Social Studies
Source 1"Under the present circumstances, if we were to find ourselves in a war with France, it will be a peoples war that cannot be won in one decisive battle but will turn into a long and deadly struggle with a country that will not give up before the strength of its entire people has been broken. Our own people, too, will be utterly broken and exhausted, even if we emerge victorious at the end."Helmuth von Moltke, German general, letter to the German emperor Wilhelm II, 1905Source 2"The integrity of what remains of the Ottoman Empire is one of the principles upon which the worlds balance of power is based. Therefore, I reject the idea that it is in our national interest to shatter one of the cornerstones of the international order. What if, after we have attacked Libya* and destabilized the Ottoman Empire, the Balkans begin to stir? And what if a Balkan war provokes a clash between the two power blocs and a European war? Italy must not be the country that bears the responsibility of putting a match to the powder keg."*Italy wanted to colonize Libya, which at the time was a province of the Ottoman Empire.Giovanni Giolitti, prime minister of Italy, speech before the Italian parliament as it debated whether to attack Ottoman Libya, 1911Moltkes prediction in Source 1 about the consequences of a potential war between Germany and France is most directly explained by the fact thatFrances recent industrialization made it militarily superior to GermanyFrance had a much larger population than Germanyprevious conflicts had stirred intense nationalism in France and Germanyfascists within Germany sought to use a potential war with France as an excuse to establish a dictatorship
