Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
To what extent did the British and German arms race lead to the World War…
To what extent did the British and German arms race lead to the World War |?
4
By Germany and Britain participating in the naval and army race, they were able to build their navies to their top standard.
This lead to the next stage which was Alliances, also their navy’s strength, significance in the war and how it would help them win the war.
The Anglo-German naval arms race damaged their relations and pushed Britain into an alliance with France and Russia which was one of the foundation factors for WW1.
Militarism could have caused the war due to the naval arms race. The main event of Militarism causing World War one was the naval rivalry which was made between 1900 and 1914, Germany became identified by Britain as the chief foreign threat to its Empire.
1
Germany’s navy was much smaller than Britain’s navy but the British army was put all over its colonies so they can be protected. Germany didn’t have a big Empire like Britain but most people agreed, at the time, they were the best trained and the most powerful. Kaiser felt he needed a bigger navy than Britain to protect its country.
The Royal Navy was by far the most powerful of the world’s fleets. It kept the British Isles immune from invasion and was also primed to blockade enemy ports in time of war.
Fundamentally, however, its purpose was the protection of trade. Britain relied upon imports, and its economic prosperity rested on seaborne trade, financed by the City of London. Any threat to Britain’s naval supremacy was a threat to the nation itself.
To a large extent, the outcome of the policies pursued by Germany's leader, Kaiser Wilhelm II – most notably his eagerness to build a battle fleet to rival Britain’s.
3
Russia could put millions onto the fields and France had a plan of attack which was to change across the frontier and attack deep into Germany, forcing surrender because they were bordering nations.
Britain and France were working closely together with commanders which meant their military plans were designed to achieve quick victory.
The British navy knew the cost of the war would lead to an economic collapse on the enemy. Overall, if countries have a big army, enough resources and a great navy they would be ready for conflict.
While Britain and Germany built up their navies, the major powers on mainland Europe were also building up their armies.
The problem for Germany was that if the war broke out they would have to fight both Russia and France at the same time.
2
The launch of the dreadnought ( Britain believed that any battleship would last 3min if faced by the dreadnought) Both countries try to one-up each other on the possession of a larger quantity of Dreadnoughts.
Britain tried to come to an agreement with Germany as this arms race was turning out to be very pricey but there was no avail.
1914- Britain came up with the 1:2 ratio where in every one dreadnought made by Germany, Britain made 2. This ultimately ended the arms race with Britain having 27 dreadnoughts and Germany having 17.
Britain is an island and therefore needed a strong navy to protect it. They didn't have a lot of soldiers but they had a strong navy due to the equipment owned by them. Britain wanted their navy to have a triple standard (larger than the next three navies combined)
Germany on the other hand only had to protect its coast and only modified its navy to dominate Britain. Kaiser Wilhelm || wanted a very large army and navy than Britain to protect its country.