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Family ties couldn't stop 1914
Three related rulers
They were Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany, the Russian Tsar, and Britain's King George. The Kaiser was the oldest and favorite grandson of Queen Victoria, and she literally died in his arms.
Talk without understanding
There was a lot of talking before 1914 and very little understanding. Nobody grasped the changes in the positions of the great powers that had taken place, so each side misread what the others wanted and what they would do.
The same gap today
The same gap shows up now. Understanding of other powers' strategic aims, and even of a country's own objectives, seems to be pointing downward rather than upward. Part of that comes from preoccupation with domestic issues, and part from new leaders who find it hard to state in simple terms what their country's strategic interests consist of.
How were the three monarchs related?
Wilhelm II and George V were both grandsons of Queen Victoria. Nicholas II was married to Alexandra, another of her granddaughters. Nicholas and George were also first cousins through their mothers, who were sisters, the Danish princesses Maria Feodorovna and Alexandra. The two cousins looked so alike that they were sometimes mistaken for each other in photographs.
Did the monarchs write to each other directly?
Wilhelm and Nicholas exchanged telegrams in English for years, signing them Willy and Nicky. They used them to float alliances, share gossip, and plead for peace. In the last days of July 1914 they sent each other a rapid series of telegrams trying to head off war. Mobilization orders in both capitals moved faster than the cousins' messages.
What happened at Queen Victoria's deathbed?
Victoria died at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight on 22 January 1901, aged 81. Wilhelm hurried from Berlin and reached her bedside before the end. Accounts of her final hours describe him helping to support her. He stayed in England for her funeral in early February.
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