World War I

It is frequently stressed that both world wars started in East Central Europe, and the first one in particular in Serbia. This is, of course, correct so far as the formal and immediate origin of the conflict is concerned, but it requires two important qualifications if the whole background of war is to be envisaged and the real issue explained. First, even in 1914 the basic unrest in East Central Europe was not limited to Serbia …

…imperialistic domination, was reopened at the very beginning of another period in which the national rights of almost all these peoples were to triumph at least temporarily. But even the Polish question, in spite of the formation of Polish legions under Joseph Pilsudski which as in the days of Napoleon fought for the freedom of their country in conjunction with foreign forces, made little progress until the very character of the war was basically altered.