The document discusses several long-term and short-term causes that led to World War 1 in 1914. The short-term cause was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo. However, there were also several important long-term causes, including the system of alliances between European powers, imperialism, militarism, and nationalism. The alliances divided Europe into opposing teams and turned local conflicts into international wars. Militarism and imperialism increased tensions as nations built up their armed forces and competed for colonies. Nationalism also heightened tensions over territories like the Balkans and encouraged conflicts between nations like Austria-Hungary and Serbia.