France and Germany have become rivals since Franco-Prussian War. France is bent on avenging Franco-Prussian War and avenging its past humiliation. Similarly, Germany also wants to defeat France again and dominate European continent.
After the Sarajevo incident broke out, France immediately felt a huge crisis. French President Raymond Poincaré asked the army to start secret mobilization and prepare for battle. At the same time, Ambassador to Russia is also required to contact Russia. France and Russia have signed a military Alliance Treaty. Once the two countries are attacked by Germany, the other country must attack Germany unconditionally.
French knows very well that Germany's military strength has expanded too fast. If they rely solely on their own strength, they are no match for Germany. Therefore, they can only bring other countries together to deal with Germany. Fortunately, Germany has many opponents. The combination of France and Russia is enough to contain Germany on land. Coupled with the support of Britain, it is not impossible to defeat Germany.
The Britain people on the other side of the Taiwan Strait have a somewhat different attitude. Britain is also ready for war and believes that it is better to fight early than to fight late. If it is delayed any longer, it will be detrimental to itself. Because Britain saw that Germany's production capacity was stronger than its own, it would quickly catch up in the naval shipbuilding competition, hoping to defeat dangerous competitors through war while still maintaining naval superiority in 1914.
However, after the Sarajevo incident, Britain did not reveal its intention to participate in the war at first, because it was worried that Germany would rein in the precipice, and was afraid of taking the responsibility of starting the war in the first place. At the same time, there is a pro-German faction among Britain Parliament and Cabinet. In British Cabinet, 12 cabinet members did not approve of joining the war. The working class as a whole and most Liberals opposed entry into the war. A mass rally in Trafalgar Square called for Britain to declare neutrality. Under the pressure of the massive peace movement, British Foreign Minister Gray told Germany's ambassador to the UK that Britain had no alliance with Russia and France and was not bound by any obligations. He repeatedly stated that Britain's attitude was to "do everything possible to prevent a war between major powers."
On July 5, Ambassador Szögyény was ordered to submit the autograph letter of Emperor Franz. Joseph I to Wilhelm II. The letter said: Austrian Emperor Chu's assassination "was the result of the direct instigation of Russia and Serbia Great Slavists; their only purpose was to weaken Triple Alliance, splitting my Empire... If we allow this to continue, it means that my court and my territory will be in long-term danger... the recent horrific events at Bosnia. In the future, you must also think that it is impossible to resolve the hostile relationship between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Serbia amicably; as long as the source of evil incitement like Belgrade is not If we punish Europe Monarch, the peace policies of all Europe Monarch countries will be threatened. "The so-called punishment of Serbia in the letter is to launch a war against Serbia. Franz? Joseph I begged Wilhelm II to express support for his war actions.
On July 5 and July 6, Wilhelm II successively convened senior generals and government ministers to hold meetings at the Potsdam Palace. He informed his courtiers of the possible war. The generals replied to the emperor that all preparations for war were in place. Quartermaster General reported to the emperor, "After this audience, there is nothing I can do. The mobilization plan was completed on March 31, 1914. The army is ready as usual." It can be seen that Germany's war preparations have been completed long ago. Under such circumstances, German Emperor Wilhelm II issued an order to prepare for war.
On July 20, French President Raymond Poincaré and Prime Minister Rene Viviani visited Russia. The two countries assured each other that in the event of war against Germany, the two countries would fulfill their obligations as allies. In the communique of the talks between the two countries and in public diplomatic occasions, Russia and France have repeatedly emphasized the "precious friendship" between the two countries, hyped up the "brotherly naval and army forces", and expressed to each other that they would "loyally and unremittingly cooperate with its allies." During the summit meeting between the two countries, Russian government held a reception banquet at Winter Palace in St. Petersburg. During the dinner, Raymond Poincaré specifically talked to Austro-Hungarian Ambassador and asked the ambassador to tell Austro-Hungarian Empire that the government "should be particularly cautious" in handling relations with Serbia. He emphasized. "Serbia is a very close friend among the Russians people, and Russia has an ally in France. I really don't know how many terrible disputes there are on this issue."
On July 23, Austro-Hungarian Empire sent Ultimatum to Serbian government. Serbian government is required to meet the following requirements of the Austro-Hungarian Empire: Seize any publications that cause hatred and contempt for the Austro-Hungarian Empire royal family; Immediately ban National Defense Organization and other organizations that make anti-Austro-Hungarian Empire propaganda; Immediately remove from educational groups and teaching methods, delete any teaching content that will or may incite anti-Austro-Hungarian Empire propaganda; remove officials in the military or administrative departments who are accused of carrying out anti-Austro-Hungarian Empire propaganda, and the list of such officials is provided by the Austro-Hungarian government; accept cooperation with relevant departments of the Austro-Hungarian Empire government, in Serbia suppress activities that attempt to subvert the territorial integrity of the Austro-Hungarian Empire; with the assistance and instructions of relevant departments designated by the Austro-Hungarian Empire government, take legal action to punish those who plan or execute assassination of June 28 in 1914 in Serbia territory; immediately arrest Austro-Hungarian Empire's preliminary investigation revealed that the two named persons; maintain cooperation to take effective measures to curb arms smuggling in their territory; explain to Austria-Hungary the remarks of senior Serbia officials who are hostile to them and are in Serbia or abroad; immediately take the above measures and inform Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Regarding Ultimatum proposed by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Serbia is willing to accept it except for the fourth and fifth items. However, this is obviously not the result Austro-Hungarian Empire wants.
After Austria-Hungary issued Ultimatum, Russia informed Austro-Hungarian Empire that attacking Serbia would trigger Russia's general mobilization, and stated that Russia would not allow Austro-Hungarian Empire to defeat Serbia and become the overlord of Balkan Peninsula. On July 26, British Foreign Minister Gray proposed that Germany, Britain, France, and Italy Shikoku mediate the discord between Austria and Serbia. But Britain secretly encouraged France and Russia to fight against Germany and Austria and promised support, which emboldened France and Russia.
The true face of Britain was only publicly exposed the day after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. On July 29, Gray met with German Ambassador and made it clear that if the conflict was limited to Russia and Austria, Britain could remain neutral; if Germany and France were involved, "Then the situation would change immediately, and British government would be forced to make an emergency decision under certain conditions. In this case, we cannot sit on the sidelines for a long time."