The Gathering Storm

The years 1910-1914 hummed with particular intensity, as if French society sensed its approaching doom. The pace of change accelerated: more automobiles, faster communications, wilder fashions, more radical art. Yet beneath the frenzied activity lay growing anxiety. The Agadir Crisis of 1911, when Germany challenged French influence in Morocco, brought Europe to the brink of war. The Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 showed modern warfare's horrific potential. The arms race accelerated, with France extending military service from two to three years in 1913.

Marcelle Tinayre, a novelist and journalist, captured the mood in her 1913 diary: "We dance more wildly, laugh more shrilly, love more desperately. Everyone pretends not to see the shadow growing over Europe. At the Pré-Catelan last night, officers in uniform waltzed with particular gallantry, as if each dance might be their last."

The international tensions transformed daily life in subtle ways. German businesses faced boycotts. Spy mania gripped the popular imagination—every tourist with an accent might be gathering intelligence. The press alternated between bellicose nationalism and pacific internationalism, often in the same edition. The alliance system that would drag Europe into war was presented as guarantee of peace through balance of power.