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Archduke Franz Ferdinand assassinated
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austrian throne, was assassinated, along with his wife, by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist. The Serbian terrorist group planned its attack to aid in the fight for liberation from Austria-Hungary, which they feared would not happen if Franz Ferninand ascended the throne. After seven assassins failed in their attempts to kill him, Franz Ferninand and his wife were shot when they drove back to help those wounded by the grenades. -
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
After the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary sought and immediately received unconditional help from Germany. Austria-Hungary then sent an ultimatum to Serbia, which was declined two days later. To try to regain superiority over Serbia, Austria-Hungary declared war, officially starting World War 1. The image shows a newspaper from 1914 alerting the public to the news of the war declaration. -
Germany declares war on Russia
After Germany offered its unconditional allegiance, or 'blank cheque', to Austria-Hungary, it declared war on Russia, an ally of Serbia's, proving its alliance with Austria-Hungary. This was when Germany first joined the war. At this time, Germany also put together it's "Schlieffen Plan", so that along with Austria-Hungary, it would be able to win its war against Russia and its allies. The poster (left) shows 'Germany' and 'Austria' burning the 'Allies', representing their opposition. -
Britain declares war on Germany
In response to Germany's "Schlieffen Plan", Britain sent an ultimatum to Germany to get out of Belguim, a neutral country under the protection of Britain, by the midnight of 3 August. Germany did not meet the deadline, and Britain declared war in response the next day.The image shows a man holding a newspaper, probably to sell, alerting the British public to the impact on Britain. -
Battle of the Marne
Germany, in the start of the execution of the "Schleiffen Plan", entered France in its attempt to take the country. Germany's offence against the French split into two, and the French were forced to retreat. However, Britain came to the aid of France and advanced towards a gap in the offence, so Germany retreated. The Germans then took up defensive positions in trenches, which was the start of trench warfare on the Western Front. Left is an image of the Battle of the Marne and its soldiers. -
First Battle of Ypres / Battle of Flanders
The First Battle of Ypres was actually composed of a few smaller battles, and is considered the last major battle of 1914. This battle involved trench warfare between the British and the Germans, and during this battle the Belgian town of Ypres was bombed and destroyed (see image). Britain was severely weakened by this battle, but over-all provided the Allies with crucial time to strengthen their armies and defence. The image shows the destruction caused by this battle. -
Gallipoli Campaign
Australian and New Zealandish soldiers fought for Britain and the Allies against the Turkish in an attempt to take the Dardenelles and force Turkey out of the Great War. The Turkish noticed the ANZAC arrival and gained an advantageous position. The battle lasted for many months, however very little progress was made on either side after the first day. After months of fighting, the ANZACs were forced to evacuate. The image shows ANZACs fighting in their trenches. -
Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary and Germany
Italy, during the start of World War 1, had declared itself a neutral country, despite being part of the Triple Alliance. However, tempts by both the Alliance and the Triple Entente made Italian leaders consider and eventually join the war, opening a new front. The image (left) shows a postcard (made later than the date) that represents the Triple Entente and Italy becoming allies with Britain. -
Battle of the Loos
The Battle of the Loos, between the British and French and the Germans, was a large offense by the British on the Western Front. It marks the first use of poison gas by the British, and the battle took place at Loos, France. The British sent 6 divisions to fight, and over all there was a large number of British casualties. The image on the left shows a house damaged by shell fire from the battle. -
Gallipoli Campaign Evacuation
After "digging in" and fighting hard for many months, the need for evacuation from Turkey was growing stronger as very little land had been gained at all after the first day of the Gallipoli campaign and victory at this point was no longer possible. During the cover of night, the ANZACs evacuated themselves and their war materials (see image). Turkish planes were flying too high to notice, and guns were rigged to automatically fire, so that the Turkish would not suspect their sudden withdrawal. -
Battle of Verdun
German General Falkenhayn, on the believe that victory in the war was only possible from the west, started an offence against the French. Falkenhayn tried to wound as many French as possible so Britain would be more vulnerable. The battle was based near the town of Verdun, a fortress in France. Germany gained a lot of land initially, however due to reinforcements from the French and Germany not being able to receive any more, the Germans retreated and the French regained their land. -
Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland was a naval battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the German Navy's High Sea fleet, and it was the largest naval battle to ever take place in World War 1. It took place in the North Sea near Jutland, in Denmark. The German and British fleets clashed at 6:30pm and again at 8:30pm, with both sides engaging in fierce battle. 14 British ships and 11 German ships were sunk, however, with the intentions of both fleets failing, both sides were relatively victorious. -
Battle of the Somme
The British and the French planned to break through German lines quickly to assist in the winning of the war. In the lead-up to the Battle of the Somme, the Allies used more than 1.6 million shells against the Germans. There were many lives lost after the first day of fighting, and towards the end of the battle, rain turned the terrain to mud. In the end, after months of fighting, the Allies gained only 6km of land and had around 615,000 causalties. The Germans had more than 650,000 casualties. -
Battle of Fromelles
The Battle of Fromelles was part of the offence of the Battle of the Somme. This battle was the first major battle involving Australian forces. The British, ANZACs and French fought against the Germans for a day, however in the end neither side of the war gained anything from it because it was realised by the Germans that it was merely a feint, and so regardless of the substantial loss of life, it had no impact on the war. The image shows the impact of this battle on the surrounding land. -
United States of America declare war on Germany
The United States entered World War 1 on the side of the Allies on the request by the American President Woodrow Wilson, who stated that Germany had broken a pledge with them and had attempted to create an alliance against the United States with Mexico, which proved that Germany did not trust the USA for political reasons. With the continual infrigement of the pledge between the countries, USA entered the war. The image shows the title of an American newspaper reporting this news. -
Battle of Vimy Ridge
The Canadian Corps from all four divisions of Canada fought together for the first time against the Germans in a battle that lasted for 5 days. The Canadian troops charged German machine guns while Germans in trenches held their positions. However, after the 5 days of relentless gunfire, the Canadian Corps took Vimy Ridge. The battle was a big victory for the Canadians, but a large loss for the Germans. The image shows soldiers preparing for this battle, marching towards Vimy Ridge. -
Third Battle of Ypres / Battle of Passchendaele
The Battle of Passchendaele was comprised of 8 smaller battles, in some of which ANZACs took part in. Canada also participated. The Battle of Passchendaele was a major offence from the British against German lines. This battle is known for the muddy terrain that the soldiers fought in, which was due to damaged drainage systems and intense rain. The number of casualties was very high; the Allies had around 325,000 casualties and the Germans had approximately 260,000 in total. See image (left) . -
Austria makes peace
Austria finally made peace in 1918 due to the losses it was having against the Allies' (particularly British and Italian) armies. Famine, which began to plague the country at this time, also assisted with the making of this decision. The image shows a conference room from this time, which would have mirrored the place where this decision for peace would have been made. -
End of World War 1
Political unrest in Germany and many battle failures eventually led to Germany agreeing the terms of peace, although they pressumed that the outcomes would be more fair to Germany than the current arrangement. Kaiser Wilhelm signed the armistace, and at exactly 11am two days afterwards, peace was officially declared, ending the Great War. The image shows a newspaper that reflects this event in its title. It shows how important this news was and how it affected almost every European. -
Treaty of Versailles signed
The Treaty of Versailles was one of five significant treaties signed in Paris, officially negotiating the peace agreements. The Treaty of Versailles delt with the settlements with reagrds to Germany in particular. According to the treaty, Germany had to give away land to Poland and France, disarm its army and pay large sums of money to the countries that formed part of the Allies to account for the damage that Germany had done. The image is a painting of this event taking place.
