To what extent did the Alliance system lead to the outbreak of the First World War?

The question requires that candidates consider the merits or otherwise of the suggestion that the Alliance system led to the outbreak of the First World War. Candidates could discuss the development of two armed camps in Europe, the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. There may be a discussion of the various crises in the decade prior to war that strengthened the two alliances. There may be reference to the annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1908 and the two Moroccan Crises as events that led to stronger ties within the alliances. These crises often led to an unwillingness to back down in the future. Candidates may argue that Austria Hungary took a hard line with Serbia after Sarajevo because of the strong alliance with Germany citing the Blank Cheque. Others may argue that the Alliance system was not a major cause of the outbreak of the war but had a “domino effect” of expanding the war once the conflict had begun in July 1914. Others may argue that underlying causes such as imperialism, the Naval race, nationalism (especially in the Balkans) contributed to long-term tensions and that the Alliance system had developed because of these tensions. Candidates’ opinions or conclusions will be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

The question required that candidates consider the merits or otherwise of the suggestion that the Alliance system led to the outbreak of the First World War. This was a popular question with some excellent responses seen. Stronger candidates were able to use detailed knowledge about the alliance system and other factors and argue coherently about their relative importance in the outbreak of the war in 1914. Weaker candidates tended to make general statements about nationalism, imperialism and militarism with little or no supporting evidence.