Would the British Isles themselves (not the colonies or allied nations) have come under direct threat if....?

Question

....we had opted to stay out of WW1?

Answer 1

Very doubtful since the Kaiser had no direct desire to involve Britain in a European conflict (pretty much the same as Hitler some 25 years later) and the main reason that Britain became involved in the first place was the violation of Belgians neutrality by Germany in its attempt to knock France out of the war early with the use of the Schlieffen Plan.

If the British Expeditionary Force had been forced back across the channel (ala Dunkirk) then the chances are that Germany would not have persued them since the Royal Navy were still the most formidable fleet in the world, even though Germany had built its own equivalent - which was proved at the Battle of Jutland.

In regards the Zepplin raids, they were few and far between and hugely unreliable (most of the bombs ended up in the Thames).

Answer 2

Yes to put it bluntly. If the Germans had suceeded in the war aims of the West, they would have captured most of the channel ports from Le Harve up to the Dutch border, the Northern part of France and the Belgium would have become either an enclave of the German Empire or brought into an Economic Pact / Sphere. It is unclear of the total German ideas for this area as they where never really set in stone. With this area the strangle hold of the Channel Entrance to the North Sea, the cutting of the Antwerp trade and the setting up of an Economic Block much like the early EEC would have caused problems to British Trade. Also with the freedom of the German High Seas Fleet to move base if required to an advanced location out of the Heligoland Blight would have been a direct threat to the Navy.
Also with the removal of France from the equation, and the destruction of Russia as an enemy in the East along with the huge land grab set by the Brest - Livistock Treaty (if the conditions had been the same) would have created a huge Central European Empire for the Central Powers (This included Italy during the early 1914 campaign as negotiations where still ongoing as to which group that country would support).
It may well have kept the Turks Neutral, but if the opportunity had been siezed again and the Turkish Army with the added support of Germany and Austria Hungry had been allowed, again Egypt, Persia (Iran / Iraq area) and even India could have been threatened.
However, all this could have been, it would have depended on ultimatley the decision of the Cabinet and who would have replaced Asquith when the goverment fell due to the inaction of a British Goverment in September 1914. Thats what nearly happened in real life if it had not been for a 24hr delay in the cabinets decision.

Answer 3

A difficult question at best. It was not the intent of the Kaiser to have a war with Britain. If Britain had remained strictly neutral, she may have avoided it. But there was more at stake than just the immediate safety of the British Isles. Germany was already a growing threat because of her trouble making Kaiser. He insisted on challenging the Royal Navy through his naval building program. This forced the French and British to begin joint staff exercises. He also vocally supported the Boers during the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902. More than that, however, the thought of a single German Empire controlling the whole of continental Europe was anathema to British leaders. They tried to prevent the outbreak of general hostilities but it was obvious that Germany was on a collision course with the Western Democracies.

Ultimately his violation of Belgian Neutrality brought Britain into the war. This Neutrality had been guaranteed to Belgium since the Napoleonic Wars had ended with the Congress of Vienna.

Answer 4

if the british empire had kept there noses out of ww1 the fighting would have almost certainly have been over by chrimbo. there would have been no bef to shore up the defence of belgium on the coast flank. evwn though we were defeated at mons etc we still slowed the german advance and made them suffer horrific casualties. we wouldnt have been there to help at the first marne and paris and the third republic or whatever it was would have fell just like it had 40 years earlier the russians and serbs would have been defeated and apart from a few reparations everybody could have got back to normality. the royal houses of europe would still have been intact there would be no versailles treaty so no adolph hitler no gas chambers and no horrific slaughter of ww2 or would there? but no if we had stayed out of it we probably would have been safe as houses so just think of the carnage a scrap of paper and not wanting the germans to get out of there places caused.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

As Nazi Germany had published plans of the imprisonment of "unsuitable" races in the UK it is certain we would not have remained independant. Once the UK had been "racially cleansed" The Ex King Edward VIII would have been brought back from the West Indies and reinstated under Nazi control. King George would, by then, have moved to the US. How the war would have progressed is an interesting point. The US would not have had the UK to process the war from. I reckon the US and the UK colonies would have fought on and perhaps recaptured the UK.

Answer 7

Yes. The German King was on course to challenge the then British supremacy. The same is true of WW ll Hitlers plans were to take on the British in 1944

Answer 8

If Britain had stayed out of the war you and i would now be speaking German . Without a doubt. Sieg hail Fritz

Answer 9

Yes, Germany could not live with the Royal Navy and built up it's navy before 1914.

Answer 10

Since the Germans were sending zeppelins over London to drop bombs, I'd call that a direct threat....