The Balkan Question
As tensions heightened regarding the division of the Balkan peninsula at the dawn of the 20th century, the imperial ambitions of larger European nations became clearer as they looked to take advantage of the regions turmoil to satisfy their own ambitions of conquest and expansion. Realizing the economic surplus they could generate from the regions vast reserve of natural resources, large imperial European nations quickly overlooked any concern for human rights or sentiment of the regions inhabitants towards their goals. Naturally their imperial ambitions conflicted with the nationalistic fight for freedom by inhabitants of the region, this sparked intense division and conflict, that culminated with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand which kicked off the start of World War 1. This section of our exhibit will look at historical newspaper articles to demonstrate how imperialism sparked conflicts in the Balkans which became a leading cause of the first World War.
Financial Claims in the Balkan War
This article from “The Times” Newspaper discusses the outcomes of the Greek war of independence and how the Ottoman empire refused indemnities it owed to Greece and other Balkan states on the basis of what would now be considered war crimes. The Ottoman’s refusal to subsidize the Balkan states for the hardships they caused them during their first war heightened tensions in the area and despite the Ottomans already losing their imperial claims over some of this region, nationalism continued to rise in popularity mostly due to mistreatment by their former imperial leaders. This rise in nationalism culminated in the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand by a separatist group of Slavic nationalists, the event most commonly attributed as the primary cause of the first World War.
The Balkan Question
Referencing the Balkan Question, this article explains how large European powers like England intended to get involved to try and solve the Balkan crisis which was essentially a concern from Europeans over how Bosnia and the rest of the Balkans should be divided in order to maximize peace and profits after their succession from the Ottoman empire. Clearly this third-party intervention proved to be ineffective and did little to quell resentment from Balkan citizens towards their former imperial lords.
Balkan War Pictures: Bulgarian Fears of Faked Evidence
The Following article is from the Manchester Guardian and provides an explanation on how the Bulgarian government feared that foreign photographers authorized by the Ottoman empire to record war crimes would over exaggerate them so they could make "monstrous accusations" against them to further their own initiatives. This instance of politically strategic misinformation by the Ottomans was likely done to give them justification to invade and re-capture their formal imperial lands. Yet another example of imperial ambitions stoking tension in the Balkans.
Another Balkan War Threatened
This title form a Manchester Guardian newspaper article in 1913 reflects the degree of fighting in the Balkans prior to WW1, several small scale conflicts has broken out involving nearly every state in the region. This is a testament to the heightened tension levels in the region that were sparked by imperialism and resulted in the eventual start of World War 1.