The flash of machine guns and the explosion of bullets were completely new to the veterans. Both soldiers at the front and their families at home did not realize how much World War I would change warfare forever. The First World War, which began in 1914 and ended in 1918, involved two major parties. The Triple Alliance, which included Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary, and the Triple Entente, which included France, Great Britain, and Russia, fought the greatest war the world had ever seen. We know the story, but reading it between the pages, what were the root causes of the Great War that changed history? Through extensive research through primary and secondary documents, the answer was found. The hidden causes were militarism, nationalism and the alliance system. Militarism has led nations to go to war prematurely. Nationalism causes other nations to become suspicious and also leads to a war that could easily be resolved in other ways. Another underlying cause was the alliance system, which transformed the war into a world war involving all of Europe. World War I began because of militarism, nationalism and the alliance system. The presence of militarism, an ideology that holds that the army is the most important aspect of a society, before and during the war led to jealousies and resentments, thus escalating the war long before it was necessary. Although this was not the main cause, it was still an extremely important factor in the conduct of the First World War. Document 2, a collection of period quotes compiled by Addison Wesley Longman, demonstrates the feelings of European citizens at the dawn of the war. In the first quote, we can see that the average citizen across Europe found the prospect of peace in war, rather than fear and disgust. B...... middle of paper... combined powers of the nations in each alliance that helped amass so many men to fight the Great War World War I was a catastrophe that, for decades, many people wondered what it really happened behind the scenes. Everyone knows the story of the departure, of the assignment of Archduke Ferdinand, but now you can know the rest. Militarism, nationalism, and the alliance system were the main causes of tension and, ultimately, war throughout Europe. Now that the world can finally hear the whole story, a Third World War could be avoided and thousands of lives could be saved. Now that the truth has come out, let it be heard. Militarism, nationalism and the alliance system were the gunpowder of the First World War! Works Cited Document 2, Document 11, Document Document 7, Document 1, Document 5, Document 6, Document 3, Document 4, Ms. Ayala's Lecture on the World War1.