Page:General History of Europe 1921.djvu/830

 616 General History oj Europe responsible for the war. Even German statesmen supported this false view. Bethmann-Hollweg informed the Reichstag that Eng- land could have made the war impossible if she had plainly told the Russians that she would not permit the trouble between Aus- tria and Serbia to involve the rest of Europe. 1118. Germany indicted by Germans. The assertions of Ger- man leaders that England desired war and was responsible for it are without foundation. Certain courageous Germans even dared to confess this freely. Indeed, the chief witness against the kaiser and his advisers was no less a person than the German ambassador in London at the time that the war began, Prince Lichnowsky. He published in 1918 an account of his negotiations with English statesmen during the fatal days just preceding the outbreak of the war. He declared that the English were eager to avert war, and that his own country, together with Austria, not England or France, was responsible for it. QUESTIONS I. Describe the growth of Prussian militarism. How did the Prus- sian system affect the other European powers ? What is conscription ? Explain the naval rivalry between England and Germany. II. What were the objects and results of the Hague conferences ? III. How did the partition of Africa breed international rivalries ? What change did Edward VII make in the foreign affairs of England ? What countries were friendly to England in 1914? Trace the history of the Morocco affair. IV. What interests had Russia and Austria in the Balkans? How did the Balkan wars of 1912-1913 affect Germany, France, and Russia? Give a short account of the Turkish revolution of 1908. In what way did Austria take advantage of the situation in Turkey in 1908 ? What reason did Italy give for making war on Turkey? What was the outcome of the war? Outline the history of the Balkan wars. What difficulties did Austria's annexation of Bosnia raise ? V. Trace the events in the summer of 1914 which led to the World War. What was meant by the "neutrality" of Belgium? Con- trast the German and the English view of the responsibility for the outbreak of war.