Causes, Effects and Aftermath of World War I - Essay Example

Today, the causes, effects, and aftermath of World War I still represent a major topic of discussion in history essay. Generally, the events of the war led to difficult times for millions of people. The discussion of Coetzee in his documents provides more insight into the political events that led to World War I.

As a common thing, many nations are usually in mutual defense relationships with their neighboring states. They establish a good mutual understanding with treaties that can pull them in and out of battle. These treaties were highly significant back then. For instance, when a state was attacked, the allied neighboring country would engage in the war to defend that state. Even before the commencement of World War I, several alliances had already been established. Those included:

• Britain and Japan
• Russia and France
• Serbia and Russia
• Belgium and Britain and France
• Austria-Hungary and Germany

Primarily, there was a time when Austria-Hungary vented war on Serbia. Serbia’s alliance state, Russia, engaged in the war to defend Serbia. Subsequently, Germany saw the mobilization of Russia into Serbia. Correspondingly, Germany declared war against Russia.

France responded and drew into war against Germany and its alliance, Austria-Hungary. Germany engaged France and pulled Britain into the war.

The beginning of the 20th century saw the start of military arms development. Countries began to recruit and train more men to prepare them for a fight in the upcoming battles. The militarism recruitment saw the size of the armies increase over time. By 1914, Germany had close to 100 warships and an incredible number of trained soldiers.

The militarism establishment started to have a more influential political status on public policy. The establishment was realized particularly in Russia and Germany. The development of militarism pushed the countries into war.

Simply put, imperialism occurs when a country conquers other territories to increase its wealth and power. As such, several nations made imperialistic claims in the African continent and some regions of Asia. Ideally, these continents had extensive raw materials. Therefore, due to the increasing tension, battles arose around the countries that owned the rights to explore their resources. The desire for wealth and competition led to confrontations. In turn, the fights pushed the involved states to war.

Primarily, the origin of World War I was majorly based on nationalism; the people of Herzegovina and Bosnia desired to be part of Serbia instead of Austria-Hungary. The desire was majorly a cause of an ethnic nationalism revolt that led to the direct assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. Generally, nationalism in other countries in Europe contributed to the start and extension of war across the continent and Asia. As every country tried to prove that they had the ability and power to dominate, the war became more prolonged and complicated.

As much as World War I dates back to a couple of centuries, Coetzee states that its effects are still being felt today. Ideally, the war was one of the deadliest and the most expensive of the events that took place before it. Generally, the effects of World War I included:

• Increase of inflation in many countries. Primarily, Germany’s economy was mainly affected.
• The spread of diseases such as influenza among troops that had to travel around the globe.
• An economic imbalance in the universe. Subsequently, it left many European nations in debt. Hence, the USA was left standing as the leading industrial power in the world.
• Intense bitterness among political nations. It was as a result of the many lives that were lost during the war.
• A significant influence on the social life of people. Ideally, women had to run most businesses as men took part in the war.
• It boosted the diversification of technology since many countries adapted to better transport and communication systems. It was their greater advantage over the enemies.

Many facts today tell the story of the aftermath of World War I. Ideally, the war has affected many lives but, at the same time, shaped the future in several profound ways. In essence, the end of the war:

• Led to the signing of the armistice on the Western Front in 1918.
• Was the primary cause of the collapse of four major empires - the Austro-Hungarian, Russian, German, and the Ottoman.
• Led to the rise of various independent nations that exist today. These included Poland, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia.
• Germany lost 13% of its territory in Europe.
• The League of Nations was established to make peace across the globe.

The War That Signified the Cause and End of All Political Conflicts

Ideally, World War I saw more inevitable changes in political warfare. The changes were depicted in the inclusion of technology to develop a state-of-the-art weapon. Moreover, Coetzee emphasized that the cause of World War I marked a face that would never be the same in any warfare today.