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Assassination of Duke Franz Ferdinand
Austro-Hungarian Duke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie are assassinated by Black Hand member Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Austria is outraged, eventually declaring war on Serbia, and Russia mobilizes armies to Austria, starting WWI. -
Austria Rejects Serbia's Offer
Serbia obeys Austria’s ultimatum and offers an international conference in light of the Duke’s assassination. However, Austria rejects it and declares war. The same day, Russia takes action due to being Serbia's ally, and thus mobilizes troops to the Austrian border. -
The Schlieffen Plan
Germany creates and employs the Schlieffen Plan, a strategy in which Germany attempts to quickly defeat France in the west, then quickly turn and fight Russia to the east. This ultimately made Germany fight a 2-front war coming from the west and east. -
First Battle of the Marne
On September 5, the Allied Powers attacked the Germans northeast from Paris, in the Marne River’s valley. Every available soldier was taken to the battle. German soldiers were forced to retreat, foiling the Schlieffen Plan, and made a quick victory no longer possible. -
Battle of Limanowa
Russian forces push deep into Austria in September. It was not until December of the same year that the Austrian army, with German assistance, fought a 17-day battle near Limanowa and pushed the Russians back to the east. Because of this, the Austrian army managed to force the Russians out of Austria-Hungary. -
February 1915 - Gallipoli Campaign
A joint effort from the British, Australians, New Zealand, and French troops made several assaults on the Gallipoli Peninsula to control the Dardanelles region, in order to secure a supply line in Russia. This campaign showed how the war has reached beyond Europe and truly is a "war world" -
Battle of Verdun
Germany mounts a large attack on the Western Front in February against the French near Verdun. In this battle, 300,000 men were lost on each side, totaling more than 600,000 killed in the battle alone. -
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Battle of the Somme
In the July of 1916, the British army attempted to relieve pressure on France by attacking Germans northwest of Verdun, in the valley of the Somme River. By the end of the battle months later, each side had suffered more than half a million casualties, adding more numbers to the overall casualties of the war. -
Germany applies unrestricted submarine warfare
In January 1917, Germany announces that their submarines would sink any ship in the waters surrounding Great Britain without any warning. It was this policy that caused American ships to be sunk by German U-Boats and be one of the reasons why the United States joined the war. -
U.S. enters WWI
On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asks Congress to declare war. America joins the war on the Allies' side, due to actions made by Germany that offended the U.S. Now that the United States is involved, the Allies can receive fresh troops to aid in the fight. -
Vladimir Lenin seizes power in Russia
In November 1917, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin seizes power in Russia, and urges to end Russia's involvement in the war. He offers Germany a truce between Russia and Germany, to which Germany agreed, ending the war between the two. -
Second Battle of the Marne
In July 1918, the Germans and Allies fought once again at the Marne. The Allies were slowly advancing on the Germans thanks to the additions of 2 million American troops. After this battle, the Central Powers begin to fall apart, and it was clear by now that the war was coming to an end. -
World War I Ends with an Armistice
On November 11, 1918, and armistice is signed by a representative of the new German government and Marshal Foch in a railway care in a forest near Paris.This armistice officially ends World War I. -
Treaty of Versailles is Signed
On June 18, 1919, Germany and the Allies sign the Treaty of Versailles at the Paris Peace Conference.The treaty created the League of Nations, a league that was to be an international association where peace would be kept between nations. Germany was excluded intetionally, as well as Russia.