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A network of Alliances
The military buildsup made countries nervous. In response, they created an alliance system in which defferent nations promised to help one another if any one of them came under attack.
By 1914 two major alliances divided Europe. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy formed the Triple -
Assassination and War
Gavrilo Princip was a member of a Serbian nationalist group. Princip and his group plotted the murder of Franz Ferdinand. They hoped to bring down the Austro-Hungarian Empire and unite the Slavs. It was Princip who fired the shots that killed the archduke and his wife -
World war 1 begins
The "Great War" had begun. On one side were the Allied Powers, or the Allies. They included Great Britian, France, and Russia. on the other side, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire made up the Central Powers. -
Submarines take their toll
The Germans could not match the British blockade. They did, however, have the U-boat. To stop American aid to Britain, Germany said in February 1915 that it would sink any vessels that entered or left British Ports. President Wilson warned that the United States would hold Germany responsible for any American lives lost in submarine attacks -
Troubles in Europe
It was June 28, 1914, and the people of Sarajevo, Bosnia, crowded the city streets. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, next in line to the throne of the Austro-Hungarain Empire, was in town for a visit. as he and his wife rolled along in their open car, gunman attacked. Both the archduke and his wife was killed. -
The End of Neutrality
In spite of the Sussex Pledge, Congress was alarmed. In the summer of 1916, it doubled the size of army and provided funding for the construction of new warships -
The United States at the Brink of War
In January 1917, Germany again changed course in its use of submarine warfare. It annouced it would sink on sight all merchant vessals sailing to allied ports-regardless of whether or not they were armed -
Supplying the Allies
By 1917 the years of trench warfare had exhausted the Allied armies. The signs of strain among the military were clear. After one failed offensive, some French troops refused to continue fighting. The British were running low on war supplies as well as on food. German submarines were taking a deadly toll on Allied shipping. They sank one of every four ships that left British ports. -
The Russians quit the War
The arrival of American troops also helped offset the loss of Russia from the Allied cause. In march 1917, Nicholas II had given up his throne as czar, or ruler, in Russia's first Revolution. The Goverment that replaced the czar supported the war. It was not, however, able to solve Russia's many serious problems, such as food shortages -
The American Join the Battle
While revolution shook Russia and Germany went on the attack, the Americans were preparing to join the fight. In May 1917, General John J. Pershing became supreme commander of what was called the American Expeditionary Force the American army in Erope. His arrival in France cheered the war-weary nation. Reporter Floyd Gibbsons described the welcome that pershing recieved. -
The United States Enters the War
President Wilson decided the United States could no longer remain neutral. On the cold, rainy evening of April 2, 1917, he asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany. After some debate, Congress decided that the nation had to defend its rights if it wished to remain a world power. Congress passed a declaration of war, and Wilson signed it on April 6. -
Germany Makes a Final Push
In March 1918, German forces launched a massive attack along the Western Front. German leaders hoped to break the Allied lines. They wanted to capture the city of
Amiens before Proceeding to paris.