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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by a member of the Black Hand, a terrorist group, in Bosnia. He was the heir ruler to Austria-Hungary, and was making a visit to the country since it was controlled by them. -
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WW1 TIMELINE
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WW1 Begins
A month after the assassination of their Archduke, Austria-Hungary declares war on Bosnia. And in reply to that, the allies of both countries join the war, officially beginning WW1. The Central Powers (Austria-Hungary) vs. the Allied Powers (Bosnia). -
Unrestricted Warfare by Germany
In February of 1915, Germany declared that they would attack any ship/submarine, neutral or not, that entered British war zones in the seas. Whether it would be British, American, or other, they would have unrestricted warfare against them. -
Lusitania Sinking
A German submarine torpedoes a British passenger liner, known as the Lusitania, which also had multiple Americans on it as well. It traveled from New York to England, and entered British territory, so Germany would attack any ships in the "battle field", causing a lot of tension between the US and Germany. -
Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun was the bloodiest battle of WW1, and began February 21, 1916 and ended the same year on December 18th. The Germans used total war methods to destroy a French garrison, and it eventually became a battle to see who could last longer. In the end the French had won, but with 400,000 casualties. -
Battle of the Somme
Battle of the Somme was a battle between the British and Germans starting July 1, 1916 and ending in November. The British were trying to bring the Germans away from Verdun, and launched attacks around the Somme River. There was about 1 million deaths in total, and it destroyed nearby towns and left huge craters in the ground that are there to this day. -
Russian Revolution
The Bolshevik Revolution (Russian) helped take the Czar out of power so that they could withdraw from the war. It also led to the Eastern Front in the war to not exist anymore. -
Zimmerman Telegram
The Zimmerman Telegram was a message that Germany sent to Mexico asking for them to join the war if the US did. In return they would give money as well as gain lost land they lost to America (Texas, Arizona, etc). -
U.S. Joins the War
After multiple close attacks from Germany, the United States officially joined the war. There were too many problems with the war that connected to the US for them to not get involved. -
Selective Service Act
To help increase the size of the US army, the Congress passed this act. It was passed to draft more people in the army in WW1. -
Treaty of Brest-Litousk
A treaty was signed between Russia and Germany in 1918, which officially pulled Russia out of the war. It also put a lot more pressure on the Western Front since the Eastern Front was with Russia -
Armistice Signed
It was the day the Germans surrendered and signed an Armistice with the Allied Powers, to stop the fighting. Many like to say it was the day the guns went silent, and it was an end to the war in a way. -
Negotiations of the Allies
From January to June of 1919, the Allied Powers met up for negotiations without the involvement of Germany. They were starting to create goals for what would happen to deal with the effects of the war. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919 which officially ended the war for all countries involved.