British entry into World War I

Great Britain entered World War I on 4 August 1914 when the king declared war after the expiration of an ultimatum to Germany. The official explanation focused on protecting Belgian neutrality; the main reason, however, was to prevent a French defeat that would have left Germany in control of Western Europe.

Daily Mail on Aug 5
European diplomatic alignments shortly before the war.

Background
Main article: History of the United Kingdom during the First World War
Main article: Splendid isolation
The British Empire in 1914

For much of the 19th century, Britain pursued a policy later known as splendid isolation, which sought to maintain the balance of power in Europe without formal alliances. As Europe divided into two power blocs during the 1890s, the 1895-1905 Conservative government realised this left Britain dangerously exposed.[1] This resulted in the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance, followed by King Edward VII's 1903 visit to Paris. By reducing anti-British feeling in France, it led to the 1904 Entente Cordiale, the first tangible impact of which was British support for France against Germany in the 1905 Moroccan Crisis.

In 1907, the new Liberal government agreed the Anglo-Russian Convention. Like the Entente, the Convention focused on resolving colonial disputes but by doing so, paved the way for wider co-operation and allowed Britain to refocus its naval resources in response to German naval expansion.[2]

HMS Dreadnought. The 1902, 1904 and 1907 agreements with Japan, France and Russia allowed Britain to refocus resources during the Anglo-German naval arms race

The 1911 Agadir Crisis encouraged secret military negotiations between France and Britain in the case of war with Germany. A British Expeditionary Force of 100,000 men would be landed in France within two weeks of war, while naval arrangements allocated responsibility for the Mediterranean to France, with the Royal Navy looking after the North Sea and the Channel, including Northern France.[3] Britain was effectively bound to support France in a war against Germany regardless but this was not widely understood outside government or the military.

Antagonism with Germany

In explaining why Britain went to war with Germany, British historian Paul Kennedy (1980) recognised it was critical for war that Germany become economically more powerful than Britain, but he downplays the disputes over economic trade imperialism, the Baghdad Railway, confrontations in Eastern Europe, high-charged political rhetoric and domestic pressure-groups. Germany's reliance time and again on sheer power, while Britain increasingly appealed to moral sensibilities, played a role, especially in seeing the invasion of Belgium as a necessary military tactic or a profound moral crime. The German invasion of neutral Belgium was not important because the British decision had already been made and the British were more concerned with the fate of France (pp. 457–62). Kennedy argues that by far the main reason was London's fear that a repeat of 1870, when Prussia and the German states smashed France, would mean that Germany, with a powerful army and navy, would control the English Channel and northwest France. British policy-makers insisted that that would be a catastrophe for British security.[4]

Decision for war

Immediately after the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo on 28 June, British newspapers denounced the killer Gavrilo Prìncip and were generally sympathetic to the Habsburg monarchy. The papers blamed Serbia with rhetoric against "fanatics", "dangerous forces" and "reckless agitators". These responses included the political spectrum as Liberal and Conservative papers expressed their shock and dismay. By 27 July, press opinion had turned against Austria-Hungary. The national press divided on party lines. Conservative papers stressing the obligation to support France. Liberal papers insisted Britain had no such commitment and should remain neutral. [5][6]

As Germany and Russia became central players British leaders increasingly had a sense of commitment to defending France against Germany. Firstly, if Germany again conquered France as had happened in the Franco-Prussian War, it would become a major threat to British economic, political and cultural interests. Secondly, partisanship was involved. The Liberal Party was identified with internationalism and free trade, and opposition to jingoism and warfare. By contrast the Conservative Party was identified as the party of nationalism and patriotism; Britons expected it "to show capacity in running a war." [7] Liberal voters demanded peace, but they also were outraged when the Germans treated Belgian neutrality as a worthless "scrap of paper" (in the words of the German chancellor ridiculing the Treaty of London (1839)). Germany, en route to a massive attack on France, invaded Belgium early on the morning of 4 August. The victims called upon Britain for military rescue under the 1839 treaty and in response, London gave Berlin an ultimatum which expired at 11pm London time, which was ignored. The king declared war on Germany that evening.[8][9]

Before war was declared, newspapers gave extensive coverage but ranged widely in recommended policy recommendations from peace to war.[10][11] C. P. Scott and the Manchester Guardian maintained an intense campaign against war. It denounced a "conspiracy to drag us into a war against England’s interests", arguing that it would amount to a "crime against Europe" and warning that it would "throw away the accumulated progress of half a century".[12] David Lloyd George told Scott on Tuesday 4 August 1914, "Up until last Sunday only two members of the Cabinet had been in favour of our intervention in the war but the violation of Belgian territory had completely altered the situation".[12]

Once war was declared defence of Belgium rather than France was the public reason given for war. Propaganda posters emphasized that Britain was required to safeguard Belgium's neutrality under the 1839 Treaty of London.[13][14]

"The Scrap of Paper - Enlist Today", 1914 British propaganda poster emphasizes German contempt for the 1839 treaty (the signature of British Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston visible at the top) that guaranteed Belgian neutrality as merely a "scrap of paper" that Germany would ignore.

As late as 1 August 1914, the great majority of Liberals—both voters and cabinet members—strongly opposed going to war.[15] The German invasion of Belgium was such an outrageous violation of international rights that Liberals agreed for war on August 4. Historian Zara Steiner says:

The public mood did change. Belgium proved to be a catalyst which unleashed the many emotions, rationalizations, and glorifications of war which had long been part of the British climate of opinion. Having a moral cause, all the latent anti-German feelings, that by years of naval rivalry and assumed enmity, rose to the surface. The 'scrap of paper' proved decisive both in maintaining the unity of the government and then in providing a focal point for public feeling.[16]

The Liberals succeeded in mending their deep division over warfare. Unless the Liberal government acted decisively against the German invasion of France, its top leaders including Prime Minister H. H. Asquith, Foreign Minister Edward Grey, First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill and others would resign, leading to a risk that the much more pro-war Conservative Party might form a government. Mistreatment of Belgium was not itself a fundamental cause of British entry, but it was used extensively as a justification in wartime propaganda to motivate the British people.[17]

The German high command was aware that entering Belgium could trigger British intervention but decided the risk was acceptable; they expected it to be a short war while their ambassador in London claimed civil war in Ireland would prevent Britain from assisting France.[18]

Historians looking at the July crisis typically conclude that Grey:

was not a great foreign secretary but an honest, reticent, punctilious English gentleman.... He exhibited a judicious understanding of European affairs, a firm control of his staff, and a suppleness and tact in diplomacy, but he had no boldness, no imagination, no ability to command men and events. [Regarding the war] He pursued a cautious, moderate policy, one that not only fitted his temperament, but also reflected the deep split in the Cabinet, in the Liberal party, and in public opinion.[19]
Canada automatically joined the war, and vigorously recruited volunteers.

Irish crisis on hold

Until late July, British politics was totally focused on the threat of civil war in Ireland. In 1912 the government had presented a Home Rule bill that Irish nationalists demanded; under the terms of the Parliament Act 1911, by which the House of Lords retained the right to delay legislation by up to two years, it was due to become law in 1914. The Ulster Protestants demanded separate treatment; by 1914 the government was offering a six-year opt-out to the six counties which would eventually become Northern Ireland, but not the permanent exemption which they demanded. Both sides in Ireland had smuggled in weapons, set up militias with tens of thousands of volunteers, were drilling, and were ready to fight a civil war. The British Army itself was paralyzed: during the Curragh Incident officers threatened to resign or accept dismissal rather than obey orders to deploy into Ulster. Elements of the Unionist (Conservative) Party supported them. On 25 July the Austrian ultimatum to Serbia became known, and the cabinet realized that war with Germany was increasingly likely. The Government of Ireland Act 1914 was enacted into law, but was suspended for the duration of hostilities, with the issue of Ulster still unresolved.[20] Grey told Parliament on 3 August "The one bright spot in the whole of this terrible situation is Ireland. [Prolonged cheers.] The general feeling throughout Ireland, and I would like this to be clearly understood abroad, does not make that a consideration that we feel we have to take into account.[Cheers.]"[21]

Empire at war

The king's declaration of war automatically involved all dominions and colonies and protectorates of the British Empire, many of whom made significant contributions to the Allied war effort, both in the provision of troops and civilian labourers.

See also

Notes
  1. Avner Cohen, "Joseph Chamberlain, Lord Lansdowne and British foreign policy 1901–1903: From collaboration to confrontation." Australian Journal of Politics & History 43#2 (1997): 122-134.
  2. Massie, Robert (2007). Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War (2013 ed.). Vintage. pp. 466–468. ISBN 978-0099524021.
  3. Jenkins, Roy (1964). Asquith (1988 Revised and Updated ed.). Harpers Collins. pp. 242–245. ISBN 978-0002173582.
  4. Kennedy, Paul M (1980). The rise of the anglo-german antagonism: 1860-1914. London: Allen & Unwin. pp. 464–70. ISBN 9780049400641.
  5. Meilyr Powel, "The Welsh press and the July Crisis of 1914." First World War Studies 8.2-3 (2017): 133-152. online
  6. Adam James Bones, "British National Dailies and the Outbreak of War in 1914." International History Review 35.5 (2013): 975-992.
  7. Trevor Wilson, The Downfall of the Liberal Party 1914-1935 (1966) p 51.
  8. Nilesh, Preeta (2014). "Belgian Neutrality and the First world War; Some Insights". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 75: 1014. JSTOR 44158486.
  9. Adrian Gregory, "A Clash of Cultures: The British Press and the Opening of the Great War," in A Call to Arms: Propaganda, Public Opinion, and Newspapers in the Great War, edited by Troy R. E. Paddock, (Praeger, 2004) pp 15–49.
  10. Hale, Publicity and Diplomacy: With Special Reference to England and Germany, 1890-1914 (1940) pp 446-70.
  11. Scott, Five Weeks: The Surge of Public Opinion on the Eve of the Great War (1927) pp 99–153
  12. Travis, Alan (2 August 2014). "First world war: how the Manchester Guardian fought to keep Britain out of conflict". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  13. Bentley B. Gilbert, "Pacifist to interventionist: David Lloyd George in 1911 and 1914. Was Belgium an issue?." Historical Journal 28.4 (1985): 863-885.
  14. Zara S. Steiner, Britain and the origins of the First World War (1977) pp 235-237.
  15. Catriona Pennell (2012). A Kingdom United: Popular Responses to the Outbreak of the First World War in Britain and Ireland. p. 27. ISBN 9780199590582.
  16. Zara S. Steiner, Britain and the Origins of the First World War (1977) p 233.
  17. Stephen J. Lee (2005). Aspects of British Political History 1914-1995. pp. 21–22. ISBN 9781134790401.
  18. Asquith, Margot (2014). Brock, Michael; Brock, Elinor (eds.). Margot Asquith's Great War Diary 1914-1916: The View from Downing Street (Kindle ed.). 852-864: OUP Oxford; Reprint edition. ISBN 978-0198737728.CS1 maint: location (link)
  19. Clayton Roberts and David F. Roberts, A History of England, Volume 2: 1688 to the present. Vol. 2 (3rd edition, 1991) p. 722.
  20. J. A. Spender and Cyril Asquith. Life of Herbert Henry Asquith, Lord Oxford and Asquith (1932 ) vol 2 p 55.
  21. "Statement by Sir Edward Grey 03 August 1914". Hansard. Retrieved 2 April 2020.

Further reading
Main articles: Bibliography of World War I and Causes of World War I
  • Albertini, Luigi. The Origins of the War of 1914 (3 vol 1952).
  • Anderson, Frank Maloy, and Amos Shartle Hershey, eds. Handbook For The Diplomatic History Of Europe, Asia, and Africa, 1870-1914 (1918) online
  • Bartlett, Christopher John. Defence and diplomacy: Britain and the Great Powers, 1815-1914 (Manchester UP, 1993).
  • Bartlett, C. J. British Foreign Policy in the Twentieth Century (1989).
  • Brandenburg, Erich. (1927) From Bismarck to the World War: A History of German Foreign Policy 1870–1914 (1927) online.
  • Bridge F. R. Great Britain and Austria-Hungary 1906-14 (1972).
  • Charmley, John. Splendid Isolation?: Britain, the Balance of Power and the Origins of the First World War (1999), highly critical of Grey.
  • Clark, Christopher. The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 (2013) excerpt
    • Sleepwalkers lecture by Clark. online
  • Ensor, R. C. K. England, 1870–1914 (1936) online
  • Evans, R. J. W.; von Strandmann, Hartmut Pogge, eds. (1988). The Coming of the First World War. Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-150059-6. essays by scholars from both sides
  • Fay, Sidney B. The Origins of the World War (2 vols in one. 2nd ed. 1930). online, passim
  • French, David. British Economic and Strategic Planning 1905-15 (1982).
  • Goodlad, Graham D. British Foreign and Imperial Policy 1865–1919 (1999).
  • Hale, Oron James. Publicity and Diplomacy: With Special Reference to England and Germany, 1890-1914 (1940) online
  • Hamilton, Richard F. and Holger H. Herwig, eds. War Planning 1914 (2014) pp 48–79
  • Hamilton, Richard F. and Holger H. Herwig, eds. The Origins of World War I (2003) pp 266–299.
  • Hamilton, Richard F.. and Holger H. Herwig. Decisions for War, 1914-1917 (2004).
  • Hinsley, F. H. ed. British Foreign Policy under Sir Edward Grey (1977) 31 major scholarly essays
  • Joll, James; Martel, Gordon (2013). The Origins of the First World War (3rd ed.). Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781317875352.
  • Kennedy, Paul. The Rise of the Anglo-German Antagonism 1860–1914 (1980) in-depth Coverage of diplomacy, military planning, business and cultural relationships, propaganda and public opinion excerpt and text search
  • Kennedy, Paul. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers (1987), pp 194–260. online free to borrow
  • Kennedy, Paul. The Rise and Fall of British Naval mastery (1976) pp 205–38.
  • Kennedy, Paul M. "Idealists and realists: British views of Germany, 1864–1939." Transactions of the Royal Historical Society 25 (1975): 137-156. online
  • McMeekin, Sean. July 1914: Countdown to War (2014) scholarly account, day-by-day
  • MacMillan, Margaret (2013). The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914. Random House. ISBN 9780812994704.; major scholarly overview
  • Matzke, Rebecca Berens. . Deterrence through Strength: British Naval Power and Foreign Policy under Pax Britannica (2011) online
  • Mowat, R. B. "Great Britain and Germany in the Early Twentieth Century" English Historical Review (1931) 46#183 pp. 423–441 online
  • Murray, Michelle. "Identity, insecurity, and great power politics: the tragedy of German naval ambition before the First World War." Security Studies 19.4 (2010): 656-688. online
  • Neilson, Keith. Britain and the Last Tsar: British Policy and Russia, 1894-1917 (1995) online
  • Otte, T. G. July Crisis: The World's Descent into War, Summer 1914 (Cambridge UP, 2014). online review
  • Paddock, Troy R. E. A Call to Arms: Propaganda, Public Opinion, and Newspapers in the Great War (2004) online
  • Padfield, Peter. The Great Naval Race: Anglo-German Naval Rivalry 1900-1914 (2005)
  • Papayoanou, Paul A. "Interdependence, institutions, and the balance of power: Britain, Germany, and World War I." International Security 20.4 (1996): 42-76.
  • Rich, Norman. Great Power Diplomacy: 1814-1914 (1991), comprehensive survey
  • Ritter, Gerhard. The Sword and the Sceptre, Vol. 2-The European Powers and the Wilhelmenian Empire 1890-1914 (1970) Covers military policy in Germany and also France, Britain, Russia and Austria.
  • Schmitt, Bernadotte E. "Triple Alliance and Triple Entente, 1902-1914." American Historical Review 29.3 (1924): 449-473. in JSTOR
  • Schmitt, Bernadotte Everly. England and Germany, 1740-1914 (1916). online
  • Scott, Jonathan French. Five Weeks: The Surge of Public Opinion on the Eve of the Great War (1927) pp 99–153 online.
  • Seton-Watson, R. W. Britain in Europe, 1789–1914, a survey of foreign policy (1937) useful overview online
  • Steiner, Zara S. Britain and the origins of the First World War (1977), a major scholarly survey.
  • Stowell, Ellery Cory. The Diplomacy of the War of 1914 (1915) 728 pages online free
  • Strachan, Hew Francis Anthony (2004). The First World War. Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-03295-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Tucker, Spencer C., ed. The European Powers in the First World War: An Encyclopedia (1996) 816pp.
  • Vyvyan, J. M. K. "The Approach of the War of 1914." in C. L. Mowat, ed. The New Cambridge Modern History: Vol. XII: The Shifting Balance of World Forces 1898-1945 (2nd ed. 1968) online pp 140–70.
  • Ward A.W., ed. The Cambridge History Of British Foreign Policy 1783-1919 Vol III 1866-1919 (1923) v3 online
  • Williamson Jr., Samuel R. "German Perceptions of the Triple Entente after 1911: Their Mounting Apprehensions Reconsidered" Foreign Policy Analysis 7.2 (2011): 205-214.
  • Williamson, Samuel R. The politics of grand strategy: Britain and France prepare for war, 1904-1914 (1990).
  • Wilson, Keith M. "The British Cabinet's decision for war, 2 August 1914." Review of International Studies 1.2 (1975): 148-159.
  • Wood, Harry. "Sharpening the Mind: The German Menace and Edwardian National Identity." Edwardian Culture (2017). 115-132. public fears of German invasion.
  • Woodward, E.L. Great Britain And The German Navy (1935) 535pp; scholarly history online
  • Young, John W. "Ambassador George Buchanan and the July Crisis." International History Review 40.1 (2018): 206-224. online
  • Young, John W. "Emotions and the British Government’s Decision for War in 1914." Diplomacy & Statecraft 29.4 (2018): 543-564.

Historiography
  • Herwig, Holger H. ed., The Outbreak of World War I: Causes and Responsibilities (1990) excerpts from primary and secondary sources
  • Horne, John, ed. A Companion to World War I (2012) 38 topics essays by scholars
  • Kramer, Alan. "Recent Historiography of the First World War – Part I", Journal of Modern European History (Feb. 2014) 12#1 pp 5–27; "Recent Historiography of the First World War (Part II)", (May 2014) 12#2 pp 155–174.
  • Langdon, John W. "Emerging from Fischer's shadow: recent examinations of the crisis of July 1914." History Teacher 20.1 (1986): 63-86, historiography in JSTOR
  • Mombauer, Annika. "Guilt or Responsibility? The Hundred-Year Debate on the Origins of World War I." Central European History 48.4 (2015): 541-564.
  • Mulligan, William. "The Trial Continues: New Directions in the Study of the Origins of the First World War." English Historical Review (2014) 129#538 pp: 639–666.
  • Winter, Jay. and Antoine Prost eds. The Great War in History: Debates and Controversies, 1914 to the Present (2005)

Primary sources
  • Barker. Ernest, et al. eds. Why we are at war; Great Britain's case (3rd ed. 1914), the official British case against Germany. online
  • Gooch, G.P. Recent revelations of European diplomacy (1928) pp 3-101. online
  • Major 1914 documents from BYU
  • Gooch, G.P. and Harold Temperley, eds. British documents on the origins of the war, 1898-1914 (11 vol.) online
    • v. i The end of British isolation -- v.2. The Anglo-Japanese Alliance and the Franco-British Entente -- v.3. The testing of the Entente, 1904-6 -- v.4. The Anglo-Russian rapprochment, 1903-7 -- v.5. The Near East, 1903-9 -- v.6. Anglo-German tension. Armaments and negotiation, 1907-12 -- v.7. The Agadir crisis -- v.8. Arbitration, neutrality and security -- v.9. The Balkan wars, pt.1-2 -- v.10, pt.1. The Near and Middle East on the eve of war. pt.2. The last years of peace -- v.11. The outbreak of war V.3. The testing of the Entente, 1904-6 -- v.4. The Anglo-Russian rapprochment, 1903-7 -- v.5. The Near East, 1903-9 -- v.6. Anglo-German tension. Armaments and negotiation, 1907-12 -- v.7. The Agadir crisis -- v.8. Arbitration, neutrality and security -- v.9. The Balkan wars, pt.1-2 -- v.10, pt.1. The Near and Middle East on the eve of war. pt.2. The last years of peace -- v.11. The outbreak of war.
  • Joll, James, ed. Britain and Europe 1793-1940 (1967); 390pp of documents
  • Jones, Edgar Rees, ed. Selected speeches on British foreign policy, 1738-1914 (1914). online free
  • Lowe, C.J. and Michael L. Dockrill, eds. Mirage of Power: The Documents v. 3: British Foreign Policy (1972); vol 3 = primary sources 1902-1922
  • Scott, James Brown, ed., Diplomatic Documents Relating To The Outbreak Of The European War (1916) online
  • Wilson, K.M. "The British Cabinet's Decision for War, 2 August 1914" British Journal of International Studies 1#3 (1975), pp. 148–159 online
  • Young, John W. "Lewis Harcourt's Journal of the 1914 War Crisis." International History Review 40.2 (2018): 436-455. Diary of UK cabinet discussions 26 July to Aug. 4, 1914.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.