Plausibility of a World War before OTL's?

Is there any scenario which would create a war upon the scale of World War I between 1865 ( NO CSA!) and 1914?

Or is there any OTL conflict which could've escalated to such a level a widespread violence?
 
It depends.

If you mean a war which involves multiple European/World powers with land in at least 3 continents and fighting battles across at least 3 continents, then TBH, The Seven Year's War, War of American Independence (possibly) and Napoleonic Wars could be counted as World Wars.

If you're looking for something of the scale of WWI in terms of deaths etc. then it needs to be very late 19th or 20th century, to get all the technology about. Possible causes for war can be summed up as:

Fashoda Crisis
1st Moroccon Crisis
2nd Moroccon Crisis
Bosnian Crisis
1st Balkan War
2nd Balkan War
 
The Napoleonic Wars should DEFINETLY be considered a World War IMHO. On land, the fighting ranged from India to South America and the British and French fleets literally chased each other around the world.

I highly recommend reading War of Wars by Robert Harvey. The scope of the fighting is jaw-dropping.
 
There were several crises that could have escalated out of control. Earlier in your era, there is less of a chance for that to happen, as the general tension in international affairs are much less. As you get closer to 1914, the chances increase. In and of themselves, these crises would not have lead to a WWI scenario, but would have been a big enough war that potentially other countries could have been sucked in.

There was no reason why the assassination of Archduke Ferdinance had to lead to WWI. It was simply a case where events slowly overtook the will of enough people to prevent it.

Here is a partial list of crises that could have developed into a greater war. If the politicians remain in charge, war is unlikely to happen. But if some kind of incident happens, events might overtake diplomacy and war results.

1870 Franco-Prussian War - This could have escalated into a greater European war except that Bismarck made damn sure that others would not intervene. If he had not been so successful, or some other unexpected event happened during the build up, it might have done so.

1877 Russo-Turkish War - Russia attempts to reassert its power after its defeat in the Crimean War through Pan-Slavism. It becomes opposed to both Austria-Hungary and the Ottomans, both of whom rule many slavs. If Russia took a much more hardline stance, or had much greater success against Turkey, it might have provoked a greater war.

1895 Venezuela Crisis - Venezuela and Britain argue over the Venzuelan-Guayanan Border. This was the first time when the US really used its power to enforce the Monroe Doctrine and lead to severe problems in its relations with Britain. Likelihood of a war is low, but possible. A war between the US and Britain would cause all sorts of havoc with European power of balance.

1898 Fashoda Crisis - France and Britain almost go to war over who will control the southern Sudan. France gave in because its navy was not strong enough to challenge Britain, and already some French thought they would need British help against Germany.

1902 Venezuela Crisis -Britain, Germany, and Italy blockade Venezuela becomes of debt payments. Once again, the US becomes involved.

1905 Moroccan Crisis - Germany declares it is in favor of Moroccan sovereignty and that France should leave the country. If Germany really wanted war, this could have been the start.

These crises did not lead to war, because ultimately none of the great powers wanted such a war. The closer we get to 1914 though, the more ingrained is the idea that another great power war is inevitable or would be favorable, and thus is allowed to happen.
 
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