The Fall of the Dynasties: The Collapse of the Old Order: 1905-1922

by Edmond Taylor

The treaty of Bjorkoe, considered by Wilhelm as a landmark of modern history, provided for a defensive alliance between the two empires which was to come into effect as soon as peace had been concluded between Russia and Japan. The Kaiser had written in a stipulation restricting its scope, originally world-wide, to Europe, where each signatory was pledged to come to the aid of the other if it was attacked by a third party. Article Four laid down that after the treaty had come into force the Czar should invite France to join the pact. In a letter to the Czar immediately after his return from the Bjorkoe meeting — which he characterized as “a cornerstone of European politics” and a “new leaf in the history of the world” — Wilhelm outlined the role he envisaged for France in the new European order: “Marianne [France] must remember that she is wedded to you and that she is obliged to lie in bed with you and eventually to give a hug or a kiss now and then to me, but not to sneak into the bedroom of the ever-intriguing touche-a-tout on the Island [Edward].”