The outbreak of the First World War In this essay I will explain why the First World War broke out. There are many causes, both long-term and short-term, for example the rivalry between Germany and France due to the Franco-Prussian War and the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. It is difficult to say which is the most important cause, because many countries had tensions with each other and the war took place due to all these factors. A long-term cause of the First World War was the fact that there were two established alliance systems: the Triple Alliance and Triple Alliance. It was here that countries around the world supported each other, each member of the alliances promising to help their allies if a country belonging to the other alliance attacked them. The Triple Entente was made up of Britain, France and Russia (formed in 1907) The Triple Alliance was made up of Germany, Italy and Austria-hungry (formed in 1882). This was an important cause because without it there probably would not have been a "world war", a just war between individual countries, because many different countries supported each other, feared opposition, and strengthened their alliance. This helped cause the war because if one country got into trouble the others would get involved. Another long-term cause was the rivalry between Germany and France; this is because in 1870-1871 there was a war between the two countries. In this war France had lost the territory of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany and had promised that one day it would take revenge and regain the territory. Therefore there was much further tension between France and Germany, which helped spark a war. In 1871 Germany became a nation. The new leader was a man called Kaiser Wilhelm 11. He was an ambitious man and wanted Germany to be as strong as Britain both militarily and industrially. This was a major long-term cause because between 1871 and 1914 Germany had caught up with Britain as a major industrial nation. This created tension because Britain felt threatened by its position as a major