9781422286029

World War I

10

Europe. Distrust among the Great Powers was rampant. To some degree, all of them felt threatened. To protect themselves against possible aggression, the Great Powers formed military alliances. Germany and Austria-Hungary, along with Italy, entered into the Triple Alliance. The pact committed each of its members to fight in support of any other member that had been attacked by two countries. A military alliance between France and Russia was intended mostly to deter German aggression. But it bound the two partners to come to the other’s aid in the event of a threat from any member of the Triple Alliance. Britain was something of a wild card in Europe’s system of alliances. From the 1860s on, it had avoided becoming entangled directly in con- tinental affairs. Under the foreign policy dubbed “splendid isolation,” Britain focused on administering its worldwide empire. But the Kaiser’s imperial ambitions eventually prompted a shift in British policy. In 1904, Britain signed the Entente Cordiale (“friendly understanding”) with France. It wasn’t a formal alliance. It simply resolved some diplomatic issues between the two countries, which were longtime adversaries. In the wake of the agreement, however, British and French military officers began consultations. From those discussions emerged an informal (and secret) understanding: Britain would help France in a conflict if British interests were also threatened. Three years after the Entente Cordiale, Britain signed an agreement with another longtime rival. The Anglo-Russian Convention settled colo- nial disputes in Asia. The 1904 and 1907 pacts led to the formation of the Triple Entente, an alliance between Britain, France, and Russia. It served as a counter- weight to the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. However, the Triple Entente wasn’t formalized by a treaty. Britain had no legal obligation to support France or Russia militarily, regardless of the circumstances.