Britain was the world’s major naval power and like a spoilt child, the Kaiser wanted big boats to play with as well, just like his uncle, Edward VII, and subsequently, George V, who couldn't stand his obnoxious little cousin, and so Germany set out to build a bigger and better navy than Britain.
So, there we have Germany, recently arrived on the world stage, aggressive, powerful and successful but inherently unstable, consumed with jealousy over Britain’s empire, ruled by an egomaniac, with a feudal system of government dominated by the military and whose concept of international diplomacy fell little short of confrontation and bullying.
Germany’s main ally was the crumbling, creaking empire of Austria-Hungary, archaic remnants of the once mighty Holy Roman Empire, a loose conglomerate o
