-
The Schlieffen Plan is Created
In December of 1905 General Count Alfred von Schleiffen created the Schleiffen Plan that Germany used in WWI. The plan was Germany's method to attack on France after Russia had mobilized forces on the German borders. When German began to execute the Schleiffen Plan, Britain declared war on them. Schleiffen believed that the best place for a war to take place in Europe was the western side. Because of the Schleiffen Plan Germany ended up fighting a two front war. -
Allen Sumner is Commissioned into the Marine Corps
In 1907 Allen Sumner was commissioned into the Marine Corps. He served as a Second Lieutenant and served at the Marine Barracks of the Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland. He also served in Norfolk Navy Yard until 1909. Sumner had a wife, Mary Morris Sumner, and daughter, Margaret Page Sumner. -
Allen Sumner Retires
Sumner had served in Cuba with the 1st Provisional Regiment of Marines in the Army of Cuban of Pacification. He also served temporarily on the USS Prairie in December of 1909. After 7 years of service, Sumner retired on January 1, 1914. He returned home to his wife and daughter. Allen often wrote to his family addressing "My Dearest" to his wife. -
Archduke Franz Ferdinand is Assassinated
On June 28, 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assassinated by a Serbian nationalist who was apart of the Black Hand, a terrorist group close with the Serbian Army. This even took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Serbian nationalists were angry about the Duke's annexation of certain provinces like the one he was in. The Duke throught he Serbians were pigs. Gavrilo Princip, a 19 year old Serbian living in Bosnia, fired the shots that killed both the Duke and his wife. -
World War 1 Begins
Only a month after the Duke was assassinated, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and a domino affect started with countries picking sides. In the previous years, many countries made alliances, causing the to have to go to war when their allies did. The war formed two main alliances, The Central Powers and The Allied Powers. This war was labelled "the war to end all wars." -
Germany Declares War
On August 3, 1914 Germany declared war on France just 3 days after declaring war on Russia. Between August 1-28, Britain declared war on Germany and Austria, Austria declared war on Russia, France declared war on Austria, Japan declared war on Germany and Austria declared war on Belgium. The assassination of the Duke set of a chain of events that rapidly resulted in declarations of war left and right. -
First Battle of Marne
From September 6-12 was an offensive battle put forward by French and British troops against Germans who had invaded Belgium and northeastern France. They defeated the Germans and ruined their plan to quickly obtain the Western Front. This opened a gap between Germany's first and second armies. This was the first battle of WWI. -
Christmas Truce
On Christmas Day of 1914, gunfire ceased on the Western Front in honor of the holidays.On December 7 Pope Benedict XV suggested the truce but neither countries officially agreed to stop fighting, but on Christmas Day the trench soldiers declared an unofficial truce. German and British soldiers sang carols across the lines. Eventually troops climbed out of the trenches and greeted each other with a Merry Christmas across no-mans-land. -
Lusitania is Sunk by Germans
On May 7, 1915 The Lusitania's captain ignored warnings from the British, and sailed straight into the Celtic Sea.The Germans believed that the Lusitania was a munition ship and shot a torpedo on its starboard side. President Wilson sent a note to the German government asking to not attack unarmed merchant ships. Yet Germany still attacked the Lusitania, killing 1,201 people, including 128 Americans. -
The Battle of Verdun
On February 21, 1916 the German advanced on the French with the intent to cause extreme bloodshed to their troops. The Germans quickly claimed Fort Douaumont and Fort Vaux while pushing the French troops. The battle lasted until December. In mid-July German troops pulled back and the French advanced on them and pushed them back, reclaiming the 2 forts. Both sides were left with more than 600,000 casualties. -
Woodrow Wilson Calls for Germany to Stop Submarine Policy
On April 19, 1916, after the sinking of boats with American citizens on them, President Woodrow Wilson publicly asked Germany to limit their submarine warfare. Germany agrees on May 4, 1916. In early 1915 Germany declared the area around the British Isles a war zone. Germany would attack even ships from neutral nations, and merchant ships. The list of merchant ships attacked by Germany began to grow leading to President Wilson publicly asking Germany to limit its warfare. -
Battle of Somme
The Battle of Somme was labelled one of the most deadly battles of WWI and lasted from Jul to November 1916. The battle began as a Allied attack on the Germans on the Western Front. By the end of the 5 month battle, more than 3 million soldiers fought on both sides and over 1 million were killed or wounded. Before the initial attack, Allied Powers launched a week long bombardment on the German front to weaken their troops. But German fronts were stronger than anticipated. -
Sumner is Recalled to War
As soon as war was declared in April of 1917 Sumner was immediately recalled to service. He was sent to be a captain in the Marine Barracks, Quantico on July 5, 1917. In December of that year Sumner was sailed from New York to St. Nazaire. Sumner trained with the Vosges and marched on the Verdun Front. -
First Use of Tanks in Combat
The Battle of Cambrai, in Cambrai, France marked the first large scale use of tanks. British troops, including 3 tank brigades were led to attack on Novermber 20, 1917. The tanks surprised oppiosing Germans at first, but were too slow in the end. Germans regained most of their lost ground. This battle changed the future of warfare. -
America Declares War
On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson declared war on Germany. The President stood before Congress and presented his declaration of war against Germany. Germany had violated their agreement to dismiss unrestricted submarine warfare in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Germany also tried to make an alliance with Mexico, promising them land in America if they fought the U.S. On April 4, 1917, Congress voted in favor of war. War was officially declared on Dec. 7, 1917. -
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
On March 3, 1918, near the Polish border Russia signed a treaty with the Central Powers. Russia ended its participation in WWI because of the immense causalities and overall negative outcome Russia received in WWI. With the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Germany gained land from Russia, which was lost when the Treaty of Versailles was signed. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk settled peace between the Central Powers and Russia. -
Sumner is Promoted
On April 29, 1918 Major Waller was transferred to the 3rd division to command the 8th MG Battalion. his led Sumner to step up and take his place as Commander of the 81st company. Less then a month later another General by the name of General Cole was injured on June 10. Major Waller stepped up and took his place which left Sumner to lead the right front. -
Sumner Passes Away
On July 19, 1918 Sumner was killed in a battle in Vierzy, France. He was killed instantly when hit by a fragment of highly explosive shrapnel. It was later debated whether he fell during an air raid. Sumner had left his wife and daughter for a ear and constantly wrote to them. He served in the trenches for 3 months in France. He was 36 years old. Sumner recieved 2 Croix de Guirre with Gilt Star and 3 Silver Star Citations. He is buried in the American Cemetery at Belleau. -
World War 1 Ends
On the 11/11 of 1918 at the 11th hour the first Great War ended. Germany signed an armistice agreement with the Allies on a train in Compiégne, France. The war left 9 million soldiers dead and 21 million wounded. The American troops and pressure on the German western front and the loss of resources for Germany led to them signing an agreement. -
Treaty of Versailles
On June 28, 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed to restrict Germany after the war. The document had 15 parts and 440 articles assigning boundaries. The meeting to create and sign the Treaty of Versailles, ironically had little participation with he Germans. The Treaty restricted German's land ownership, military usage, and they had to pay off the debts of the war. This treaty depleted Germany so much that it eventually led to WWII.
