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(EU) Archduke Franz Ferdinand Shot in Sarajevo
On this day, the Archduke of Austria-Hungary was shot by Gavrilo Princip. This event is often considered the spark for World War 1, Which would grow because of entangling alliances. -
Germany declares war on France
invades neutral Belgium. Britain then sends an ultimatum, rejected by the Germans, to withdraw from Belgium. -
Britain declares war on Germany
The British Empire declared war on the German Empire on August 4, 1914. The declaration was a result of German refusal to remove troops from neutral Belgium. -
First Battle of the Marne
First Battle of the Marne begins. The Germans had advanced to within 30 miles of Paris, but over the next two days, the French are reinforced by 6,000 infantrymen who are transported to the front by hundreds of taxis. The Germans dig in north of the Aisne River, and the trench warfare that is to typify the Western Front for the next four years begins. -
First Gas Attack
On April 22, 1915, German forces shock Allied soldiers along the western front by firing more than 150 tons of lethal chlorine gas against two French colonial divisions at Ypres, Belgium. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
The sinking of which by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915, contributed indirectly to the entry of the United States into World War I -
The Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun begins. Over the next 10 months, the French and German armies at Verdun, France, suffer over 700,000 casualties, including some 300,000 killed. -
The First Use of Tanks
The first use of tanks on the battlefield was the use of British Mark I tanks at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette (part of the Battle of the Somme) on 15 September 1916, with mixed results; many broke down, but nearly a third succeeded in breaking through. -
Election of Woodrow Wilson (1916)
Wilson was the only sitting Democratic president to win re-election between 1832 and 1936. Wilson was re-nominated without opposition at the 1916 Democratic National Convention. -
The Zimmerman Telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram (or Zimmermann Note or Zimmerman Cable) was a secret diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office in January 1917 that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico. -
Wilson asks for Declaration of War
On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war against Germany, saying, “The world must be made safe for democracy.” Four days later, Congress voted overwhelmingly in favor of a war declaration. -
U.S. Congress passes Espionage Act
the Espionage Act essentially made it a crime for any person to convey information intended to interfere with the U.S. armed forces prosecution of the war effort or to promote the success of the country’s enemies. Anyone found guilty of such acts would be subject to a fine of $10,000 and a prison sentence of 20 years. -
The United States Declares War/ Congress Votes to Declare War
Wilson requested, and Congress approved, a declaration of war against Austria-Hungary. The resolution declaring war against Austria-Hungary was adopted unanimously by the Senate, and was approved by the House of Representatives by a vote of 350 to 1 -
Spanish Influenza (1918)
The 1918 influenza pandemic was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic, the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus. It infected 500 million people around the world, including people on remote Pacific islands and in the Arctic. -
Armistice (1918)
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea and air in World War I between the Allies and their opponent, Germany. Previous armistices had been agreed with Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.