Militarism

Glorification of military power and the buildup of military forces. European powers competed in an arms race for decades before 1914. Germany expanded its navy to challenge Britain. France, after the humiliation of 1871, rebuilt its army with revanchist intent. Russia modernized its forces with French capital. Military leaders gained increasing political influence and produced detailed war plans (most famously the German Schlieffen Plan) that required rapid mobilization once a crisis began. The arms race created the war machines that would devour millions of lives, and the war plans created the timetables that turned a Balkan crisis into a continental war.