ABSTRACT
The German Emperor had refused to consider more limited proposals, but the British Ministers were not ready to accept his refusal as final. Metternich’s long letters became a little tedious; the same arguments were repeated again and again, and rejected by the Emperor in the same uncompromising, angry terms. In June 1908, the Emperor still thought that an Anglo-German alliance or entente provided the simplest solution. The bargaining power of Germany would improve if the German people gave solid support to the Emperor’s views on the question of defensive forces. Metternich suggested that the real cause of the increased financial burden was the introduction of the Dreadnought type for which Great Britain was responsible. Bulow repeated his doubts about the wisdom of an absolute refusal to discuss the possibility of a limitation of armaments or an Anglo-German naval agreement.
