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A hundred years of German philosophy went into the making of this decision in which

the seed of destruction lay embedded, waiting for its hour. The voice was Schlieffens
but the hand was the hand Fichte who saw the German people chosen by providence to
occupy the supreme place in the history of the universe, of Hegel who saw them leading
the world to the glorious destiny of compulsory Kultur, of Nietzsche who told them that
Supermen were above ordinary controls, of Treitschke who set the increase of power as
the highest moral duty of the state, of the whole German people, who called their
temporal ruler the All-Highest. What made the Schlieffen plan was not Clausewitz and
the Battle of Cannae, but the body of accumulated egoism which suckled the German
people and created a nation fed on the desperate delusion of the will that deems itself
absolute. (26).

The roots of World War 1 reached generations deep. The conditions that threw the
continent of Europe into chaos had been accumulating for centuries. Barbara Tuchman
in The Guns of August explores the days leading up to the conflict that would become
known as the Great War as well as its early struggles.

Europe in the early 1900s was dominated by strange doctrines, sentiments, and
ambitions that would seem completely outlandish today. The Guns of August does a
great job showing these using lots of quotes and dialogue. Fierce nationalism, social
Darwinism, militarism, and imperialism thrived. Racism and xenophobia were common.
However, progress was being made. King Edward VII of England had turned to
diplomacy, and had brought about a new friendship with France and Russia. This newly
formed friendship frightened Germany. The German Kaiser believed that maintaining a

balance of power was crucial to Germanys survival, and gaining the upper hand over
the other powers was crucial to its ability to thrive. When King Edward died, and his son
George took the throne, Germany formed a plan of action. Through the leadership of
men burdened by paranoia and delusion, Germany began conducting an aggressive
foreign policy. It built up its Navy and armies, and sought alliance with the AustroHungarian Empire and the Ottomans. Feeling surrounded by enemies, and constantly
overlooked. Germany began devising a plan to bring war on France, its most hated
enemy.

In Germany, war was viewed as an inevitability, that would bring power, glory, and much
needed respect the German people felt was being denied to them by the rest of Europe.
Over time, the Schlieffen Plan was devised. The Schlieffen Plan was Germanys military
plan for the invasion of France. Every detail was painstakingly accounted for. The plan
was based on an extremely rigid schedule which dictated not only the actions of the
German military once war was declared, but also the entire German foreign policy.
Because deviation from the plan was refused by top military officials, operations were to
be extremely inflexible. Tuchman described it like this: every precaution had been
taken except one---flexibility (32). Once this plan was set into play, it would be carried
out, whether to victory, or to failure and defeat.

Though Germany would be the aggressor, the rest of Europe saw the conflict looming.
Intelligence had been gathered that revealed Germany would attack France through
Belgium. Because of an agreement between France and Russia, upon Germanys
attack, Russia would join the war and fight Germany. Because Germanys plan required

its army to cross through neutral Belgium, England too would be drawn in to defend
Belgiums neutrality. The major European powers were all obligated in some way to join
a potential conflict. Upon a German attack, Europe would be reduced to a battlefield. In
preparation for this reality, Britain and France secretly began conducting joint policy
planning. However, preparations would prove difficult.

One reason for trouble was the fact that the British public for the most part held an antiwar sentiment. It would take a lot of convincing to get the British public to unify for war.
France desperately needed Britains assurance that they would help in the defense of
Western Europe. However, until the outbreak of war, Britains intentions remained
hidden. Meanwhile, aside from understanding which nations would be involved, it was
also difficult to understand just what a modern war would bring. There were many
predictions. The prevailing idea of the day was that the next modern war would be short,
because the world economy would supposedly be unable to sustain large-scale war for
a long time. It was from this prediction that doctrines such as elan were popularized.
Elan was the idea that it is pure will that wins wars. The nation with the strongest will
was the one thought to prevail. When elan was combined with the idea of offense to the
limit, nations like France succumbed to the oversimplification of war. As Tuchman said,
Nowhere in the eight commandments was there mention of material or firepower (41).
While war was expected, neither side understood what was about to happen, or that
things would quickly fall out of their control.

Finally, a spark went off. With the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Germany
was given the chance to support its ally, Austria-Hungary and start the conflict that

would lead to Frances demise. Germany amassed troops on the border of neutral
Belgium and began the invasion with the justification that it was a case of military
necessity and necessity knows no law (152). Just like that, the powder keg of Europe
exploded into war that would involve France, England, Russia, Germany, the AustroHungarian Empire, and the Ottoman Empire.

The Guns of August is a great book that can provide a deep understanding of the
events of and leading up to World War 1. It shows the dangers of racial and national
divisiveness. It shows the dangers of ignoring diplomacy and resorting to aggression.
Though the world was a very different place back then, but many of the same themes
remain today and are useful in decision making.

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