GERMAN2320 GERMAN2320 History Discuss why the different types of German expansionism in the Wilhelmine period helped force Germany and Europe down the path toward war in 1914. The Wilhelmine period was the era where William II became emperor of Germany. He became emperor because his father, William I had died in 1888 and his brother Fredrick II passed on a few months after his father’s death after succumbing to throat cancer. He did not want to delegate political reigns over to Bismarck. He had ideas and policies that he thought Germany should follow. The Wilhelmine period was the time when Germany was at the peak of its power. It had an extensive growth of political, economic and military growth. It was a European power to be reckoned with. These achievements are what steered the country and Europe down to the war of 1914. Germany enjoyed a strong military presence. Under the leadership of Otto von Bismarck before this era, Prussia, the most powerful of the German states had enjoyed great military victory over Denmark, Austria, and France. Such military strength was seen as a threat by the neighboring countries such as France and England. The defeat of France and the capture of their 100,000 soldiers showed Germany’s great military strength, making it a potent threat to the world order and raising tension among the countries (Fulbrook, 2004). Germany had also enjoyed great economic prosperity. During the wars, their economy boomed, and people amassed a lot of wealth. They had even started undertaking banking activities and had overcome the food shortage problem. The fast growth of the economy led to a speedy process in industrialization. Germany was suddenly among the top most evolved European powers in a very short span of time. They were a competitor to Great Britain in the trade and industrialization progress. This great progress was seen as a threat by the other European powers, as it threatened to dim their spot in the world powers. There was a great political growth in the Wilhelmina period. Germany had grown from a bunch of scattered autonomous states into a united empire under a monarch leadership. The spirit of nationalism among its citizens ran deep, as they considered it the best country in the world. The German leaders struggled to carve a name for them in the world arena. William II was very aggressive about securing Germany’s status as a world power with overseas colonies and went as far as unraveling the complex network of international treaties established by Bismarck. This led to heightened international tensions as Germany became increasingly at odds with the European countries. What other factors also played a role in this context? There was an increasing distrust among the European powers. The European powers were weary of each other’s intentions. This led to an arms race, where each country amassed w ...

1. GERMAN2320
GERMAN2320
History
Discuss why the different types of German expansionism in the
Wilhelmine period helped force Germany and Europe down the
path toward war in 1914.
The Wilhelmine period was the era where William II became
emperor of Germany. He became emperor because his father,
William I had died in 1888 and his brother Fredrick II passed on
a few months after his father’s death after succumbing to throat
cancer. He did not want to delegate political reigns over to
Bismarck. He had ideas and policies that he thought Germany
should follow.
The Wilhelmine period was the time when Germany was at the
peak of its power. It had an extensive growth of political,
economic and military growth. It was a European power to be
reckoned with. These achievements are what steered the country
and Europe down to the war of 1914.
Germany enjoyed a strong military presence. Under the
leadership of Otto von Bismarck before this era, Prussia, the
most powerful of the German states had enjoyed great military

2. victory over Denmark, Austria, and France. Such military
strength was seen as a threat by the neighboring countries such
as France and England. The defeat of France and the capture of
their 100,000 soldiers showed Germany’s great military
strength, making it a potent threat to the world order and raising
tension among the countries (Fulbrook, 2004).
Germany had also enjoyed great economic prosperity. During
the wars, their economy boomed, and people amassed a lot of
wealth. They had even started undertaking banking activities
and had overcome the food shortage problem. The fast growth
of the economy led to a speedy process in industrialization.
Germany was suddenly among the top most evolved European
powers in a very short span of time. They were a competitor to
Great Britain in the trade and industrialization progress. This
great progress was seen as a threat by the other European
powers, as it threatened to dim their spot in the world powers.
There was a great political growth in the Wilhelmina period.
Germany had grown from a bunch of scattered autonomous
states into a united empire under a monarch leadership. The
spirit of nationalism among its citizens ran deep, as they
considered it the best country in the world. The German leaders
struggled to carve a name for them in the world arena. William
II was very aggressive about securing Germany’s status as a
world power with overseas colonies and went as far as
unraveling the complex network of international treaties
established by Bismarck. This led to heightened international
tensions as Germany became increasingly at odds with the
European countries.
What other factors also played a role in this context?

3. There was an increasing distrust among the European powers.
The European powers were weary of each other’s intentions.
This led to an arms race, where each country amassed weapons
and military force. They had shown their military prowess and
their great technological advancement to the other powers. The
international tensions escalated which eventually led to the
event of the World War I.
The primary factor that resulted in the war was the response to
the assassination of the Austrian Crown Prince and his wife.
The lack of proper diplomacy between Serbia and Austria
resulted in the declarations of war. The activities of Germany
instigated the European involvement in the crisis. It declared
war on various countries such as France and Russia for their
support of Serbia. It later did not follow the British directive of
ensuring that Belgium remained a neutral state. Rather, she
insisted on ferrying their troops through Belgium to attack
France which led to the involvement of Britain in the war.
Do you agree with the historians who say that Germany was
responsible for the outbreak of World War I?
Yes, I do. Germany instigated the involvement of many of the
countries in the war. First of all, its burning desire and
aggressive methods of creating its state as a world power
instigated international tensions between the different countries
(Kaes, Jay & Dimendberg, 1994). They had undertaken military
action against some of the countries such as France. Their great
national development and their growing sense of nationalism
were perceived as a threat to the world powers. They
intentionally caused the heightened tensions in the international
scene. This led to the distrust among the states.

4. The country’s actions were geared to instigate war among the
countries. It is argued that they had planned for a war among
the European powers, but they did not get the war they had
hoped for. They wished to crush France and Russia and instigate
themselves as a superior power. The blatant disregard for
respecting Belgium’s neutral position by Germany led to
Britain’s involvement in the war. They also declared war on
France, and yet it had nothing to do with the crisis. They
manipulated Austria’s crisis to pursue their individualistic
motives.
References
Fulbrook, M. (2004). A concise history of Germany. Cambridge
New York: Cambridge University Press.
Kaes, A., Jay, M. & Dimendberg, E. (1994). The Weimar
Republic sourcebook. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Lesson 1: The 1848 Revolution, the Second Reich, and the First
World War
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Lesson Essay
When you can accomplish the learning objectives for this
lesson, you should begin work on the lesson essay described
below. You may use any assigned readings, your notes, and
other course-related materials to complete this assignment. Be
sure to reread the essay grading criteria on the Grades and
Assessments page.
Your first essay should be about 750 words long, typed double
space with one-inch margins on the sides. It is worth 100 points
and should address the following:
Discuss why the different types of German expansionism
(military, colonial, industrial) in the Wilhelmine period helped
force Germany and Europe down the path toward war in 1914.

5. What other factors (cultural, socio-political) also played a role
in this context? Do you agree with those historians who argue
that Germany was responsible for the outbreak of World War I?
Why or why not?
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