The Two Edwards How King Edward VII and Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey Fomented the First World War

At the turn of the 20th century, British leaders came to a decision to confront and neutralize the German empire. The fateful decision required treaties, agreements, accords, and contracts that could only be made with the prestige and gravitas of a King. Safely ensconced on his royal yacht, HMY Victoria and Albert, protected by a flotilla of British warships and thousands of miles away from troublesome ministers who might remind the King that he was overstepping his constitutional authority, King Edward VII concluded treaties with both members of the anti-German Franco-Russian Alliance. First with France in 1904, then with Russia in 1907, this was the grand achievement, strongly backed by his powerful Foreign Minister, Sir Edward Grey, of King Edward's near decade-long reign, It was this alliance between Britain, France, and Russia—known to history as the Triple Entente—which took the field against the Central Powers in 1914.

Peter Hof is the author of Our Century and The Two Edwards.