WI: Kaiser Wilhelm seeks Hague arbitration

this telegram, send two days before the outbreak of war, struck me as rather interesting:

Thanks for your telegram conciliatory and friendly. Whereas official message presented today by your ambassador to my minister was conveyed in a very different tone. Beg you to explain this divergency! It would be right to give over the Austro-Servian problem to the Hague conference. Trust in your wisdom and friendship. Your loving Nicky
So, could the Kaiser have followed his cousins advice and sought international arbitration ?

Assuming he could and did, how would things develop ?
 
Well considering the OTL outcome (defeat for Germany). Yes doing an international conference would be best.

And certainly if the Kaiser would have come down publicly as antiwar in the lead up to war it might have been hard for the generals and diplomats to rig it so things went to war as in OTL.

The question is would an internation conference give the satisfaction Austria is looking for. Perhaps an "international" police force investigating the assasination inside Serbia would be more palatable for Serbia then the Austrians investigating inside Serbia alone.
 
Except that germany had given carte blanche to austria. If austria hadnt been assured of germanys full and complete support, they wouldnt have presented such an impossible ultimamum to serbia.

If germany had had ANY interest in a diplomatic solution, the whole austria.serbia interaction would have been different.
 
Except that germany had given carte blanche to austria. If austria hadnt been assured of germanys full and complete support, they wouldnt have presented such an impossible ultimamum to serbia.

If germany had had ANY interest in a diplomatic solution, the whole austria.serbia interaction would have been different.


Hmm, I dunno, let's say Willy has a sudden change of heart.
 

BlondieBC

Banned
He could, but there would be a much easier way. Just have A-H accept Serbia's reply. The demands rejected by Serbia would have never been approved by arbitration, so what would be the point of taking a case one is 99% likely to lose.
 
I would consider that Bethmann-Holweg and concerned members of the General Staff would move to exclude the Kaiser from having any input and council him to refuse arbitration.
 
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