-
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg. They were shot in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb assassin. The objective politically to assasinating the couple was to break away Austria-Hungary's south-Slav provinces to combine them into a Greater Serbia or a Yugoslavia. -
Period: to
World War I
-
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
Exactly one month after Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, sparking the beginning of the First World War. This was the biggest turning point in World War I for not only Austria-Hungary and Serbia, but the rest of the nations. It was the first stone thrown. -
Germany declares war on Russia
Germany, allied with Austria-Hungary, declared war on Russia. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at the hand of Serbian nationalists. Germany knew that Russia, allied with Serbia, would declare war on Austria-Hungary, and thus made the first move. -
Canada joins the war
Cananda automatically joined the war when Britian did. Following suit, the Governor General of Canada, under the direction of The Parliament of Canada, declared war between Canada and Germany. -
The French and British declare war on Austria-Hungary
The alliance/treaty between Britain, France and Russia called the "Triple Entente" brought France and Britain into the war to back Russia up against Austria-Hungary. This is their defining first move. -
Canadian troops in Britian
The first division of Canadian troops sailed to complete their training in Great Britain. -
Treaty of London
The treaty of London was a pact between the Entente and Italy. Its intent was to gain the alliance of Italy against its former allies, including Germany, and to leave the Triple Alliance. This was a main turning point for Italy. -
Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary
Italy breaks it's neautrality and joins the side of the Allies against Austria-Hungary. -
The Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme was a French - British joint attack on German forces. It is known as the turning point for the worst casualties of World War 1. The British Army had suffered 420,000 casualties including nearly 60,000 on the first day alone. The French lost 200,000 men and the Germans nearly 500,000. -
Romania declares war on Austria-Hungary
Romania formally joins world war one by declaring war on Austria-Hungary. Romania had been fighting with Austria-Hungary for a long time over the issue of territory—Transylvania to be exact. This was the major turning point for Romania. -
USA declares war on Germany
The USA Declared war on Germany for multiple reasons. The Zimmermann Telegram was a proposal to Mexico to join them against the US. German U-Boats were taking out any ship headed for Britian, ending in US civilian casualities. The breaking point of which was the sinking of the Lusitania. The US had also been providing financial support to the Allied Nations, making them heavily inclinced to want to help them. win the war. This was the turning point for the US. -
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I. -
Period: to
Events leading to World War II
-
Treaty of Versailles
Exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, The Treaty of Versailles took place. It was one of the most important peace treaties at the end of World War I. It stopped the war between the Allied Powers and Germany. It was signed on the 28th of June, 1919. -
Proposal to create the League of Nations accepted
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization that was founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first international organization whose main focus was to maintain world peace. -
First meeting of the League of Nations held in London
The Official end of World War I. -
Hitler becomes leader of the Nazi Party
As an effective speaker, Hitler is named leader of the Nazi Party, earning the title der Führer. -
Genoa Conference
Two years after the Treaty of Versailles, The Genoa Conference was held in Genoa, Italy. Representatives of 34 countries gathered to discuss the global economic problems that were the consequence of the War. The purpose was to formulate strategies to rebuild central and eastern Europe, particularly Russia, after the war, and also to negotiate a relationship between European capitalist economies, and the new Russian Bolshevik regime. -
Beer Hall Putsch
The Beer Hall Putsch was a failed revolution attempt by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler, Generalquartiermeister Erich Ludendorff, and other heads of the Kampfbund. They had unsuccessfully attempted to seize power in Munich. This was largely due to the after effects of losing World War 1. -
Stalin becomes leader of the Soviet Union
Lenin dies, paving the way for Joseph Stalin to takeover as leader of the Soviet Union. -
Treaty of Berlin
The Soviet Union and Germany sign the Treaty of Berlin, which allow either country to remain neutral if one or the other is attacked by another country. -
Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin assassinated
Japanese assassins kill the Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin during the Huanggutun Incident. This increased tensions between China and Japan. -
The great Depression
The depression begins in the U.S., after the fall in stock prices that began around September 4, 1929. It was a severe worldwide economic depression, but the timing of when it began varied across nations. In most countries it started in 1930 and lasted until the late 1930s or middle 1940s. It was the longest, most widespread, and deepest depression of the 20th century. -
Japan invades Manchuria
Japans invasion of Manchuria signals the beginning of minor fighting of the Second Sino-Japanese War. -
Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany.
German President Hindenberg appoints Hitler Chancellor of Germany. His Nazi Party, or the Third Reich, takes power and Hitler is essentially the dictator of Germany. -
The Gestapo is Formed
The Gestapo is established in Germany to maintain “order” throughout the country during the war. They were the official secret police of Nazi Germany and German-occupied Europe. It was under the administration of SS national leader, Heinrich Himmler. -
Nazi Germany pulls out of the League of Nations
The League was fixated on reaching an international disarmament agreement, but efforts to limit army sizes prompted the departure of Japan in March 1933 and then Germany a few months later. -
Japan terminates naval treaty
Japan renounces both Washington and London Naval Treaties they previously agreed to on limiting the production of warships. -
Germany remilitarizes the Rhineland
Germany violates some contents of the Treaty of Versailles by militarizing the Rhineland, getting ready to launch WWII. Under the treaty, Allied forces would occupy the Rhineland for fifteen years. -
The Axis Powers is formed
The Axis Powers, or Axis Alliance, is formed. Germany signs a treaty with Italy and Japan. The goal of the Axis Alliance was vast expansion through aggressive warfare and the mutual agreement to fight against Communism. -
The Marco Polo Bridge Incident
The Marco Polo Bridge Incident was a battle between the Republic of China and Japanese. It began when a Japanese commander found one of his troops missing and believed the Chinese kidnapped him. It is often used as the marker for the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War. -
Austria joins Germany
1938 March 12 - Hitler annexes the country of Austria into Germany. This is also called the Anschluss, or Union. Austrians voted in favor of union with Germany. -
World War II Begins
World War II begins when Nazi Germany invades Poland. Britain and France had defense treaties with Poland, and declared war on Germany two days later. -
Jews are sent to prisoner camps
One of Hitler’s commanders, Nazi soldier Adolf Eichmann, begins the deportation of Jews from Austria and Czechoslovakia to send them into prisoner camps in Poland. -
The Battle of the Netherlands
It was part of Case Yellow, the German invasion of Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and France during World War II. The battle lasted from the 10th of May 1940 until the main Dutch forces surrendered on the 14th. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Japanese attack the American naval base at Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, a territory of the US. The United States declares war against Japan. -
Germany and Italy declare war against the United States
Germany and Italy declare war on the United States, bringing America, which had been neutral, into the European conflict. Hitler did so in an act of supporting Japan and also under the assumption that the US would eventually declare war on Germany. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Recognized as the largest battle of WWII. Germany's entire Sixth Army is lost, and the war begins turning in favor of the Allies. -
The Allied invasion of Sicily
The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from Italy and Nazi Germany. -
D-Day
Allies invade and regain Europe on D-Day, known as the greatest military invasion in history beginning with the Normandy Landings. -
Hitlers Death
Knowing that all was lost, Adolf Hitler and his wife committed suicide. -
Germany surrenders.
The end of World War II in Europe when Germany start surrendering. -
Japan surrenders
Japan surrenders after the devestating effects of the first atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and two days later on Nagasaki. This completed the end of World War II.
