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Kaiser Wilhelm II's Analysis

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The ringing of the first gun shot on June 28 of 1914 had sent mass crowds around Europe into raptures. These people rejoiced in glee as they voiced their approval for the declaration of war by filling the air with roars of enthusiasm. Four years forward, loud cheers turned into moans of agony as the world walked along a path of pure atrocity. What did the world actually witness and how was the harbinger of destruction conceived? The notion of Kaiser Wilhelm II’s war-mongering attitude operating as the powder-keg for the outbreak of war is very popular among historians. Kaiser Wilhelm II’s actions had either made the situation in Europe more complex or it played a direct role in eroding political stability (Waugh, 2001). He was driven by the motive to secure Germany’s place ‘in the sun’ (Chinn, 2014). This desire had urged the newly crowned Kaiser to adopt a more aggressive foreign policy, known as ‘Weltpolitik’, as well as encouraging him to /dismiss Germany’s guardian of peace, Chancellor Bismarck (Chinn, 2014). These moves paved the way for Kaiser Wilhelm II to challenge and rile his French and British foes. For instance, the Kaiser had nearly instigated war between Germany and Britain when he labelled the British as ‘mad men’ during an …show more content…

It is touted as the main reason behind the increment in rivalry amongst European nations (Waugh, 2001). The arms race should indeed shoulder some blame for igniting war as it led to the mobilizing and production of armies and weapons on an unprecedented scale. This made war inevitable because nations could not simply dispose all the weapons which they have produced. Russia’s conscripting of over one million men could be used to illustrate this theory (Waugh, 2009). Had the Russians opted against war, where would all these men go? Bearing this in mind, it is not a mystery as to why did everyone resort to

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