War was avoided where possible – but it could also be used to advance a nation’s political or economic interests. A powerful state needed a powerful military to protect its interests and support its policies. Strong armies and navies were needed to defend the homeland, to protect imperial and trade interests abroad and to deter threats. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, military power was considered a measure of national and imperial strength. They were systems, ideologies or ways of thinking that reinforced and strengthened each other. Militarism and two other ‘isms’, nationalism and imperialism, were all intrinsically connected.
Newspapers held up military leaders as heroes, painted rival nations as dangerous aggressors and regularly speculated about the possibility of war. Militarism also shaped culture, the press and public opinion. Late 19th and early 20th-century militarism fuelled an arms race that gave rise to new military technologies and increased defence spending. Not surprisingly, this leads to significant increases in defence and arms spending. In militaristic nations, generals and admirals often act as de facto government ministers or officials, advising political leaders and influencing domestic policy. Alfred Vagts, a German historian who served in World War I, defined it as the “domination of the military man over the civilian, an undue preponderance of military demands, an emphasis on military considerations”. Militarism is a philosophy or system that emphasises the importance of military power.
8 New technologies and weapons Defining militarism
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