The July Crisis

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The July Crisis

Tensions peaked in July 1914 after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Austro-Hungarian ultimatum

23 July 1914: Austria-Hungary sent the Serbian government a 10-point ultimatum (final set of demands) with two days to respond.
The ultimatum was designed to be so harsh that Serbia would obviously decline the terms. This would make an Austro-Hungarian attack on Serbia seem justified.
25 July 1914: Serbia accepted nine of the 10 points as it did not want to start a war.
- Serbia did not accept the condition that Austro-Hungarian police could be placed in Serbia to investigate the assassination.

Declarations of war

28 July 1914: Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.
30 July 1914: Russia began to mobilise its army (prepare troops for warfare) as it did not want to be humiliated after earlier events in the Balkans.
The mobilisation was an inflexible process. This meant that once it had begun it was very difficult to stop.

Germany enters the war

1 August 1914: Germany declared war on Russia.
Germany wanted to appear strong following the humiliation of the Moroccan crises. It also wanted to support Austria-Hungary.
The July Crisis started war in Eastern Europe, but not Western Europe.

1The Causes of the First World War

1.1The Alliance System

1.1.1The Threat of Germany & The Triple Alliance

1.1.2The Franco-Russian Alliance & the 'Entente'

1.1.3End of Topic Test - The Alliance System

1.2Crisis in Morocco and the Balkans

1.2.1The Crisis in Morocco

1.2.2The Crisis in the Balkans

1.2.3The Balkan Wars

1.2.4Impact on International Relations

1.2.5End of Topic Test - Morocco & the Balklans

1.3Anglo-German Rivalry

1.3.1Britain & Splendid Isolation

1.3.2Kaiser Wilhelm II's Foreign Policy

1.3.3European Rearmament

1.3.4End of Topic Test - Anglo-German Rivalry

1.4Outbreak of War

1.4.1Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

1.4.2The July Crisis

1.4.3The Schlieffen Plan and Belgium

1.4.4Reasons for the Outbreak of Hostilities

1.4.5End of Topic Test - Outbreak of War

2The First World War: Stalemate

2.1The Schlieffen Plan

2.1.1Reasons Behind the Schlieffen Plan & its Failure

2.1.2Stalemate

2.1.3End of Topic Test - The Schlieffen Plan

2.2The Western Front

2.2.1Technology

2.2.2Military Tactics

2.2.3The War of Attrition (1915-1916)

2.2.4The War of Attrition (1917)

2.2.5End of Topic Test - The Western Front

2.3The Wider War

2.3.1The War at Sea

2.3.2The War in the Air

2.3.3Other Theatres

2.3.4End of Topic Test - Wider War

3Ending the War

3.1Changes in the Allied Forces

3.1.1The Bolshevik Revolution

3.1.2Reasons for the Entry of the USA

3.1.3The Impact of US Entry on the War

3.1.4End of Topic Test - Changes in the Allied Forces

3.2Military Developments in 1918

3.2.1Tactics & Technology

3.2.2Ludendorff & the German Spring Offensive

3.2.3The Allied Advance During The Hundred Days

3.3Germany Surrenders

3.3.1The Impact of the Naval Blockade

3.3.2Abdication of the Kaiser

3.3.3Armistice

3.3.4The Contribution of Haig and Foch

3.3.5End of Topic Test - Developments & Surrender

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