Before World War One had begun nations begin to think of themselves as witty. They had set up alliances and dug themselves into the deepest mess they had ever encountered in history. Great Britain, France, and Russia joined in an alliance known as the Triple Entente. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy also united together in a different alliance called the Triple Alliance. With these alliances being set up the countries of Europe had virtually already started the First World War already. There were many factors that caused the start of the war including nationalism, militarism, and imperialism. However, out of all the causes of WWI the establishment of alliances surpasses all the others by far for the following reasons: nations agreed to protect each other if one was attacked, Russians agreed to protect the Slavic nations, and the continuous hostilities between the two major alliances.

The countries of Europe...