Why did World War 1 break out?

 

As the 19th century drew to a close, there was increased rivalry among the different nations of Europe.

In June 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife Sopie made a tour of Bosnia. As they drove through the streets of Sarajevo, a Serbian assassin shot them both dead. In retaliation, Austria-Hungary, backed by Germany, declared war on Serbia. Soon all the major European powers were drawn into the conflict. Russia, backed by France, supported Serbia. Then Germany invaded neutral Belgium and attacked France, drawing Britain into the conflict.

Why did Napoleon take France to War?

After years of political turmoil, the French welcomed Napoleon as their new leader in 1799. Not only was Napoleon a brilliant general, he also proved himself to be a skilful administrator.

Although Europe was at peace briefly in 1802, Napoleon, after abandoning attempts to increase French influence in North America, turned his attention to expanding his empire in Europe. To raise money, he sold a huge area of land in North America, called Louisiana, to the Americans. In 1803, France and Britain went to war again. Napoleon wanted to land an army in Britain, so he needed to control the seas. But in 1805, a British fleet under Lord Nelson defeated the combined French and Spanish fleets at the battle of Trafalgar. This defeat ended Napoleon�s hopes of invading Britain.