-
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary.
His murder catapulted into a war across Europe . -
The Western Front
German troops crossed the border into Belgium. In the first battle of World War I, the Germans assaulted the heavily fortified city of Liege, using the most powerful weapons in their arsenal . -
First Battle of the Marne
French and British forces confronted the invading German army, which had by then penetrated deep into northeastern France, within 30 miles of Paris. -
Germany begins naval blockade of Great Britain.
Germany declared a war zone around Britain, within which merchant ships were sunk without warning. -
Allied forces land on the Gallipoli Peninsula of the Ottoman Empire.
Allied troops landed on the Gallipoli peninsula in Ottoman Turkey. The Gallipoli campaign was the land-based element of a strategy intended to allow Allied ships to pass through the Dardanelles, capture Constantinople (now Istanbul) and ultimately knock Ottoman Turkey out of the war. -
Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary.
Sonnino began serious negotiations with London and France . The Treaty of London was signed on 26 April 1915 and Italy declared war against Austria-Hungary -
Germany begins the attack on Verdun.
when the German army began pounding the forts and trenches with artillery fire. 1,200 guns smashed the French positions. -
Naval Battle of Jutland takes place between British and German fleets.
(May 31–June 1, 1916), the only major encounter between the main British and German battle fleets in World War I, fought near the Skagerrak, an arm of the North Sea, about 60 miles (97 km) off the west coast of Jutland (Denmark). -
Allied offensive begins the Battle of the Somme.
after a week-long artillery bombardment of the German lines. Advancing British troops found that the German defences had not been destroyed as expected and many units suffered very high casualties with little progress. The Somme became an attritional or 'wearing-out' battle. -
Battle of Verdun ends
Like the Marne, it represents the checkmate of a supreme effort on the part of the Germans to end the war swiftly by a thunderstroke. -
Germany returns to unrestricted submarine warfare halted after the sinking of the Lusitania.
following the loss of American lives in the torpedoed liners Lusitania and Arabic. After failing to seize control of the sea from the British at the Battle of Jutland in 1916, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare -
United States severs diplomatic relations with Germany.
-
The United States declares war on Germany.
President Woodrow Wilson asked a special joint session of the United States Congress for a declaration of war against the German Empire. Congress responded with the declaration -
Russia signs the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany.
in the city of Brest-Litovsk, located in modern-day Belarus near the Polish border, Russia signed a treaty with the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria) ending its participation in World War I -
Germany begins its final offensive of the war.
-
American forces stop German attempt to cross the Marne River at Chateau-Thierry.
-
The Stars and Stripes suspends the Sporting Page.
-
Allied forces begin the attack at Meusse-Argonne, the final offensive of the war.
General Pershing's troops launched an attack along the Meuse River and into northern France's rugged Argonne Forest that would prove to be the deadliest battle in American history. -
Germany signs the Armistice at Compiègne, ending World War I.
The truce, or Armistice, would start on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, November 1918. The Armistice was signed at 5:00 a.m. by Marshal of France Ferdinand Foch, along with other Allies and Germany, inside of Foch's private railway car at Compagnie, France.