Contemporary History, First World War, Colonialism, Norman Angell
Abstract
The article explores Norman Angell’s ideas on the causes of war and the possibilities of keeping a lasting and peaceful settlement of Europe. It especially focuses on what Angell states in The Great Illusion, his most important book, written just five years before the First World War exploded. In that work, Angell explains that war between two states is harmful both for the looser and for the winner because it destroys their productive system and deeply compromises their integrated trade networks. Angell points out that it is urgent to spread this truth among European public opinions and among political leaders in order to avoid any destructive wars. The article discusses these ideas showing their coherence with a longstanding English liberal tradition, as well as highlighting their opposition to the socialist theories according to which capitalism is the cause of war.
