(A) France
(B) Russia
(C) ** Germany
(D) England
EXPLANATIONS BELOW
Concept note-1: -5 February – German company Allianz is founded in Berlin. 20 March – Bismarck cabinet ends. 1 July-Heligoland–Zanzibar Treaty. Germany receives Heligoland and the Caprivi Strip from the United Kingdom and a free hand to control and acquire the coast of Dar es Salam.
Concept note-2: -Evidence: According to the graph “The Growth in Armaments 1890-1914” adapted from The London History of the World it shows from 1890 to 1914 Germany more than quadrupled spending on military armaments.
Concept note-3: -No period of modern German history has inspired as much controversy as the era bounded by Otto von Bismarck’s dismissal from power in March 1890 and the outbreak of war in 1914. During the interwar period, Imperial Germany was the focus of the debate over the origins of the Great War.