The Origins of the First World War: Diplomatic and Military Documents (Documents in Modern History)

This book is a unique collection of diplomatic and military documents which illuminate the origins of the First World War. It brings together newly-discovered archival sources as well as documents not previously available in English, drawn from a broad range of sources and countries. It is an essential collection for anyone studying the origins of the First World War.

The volume contains several hundred international documents for the years 1911-1914, selected because they are vital to understanding the origins of the war. The volume includes a comprehensive scholarly introduction which analyses the most controversial issues in the debate on the origins of the First World War on the eve of the centenary. It also provides a detailed overview of the history of official document publications on the diplomatic background to the outbreak of war, and places these within the context of the long historiographical debate on its origins.

The First World War continues to fascinate scholars, students and the general public, and the riddle of its origins has never been satisfactorily solved. Anyone studying the outbreak of the war will find this collection indispensible. Documents are an essential tool for historical study, particularly for this controversial topic about which historians have argued for the best part of a century. The documents in this volume are thoroughly cross-referenced and annotated, and presented with authoritative commentary. This allows readers to make connections between the documents to illuminate how the decisions for war were made, and why.