The Entente and the Triple Alliance - the history of creation, goals, composition. Triple Alliance and the Entente Entente and the Triple Alliance

The Entente and the Triple Alliance were military-political associations, each of which pursued its own interests; they were opposing forces during the First World War.

The Entente is a political union of three friendly states - Russia, England and France, created in 1895.

Unlike the Triple Alliance, which was a military bloc even before the Entente, it became a full-fledged military association only when gun shots rang out over Europe in 1914. It was in this year that England, France and Russia signed an agreement under which they assumed obligations not to conclude with their opponents.

The Triple Alliance arose from Austria-Hungary in 1879. A little later, namely in 1882, Italy joins them, which completes the formation of this military-political bloc. He played a significant role in creating the situations that led to the outbreak of the First World War. In accordance with the clauses of the treaty signed for a five-year term, the countries participating in this agreement pledged not to participate in actions directed against one of them, to provide all kinds of support in relation to each other. According to their agreement, all three parties were to serve as so-called "insurers". In the event of an attack on Italy, Germany and Austria-Hungary became its reliable protection. In the case of Germany - its supporters, Italy and Austria-Hungary, who were the trump card in the event of participation in the hostilities of Russia.

The triple alliance was concluded on a secret basis and with minor reservations from Italy. Since she did not want to enter into conflict relations with Great Britain, she warned her allies not to count on her support in the event of an attack on any of them by Great Britain.

The creation of the Triple Alliance was the impetus for the formation of a counterbalance in the person of the Entente, which included France, Russia and Great Britain. It was this confrontation that led to the outbreak of the First World War.

The Triple Alliance existed until 1915, since Italy had already participated in hostilities on the side of the Entente. This redistribution of forces was preceded by the neutrality of this country in relations between Germany and France, with which the "native" was not profitable to spoil relations.

The triple alliance was eventually replaced by a quarter alliance, in which Italy was replaced by the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

The Entente and the Triple Alliance were extremely interested in the territory of the Balkan Peninsula, the Middle and Germany wanted to seize part of France and its colony; Austria-Hungary needed control over the Balkans; England pursued the goal of weakening Germany's position, securing a world market monopoly, and preserving maritime power; France dreamed of returning the territories of Alsace and Lorraine taken during the Franco-Prussian war; Russia wanted to take root in the Balkans, to seize the western

Most of the controversy was associated with the Balkan Peninsula. Both the first and second blocs wanted to strengthen their positions in this region. The struggle began with peaceful diplomatic methods, accompanied by parallel training and strengthening of the military forces of the countries. Germany and Austria-Hungary actively took up the modernization of the troops. Russia was the least prepared.

The event that served and prompted the outbreak of hostilities was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Serbia by a student.He shot not only Ferdinand, but also his wife with a shot into a driving car. On July 15, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia ...

Since the collective security system ceased to exist, each country began to look for an ally. France was the first to start this search. After the Franco-Prussian war, on its eastern border there were now not several dozen independent German monarchies, but a single empire, surpassing France in population and economic power. In addition, France was forced to transfer its territories to the enemy: the province of Alsace and a third of the province of Lorraine. This gave Germany a strategic advantage: it had access to the plain of Northern France in its hands. From that moment, realizing the impossibility of a one-on-one fight, France itself begins an active search for allies to balance the power of the new Germany.

German Chancellor Bismarck, who more than anyone else did for the unification of the country, saw the main goal of his diplomacy in preventing France from alliance with other great powers. He understood how vulnerable the position of the German Empire, which, unlike France, was surrounded on three sides by the great powers: Austria-Hungary, Russia and France itself. The alliance of the latter with either of the two remaining put Germany in front of the prospect of a war on two fronts, which Bismarck considered a direct road to defeat.

Triple Alliance

A way out of this situation was found along the lines of rapprochement with Austria-Hungary. The latter, in turn, entering into ever more acute rivalry with Russia in the Balkans, needed an ally.

Securing this rapprochement, Germany and Austria-Hungary signed an agreement in 1879, under which they pledged to support each other in the event of an attack by the Russian Empire. Italy joined the alliance of these states, which sought support in the conflict with France over control of North Africa.

In 1882, the Triple Alliance was created. Germany and Italy undertook obligations of mutual assistance in the event of an attack by France, and Italy, in addition, promised Austria-Hungary neutrality in the event of a conflict with Russia. Bismarck also hoped that Russia would refrain from conflict with Germany due to close economic, dynastic and traditional political ties with her and the reluctance of the Russian emperor to enter an alliance with a republican, democratic France.

In 1904, they settled all mutual claims that arose in connection with the colonial division of the world, and established a "cordial agreement" among themselves. In French it sounds "Entente cordial", hence the Russian name of this union - Entente. Russia signed a military convention with France back in 1893. In 1907, she settled all her differences with England and actually joined the Entente.

Features of the new alliances

This is how unexpected and strange alliances developed. France and England have been enemies since the Hundred Years War, Russia and France since the 1789 revolution. The Entente united two of the most democratic states in Europe - England and France - with autocratic Russia.

Two traditional allies of Russia - Austria and Germany - found themselves in the camp of her enemies. The alliance of Italy with its yesterday's oppressor and main enemy of unification - Austria-Hungary, on whose territory, moreover, the Italian population remained, also looked strange. The Austrian Habsburgs and Prussian Hohenzollerns, vying for control over Germany for centuries, found themselves in the same coalition, and blood relatives, cousins, William II, on the one hand, Nicholas II and King Edward VII of Great Britain, his wife, were in opposing alliances.

Thus, at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, two opposing coalitions emerged in Europe - the Triple Alliance and the Entente. The rivalry between them was accompanied by an arms race.

Coalition building in itself was not unusual in European politics. Let us recall, for example, that the largest wars of the 18th century - the Northern and the Seven Years - were fought by coalitions, as were the wars against Napoleonic France in the 19th century.

A famous example of the confrontation of political blocs in the international arena is the clash of large countries during the 1900s.

In a period of tension before the events of the First World War, powerful players in the world arena united together to dictate their policies and have an advantage in resolving foreign policy issues. In response, an alliance was formed to counterbalance these events.

This is how the history of confrontation begins, the basis of which was the Entente and the Triple Alliance. Another name is Antanta or Entente (translated as "heartfelt consent").

Countries - members of the Triple Alliance

The international military bloc, which was originally formed to strengthen hegemony, included the following list of countries (see table):

Germany- played a key role in the formation of the alliance, having concluded the first military agreement.
Austro-hungary- the second participant to join the German Empire.
Italy- joined the union last.

A little later, after the events of World War I, Italy was withdrawn from the bloc, but nevertheless the coalition did not disintegrate, but on the contrary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria were additionally included in it.

Creation of the Triple Alliance

The history of the Triple Alliance begins with an allied agreement between the German Empire and Austria-Hungary - these events took place in the Austrian city of Vienna in 1879.

The main clause of the agreement indicated the obligation to enter hostilities on the side of the ally, if aggression was made from the side of the Russian Empire.

In addition, the pact enshrined the requirement to comply with the neutral side if the allies were attacked by someone other than Russia.

At the same time, Germany was worried about the strengthening position in the international arena of France. Therefore, Otto von Bismarck was looking for ways to push France into isolation.

Favorable conditions developed in 1882, when the Austrian Habsburgs were involved in the negotiations, which played a decisive role in Italy's decision.

The secret alliance between Italy and the Germany-Austria-Hungary bloc consisted in providing support by troops in the event of military aggression by France, as well as maintaining neutrality in the event of an attack on one of the countries participating in the coalition.

The goals of the Triple Alliance in World War I

The main goal of the Triple Alliance on the eve of the war was the creation of such a military-political coalition, which in its power would oppose the alliance of the Russian Empire, Great Britain and France (opponents).

However, the participating countries pursued their own goals:

Due to the rapidly growing economy, the German Empire required as many resources as possible and, as a result, more colonies. The Germans also had claims to redistribute spheres of influence in the world, aimed at the formation of German hegemony.
The goals of Austria-Hungary were to establish control over the Balkan Peninsula. For the most part, the case was carried out for the sake of capturing Serbia and some other Slavic countries.
The Italian side had territorial claims to Tunisia, and also sought to consolidate its access to the Mediterranean Sea, concluding it under its absolute control.

Entente - who was part and how it was formed

After the formation of the Triple Alliance, the distribution of forces in the international arena changed dramatically and led to a clash of colonial interests between England and the German Empire.

Expansive actions in the Middle East and Africa prompted Britain to act more actively, and they began negotiations to conclude a military agreement with the Russian Empire and France.

The beginning of the definition of the Entente was laid in 1904. when France and Great Britain entered into a pact, according to which all colonial claims on the African question were transferred under its protectorate.

At the same time, obligations for military support were confirmed only between France and the Russian Empire, while England in every possible way avoided such confirmation.

The emergence of this military-political bloc made it possible to level the differences between the major powers and make them more capable of resisting the aggression of the Triple Alliance.

Accession of Russia to the Entente

The events that marked the beginning of the pulling of the Russian Empire into the Entente bloc took place in 1892.

It was then that a powerful military agreement was concluded with France, according to which, in the event of any aggression, the ally country would withdraw all available armed forces for mutual assistance.

At the same time, by 1906, tensions were growing in relations between Russia and Japan, caused by the negotiations on the Portsmouth Treaty. This could provoke the loss of some Far Eastern territories by Russia.

Realizing these facts, Foreign Minister Izvolsky headed for rapprochement with Great Britain. It was an auspicious move in history, since England and Japan were allies, and the agreement could settle mutual claims.

The success of Russian diplomacy was the signing of the Russian-Japanese agreement in 1907, according to which all territorial issues were settled. This greatly influenced the acceleration of negotiations with England - the date of August 31, 1907 marked the conclusion of the Russian-English agreement.

This fact was final, after which Russia finally joined the Entente.

The final design of the Entente

The final events that completed the formation of the Entente bloc were the signing of mutual agreements between Britain and France on the settlement of colonial issues in Africa.

This included the following documents:

The division of the territories of Egypt and Morocco was carried out.
The borders of England and France in Africa were clearly divided. Newfoundland completely ceded to Britain, France received part of the new territories in Africa.
Settlement of the Madagascar question.

These documents formed a bloc of alliances between the Russian Empire, Great Britain and France.

The plans of the Entente in the First World War

The main goal of the Entente on the eve of the First World War (1915) was to suppress the military superiority of Germany, which was planned to be carried out from several sides. This is, first of all, a war on two fronts with Russia and France, as well as a complete naval blockade by England.

At the same time, the members of the agreement had a personal interest in:

England had claims to the rapidly and steadily growing economy of Germany, the rate of production of which had an overwhelming effect on the British economy. In addition, Britain saw the German Empire as a military threat to its sovereignty.
France sought to regain the territories of Alsace and Lorraine, lost during the Franco-Prussian clash. These lands were also important to the economy due to the large amount of resources.
Tsarist Russia pursued its goals to spread influence over the important economic zone of the Mediterranean and to settle territorial claims to a number of Polish lands and territories in the Balkans.

The results of the confrontation between the Entente and the Triple Alliance

The result of the confrontation following the First World War was the complete defeat of the Triple Alliance- Italy was lost, and the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires, which were part of the union, disintegrated. The system was destroyed in Germany, where the republic reigned.

For the Russian Empire, participation in the Entente and the First World War ended in civil clashes and revolution, which led to the collapse of the empire.

The beginning of the last century was marked by a sharp exacerbation of contradictions between the world's major powers. The main rivalry broke out between England and Germany, who headed the opposing military-political blocs: the Entente and the Triple Alliance.

Back in 1904, an agreement was reached between Paris and London, which dealt with the elimination of disputed territorial issues between them, - on the delimitation of their spheres of interest in Africa. Although it did not say anything about Germany, the agreement was essentially directed against her, since Berlin began to openly declare the need to redistribute the world. And this created a threat to the colonial possessions of London and Paris. German claims to England and France pushed Paris to strengthen ties with Russia and forced British diplomacy to achieve the same, especially since St. Petersburg's mediation was required in settling disputes in the Asian region to delimit spheres of influence.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND GERMANY

Other problems have become aggravated in the world as well. Japan expressed its claims to the terms of the Portsmouth Peace. Austro-Hungarian and German capitals broke through to Turkey. Berlin strove to undermine the rule of England in the sea and intensively strengthened the power of its naval forces. The arms race unfolded.

In 1907, at the initiative of Russia, the second international Hague conference was held, in which 44 states took part. It adopted 13 conventions, including: on the limitation of armaments, on the introduction of an arbitration tribunal for the peaceful resolution of international conflicts, on the laws and conditions of warfare, etc.

In the ruling circles of Russia, the assessment of the current events (especially in relation to Germany) was contradictory. It should be noted that Berlin actively sought to draw Russia into the channel of its policy, to split its international alliances. So, in 1905, during the meeting of Nicholas II with Wilhelm II in Bjork, the Kaiser persuaded the tsar to sign (secretly from the then Minister of Foreign Affairs V.N. contracting parties of any European power. Despite the extreme indignation of Wilhelm II, the Bjork agreement, which was in conflict with the allied treaty with France, did not have any practical results and in the fall of 1905 it was essentially annulled by Russia. The logic of the development of international relations ultimately pushed the autocracy towards the Entente.

The transition of Russia to the camp of Germany's opponents became evident, but not immediately. A. P. Izvolsky, who was appointed foreign minister, strove to achieve rapprochement with Britain without breaking off relations with Germany. For this, he planned to conclude agreements on the most pressing issues with both Germany and Austria-Hungary, and with England. Simultaneously, Izvolsky intended to settle relations with Japan. Such a policy allowed Russia to get the respite necessary to resolve internal problems, restore military potential, and was supposed to provide it with an advantageous position in the emerging Anglo-German conflict.

JAPAN'S CLAIMS

After the signing of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, relations between Russia and Japan remained tense. Tokyo made a number of demands aimed at expanding its influence in the Far East to the detriment of Russian interests. The militarist circles of Japan believed that "the peace was concluded prematurely" and strove for new seizures in the Far East, primarily for the complete annexation of Korea and South Manchuria. They began to increase the army and navy. In Russia, calls for revenge were also heard. And Germany fueled these sentiments and pushed both countries to a new military conflict. At the same time, Berlin promised Russia its help and put forward the idea of a German-Russian-American coalition against Japan. Having entered into negotiations with Russia, Tokyo presented it with demands to expand its sphere of influence along the Songhua River in Manchuria, right up to the inclusion of the Chinese Eastern Railway in this sphere, as well as free shipping along the Amur of preferential transportation of goods across Siberia and virtually unlimited freedom of fishing along the Far Eastern coast of Russia.

In 1907, a Russian-Japanese agreement on political issues was signed. The parties agreed to maintain the "status quo" in the Far East. Northern Manchuria and Outer Mongolia were recognized as the sphere of influence of Russia, and South Manchuria and Korea - Japan.

BOSNIAN CRISIS

In 1908, Izvolsky, during negotiations with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria-Hungary, A. Erenthal, agreed to annex to Austria-Hungary Bosnia and Herzegovina, occupied by the Austrians after the Berlin Congress. In exchange, he received Erenthal's promise not to object to the opening of the Black Sea straits for Russian military vessels. However, England and France did not support the claims of the tsarist diplomacy. Izvolsky's attempt to solve the problem of the straits failed. Austria-Hungary, meanwhile, announced the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Germany sent an ultimatum to Russia in March 1909, demanding the recognition of this act. The tsarist government, realizing that it was not ready for a decisive objection, was forced to yield.

BALKAN WARS

The Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 became the prologue to the First World War. Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece, united as a result of active efforts of Russian diplomacy, began a war against Turkey and defeated it. The winners soon quarreled with each other. Germany and Austria-Hungary, considering the formation of the Balkan Union as a success of Russian diplomacy, took steps aimed at its collapse, and pushed Bulgaria to oppose Serbia and Greece. During the second Balkan war, Bulgaria, against which Romania and Turkey also began fighting, was defeated. All these events significantly exacerbated the Russian-German and Russian-Austrian contradictions. Turkey was increasingly subject to German influence.

THE BIRTH OF ANTANTA

The Russian government, realizing the country's unpreparedness for war and fearing (in case of defeat) a new revolution, sought to postpone an armed clash with Germany and Austria-Hungary. At the same time, in the conditions of a progressive deterioration in relations with its western neighbors, it tried to formalize allied relations with England. These attempts were unsuccessful, since London did not want to be bound by any obligations. Allied relations between Russia and France by 1914, however, significantly strengthened. In 1911-1913, at the meetings of the chiefs of the Russian and French general staffs, decisions were made that provided for an increase in the number of troops deployed against Germany in case of war. The naval headquarters of England and France concluded a naval convention, which entrusted the protection of the Atlantic coast of France to the English fleet, and the protection of England's interests in the Mediterranean to the French. The Entente as a coalition of England, France and Russia directed against the Triple Alliance was becoming a threatening reality.

You may be interested in:

The formation of the Entente.

Entente.

Military-political blocs during the 1st World War.

Entente- the military-political bloc of Russia, England and France, created as a counterweight to the "Triple Alliance" ( A-Entente); formed mainly in 1904-1907 and completed the demarcation of the great powers on the eve of the First World War. The term originated in 1904 originally to designate the Anglo-French alliance, and the expression was used l'Entente cordiale("Cordial agreement") in memory of the short-lived Anglo-French alliance in the 1840s, which bore the same name.

The creation of the Entente was a reaction to the creation of the Triple Alliance and the strengthening of Germany, an attempt to prevent its hegemony on the continent, initially from Russia (France initially held an anti-German position), and then from Great Britain. The latter, in the face of the threat of German hegemony, was forced to abandon the traditional policy of "brilliant isolation" and switch to - by the way, also traditional - a policy of blocking against the most powerful power on the continent. Particularly important incentives for this choice of Great Britain were the German naval program and the colonial claims of Germany. In Germany, in turn, such a turn of events was declared "encirclement" and served as a pretext for new military preparations, positioned as purely defensive.

The confrontation between the Entente and the Triple Alliance led to the First World War, where the enemy of the Entente and its allies was the bloc of the Central Powers, in which Germany played a leading role.

The Triple Alliance is a military-political bloc of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy, formed in 1879-1882, which marked the beginning of the division of Europe into hostile camps and played an important role in the preparation and unleashing of the First World War (1914-1918).

The main organizer of the Triple Alliance was Germany, which concluded a military alliance with Austria-Hungary in 1879. After that, in 1882, Italy joined them. The nucleus of an aggressive military grouping in Europe was created, directed against Russia and France.

On May 20, 1882, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy signed a secret treaty on the Triple Alliance ( Austro-German treaty of 1879 also known as Dual union- Treaty of alliance between Austria-Hungary and Germany; signed at Vienna on 7 October 1879.

He was imprisoned for a period of 5 years, and was subsequently renewed several times. Article 1 established that if one of the contracting parties is attacked by Russia, then both parties are obliged to come out to help each other. Article 2 provided that in the event of an attack on one of the contracting parties by some other power, the other party undertakes to maintain at least benevolent neutrality. If the attacking side receives the support of Russia, then Article 1 comes into force.

The treaty, directed primarily against Russia and France, was one of the agreements that led to the creation of a military bloc led by Germany (the Triple Alliance) and to the division of European countries into two hostile camps, which subsequently opposed each other in World War I. war).

They pledged (for a period of 5 years) not to take part in any unions or agreements directed against one of these countries, to consult on political and economic issues and provide mutual support. Germany and Austria-Hungary pledged to provide assistance to Italy in the event that she "without a direct challenge from her side would have been attacked by France." Italy should have done the same in the event of an unprovoked French attack on Germany. Austria-Hungary was assigned the role of a reserve in case Russia entered the war. The Allies took note of Italy's statement that if Great Britain is one of the powers that attacked its partners, then Italy will not provide military assistance (Italy was afraid to enter into conflict with Great Britain, since she could not withstand its strong navy). In the event of a common participation in the war, the parties pledged not to conclude a separate peace and to keep the Treaty of the Triple Alliance secret.

The contract was renewed in 1887 and 1891 (with additions and clarifications made) and was automatically renewed in 1902 and 1912.

The policies of the countries participating in the Triple Alliance were characterized by increasing aggressiveness. In response to the creation of the Triple Alliance in 1891-1894, the Franco-Russian alliance was formed, in 1904 the Anglo-French agreement was concluded, in 1907 - the Anglo-Russian agreement, the Entente was formed.

From the end of the 19th century, Italy, suffering losses from the customs war waged by France against it, began to change its political course. In 1902, she entered into an agreement with France, pledging to maintain neutrality in the event of a German attack on France.

After the conclusion of the London Pact, Italy entered World War I on the side of the Entente, and the Triple Alliance fell apart (1915). After Italy left the union, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire joined Germany and Austria-Hungary, forming a quadruple alliance.