The document summarizes the long-term and short-term causes as well as the precipitating events and domino effect that led to the outbreak of WWI. The long-term causes included economic and imperial competition between European powers, militarism, nationalism, and rivalry over colonies. Entangling alliances and tensions in the Balkans were short-term triggers. The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand led Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia, pulling other allied countries into the conflict through a series of declarations of war.