WAR GUILT

On 26th July 1914 Sir Edward Grey sent the following telegram to the British embassies in France, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Serbia, Germany and Italy, requesting that they ask the foreign ministers of those nations to request that their ambassadors to Great Britain join a conference in London asap.

Ask Foreign Minister if his ambassador here may join a conference here, at once.

(TGM D. 3.00 pm.)

[source : Edward Rawes, A Chronology of the Mediation Attempts in July 1914, http://www.gwpda.org/comment/chrono1.htm]

The following telegram was sent by Sir Edward Grey on 27th July 1914 to Sir George Buchanan, the British Ambassador to Russia.

Benckendorff here says D and AH think we will stand aside whatever happens. Reminded him that British fleet had not dispersed after manoeuvres but also that we do not promise anything more than diplomatic action. Also said that we keep hearing from D and AH that R will do nothing if no Serbian territory is taken and it would be absurd if we appeared at Berlin and Vienna to be more Serbian than the Russians.

(TGM D. 3.30pm)

Benckendorff was Alexander Benckendorff, the Russian Ambassador to Great Britain.

So here we have evidence that Grey was told that both Germany and Austria-Hungary thought that Great Britain would remain neutral, "whatever happens".

This was stated on 27th July 1914.

The day before, King George V had told Kaiser Wilhelm's brother, Prince Henry, that George hoped that Great Britain would remain neutral.

But shortly after that telegram was sent the following telegram was sent by the German Ambassador to Austria-Hungary to the German Foreign Minister Jagow:

AH has decided to declare war tomorrow or latest day after mainly to cut the ground from any intervention attempts.

So here we have evidence that on 27th July 1914 both Germany and Austria-Hungary thought Great Britain would remain neutral, whatever happens, and believing this to be the case Austria-Hungary decided to declare war on Serbia.

The next day, 28th July 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

But also on the 28th July Prince Henry told Wilhelm of King George's statement of hopeful neutrality.

This declaration of war by Austria-Hungary provoked Russia into mobilising, which provoked Germany into declaring war on Russia and France.

And all the while Sir Edward Grey did not state what Great Britain would do, he just allowed Europe to declare war on each other before implementing the Triple Entente via an unnecessary declaration to enforce the Treaty of London 1839.

Sazonov asked Great Britain to declare their intent to enforce the Triple Entente, but they refused.

King George V told Wilhelm's brother that he hoped to remain neutral.

Grey knew that Germany and Austria-Hungary thought Great Britain would remain neutral, whatever happened, which led to Austria-Hungary, with blank cheque support from Germany, declaring war on Serbia, which provoked Russia into mobilising, which provoked Germany, still believing that Great Britain would remain neutral, into declaring war on Russia and France.

And when Germany invades Belgium, King George V tells Grey that he must Great Britain into the war!!!

Come on Britons!!

Who is guilty?

Yes, you could say that Germany was careless and belligerent in some ways, but all that Great Britain had to do to avoid war was to declare that it would side with France and Russia in the Triple Entente, as Sazonov had requested.

But Perfide Albion pretended to remain neutral, pretended to mediate, and once hostilities began, then and only then did Great Britain declare war on Germany.

Germany was surrounded...just as King Edward VII had planned.