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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, were shot dead on the 28th of June 1914. They were shot by Gavrilo Princip, Princip was one of the six assassins. Princip was 19, and dying from tuberculosis, he was also angry at Austria empire for ruling his country, this is why he had no problem killing the Archduke. This action was another cause of World War I. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archduke_Franz_Ferdinand_of_Austria -
Marie Curie
Marie Curie establishes her first few radiology vehicles late October 1914. When Germany declared war on France, the Radium institution was ready, but all of her lab researchers were drafted. The radium institute would've had to wait until peacetime, but curie wanted to figure out a way to make to advance the war effort. So she made vans out of cars, and she got manufacturers to donate pieces for the vans. https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1903/marie-curie-bio.html -
The Lusitania goes down
On May 7, 1915 a British Passenger ship gets sunken. A German U-Boat torpedoed and sank the RMS Lusitania. There were 1,900 people on the boat when it sank. 1,100 were fatal, and there were only about 800 people that survived, or were injured. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Lusitania -
Women's rights
In London Women demonstrate for the right to work in war industries. A lot of women were assigned jobs that men held, while they were off at war. Although there was resistance to allow women to work men's jobs, the introduction of conscription made it no choice. Since then the government was employing women by campaigns and recruitment drives. http://www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/world-war-i-1914-1918 -
The Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun started on February 21, 1916. They came within 2 miles of the Verdun cathedral and the Germans called of their defense. The Germans called it off mid July, and the French retook their forts. at the end in December both sides hada total of 600,000 casualties. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Verdun -
The Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme started on July 1, 1916 and ended on November 1, 1916. It was also one of the largest battles of world war I. At the end of the battle the Allies and Central powers lost just over 1.5 million men. This is one of the most well-known battles of WWI, because it is one of the largest, and bloodiest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Somme -
Zimmerman Telegram
The Zimmerman Telegram was invented on January 11th, 1917. The Zimmerman Telegram was a communication system from the German foreign office. It sent out coded messages to allies, so that if a foreign power gets it they can't decode it. The Zimmerman Telegram was a smart strategy and a great impact on WWI. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Sommthe_zimmerman_telegram -
The US Declares war
The US wanted to stay neutral, but after 2 and a half years they had to fight. The United States enters the war on April 2, 1917. They entered declaring war on the Central Powers. They declared war because they wanted to make the world "safe for democracy". -
American Drafts
The Draft is when there are all the eligible men for war, with their names written down on a piece of paper and stick it in a bowl. After that they draw from it, they drew about 10,500 names for America. If they drew your name, then you would have to go to war. The drawing started at 10 am and got done at 2:18 am. The lottery was held in a public hearing room of the senate office building. https://www.archives.gov/research/military/ww1/draft-registration -
Joining the Marines
Arthur Roland Keller says that he was glad to have joined the Marines. He was enlisted into the Marines when he was only 19 years old. Keller valued the other services, and supported them. Keller noted and thanked the Army for the Marines borrowing their uniforms. https://www.loc.gov/vets/staff-favorites-arthurkeller.html -
President Wilson's 14 Points
On January 18, 1918, the 14 points of President Wilson were finalized. The purpose of President Wilson's 14 points was to end the war. Wilson was the only leader of all the countries fighting to outline his goals for the war. The 14 points helpedbring peace to Germany. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourteen_Points -
RAF Formed
RAF stands for royal air force. Britain's royal air force was formed on April 1, 1918. The royal air force was formed towards the end of WWI. The RAF is one of the oldest, most independent air force's in the world. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/raf-founded -
The Battle of St. Mihiel
General John J. Pershing has the first major offensive plan as an independent army. General Pershing gets a victory for the American Army. The 1st army of the AEF decided to place their headquarter in the St. Miheil sector. The AEF leaded their first attack on the salient, this was the first independent operation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Saint-Mihiel -
Austria-Hungary Empire Surrenders
On November 3, 1918, Austria-Hungary surrenders. Austria-Hungary was allies with Bulgaria, Germany, and the Ottoman Empire. Austria-Hungary signs an armistice with Italy. Austria-Hungary was the last ally of Germany, so when they surrendered Germany was left alone. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_World_War_I -
World War I ends
World war I ends on November 11, 1918, when Germany finally surrenders. Not long after the other nations agree to stop fighting, while the peace treaty was being determined. Great Britain, United States, and Russia were the allies that won. Germany and Austria-Hungary were called the Central powers. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/world-war-i-ends -
Keller in Germany
In 1918 the influenza epidemic was going world wide. Keller and his marine friend were living in Germany with their host family. They lived there for 6 months, the Americans and their hosts grew very close. They came home long after the outbreak was over. https://www.loc.gov/vets/staff-favorites-arthurkeller.html -
Treaty of Versailles
In 1919 The Treaty of Versailles was signed, this officially ended World War I. It ended the remaining war between Germany and the allied powers. This peace treaty was meant to end war but ended up laying the platform for World War 2. This treaty took about 5 months to complete as the countries,is was really between the allied powers, were making negotiations. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles -
Arthur Rolland Keller's Interview
On November 18,1974, Arthur Rolland Keller sat down with his daughter, Joyce, to have an interview. Joyce was interviewing Keller about his war experiences. Joyce started the interview by asking Keller to lunch. When they were eating lunch she had a microphone under the table and they told stories. https://www.loc.gov/vets/staff-favorites-arthurkeller.html -
The Trenches
In 1974, during the interview with this daughter, Keller tells stories about the war. He tells Joyce abut living in the trenches with the German shelling and the lice. And these men in the trenches had to boil their uniforms due to all of the lice. All the men in the trenches lived in horrible conditions. https://www.loc.gov/vets/staff-favorites-arthurkeller.html -
Keller's Death
In 1980 Arthur Roland Keller died. In 2007 Joyce, his daughter, attended a lecture by Tom Swope. Swope, like Joyce, has also done a few soldier interviews. Joyce offered a copy of her and Arthur Rolland Keller's interview to Swope, he happily accepted. https://www.loc.gov/vets/staff-favorites-arthurkeller.html
