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World War 1
The First World War started in August 1914, and began by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria (heir to the Austria-Hungary throne) by Yugoslav nationalist, Gavrilo Princip. Austria-Hungary and Serbia went to war against each other, and the war lasted for four years, until the year 1918. -
The Armistice is signed
The Armistice (the promise of peace between the countries) had been signed by Germany on the morning of November 11th, 1918, and officially came into effect at 11am. This signified the official end to World War 1. Although there were no commemorations on the front, celebration broke out across the world, as everyone cheered for the Armistice that meant the end of World War 1. -
Rise of Nazism
The rise of Nazism (occurring during September,1919) also brought about the founding of the group known as 'Brownshirts', or, as they were nicknamed, 'Stormtroopers'. Adolf Hitler joined the party in September 1919, and he gained authority in the party by early 1920. -
The Great Depression
The stockmarket crash (or, as it is more commonly known, The Great Depression) originated in the United States. It began on September 4, 1929 and was worldwide news by October 29, 1929. It was devastating to both rich and poor countries, as the factories were forced to lay off workers and close their doors from the lack of purchases from them, which caused a rush to the banks. Lack of cash in the banks forced them to close, which caused more people to lose all their savings. -
Hitler became dictator of Germany
Holding three offices and having been appointed as chancellor by President Paul von Hindenburg on January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler slowly rose to power and began the Nazi state in Germany on the 30th of January, 1933. -
World War II
World War II was begun by Germany, who attacked Poland for no clear reason. After Hitler rejected Britain and France's demands that he stop his invasion of Poland, they each declared war on Germany. Six years later, in the summer of 1945, the war ended. Approximately 50 million people died in the Second World War. -
Attack on Pearl Harbour
The surprise attack on Pearl Harbour, launched by the Japanese, took place on the morning of the 7th of December, 1941. Two hours later, over 2400 Americans had died, 21 ships were sunk or destroyed and over 188 United States aircraft had been annihilated. -
Fall of Singapore
The Japanese landed on the north-west coast of the island on the 8th of February, 1942, and were at the outskirts of Singapore's city within the next six days. Australian, British and Indian troops attempted to hold the Japanese back, but by the 10th of February they had arrived on most of north-west Singapore. The Australian troops were moved to just a few kilometres out of the city on the 12th of February, but the Japanese still made it to the city. Singapore was also under steady air attack. -
The Darwin Bombing
The bombing of Darwin by the Japanese took place on mainland Australia, just ten weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbour. This attack was also led by the same commander as the one who had masterminded the Pearl Harbour bombing. The bombings continued until November 1943. 64 different bombings occurred over this time period. 2,403 Americans were killed by this attack and 1,178 other people were injured. -
Cold War
The tensions that would soon expand to become the Cold War were evident as early as the year 1943, when the American President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the Soviet Premier Josef Stalin (they were known as the "Big Three" allied leaders), gathered together to coordinate strategies over the matter of Poland, which was the topic of their heated debate. They disagreed over who would be the government of Poland (Communist or anti-Communist). -
Mao Zudong: Communist China
Chinese Communist leader, Mao Zudong, declared the creation of the People's Republic of China (October 1, 1949). This ended the civil war being fought between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Nationalist Party or Kuomintang (KMT). The civil war had broken out immediately after World War II, and had continued, on and off, between the CCP and the KMT since the 1920's. Once the civil war was over, the Communist Party emerged, victorious, with Mao Zudong as their leader. -
Martin Luther King Jr. : "I Have a Dream"
Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia (US), on 15 January, 1929. He began at Morehouse College in 1944 and became friends with his teacher, Benjamin Mays, which would later prove to be lifelong. He took on a postgraduate study at a theology school in Boston, and met his wife Coretta Scott. He validated national awareness and was a key leader of the Negro civil rights movement, masterminded the Birmingham campaign and made his famous speech, and was assassinated on 4 April 1968. -
Protestors against America's Involvement in the Vietnam War
America had been involved in the Cold War for nearly twenty years, when their government told them that the trouble in Vietnam would happen elsewhere if America didn't become involved. The first protests began in October 1965, when the draft was increased. Eight months before, it had only been 3,000 per month, but in October it was increased by 30,000. Having your draft torn or burnt up became a common occurence and was one of the first protests against America's involvement in the War. -
World Trade Center Destruction
On September 11, 2001, a massive terrorist attack destroyed the World Trade Center, and it killed nearly 3,000 people in the process. It eliminated the twin towers, and altered the New York City skyline in a major way. The Pentagon was also attacked on this day, with an attempt made on Camp David. -
War in Afghanistan
The first bombing of Afghanistan that began the war occurred in October, 2001. The US-led bombing of Afghanistan followed the World Trade Center attacks on the US, which was followed by the entry of anti-Taliban Northern Alliance forces into Kabul. The war in Afghanistan has continued for more than 10 years. -
2002 Bali Bombings
The arrival of October 12, 2002 brought with it a devastating event: the Bali bombings. The bombings killed 202 people (including 88 Australians, 38 Indonesians, 27 Britons, 7 Americans, 6 Swedish citizens and 3 Danish citizens), not to mention the 240 people that were injured. Three bombs were detonated, which included a backpack-mounted one which was carried by a suicide bomber, a large car bomb and a smaller one which was detonated outside of the U.S, causing minor damage. -
The Fall of Saddam Hussein
Operation Red Dawn was launched on the 14th of December 2003, the goal of which was to locate and capture Saddam Hussein, who was tried for crimes against humanity and was believed to be hiding in the town of ad-Dawr, Iraq, near Tikrit. -
The Death of Osama bin Laden
Shortly after 1am on the 2nd of May, 2011, Osama bin Laden, the head and founder of the Islamist militant group al-Quaeda, and the mastermind behind the destruction of the World Trade Centre and many other terrorist attacks, was killed in Pakistan by the U.S Navy SEALS. -
MH17
This flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed in the Ukraine, which is part of Russia. It is believed to have been shot down by a Russian officer with a Buk surface-to-air missile. The exact cause is said to be still under investigation. The fatalities numbered many, the approximate number ending up at 298 (the passengers included 154 Dutch, 27 Australians and 38 Malaysians, including 15 crew, 11 Indonesians, 4 Germans, 4 Belgians, 3 from the Phillipines and 1 Canadian) with no survivors.
