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Assassination of Archdude Ferdinand
Citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovinad were unhappy with Austrian rule and favoured Serbia. -
Austra-Hungary demands Serbia arrest the leaders of the Black Hand
Austria-Hungary wants to arrest the leaders who were responsible for the assassination of Ferdinand -
Serbia appeals to Russia for help
The Austro-Hungarian government makes fifteen demands on the Serbian government. This includes the demand they arrest the leaders of the Black Hand group. The Serbian government appeal to Russia for help against the proposed attack by the Austro-Hungarian Army. -
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
Russia promises that it will help Serbia if it is attacked by Austro-Hungary. Austro-Hungarian declares war on Serbia. -
Big Bertha used against Liege Forts
Big Berthas were the largest, most-powerful mobile artillery pieces in use by any army. The gun could fire projectiles weighing up to 1,785 pounds and six miles -
Germany declares war on Russia
Reacting to the Austrian attack on Serbia, Russia begins full mobilization of its troops. This leads to Germany declaring war on Russia -
Germany declares war on France
France and Germany declared war on each other. This broadened the conflict that began a week earlier with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand -
Moltke orders the Schlieffen Plan to proceed
The Schlieffen Plan was the operational plan for a designated attack on France once Russia, in response to international tension, had started to mobilise her forces near the German border. -
German troops enter Belgium
Belgium's ports were close to the British coast and German control of Belgium would have been seen as a serious threat to Britain. Germany than began to move in inside Belgium. -
Great Britain declares war on Germany
When Germany attacked France through Belgium. Within hours, Britain declared war on Germany. -
Lord Kitchener calls for 100,000 men to join British Army
Big Bertha was a lethal mortar type weapon in WW1. It had fire projectiles weighing up to 1,785, and shot up to six miles. -
Austro-Hungarian troops invade Serbia
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French troops enter Lorraine
The French Army, led by Ferdinand Foch, Auguste Dubail and Michel Maunoury marched into Lorraine. -
British Expeditionary Force arrives in France
British Army sent to the Western Front during the First World War. Planning for a British Expeditionary Force began with the Haldane reforms of the British Army carried out by the Secretary of State for War Richard Haldane -
Battle of Mons Begins
the British Expeditionary Force and the German army at Mons, Belgium, during the Battle of the Frontiers in the opening weeks of World War I. -
French Army abandons Plan 17
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Battle of Tannenberg begins
The German 8th Army, under the leadership of Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff, strikes with lethal force against the advancing Russian 2nd Army, led by General Aleksandr Samsonov, in East Prussia during the opening weeks of the First World War. -
Battle of Helioland
The First Battle of Heligoland Bight was the first naval battle of the First World War, between ships of the United Kingdom and Germany. The battle took place in the south-eastern North Sea, when the British attacked German patrols off the north-west German coast. -
War Propaganda Bureau Writers Conference
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Battle of the Marne
some 30 miles northeast of Paris, the French 6th Army under the command of General Michel-Joseph Manoury attacks the right flank of the German 1st Army, beginning the decisive First Battle of the Marne at the end of the first month of World War I. -
French troops attack German Army at the River Aisne
The British Expeditionary Force launched a frontal assault at the Aisne. They initially won a singe bridgehead but a German counter-attack, drove the Allies back to the river. -
Battle of Albert
In what became known as the "Race to the Sea", during the First World War. It followed the First Battle of the Aisne as both sides moved northwards, trying to turn the northern flank of their opponent. -
Battle of Arras
A British offensive on the Western Front during World War I. British troops attacked German defences near the French city of Arras on the Western Front. -
Battle of Ypres
Fought on the Western Front around Ypres, in West Flanders, Belgium. -
Turkey joins Central Powers
The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers to form the Triple Alliance with the signing of the Turco-German Alliance. -
Battle of Dogger Bank
A naval engagement near the Dogger Bank in the North Sea, during the First World War, between squadrons of the British Grand Fleet and the German High Seas Fleet. -
German gas attack at Ypres
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 in Belgium. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
Germany waged submarine warfare against the United Kingdom which had implemented a naval blockade of Germany. The ship was identified and torpedoed by the German U-boat U-20 and sank in 18 minutes. -
Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary
The Italian declaration opened up a new front in World War I, stretching 600 kilometers—most of them mountainous—along Italy’s border with Austria-Hungary. -
Germany abandons Ypres offensive
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Isonzo Offensive begins
Twelve battles along the Isonzo River on the eastern sector of the Italian Front in World War I. -
First tank demonstrated to British military leaders
In response to the trench warfare the British made the tank. -
Allied troops land at Salonika
Britain and France commit their troops to operate in Salonica, Greece. -
Edith Cavell executed
Britain Nurse Edith Cavell was executed by a German firing squad. -
Britain introduces conscription
This act meant people between the ages 18-40 could serve in the military. -
German Verdun Offensive
A war fought between the German and French army fought on the western front. This is the longest battle of this World War. -
Germany declares war on Portugal
With the outbreak of World War I in, Portugal became increasingly anxious about the security of its colonial holdings in Angola and Mozambique. In order to secure international support for its authority in Africa, Portugal entered the war on the side of Britain and the Allies. Its participation was at first limited to naval support. However, Portugal sent its first troops. Germany later then declared war. -
Battle of Jutland
A naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet. -
Lord Kitchener killed at sea
British cruiser Hampshire strikes a German mine and sinks off the Orkney Islands, but among the passengers and crew drowned. One of the people drowned was Lord Kitchener. -
Italian Gorizia Offensive
The most successful Italian offensive along the Soča River. -
Somme Offensive ends
A battle fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. This battle was fought on both sides of the upper reaches of the River Somme in France. -
Zimmermann Telegram intercepted by Britain
The telegram was intercepted and decoded by British intelligence. This made Americans mad, so they wanted to fight back. -
Battle of Gaza begins
This battle was fought in the Allied attempt to defeat Turkish forces in and around the Palestinian city. -
United States declares war on Germany
President Woodrow Wilson went before a joint session of Congress to request a declaration of war against Germany. Woodrow later declared war on German. -
Start of Arras offensive
A British offensive on the Western Front where British troops attacked German defences near the French city of Arras. -
2nd Battle of the Aisne begins
This was the main part of the Nivelle Offensive, a Franco-British attempt to inflict a decisive defeat on the German armies in France. -
French tanks used for the first time in battle
The British Army this week used tanks for the first time in battle in an attempt to break the stalemate in the Battle of the Somme. -
Maria Bochkareva forms the Women's Battalion
Female combat units formed after the February Revolution by the Russian Provisional Government in a last-ditch effort to inspire the mass of war-weary soldiers. -
John Pershing given command of AEF
Pershing was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the American Expeditionary Force in Europe. His belief that his fit, fresh troops could break the deadlock on the Western Front. -
British attack at Messines
Orders were given for 20 mines to be placed under German lines at Messines. Over the next few months more than 8,000 metres of tunnel were dug and 600 tons of explosive were placed in position. Employing 2,300 guns and 300 heavy mortars. Simultaneous explosion of the mines took place. The blast killed an estimated 10,000 soldiers. -
United States troops arrive in France
Only 14,000 American soldiers had arrived in France, and the AEF had only a minor participation at the front through late October, but by May over one million American troops were stationed in France. -
Greece declares war on the Central Powers
About several weeks after King Constantine abdicates his throne in Athens from being under pressure by the Allies. Greece declared war on the Central Powers -
British Offensive at Passchendaele
This battle was also known as the Third Battle of Ypres, which was fought by the Allies against the German Empire. -
Massed tank attack at Cambrai
A British attack followed by the biggest German counter-attack against the British Expeditionary Force. -
Bolshevik government disbands Women's Battalion
By the end of the fall, by facing a lack of support from the government, the leadership of the Battalion disbanded. -
Sir Frederick Maude dies in Mesopotamia
Maude died of cholera in Baghdad. -
Wilson announces 14 Points Peace Programme
Wilson set down 14 points as a blueprint for world peace. These points were taken as the basis for peace negotiations at the end of the war. -
Start of German Spring Offensive
The Spring Offensive was a series of German attacks along the Western Front. Beginning on March 21st, this marked the deepest advances by either side. -
3rd Battle of the Aisne begins
The German army begins the Third Battle of the Aisne with an attack on the Allied positions at the Chemin des Dames ridge in the Aisne River region of France. -
Battle of Le Hamel
A successful attack by Australian Army and US Army infantry, supported by British tanks, against German positions. -
2nd Battle of the Marne
The Second Battle of the Marne was the last major German offensive on the Western Front. The attack failed when an Allied counterattacked and overwhelmed Germany's right side flank. -
German retreat at the Marne
After being overwhelmed on the right side flank. Germany is forced to retreat, which resulted in an Allied victory against the German armies in the west. -
Amiens Offensive
The Battle of Amiens, also known as the Third Battle of Picardy... was the opening phase of the Allied offensive. -
United States St Mihiel Offensive
A battle fought involving the AEF and roughly 110,000 French troops under the command of General John J. Pershing of the United States against German positions. -
Meuse-Argonne Offensive begins
A major part of the final Allied offensive that stretched along the entire Western Front. -
Canal du Nord Offensive
The Battle of Canal du Nord was fought by the Allies against German positions on the Western Front. -
Allied forces capture the Hindenburg Line
The Hindenburg Line was a German defensive position, which was invaded by the Allies. -
Italian Vittorio Veneto Offensive
On the Italian Front, the Italian victory marked the end of the war on the Italian Front. -
Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany abdicates
Following the abdication statement and German Revolution, the German nobility as a legally defined class was abolished. -
Armistice
The Armistice was the event that ended fighting on land, sea and air in World War I between the Allies and their opponents. -
Lloyd George wins British General Election
After the war ended the U.K. election was held shortly after. Where Lloyd George won the election -
Paris Peace Conference
The Paris Peace Conference which was also known as Versailles Peace Conference. This was the meeting of the Allied Powers following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers. -
Treaty of Versailles signed
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the most important parts of the peace treaties that brought World War I to an end. The Treaty ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers.
