100 years on the hubris of a few

Its 100 years since Europe erupted into the First World War, when the nations of Europe fell on one another  destroying the social fabric of the contesting nations and heralding the nationalism that that swallowed Germany in Social Nationalism which became the Nazi Party and gave rise to Adolf Hitler.
Pre World War 1 the structure of the most powerful countries was, at their pinnacle, an elite of interconnected rulers who, through birth were conferred patronage and power.There were the traditional enemies and pacts signed between nations, if one nation invaded another then it would bring into the war the other member of the pact. Germany a powerful country born of the amalgamation of successful but independent states, The Austro-Hugerian Empire sitting in the heart of Europe. France with its Napoleonic past felt its importance under valued. Russia an enormous enigma ruled by an aristocracy that was out of touch with any sort of democratic ideals but able to enlist the what seemed an unending supply of men to put into uniform. And on the sidelines Britain, then the manufacturing centre of world trade, immune to some extent from the day to day issues of Europe feeling secure behind a very large and powerful fleet but significantly also tied to a treaty with Belgium.
Europe then was a continent of powerful and sometimes conflicting interests which was always manoeuvring on the diplomatic front and the Balkans, off stage right, became the catalyst for the war drums to start their roll.  


Crown Prince Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro- Hungarian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo on the 28th of June 1914 by a young Serbian student which became the precursor for a war to be sought by the Austro-Hungarians against Serbia. This potential conflict drew in, one after another, of the European Nations and, as Germany invaded the Low Countries on its way to invading France, it brought in Britain. 
The result was 4 years of death and destruction, the hell of trench warfare static for months on end, the machine gun and the tank plus the use of mustard gas brought a horrific toll on young men who had volunteered to the 'Nations Call' with little understanding of what they were letting themselves in for or the low probability of ever getting home again.
Millions of lives lost on the Western Front millions more on the Eastern Front and all because the aristocratic leaders could not foresee the impact of the war machine. It is always the case that around tables, in smoke filled rooms the fate of nation can be gambled away on the hubris of a few