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Triple Alliance Formed
Germany and Austria-Hungary had allied in 1879, then later on in 1882 Italy had joined to then form the Triple Alliance. -
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Timeline
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Dual Alliance Formed
In 1894 France and Russia paired up as allies which then formed the Dual Alliance. -
Japan and Britain Alliance
Britain and Japan in 1902 formed an Alliance which had turned Russian attention eastwards. Three years later Russia was defeated by Japan on both land and sea -
Taking control of Bosnia-Herzegovina
In 1908 Austria-Hungary took control over Bosnia-Herzegovina. -
Disobeying Turkish rule
In 1912 the Southeast of Bosnia and the people of Serbia had gone against Turkish rule. It had then caused a war for over a year. -
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Nephew of the Austria-Hungary Emporer, and heir to the throne was sent to the Balkan States to calm the people down, following the rising tension in this region. Like many of the photos on this timeline, it is a primary source. -
Austria-Hungary presents 10 demands to Serbia
Following the assassination, the 'July Crisis' was a frantic time full of bluff, negotionation and threats. Austria-Hungary issued 10 harsh demands to Serbia. The picture here is one of the New York Times newspapers reporting that Franz Ferdinand has been 'slain' and tension is quickly rising between Austria-Hungary and Serbia. This is also a primary source, as it is a factual account from the time. -
Serbia accepts 9 of the 10 demands
Serbia accepted all but one of Austria-Hungary's 10 demands. But to accept that last demand would mean Serbia would lose all independence, so negotiations broke down. -
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
Exactly one month after the assassination, Austria-Hungary offically declared war on Serbia. The photo once again, is one of a newspaper from the time, The Washington Times. The title states "AUSTRIA HAS CHOSEN WAR". This photo is a primary source. -
Russia promises support for Serbia
Because Russia was also a Slavic Nation, it promised to support Serbia against Austria-Hungary and it's ally in the Triple Alliance, Germany. The photo included is one of Russia's flag at the timeof 1914. This is a proven primary source. -
Germany declares war on Russia
When Russia began preparing it's army for war, Germany demanded they stop these perperations. After Russia did not reply, Germany declared war against them. The photo is of a newspaper from 'The Evening World' (New York Press), published on 1st August 1914, with a title stating "GERMANY HAS DECLARED WAR". -
Germany declares war on France and invades Belgium
Because Germany found that they had enemies preparing for war against them on both Eastern and Western borders, they knew they had to act first or else they would be defeated. What they devised was The Schlieffen Plan. The idea was to move their troops through the neutral Belgium through to France while they were still preparing for war. They hoped to defeat France early on so that when the time came, they would only need to fight one other country, Russia. (IMAGE IS SECONDARY SOURCE) -
Britain declares war on Germany
On 3rd August, British Prime Minister Herbert Asquith sent a message to the German government that if it did not withdraw it's troops from Belgium by midnight, they will declare war on Germany. There war no response from Germany, so on the 4th August, Britatin and it's empire found itself at war with Germany. The image shown is The San Diego Times newspaper with the title reading "BRITAIN DECLARES WAR". Once again, this is a primary source. -
Australia becomes involved
Australia became involved when Britain declared war on Germany, on 4th August 1914. They were forced to join because it was part of the British Empire, even though they got little benefit from fighting in WW1. The image shown is in fact the Australian flag in 1914. This is a primary source.
(This was changed to the flag we all know and love in 1953) -
Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia
Not surprisingly, Austria-Hungary declared war on Russia, as it was supporting Serbia. The image shown is another newspaper by the name of 'The Onion' and its title states "WAR DECLARED BY ALL", and then goes on to list all the different conflicts, for example:
"AUSTRIA DECLARES WAR ON SERBIA DECLARES WAR ON GERMANY DECLARES WAR ON FRANCE, etc...." -
U.S. President Woodrow Wilson anounces U.S. will remain neutral
The President of The United States, Woodrow Wilson anounced that the U.S. would remain neutral for the time being. The U.S. finally got involved when it declared war on Germany in 1917. The image shown is a photographic portrait of Woodrow Wilson. This is a primary source. -
Japan (ally of Britain) declares war on Germany
As noted before, when Britain declared war on Germany, it found it's ally in the Dual Alliance, Japan, was also going to get involved. This image is the Japanese flag. It is a primary source. -
Battle Of Tannenberg begins
The battle was an engagment between Russian and German forces in the first days of WW1.The battle was located near Allenstein, East Prussia and lasted 4 days. The image shows Russian prisoners of war after the Battle Of Tannenberg. -
Turkey enters the war on the side of Germany
Turkey joined the side of The Triple Alliance on 29th October 1914. One of their reasons included the war against Serbia in 1912 for going against the Turkish rule. Once again, the image shown is the Turkish flag, which is a primary source. -
Germany's first raid of England
Zeppelins were used by the Germans in the first raid over England in 1915 This image is a secondary source, as it is a photo of a zeppelin, it is not a photo of the exact zeppelin at the time of the raid. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove
Australia was forced into the war by Britain, as it was part of the British Empire. The objective of the Australians were to land on the beach, which was enemy (Turkish) help territory and establish a beach-head. A beach-head is a safe zone against the dunes, where they wouldn't have to worry about the Turkish soliders. In theory, it was a good plan. The Australians landed first and met with a strong resistance from the Turkish. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove Part 2
After many hours, bullets and casualties the remaining ANZAC got 'dug in' and survived the first wave of Turkish forces, and secured the beach. Over the next few days the ANZAC suffered heavy shelling from Turkish forces further back from the beach. The image is the Australian 4th Battalion troops landing in Anzac Cove, 25 April 1915. It is a primary source. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove Part 3
The reason Australia got caught up in the war against Turkey is because Britain declared was on Germany (allies with Turkey, Austria-Hungary and Italy), and was brought into it because it is under Britain's Empire. Australia ended up getting very little out of the war. The nature of the warfare was very difficult for the ANZACs as the conditions were not ideal. It was very dark, cold and dirty. Some of the ANZAC soliders were very lucky to make it to the sand dunes, and to safety. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove Part 4
The weapons they used were bolt action rifles, and were very prone to jamming and breaking. The British commanders recieved false intel on the landing zone for the ANZACs and accidently sent them to the wrong beach. At this beach there was a large number of Turkish soliders hiding at the top of the very steep sand dunes on the beach. The landing was a nightmare for the soldiers, it was cold and dark and hot bullets rained down upon them. It was essentially a massacre. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove Part 5
Hundreds of ANZACs were slaughtered from above. Some time later, the ANZACs had to retreat because of the huge number of casualities and poor preperation. In a way, the Turkish had won. The didn't really have much of an effect on the World War overall. The toll this took on the citizens of Australia was massive. Families had lost their fathers and brothers. but instead of mourning these deaths, we celibrated and honored them. -
Battle of ANZAC Cove Part 6
To this very day we still honor them, and are nearing the 100th anniversary of the day many brave men sacrificed their lives. This photo is the Australian 4th Battalion troops landing in Anzac Cove, 25 April 1915. It is a photograph of the event so it is a primary source. -
Italy enters war on the side of The Triple Entente
In 1914, Italy was expected to side with Austria-hungary because it was part of The Triple Alliance. However, under the wording of The Triple Alliance, memebers were not to support each other if one was the aggressor. Italy used this clause to remain neutral at the start of the war and to switch to the Triple Entente in May 1915. The image shown is one of the Italian flag at the time, this is a primary source.
