... amongst nations. Hence the first decade of the 20th century was a time of great change. However it was the results of such changes which served to be catalysts for the new found tensions and rivalries amongst differing nations. As historian J.Joll asserted, "Due to a rapid increase in economic development and imperial rivalries conflict was prominent." At the start of the new century the people of the world were optimistic and hopeful. A significant battle had not been fought in Europe for a prolonged period of time and as such people predicted that there would soon be world peace. However the events of history prove that this was not the case. The employment of new political ideologies such as nationalism began to disrupt the status quo, as countries demanded independence from their imperialist fathers. National groups such as the Serb and Slavic people claimed the right of national "self determination." ...

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