以下內容乃K.W.Ho之補習教材，於課堂教授，內容乃配合K.W.Ho之答題方法及風格所製作，同時內容可能有錯誤之處以供在課堂上糾正。非補習學生在未有得到課堂教學的情況下錯誤使用，恕不負責，同學請敬請留意。
【Free】6000頁筆記及60份5**考卷免費使用：按此
Youtube教學：按此
_________________________________________________________________________
相對於其他因素，軍備競賽在影響1900-14年間列強的關係一事上有何重要性？
定義 軍備競賽指各國視他國為假想敵，於軍隊及裝備的數量和質量上進行競賽，希望於軍事實力上壓倒其他國家。 // 立場及架構軍備競賽對於1900-14年間列強的關係一事上有著負面及正面的影響，其重要性大於民族主義、同盟制度及殖民地爭奪。
主旨句 其一，陸軍方面的競賽使列強關係交惡。 // 主項重要性歐洲大陸上的列強為了使已國於戰爭中處於優勢，致力於擴充陸軍軍力、延長服役時間及推行「徵兵制」，導致了各國的陸軍人數不斷膨脹。至1914年時，俄國陸軍的可動員人數達597萬人，德國和法國的也有450萬和378萬人。軍力的加強增加了各國開戰的信心，於衝突中表現得更為強硬，例如俄國於1914年塞拉耶佛危機時第一個國家總動員以支持塞爾維亞，使俄、塞與德、奧的關係變得更加尖銳化。此外，列強間也制訂了作戰計劃，例如德國的施里芬計劃、法國的第十七號計劃及俄國的第十九號計劃，使各國於衝突中優先考慮以戰爭作為解決問題的方式，其中德國於塞拉耶佛危機後迅速採取施里芬計劃，繞道比利時以攻打法國，令局勢變得無可挽回。 // 小結可見，陸軍方面的競賽惡化了列強的關係，更有助大戰的爆發。
其二，海軍方面的競賽也惡化了列強的關係。海軍方面的競賽尤以英、德兩國的鬥爭最為觸目，其中，自英國於1907年成功研發無畏艦後，德國也爭相仿傚，結果掀起了兩國的無畏艦競賽，英國更以二比一海軍政策回應德國，即德國每建1艘無畏艦，英國即建2艘，大大惡化了兩國的關係。海軍一方面的競賽一方面使德國於衝突中採取更強烈的行動，例如於1911年第二次摩洛哥危機中派黑豹號到摩洛哥，令局勢更趨緊張。同時，使英國設法箝制德國的海軍勢力，於1912年與法國簽訂《英法海軍協定》，英、法分別保護英倫海峽和地中海的海上安全。最終，於德國實行施里芬計劃繞道比利時後，英國認為德國的舉動破壞了英倫海峽的和平，威脅了其國家安全而對德宣戰，使英、德兩國陷入戰爭。可見，海軍方面的競賽是英、德關係交惡的催化劑，更是兩國交戰的重要原因。
其三，軍備競賽也促進了部分國家之間的關係發展，帶來了正面的影響。
隨著列強間激烈的軍備競賽，例如面對德國陸軍實力的不斷加強，部分國家間會建立緊密的關係以保障國安全，例如法國和俄國對於德國陸軍的憂慮使兩國在共同商議的情況底下，制訂了第十七號計劃和第十九號計劃，計劃於戰爭爆發時東西夾擊德國，結果，戰略上的軍事交流使法、俄兩國關係更形密切，有著唇亡齒寒的關係。此外，由於德國於20世紀初大幅增建巡邏艦，例如1901年建造的黑豹號(1901年)，令英國感到其海軍地位受到挑戰，故開始在歐洲尋找盟友，改善了與法國及俄國的關係，分別與法、俄於1904年及1907年簽訂諒解，使三國間的關係大大得到改善。可見，軍事競賽對於改善部分國家間的關係也有著重要的意義。
軍備競賽在影響列強關係一事上極具意義，重要性大於其他因素。
主旨句 其一，民族主義對於影響列強關係亦具有重要性。 // 他項重要性各民族為爭取民族光榮及更多的利益，積極進行擴張，最終導致多次衝突及戰爭的出現，例如波斯尼亞危機(1908年)中，德國支持同族的奧匈吞併波黑，導致了俄、塞的不滿。更甚，於塞拉耶佛危機(1914年)中，泛日耳曼的德、奧與泛斯拉夫的俄、塞再次對抗。最終，大戰更因兩大民族的衝突而觸發，使歐洲陷入戰爭。
主旨句 然而，軍備競賽在影響列強關係一事上較民族主義重要。 // 駁論軍備競賽使民族主義變質成極端民族主義，因各民族支持其國家軍事發展，並批評他國的軍事擴張，如英、德兩大民族因軍備競賽而互相批評，導致了兩國的關係惡化，令民族主義變質成偏激的極端民族主義思想。此外，軍事實力的加強使民族衝突變得更加激烈，例如德、俄軍力的加強使兩國於塞拉耶佛危機中，不惜分別提出「空白支票」及第一個國家總動員以支持其友國，導致了國際局勢變得更加嚴峻。 // 小結可見，軍備競賽的重要性大於民族主義。
其二，同盟制度在影響1900-14年間列強關係一事上也具有重要性。同盟制度一方面導致部分國家關係改善，例如英國與法、俄兩國達成諒解後，調停了殖民地糾紛，關係漸趨友好。同時，同盟制度導致了歐洲分裂成三國同盟及三國協約兩大陣營，原本屬於兩國的衝突也因同盟制度而擴大化，其中1914年的塞拉耶佛危機便是代表例子，德、英、法等國因同盟制度而捲入衝突，最終使世界大戰爆發，大大惡化了兩大陣營間的關係。
然而，軍備競賽的重要性大於同盟制度。軍備競賽促使了同盟的出現，例如德國於19世紀末開始積極擴張海軍，使英國深感海軍強國的地位受到挑戰，繼而與日本及法國結盟，建立了「英日同盟」(1902年)及簽訂了《摰誠協定》(1904年)，以抗衡德國。此外，軍備競賽使同盟的性質轉變，英、法兩國於1904年簽訂的《摰誠協定》只是諒解性質，互相承認對方的殖民地範圍，但隨著英、法兩國對於德國海軍的擴張日趨顧忌，使兩國於1912年簽訂《英法海軍協定》，變成軍事的同盟，使兩國關係更進一步。可見，軍備競賽的重要性大於同盟制度。
其三，殖民地爭奪也大大影響了列強間的關係。殖民地爭奪一方面惡化了列強間的關係，因列強為了爭奪殖民利益而導致多次衝突的出現，例如德國和法國為爭奪北非的摩洛哥而導致了兩次摩洛哥危機(1905年；1911年)的出現，使國際局勢惡化。同時，殖民地爭奪也有助國家間的關係更加靠攏，例如兩次摩洛哥危機中，只有奧匈支持德國，令德國相信奧匈才是堅定的盟友，故於塞拉耶佛危機中，不惜開出「空白支票」予奧匈，反映殖民地爭奪對列強間的關係也具有頗大的重要性。
然而，殖民地爭奪的重要性不及軍備競賽。於發展趨勢而言，殖民地衝突於1914年前基本上已得到妥善的解決，如法、意及英、法的殖民地問題分別於1902及1904年達成諒解，而法、德的殖民地問題亦於第二次摩洛哥危機後穩定下來，各國於1911年後採溫和的殖民地擴張政策，避免戰爭因殖民地問題而爆發。反之，軍備問題未有得到妥善解決，1899及1907年兩次的海牙裁軍會議均不能就裁軍問題達成共識，及後英、德的無畏艦之爭更令兩國關係惡化，使最終大戰亦按各國早已草擬的作戰計劃實行而爆發。可見，軍備競賽的重要性大於殖民地爭奪。
總括而言，軍備競賽是影響1900-14年間列強關係發展的最重要因素，其重要性大於民族主義、同盟制度及殖民地爭奪。
Assess the importance of the armaments race relative to other factors in affecting the relationships among the powers in the period 1900-14.
Armaments race is that countries regard others as enemies and compete for the quantity and quality of their armies and armaments in the hope of overpowering others in terms of military strength. Armaments race brought about negative and positive impacts on relationship among powers during the period of 1900-14. It was more important than nationalism, alliance system and colonial rivalries.
Firstly, race of the armies worsened the relationship among powers. The European powers improved their armies’ strength, extended the service time and adopted conscription in order to let them in a dominant position in the war, thus expanding the army size of countries. In 1914, the number of soldiers of Russia was 5.97 million. Germany and France also possessed of 4.5 million and 3.78 million soldiers respectively. Since the military strength of most countries was raised, they were more confident in causing war and were more unyielding during conflicts. For example, Russia was the first to announce general mobilization in support of Serbia in the Sarajevo Incident (1914), worsening the relationship between Russia, Serbia and Germany, Austria. Besides, with war plans, namely the German Schlieffen Plan施里芬計劃, the French Plan 17第十七號計劃and the Russian Plan 19第十九號計劃, each country thus first considered war when there were conflicts. For example, after the Sarajevo Incident塞拉耶佛危機, Germany executed the Schlieffen Plan which launched an attack on France by passing through Belgium, worsening the situation. It showed that race of the armies worsened relationship among powers, causing the outbreak of world war.
Secondly, race of the navies worsened relationship among powers. The naval race between Britain and Germany was the most striking. After Britain had successfully invented dreadnought in 1907, Germany followed, leading to competition in dreadnoughts無畏艦 building. Britain responded Germany with a naval policy of 2:1 ratio, to build two dreadnoughts when Germany built one, greatly worsening their relationship. Germany adopted fiercer action in conflicts because of naval race. For example, Germany sent the gunboat Panther to the port of Agadir in the Second Moroccan Crisis第二次摩洛哥危機(1911), making the situation more hostile. Meanwhile, in a bid to restrict German naval influence, Britain and France signed the Anglo-French Naval Agreement英法海軍協定(1912), which stated that Britain would defend the English Channel英倫海峽while France would defend the Mediterranean Sea地中海. When Germany adopted the Schlieffen Plan and passed through Belgium比利時, Britain thought that the action of Germany destroyed the peace of the English Channel and threatened its national safety, thus declaring war on Germany. It showed that naval race worsened relationship between Britain and Germany, thus leading to war.
Thirdly, armaments race brought about positive impacts on relationship among countries. With the growing intensity of armaments race among powers, such as the continuous consolidation of German army, some countries would build tight relationship with each other to preserve national safety. For example, France and Russia feared the German army thus formulated the Plan 17第十七號計劃 and the Plan 19第十九號計劃, which decided to attack Germany in case of war. As a result, strategic military communication made the relationship of France and Russia closer. Besides, since Germany actively increased the number of gunboats in the early 20th century, such as the SMS Panther黑豹號built in 1901, Britain felt its naval supremacy was challenged by Germany, thus started to seek allies in Europe. She signed entente agreements諒解with France and Russia in 1904 and 1907 respectively, improving the Franco-Russian relationship. Relationships among these three countries also improved a lot. It showed that armaments race had great significance in improving relationship among countries.
Armaments race had great significance in affecting relationship among powers. It was more important than other factors.
Firstly, nationalism had significance in affecting relationship among powers. Every race actively expanded their territories so as to gain more national glories and interests, thus leading to several conflicts and wars. For example, Germany supported its counterpart Austria-Hungary to annex Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Bosnian Crisis波斯尼亞危機(1908), arousing discontent of Russia and Serbia. Worse still, Pan Germanic Germany, Austria-Hungary and Pan Slavic Russia, Serbia confronted towards others in the Sarajevo Incident塞拉耶佛危機(1914). Finally, was broke out in Europe because of conflict between these two races.
However, armaments race was more important than nationalism in affecting relationship among powers. Armaments race turned nationalism into extreme nationalism極端民族主義. As each race supported the military development of its own country but criticized that of others; for example, Britain and Germany criticized others due to armaments race, worsening their relationship while nationalism changed its nature and became extreme and radical. Moreover, the strengthening of military power made national conflicts fiercer. For instance, since Germany and Russia enhanced their military strength, they issued “blank cheque” 空白支票 and announced general mobilization in support of their counterparts respectively in the Sarajevo Incident塞拉耶佛危機, worsening the international situation. It showed that armaments race was more important than nationalism.
Secondly, alliance system had significance in affecting relationship among powers during the period of 1900-14. Alliance system improved relationship among countries. For example, after Britain, France and Russia had reached entente agreements, they settled the colonial disputes, improving their relationship. Meanwhile, alliance system divided Europe into two military camps, the Triple Alliance三國同盟 and the Triple Entente三國協約. Conflicts between two countries would spread because of alliance system. The Sarajevo Incident塞拉耶佛危機(1914) was a typical example. Owing to alliance system, Germany, Britain and France were embroiled, and eventually turned into a world war, greatly worsening the relationship between the two camps.
However, armaments race was more important than alliance system. Armaments race contributed to the formation of alliances; for example, because Germany actively expanded its navy in the 19th century, which challenged the naval supremacy of Britain, Britain formed alliances with Japan and France, such as the formation of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance英日同盟(1902) and signing of the Entente Cordiale摰誠協定(1904), so as to confront Germany. Besides, armaments race changed the nature of alliances. The signing of Entente Cordiale (1904) by Britain and France was an entente agreement, which mutually recognized of each other’s colonial zones. However, Britain and France were suspicious of the expansion of German navy, thus signing the Anglo-French Naval Agreement英法海軍協定(1912), which was developed into a military alliance. Their relationship was closer. It showed that armaments race was more important than alliance system.
Thirdly, colonial rivalries greatly affected the relationship among powers. Colonial rivalries worsened powers’ relationship. European countries hoped to gain colonial interests, thus leading to conflicts such as the two Moroccan Crises兩次摩洛哥危機(1905; 1911) that Germany and France struggled for Morocco in North Africa. It worsened the international situation. Meanwhile, colonial rivalries made countries closer. For instance, since only Austria-Hungary supported Germany in the two Moroccan Crises, Germany regarded Austria-Hungary as the only close ally. Hence, Germany even issued the “blank cheque” 空白支票 to Austria-Hungary in the Sarajevo Incident. It showed that colonial rivalries had significance in affecting relationship among powers.
However, armaments race was more important than colonial rivalries. With regard to trends, colonial conflicts were almost settled before 1914. For example, the signing of entente between France and Italy in 1902 and that of Britain and France in 1904; the colonial conflicts between France and Germany became stable after the Second Moroccan Crisis. Powers adopted milder colonial expansion policies after 1911 to prevent war from breaking out because of colonial problem. On the contrary, armaments race did not. They could not reach any consensus in the two Hague Disarmament Conferences兩次海牙裁軍會議 in 1899 and 1907, while the later competition between Britain and Germany in dreadnoughts無畏艦 worsened their relationship. The war finally broke out in accordance with the war plans long plotted by the powers. It showed that armaments race was more important than colonial rivalries.
In conclusion, armaments race was the most important factor in affecting the relationship among powers during the period of 1900-14. It was more important than nationalism, alliance system and colonial rivalries.
Comentarios