The First World War, also known as the Great War, has been called great because never before has there been a war of such magnitude that caused so much life and destruction between 1914 and 1918. The industrial revolution, the rise of the masses and radical changes in society contributed to all the tensions between European nations. In the summer of 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo, which marked a beginning, but a single bullet should not just be the reason to start a war. Countless historians still debate the primary cause of World War I. Was it imperialism, militarism, growing nationalism or connected alliances? They may have all contributed to the First World War. However, two main causes strongly influenced the start of the war: imperialism, which aroused the jealousy of other nations, and the growing alliances between the allies, namely Russia, Great Britain and England. France and the Central Powers of Germany, Austria, Hungary and Turkey. These two main causes had a huge impact on World War I, which people thought would end by Christmas 1914, but which lasted long enough for years to change history. At the turn of the 20th century, power and expansion went hand in hand. hand in Europe, in the form of imperialism. Imperialism meant controlling other countries and seizing power through military, economic and political forces (52). In the 19th century, the industrial revolution changed all the systems of European nations. Due to the Industrial Revolution, many European countries needed a lot of resources, but their own resources were not enough. Therefore, they conquered other countries and imported many raw materials from their colonies. Powerful European countries grabbed much of the paper, but it wouldn't have involved other nations if they had kept to themselves without their alliances. Over 50 years of growing alliances, Nations thought it would bring them a sense of security, but instead it did the opposite. Didn't they know their bond would drag them into a full-scale war? Works Cited Brendon, Vyvyen. The First World War, 1914-1918. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2000. Print. Darby, Graham. The origins of the First World War. London: Longman, 1998. Print. Fitzgerald, James, Alf Pickard and David Stewart. The Great War: sources and evidence. Melbourne: Thomas Nelson, 1995. PrintHamilton, John. Events leading to the war. Minnesota: Abdo Pub Co., 2004. Print.History: The Origins of World War I “The Great War. Prologue.” PBS. PBS and Web. March 18, 2014. World War I Primary Sources. Ed. James D. Torr.