance of preserving Liberal party unity. The German high command was aware entering Belgium would lead to British intervention but decided the risk was acceptable; they expected a short war while their ambassador in London claimed troubles in Ireland would prevent Britain from assisting France. On 3 August, Germany demanded unimpeded progress through any part of Belgium and when this was refused, invaded early on the morning of 4 August. This changed the situation; the invasion of Belgium consolidated political and public support for the war by presenting what appeared to be a simple moral and strategic choice. The Belgians asked for assistance under the 1839 Treaty and in response, Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914. Although Germany's violation of Belgium neutrality was not the only cause of British entry into the war, it was used extensively in government propaganda at home and abroad to make the case for British intervention. This confusion arguably persists today. The declaration of war automatically involved all
Dominions, colonies, and protectorates of the
British Empire, many of whom made significant contributions to the Allied war effort, both in the provision of troops and civilian labourers. It was split into
Crown Colonies administered by the
Colonial Office in London, such as
Nigeria, and the self-governing Dominions of
Australia,
Canada,
New Zealand,
Newfoundland, and
South Africa. These controlled their own domestic policies and military expenditure but not foreign policy. on the
Western Front, winter of 1914–15 In terms of population, the largest component (after Britain herself) was the
British Raj, which included modern
India,
Pakistan,
Myanmar and
Bangladesh. Unlike other colonies which came under the
Colonial Office, it was governed directly by the
India Office or by
princes loyal to the British; it also controlled British interests in the
Persian Gulf, such as the
Trucial States and
Oman. Over one million soldiers of the
British Indian Army served in different theatres of the war, primarily France and the
Middle East. From 1914 to 1916, overall Imperial diplomatic, political and military strategy was controlled by the
British War Cabinet in London; in 1917 it was superseded by the
Imperial War Cabinet, which included representatives from the Dominions. Under the War Cabinet were the
Chief of the Imperial General Staff or CIGS, responsible for all Imperial ground forces, and the
Admiralty that did the same for the
Royal Navy. Theatre commanders like
Douglas Haig on the
Western Front or
Edmund Allenby in
Palestine then reported to the CIGS. After the Indian Army, the largest individual units were the
Australian Corps and
Canadian Corps in France, which by 1918 were commanded by their own generals,
John Monash and
Arthur Currie. Contingents from South Africa, New Zealand and Newfoundland served in theatres including France,
Gallipoli,
German East Africa and the Middle East. Australian troops separately occupied
German New Guinea, with the South Africans doing the same in
German South West Africa; this resulted in the
Maritz rebellion by former Boers, which was quickly suppressed. After the war, New Guinea and South-West Africa became
Protectorates, held until 1975 and 1990 respectively.
Russia Between 1873 and 1887, Russia was allied with Germany and Austria-Hungary in the
League of the Three Emperors, then with Germany in the 1887–1890
Reinsurance Treaty; both collapsed due to the competing interests of Austria and Russia in the
Balkans. While France took advantage of this to agree the 1894
Franco-Russian Alliance, Britain viewed Russia with deep suspicion; in 1800, over 3,000 kilometres separated the Russian Empire and British India, by 1902, it was 30 km in some areas. This threatened to bring the two into direct conflict, as did the long-held Russian objective of gaining control of the
Bosporus Straits and with it access to the British-dominated
Mediterranean Sea. Russian defeat in the 1905 Russo-Japanese War and Britain's isolation during the 1899–1902
Second Boer War led both parties to seek allies. The
Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 settled disputes in Asia and allowed the establishment of the Triple Entente with France, which at this stage was largely informal. In 1908, Austria annexed the former Ottoman province of
Bosnia and Herzegovina; Russia responded by creating the
Balkan League in order to prevent further Austrian expansion. In the 1912–1913
First Balkan War,
Serbia,
Bulgaria and
Greece captured most of the remaining Ottoman possessions in Europe; disputes over the division of these resulted in the
Second Balkan War, in which Bulgaria was comprehensively defeated by its former allies. Russia's industrial base and railway network had significantly improved since 1905, although from a relatively low base; in 1913,
Tsar Nicholas approved an increase in the Russian Army of over 500,000 men. Although there was no formal alliance between Russia and Serbia, their close bilateral links provided Russia with a route into the crumbling Ottoman Empire, where Germany also had significant interests. Combined with the increase in Russian military strength, both Austria and Germany felt threatened by Serbian expansion; when Austria invaded Serbia on 28 July 1914, Russian Foreign Minister
Sergey Sazonov viewed it as an Austro-German conspiracy to end Russian influence in the Balkans. In addition to its own territory, Russia viewed itself as the defender of its fellow
Slavs and on 30 July, mobilised in support of Serbia. In response, Germany declared war on Russia on 1 August, followed by Austria-Hungary on 6th; after Ottoman warships bombarded
Odessa in late October, the Entente declared war on the Ottoman Empire in November 1914.
France French defeat in the 1870–1871
Franco-Prussian War led to the loss of the two provinces of
Alsace-Lorraine and the establishment of the
Third Republic. The suppression of the
Paris Commune by the new regime caused deep political divisions and led to a series of bitter political struggles, such as the
Dreyfus affair. As a result, aggressive nationalism or
Revanchism was one of the few areas to unite the French. The loss of Alsace-Lorraine deprived France of its natural defence line on the
Rhine, while it was weaker demographically than Germany, whose 1911 population was 64.9 million to 39.6 in France, which had the lowest birthrate in Europe. This meant that despite their very different political systems, when Germany allowed the Reinsurance Treaty to lapse, France seized the opportunity to agree the 1894
Franco-Russian Alliance. It also replaced Germany as the primary source of financing for Russian industry and the expansion of its railway network, particularly in border areas with Germany and Austria-Hungary. s of the
Army of Africa However, Russian defeat in the 1904–1905
Russo-Japanese War damaged its credibility, while Britain's isolation during the
Second Boer War meant both countries sought additional allies. This resulted in the 1904
Entente Cordiale with Britain; like the 1907
Anglo-Russian Convention, for domestic British consumption it focused on settling colonial disputes but led to informal co-operation in other areas. By 1914, both the British army and
Royal Navy were committed to support France in the event of war with Germany but even in the British government, very few were aware of the extent of these commitments. , 1915 In response to Germany's declaration of war on Russia, France issued a general mobilisation in expectation of war on 2 August and on 3 August, Germany also declared war on France. Germany's ultimatum to Belgium brought Britain into the war on 4 August, although France did not declare war on Austria-Hungary until 12 August. As with Britain, France's
colonies also became part of the war; pre-1914, French soldiers and politicians advocated using French African recruits to help compensate for France's demographic weakness. But it eventually proved useless, the soldiers from
Metropolitan France still undertook all the tasks. From August to December 1914, the French lost nearly 300,000 dead on the Western Front, more than Britain suffered in the whole of WWII and the gaps were partly filled by colonial troops, over 500,000 of whom served on the Western Front over the period 1914–1918. Colonial troops also fought at
Gallipoli, occupied
Togo and
Kamerun in West Africa and had a minor role in the Middle East, where France was the traditional protector of Christians in the Ottoman provinces of
Syria,
Palestine and
Lebanon.
Japan Prior to the
Meiji Restoration in 1868, Japan was a semi-feudal, largely agrarian state with few natural resources and limited technology. By 1914, it had transformed itself into a modern industrial state, with a powerful military; by defeating China in the
First Sino-Japanese War during 1894–1895, it established itself as the primary power in East Asia and colonised the then-unified Korea and
Formosa, now modern Taiwan. Concerned by Russian expansion in Korea and
Manchuria, Britain and Japan signed the
Anglo-Japanese Alliance on 30 January 1902, agreeing if either were attacked by a third party, the other would remain neutral and if attacked by two or more opponents, the other would come to its aid. This meant Japan could rely on British support in a war with Russia, if either France or Germany, which also had interests in China, decided to join them. This gave Japan the reassurance needed to take on Russia in the 1905
Russo-Japanese War; victory established Japan in the Chinese province of
Manchuria. conducted the first ship-launched aerial attack in 1914. With Japan as an ally in the Far East,
John Fisher,
First Sea Lord from 1904 to 1910, was able to refocus British naval resources in the
North Sea to counter the threat from the
Imperial German Navy. The Alliance was renewed in 1911; in 1914, Japan joined the Entente in return for German territories in the Pacific, greatly annoying the Australian government which also wanted them. On 7 August 1914, Britain officially asked for assistance in destroying German naval units in China and Japan formally declared war on Germany on 23 August 1914, followed by Austria-Hungary on 25 August 1914. On 2 September 1914, Japanese forces surrounded the German
Treaty Port of
Qingdao, then known as Tsingtao, which surrendered on 7 November. The
Imperial Japanese Navy simultaneously occupied German colonies in the
Mariana,
Caroline, and
Marshall Islands, while in 1917, a Japanese naval squadron was sent to support the Allies in the
Mediterranean Sea. Japan's primary interest was in China and in January 1915, the Chinese government was presented with a secret ultimatum of
Twenty-One Demands, demanding extensive economic and political concessions. While these were eventually modified, the result was a surge of anti-Japanese
nationalism in China and an economic boycott of Japanese goods. In addition, the other Allies now saw Japan as a threat, rather than a partner, leading to tensions first with Russia, then the US after it entered the war in April 1917. Despite protests from the other Allies, after the war Japan refused to return Qingdao and the province of
Shandong to China.
Italy troops marching in the snow at 3,000 m altitude, 1917 The 1882
Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy was renewed at regular intervals, but was compromised by conflicting objectives between Italy and Austria in the
Adriatic and
Aegean seas. Italian nationalists referred to Austrian-held
Istria (including
Trieste and
Fiume) and
Trento as
'the lost territories', making the Alliance so controversial that the terms were kept secret until it expired in 1915.
Alberto Pollio, the pro-Austrian
Chief of Staff of the Italian Army, died on 1 July 1914, taking many of the prospects for Italian support with him. The Italian Prime Minister
Antonio Salandra argued that as the Alliance was defensive in nature, Austria's aggression against Serbia and Italy's exclusion from the decision-making process meant it was not obliged to join them. His caution was understandable because France and Britain either supplied or controlled the import of most of Italy's raw materials, including 90% of its coal. In line with Italy's obligations under the Triple Alliance, the bulk of the army was concentrated on Italy's border with France; in October, Pollio's replacement,
General Luigi Cadorna, was ordered to begin moving these troops to the North-Eastern one with Austria. Under the April 1915
Treaty of London, Italy agreed to join the Entente in return for Italian-populated territories of Austria-Hungary and other concessions; in return, it declared war on Austria-Hungary in May 1915 as required, although not on Germany until 1916. Italian resentment at the difference between the promises of 1915 and the actual results of the 1919
Treaty of Versailles would be powerful factors in the rise of
Benito Mussolini. ==Affiliated state combatants==