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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated. On the same day that he was assassinated, he had survived a bomb attack from a previous assassination attempt. Archduke Ferdinand, the heir to the throne, and Archduke Ferdinand's wife were all killed. A month later, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. -
WWI Starts
On August 4, 1914, WWI began. From 1914 to 1918, it mainly took place in Europe between the central powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire) and the allied powers (France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, and later the United States). Trench warfare, chemical warfare, and new weapons changed the course of the war. -
Chemical Warfare
By April 22, 1915, chemical warfare was being used. Chemical warfare was considered a weapon of mass destruction using poisonous properties. These chemicals were delivered through bombs, shells, spray devices, or containers that release the chemical when opened. The main cause of death by these gasses like mustard gas was the infection from all the warts and open wounds you would get. -
Battle of Somme
On July 1, 1916, the first day of the Battle of the Somme took place which ended up being one of the most bloody battles of World War I. This battle was between the French-British army and Germany. The plan from France and Britain was to achieve a decisive victory over the Germans on the Western Front. That obviously did not come as easy as they wanted to because it ended up being one of the most brutal and bloodiest battles in WWI. -
Joined the Bellevue Hospital.
Roy C. Avery had heard that the Bellevue Hospital was organizing a surgical unit for France, and was asking for volunteers. He went to get more information because he had previously volunteered at another hospital and wanted to help. He waited to hear back from the draft from April to July 3rd and finally decided to join the Bellevue Hospital. -
Bacteriology of War Wounds
His brother, who was working at the Rockafeller Institute, heard he was bored and recommended he take the course on the bacteriology of war wounds. He passed the six-week course and returned to the deadly routine at the armory until he got a research project from the institute that he could drop and pick back up again if he wanted to. The experiment was to find something to differentiate between the three groups of known pneumococci. -
Avery Squekless Mouse Determination of Pneumococcal from Sputum
Eventually, they found a breakthrough, and the pneumococci reacted like crazy to the substance they tried. It was working to determine which type of pneumococci a patient might have. After he had found this his brother went on to develop what later became known as the “Avery Squekless Mouse Determination of pneumococcal from Sputum”. The marines started bringing small animals like mice into tanks and places with possible gas leaks, and if the mouse died, they knew they needed to leave. -
Trip to Paris
He and his crew were told to pack up everything and start moving. They went on their root along the Hudson River and were eventually picked up by “The Queen of the Sea” to be taken closer to the Northpole but they had no idea where they were going after they got picked up. They later ended up in Paris. -
Promoted to Seargent
On December 1, 1917, his commanding officer promoted him to sergeant after he had finished the course on war bacteriology. This was very good for him because it meant he was making 40 dollars a month, which now would be absolutely horrible but then was pretty good. -
The Armistice is Signed
The armistice was signed on November 11, 1918, which ended World War I. The Armistice was signed at 11 AM on November 11, 1918, in Rethondes, France. The Armistice required the Germans to evacuate occupied territory, surrender war material, and release Allied prisoners of war and interned civilians. WWI was not good for anyone because plenty of troops on all sides died and the US ended up asking for too much from Germany which just ended up causing WWII.