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Archduke Assassination
Archduke Franz Ferdinand's death is the event that sparked World War 1. Archduke and his wife were visiting Sarajevo when their driver drove past a Serbian nationalist who shot and killed them. Austria-Hungary was furious and, with Germany's support, they declared war on Serbia. -
Serbia wants Russia to help
The German government announces its full support for Austro-Hungary if it decides to take reprisals against Serbia. The Austro-Hungarian government makes fifteen demands on the Serbian government. Nikola Pasic and the Serbian government appeal to Russia for help against the proposed attack by the Austro-Hungarian Army. -
World War 1 Begins
Germany invades Belgium.
This is important because it caused Belgium to declare war on Germany. -
Recruitment of the British Army
Lord Kitchener began to recruit men aged between 19 and 30 to join the British Army. In the beginning, there were 33,000 men joining every day, and three weeks later he rose the age to 35. With doing this, over 500,000 men had volunteered their services by the middle of September. https://spartacus-educational.com/FWWrecruit.htm -
Battle of Mons
The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was on the way to meet the French Army at Charleroi. The strong BEF met the German Army at Mons. The British infantry corps was deployed, by Sir John French, to the east and west of Mons on a 40 km front. On the morning of 23rd August, General Alexander von Kluck and his soldiers attacked the British positions. The French withdrawal to the coast, but the British war minister orders the BEF to retreat to the River Marne. -
First German Aircraft Shot Down by Allied Plane
Gabriel Voisin was one of the most productive aircraft designers during the war. The Voisin 3 became the first Allied plane to shoot down an enemy aircraft. Voisin became the standard Allied bomber in the early years of the war. In 1915 the Voisin V was the first bomber to be armed with a cannon instead of a machine-gun. -
Battle of Dogger Bank
Admiral Frans von Hipper and the First High Seas Fleet bombarded Scarborough, Hartlepool, and Whitby. 18 civilians were killed and it created a great deal of anger against the Royal Navy for failing to protect the British coast. -
Allied Navel Attack at the Dardanelles
Vice Admiral Carden proposed a three-stage operation: the bombardment of the Turkish forts protecting the Dardanelles. At first, the plan was initially rejected by H. H. Asquith, David Lloyd George, Admiral John Fisher, and Lord Kitchener. Asquith decided that "the Dardanelles should go forward." On 19th February 1915, Admiral Carden began his attack on the Dardanelles forts. -
Lusitania Sinks
A German submarine attacks the passenger liner Lusitania, which carries 1,198 people and 128 of them are Americans.
This is important because it affected many Americans. -
Artois Offensive
Joseph Joffre decided to try and break through German lines on the Western Front at Artois. Henri-Philippe Petain and 9th Army launched an attack on 9th May 1915. Petain initially made good progress but was unable to take the main objective, Vimy Ridge. -
Britain Introduces Conscription
After the war was declared two pacifists, the No-Conscription Fellowship was formed. This was formed by Clifford Allen and Fenner Brockway. This is an organization that encouraged men to refuse war service. -
Firsts Tanks
The British use tanks for the first time in the battle at Delvile Wood. They were used to break through fences and to clear paths. It was not used for weapons like their designers thought they would be. This is important because it lead to the making of better tanks used today. -
Somme Offensive Ends
The Battle of the Somme was planned as a French and British operation. An average of 3,500 shells a minute was fired at the German positions. The main objective was "to break through the German lines by means of a massive infantry assault, to try to create the conditions in which cavalry could then move forward rapidly to exploit the breakthrough. -
United States Enters the War
The US and Britain were close trading partners and there started to be tension between the US and Germany. Then German mines damaged US ships traveling to Britain. Later Germany announced that they sunk the William P. Frye, which was a private American vessel. Many other events contributed to the entering of the United States. It is important because the U.S. had well-supplied forces and helped the Allies to victory. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/america-enters-world-war-i -
United States Troops Arrive in France
98,000 men were in the United States Army, and 45,000 of them were overseas. There were over a million US soldiers in France in 1918. General John Pershing deployed US troops to help the French defend the Western Front during the 3rd Battle of the Aisne in May and at the Marne in June. -
Peace Between Germany and Russia
Germany signs a peace treaty with the new Bolshevik government of Russia. Germany gained a huge region of land that was Ukraine and Poland. Also, Germany was able to shift soldiers to the Western Front with peace on the Eastern Front.
This is important because it caused serious problems for the French, British, and Americans. -
Start of the German Spring Offensive
After the Brest-Litovsk Treaty was signed with Russia, Germany was able to withdraw its troops from the Eastern Front. These troops were used to support a massive offensive on the Western Front. -
Allied Forces Capture the Hindenburg Line
After the failure of the Spring Offensive, the German Army retreated to the Hindenburg Line. The Allied forces were able to gain complete control of these defenses on October 5. -
Paris Peace Conference
After the Armistice was signed, it was agreed that there would be a Peace Conference held in Paris. This was to discuss the post-war world. 32 states had there leaders attend. Five treaties eventually emerged from the Conference. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was ratified by Germany and three Principle Allied Powers. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers and it brought World War 1 to an end. https://spartacus-educational.com/FWWversailles.htm
