Délassé and the Formation of the Triple Entente 1907

One problem Délassé faced, while developing closer ties with England, was the fact that Russia and England traditionally did not get along. Fortunately for France, Russia became involved in a war with Japan, and was defeated. Russia began looking for help from France to settle the dispute with the Japanese. Délassé used his powers of persuasion to push England to help with their Russian problems because she was an ally of Japan. The help England provided during the settlement opened the doors to further discussions.

With a gentle push from France, England and Russia were able to reach the same kind of agreement as the one that England had with France. Areas of the world where England and Russia had fought over were neatly divided up so that future conflicts would not occur. Thus, the door was opened for the formation of the Triple Entente between France, Russia and England.

Although England and Russia did not really trust each other, both realized that they had to work together to balance the threat of Germany. Discussions were held between the three nations about cooperating on economic and military issues. The result was the creation of the Triple Entente.

The Entente was not a formal military alliance, but an agreement between the powers to work together should one of their members be threatened. The formation of the Entente divided Europe into two armed camps with Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy (Triple Alliance) on one side, and on the other France, Russia and England (Triple Entente) on the other. The battle lines were drawn, the teams set, and only a small spark was required to start a possible war.