Berlin.
Wilhelm II was in an exceptionally foul mood. First of all, in his view, Germany was not yet prepared for war, and declarations of war from three great powers—Russia, France, and Britain—at the same time had gone far beyond anything he had anticipated.
Although Wilhelm II often had war on his lips, he was in fact extremely cautious in his attitude toward it.
Otherwise, when Russia began mobilizing, he would not have urged the Russian government to halt its mobilization. At heart, he still did not wish for a military conflict with Germany.
Although a war between Germany and Russia was inevitable, before this war, Wilhelm II had absolutely no intention of launching one now.
Yet the chief culprit behind this irreparable situation was in fact Wilhelm II himself. The reason Conrad and the Austro-Hungarian Empire's War Faction dared declare war on Russia without fear lay at its root in Wilhelm II's assurances.
Conrad had previously asked Wilhelm II for his position. At the time, Wilhelm II had not realized the gravity of the matter, so in his reply to Conrad, he wrote: "How you handle this matter is your business, but no matter what happens, Germany will stand by your side."
At the time, Wilhelm II had merely believed that the Austro-Hungarian Empire would punish Serbia. A strong nation had many ways to sanction a weak one, but Wilhelm II had failed to realize that the Austro-Hungarian Empire would choose war—the most radical means—to exact revenge upon Serbia.
It could be said that Wilhelm II had been completely unaware of the military operation planned by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Yet Conrad and the other Austro-Hungarian radicals had already obtained the answer they wanted from Germany.
This was equivalent to Wilhelm II handing the Austro-Hungarian Empire a "blank check," while