--(British "White Paper" No. 151.)
One day later London decided to make Belgian neutrality the cause of the
war against Germany before the eyes of the world. The Ambassador in
Brussels received the following orders:
You should inform Belgian Government that if pressure is applied to
them by Germany to induce them to depart from neutrality, his
Majesty's Government expects that they will resist by any means in
their power and that his Majesty's Government will support them in
offering such resistance, and that his Majesty's Government in this
event are prepared to join Russia and France.--(British "White
Paper" No. 155.)
Not until England thus stirred Belgium up, holding out the deceptive
hope of effective French and English help, did Belgian fanaticism break
loose against Germany. Without the intervention of England in Brussels
the events in Belgium, one may safely assert, would have taken an
entirely different course, which would have been far more favorable to
Belgium.
But, of course, England had thus found a very useful reason for war
against Germany. Even on the 31st of July Grey had spoken of the
violation of Belgian neutrality as not a decisive factor. On Aug. 1 he
declined to promise Prince Lichnowsky England's neutrality, even if
Germany would not violate Belgium's neutrality.
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