-
Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand was a Archduke of Austria-Este and the Royal Prince of Hungary and Bohemia. He and his wife were assassinated by a young teenager named Gavrilo Princip. People believe this was the main outbreak of World War I. -
Period: to
World War I
-
Ultimatum that Austria-Hungary sent to Serbia
In this ultimatum Austria told Serbia to suppress all all anti-Austrian propaganda and to take steps to root out and eliminate terrorist organizations within its borders. -
Start of World War I
On this day Austria declared war on Serbia 5 days after they sent the ultimatum and was the start of every other major battle within the next few years. -
Russia Mobilizes
Russia starts to mobilize their army which led to the mobilization of the rest of the Great European Powers. -
Britain declares war on Germany
Belgium's ports were close to the British coast and German control of Belgium would have been seen as a serious threat to Britain. In the end, Britain refused to ignore the events of 4 August 1914, when Germany attacked France through Belgium. Within hours, Britain declared war on Germany. -
Battle of Tannenberg
This was a battle between the Russia and Germany and resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian Second Army and the suicide of its commanding general, Alexander Samsonov. -
Sinking of Lusitania
The lusitania was a British ocean liner en route from New York to Liverpool, England. A little less then a year since the wat started a German U-boat torpedoed and sank the Lusitania. The sinking of the Lusitania played a significant role in turning public opinion against Germany, both in the United States and abroad. -
Battle of Jutland
The battle of Jutland was a battle off Denmark’s North Sea coast and was the only major naval surface engagement of World War I. With about 250 ships and 100,000 men both sides declared victory even though Britain retained control of the North Sea. -
The Battle of Somme
The battle of Somme was fought between the british and french armies near the Somme River in France. It was known as one of the bloodiest military battles in history, with the British losing more than 57,000 causualties on the first day. -
Zimmerman telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram was an internal diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office in January, 1917 that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico in the event of the United States' entering World War I against Germany. -
United States enters war
Congress authorizes a declaration of war against Germany. The United States enters World War I on the side of France and Britain. -
Peace between Germany and Russia
The Germans signed a peace treaty with the Bolshevik government Russia giving Germany huge tracts of land and brought peace on the Eastern Fronts. This caused soldiers to shift to the Western front causing problems for the French, British, and Americans. -
Battle of Cantigny
Although this was a small scale battle it is significant because it was the first american battle in the war and was the start of many larger attacks of German positions. -
Wilhelm abdicates
Kaiser Wilhelm abdicates, ending all German hope for a victory. He then moves to the netherlands where he lives peacefully for the rest of his life writing his memoir on the war. -
End of World War I
At 5 AM on the morning of November 11 an armistice was signed in a railroad car parked in a French forest near the front lines.The terms of the agreement called for the cessation of fighting along the entire Western Front to begin at precisely 11 AM that morning. After over four years of bloody conflict, the Great War came to an end. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
