World War I began as an attempt to save Austria-Hungary from collapse; Wilhelm’s policy transformed it into a world conflict. Wilhelm, having encouraged the Austrians to adopt an uncompromising line, became frightened when he found war impending, but he was not able to halt the implementation of the mobilization measures that he had allowed his generals to prepare. During the war, although nominally supreme commander, Wilhelm did not attempt to resist his generals when they kept war conduct in their own hands. He encouraged, instead of challenging, the grandiose war aims of the generals and of many politicians, and that ruled out all chance of a compromise peace. By the autumn of 1918 he realized that Germany had lost the war but not that this had made the loss of his throne inevitable. He was forced to abdicate on November 9, when he was persuaded to seek asylum in the Netherlands. He avoided captivity and perhaps death, but asylum also made it impossible for Wilhelm to retain his position of emperor of Germany. Subsequently he lived quietly as a country gentleman in the Netherlands until his death in 1941.