As the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War draws near, I am reposting this piece I wrote in 2013. It remains pretty much my considered views on that bloody conflict.
Next year will see the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War. The UK and Scottish governments have already announced that plans are afoot to commemorate this tragic event. Though the specific events are nearly a year away, it seems appropriate to make a start now on reflecting on the war and in particular its causes and what we can learn from that terrible struggle.
My first thought is that there was nothing good about the First World War. It was a terrible, brutal and bloody conflict, which brought great suffering and destruction to all sides. There is nothing to celebrate about this war, except its end, which we can do in 2018. There will be no cause for celebrations in 2014.
My second thought is that the war was primarily caused by Empires. Though one small state, Serbia, was involved in the casus belli, the impetus…
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Alister Rutherford 