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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
A member of the black hand assassinated Franz Ferdinand because he didn't like that he was in Serbia. -
Austria-Hungary Declares War on Serbia
Austria-Hungary sent Serbia a list of impossible demands and when they refused, Austria-Hungary declared war. This happened just a month after the death of Franz Ferdinand -
Russia Mobilizes Against Austria-Hungary
Russia was obligated to protect Serbia in a war. Germany was obligated to protect Austria-Hungary in a war. The leaders of Russia and Germany sent each other letters to try to convince them to opt out of the war. -
Nations get drawn into the war because of alliances.
Britain and France were part of the triple entente and joined the war with Russia. The Ottoman Empire joined Austria-Hungary and Germany. Italy did have an alliance with Germany, but did not view their actions as defensive and later joined the war with the triple entente -
Trench Warfare
As Germany looked to invade France in the Western front they went through Belgium. In Belgium a new kind of warfare broke out, trench warfare. It was first used in the first battle of Ypres. Trench warfare was when sets of trenches were dug on opposing sides and each side fired bomb shells at each other for days on end. Eventually, one side would charge the other trench which was defended by machine gunners. Thousands of soldiers died going over the top. -
Flying Aces
Fighter planes were used in World War 1. The pilots of these planes were known as flying aces and they took part in dog fights, or battles in the sky. These battles had little significance in the war. -
The Battle of Jutland
The battle of Jutland was the biggest sea battle of World War 1. It was fought between Sir John Jellicoe of Britain and Reinhard Sheer of Germany. Germany claims that they won this battle. -
Lawrence of Arabia
Lawrence of Arabia was a british officer that served in the Eastern Front during WW1. He lead the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire. -
The Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme was one of the biggest battles of World War 1. It took place near the Somme River, France. Although it was considered a British and French victory, it did not come without a cost. There were more than 1 million casualties with 300,000 deaths. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was what officially ended World War 1. It blamed the war on Germany. Germany had to pay massive war reparations that it did not have. It also created the League of Nations that was meant to prevent a war like this one from ever happening again.
