Nationalism, or the identification with one’s own nation and support for its interests, especially to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations, and imperialism, a policy of extending a country’s power and influence through diplomacy or military force, are two main ideals that have guided world powers for centuries, leading them to conquer independent nations as their own colonies, fight wars with both outside nations and within their own country, and search the world for unclaimed land to take for themselves. (In this scenario, “unclaimed land” refers to land not already claimed by another major world power – often these lands were already occupied by Native populations who lacked the ability to defend themselves against the major European forces.) However, in the late 1800s through the early 1900s, as major European powers continued conquering lands, mainly in the Middle East and Africa in the name of imperialism, nationalist ideas and the dream of an independent nation began to grow in the colonies, building tension across multiple continents until it eventually exploded.

It can be said that nationalism is what most directly started World War I. Bosnian-Serbian nationalists who believed Bosia, which had recently been conquered by Austria-Hungary, should belong to Serbia, assassinated Austria-Hungary’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914. A month later, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, beginning World War I. A telegram from German Kaiser Wilhelm II to Russian Tsar Nicholas II explains how the “unscrupulous agitation that has been going on in Serbia for years has resulted in the outrageous crime, to which Archduke Francis Ferdinand fell a victim. The spirit that led Serbians to muder their own king and his wife still dominates the country.” (Willy-Nicky Telegrams, Reilly, 745) However, nationalist ideals didn’t only influence actions in Serbia and Austria-Hungary. European powers such as France forced their colonies to send soldiers to fight in the war, and although they were fighting in the name of that country, colonial soldiers were not treated equally by native soldiers. One Senegalese soldier fighting for France remembered “Some of the French who had never seen a “black” man used to pay to come and see us. [And the European soldiers] were making money selling tickets. [They] used to take us to a hidden place and told us: “Stay here. We are going to bring some Frenchmen who have never seen ‘black’ people before.” [But] we didn’t know they were making money this way. [And after they] got the money, they used to bring the Tubabs to look at us. And [they] said: “This one is a Senegalese, this one is a Somalian, [and so forth].” And the Tubabs were touching us, and peeking, creeping very close to us because we [looked so different].” (Memories of Senegalese Soldiers, 1914-1918, Reilly, 776) Another soldier remembered “One day [we were on] the ship that brought us back to Senegal from Bordeaux… There were [many] Senegalese soldiers [aboard, and sometimes] they got into arguments with some of the “white” men who treated them like “dirty niggers.” …And one of these soldiers – a citizen from Goree – was [called] a sale nègre” by a “white” man….I think maybe the [French] man was not well educated, or perhaps he was drunk. [And the soldier hit] him hard…And [they] started fighting. [And] we all [joined in] and started to give our friend some help. And we beat [the Frenchmen] badly until he asked to be foreign. He was crying and said that he would never do it again.” (Memories of Senegalese Soldiers, 1914-1918, Reilly, 776-777) Although not all of these actions were done out of intent to harm or embarrass, they do show a divide between soldiers all fighting for the same country. This aligns with the nationalist idea of identifying with your own country, even if it’s to the detriment of other countries, or in this case, colonies.

After the war, nationalist ideas were still very prevalent around the world. While talks were ongoing among the Allied powers about how to split up the Ottoman Empire, which had fought on the side of the Central Powers, Syria submitted a request for independence, including specific claims to lands that might be cut from the country, such as Palestine and Lebanon. “We do not acknowledge any right claimed by the French Government in any part whatever of our Syrian country and refuse that she should assist us or have a hand in our country under any circumstances and in any place… We ask that there should be no separation of the southern part of Syria, known as Palestine… We desire that the unity of the country should be guaranteed against partition under whatever circumstances.” (Syrian Congress Memorandum, Reilly, 802) As part of American President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points plan (discussed in more detail later in this essay), it was proposed that the colonies of many European countries be given their independence. This led to increased nationalistic ideas throughout the world as countries gained their long-awaited independence and began to make a place for themselves on the map.

A lot of the nationalism that was created at the end of WWI is a result of imperialism from before WWI – colonies that had previously been owned by European powers were now free to interact with the rest of the world as they wished. However, this wasn’t always the case. While it was nationalist rebels who killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand and started WWI, they only did so because of imperialism – Austria conquered Bosnia, which the rebels believed should belong to Serbia. Once the war started, European countries forced people in their colonies to fight for their country, oftentimes using force to get colonists to fight, an example of which can be found in France’s treatment of Senegal. “Many of the young men fled from the village [when the chef de canton came to take soldiers]. [But] they used to arrest their fathers [if] they [did not] come back. [And] often their mothers used to say to their sons [when they returned from the countryside for food]: “You know that your name has been written [down by the chef de canton] and [yet] you ran away. And now your father has been arrested and he will be taken [to] prison. So go and enter the army.” And often they used to go and enter the army [so that] their fathers [would be] released.” (Memories of Senegalese Soldiers, 1914-1918, Reilly, 771) In “War and Revolution”, Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin warned of the dangers of major European powers such as Britain and Germany as colonies began to be claimed around the world and their capitalist economies began to spread to the far reaches of the continent. “These policies show us just one thing – continuous economic rivalry between the world’s two greatest giants, capitalist economies. On the one hand we have Britain, a country which owns the greater part of the globe, a country which ranks first in wealth, which has created this wealth not so much by the labour of its workers as by the exploitation of innumerable colonies… it can be said without exaggeration that there is not a patch of land in the world today on which this capital has not laid its heavy hand…” (V. I. Lenin, “War and Revolution”, Reilly, 786-787) During the war, imperialist countries used soldiers from their colonies to fight against opposing forces. However, after the war ended, imperialism began to be seen in a different light. As nationalist ideas started to rise across the world, there was more and more of a push to get rid of imperialist colonies. In American President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points plan, a number of the points are centered around freeing imperialist countries that had previously been a part of the defeated Central Powers. Belgium, Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, and Poland were all given their independence and all French territories were freed. (Woodrow Wilson, “Fourteen Points” 7, 8, 11, 12, 14) However, there were some who warned against the dismantling of imperialism. Algemeen Handelsblad predicted that the dismantling of Germany after WWI would lead to problems in the future, especially if a feeling of national pride led the German government to decide to rebuild an empire. “These conditions will never give peace. All Germans must feel that they wish to shake off the heavy yoke imposed by the cajoling Entente, and we fear very much that that opportunity will soon present itself. For has not the Entente recognized in the proposed so-called “League of Nations” the evident right to conquer and possess countries for economic and imperialistic purposes? Fettered and enslaved, Germany will always remain a menace to Europe.” (Algemeen Handelsblad Editorial on the Treaty of Versailles, June 1919, Reilly, 808) In hindsight, we know Handelsblad was right in his prediction. However, during the aftermath of WWI, it was more important to the Allied powers to make Germany pay for their war crimes, another thing that can be traced back to nationalist ideas – Germany had hurt their countries and their people, and once they were defeated, it was the right of the Allied powers to make sure they wouldn’t rebuild anytime soon. 

Nationalist and imperialist ideas contributed to the beginning of WWI, both directly and indirectly. Archduke Franz Ferdinand was killed because of nationalist pride and Austro-Hungarian imperialism. Middle-Eastern and African colonies were forced to provide soldiers for their ruling countries, although many eventually gained their independence after the war. Nationalist pride rose after the war as colonies began to take their place in the world economy as new countries, and imperialism decreased as countries gave up their colonies. However, although national pride may have been a good thing for the new countries being formed, it also grew in the defeated countries who were being forced to pay reparations for their position in WWI. In Germany, this was one of the main ideas that allowed for the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, eventually leading to WWII.