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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austro-Hungarian empire, in Sarajevo, Bosnia
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Germany declares war on France
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the first full year of the war, which saw the Allies strive vainly to achieve a breakthrough on the Western Front, while the Germans achieved numerous successes elsewhere. It was to prove a disappointing year for the Allies, a correspondingly positive one for Germany and its allies.
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Second Battle of Artois begins
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the third year of the war. During this year the Germans attempted to "bleed France white" at Verdun, and the British strove to breakthrough along the Somme river. Both were doomed to failure
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Italy declares war on Germany
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the fourth year of the war. This year saw the adoption by the German high command of the disastrous policy of unrestricted submarine warfare - disastrous in that it brought about America's entry into the war within the space of a couple of months, and ultimately led to her downfall the following year.
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Russia's exit from the war amid two revolutions, the first in February and a second in October.
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the final year of the war. This year saw the German military high command attempt one final large-scale offensive on the Western Front. A near success, Operation Michael's ultimate failure led to an increasingly sweeping series of successes by the Allies from the summer of 1918.
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The Allied powers signed a ceasefire agreement with Germany at Rethondes, France, on November 11, 1918, bringing the war, later known as World War I, to a close.