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Arms Race Begins
Due to secret alliances among countries, a sense of security declined in these countries. An arms race between these competing countries began in an effort to bring security back. Almost every country was competing to have better weapons and technology than all other countries. -
Rule of the Ottoman
From the start of the Balkan Wars to the start of World War I the Ottoman Empire was the largest empire in the world. They controlled a large part of Eastern Europe and much of the Middle East and Northern Africa. -
Archduke Ferdinand is Assassinated
The archduke and his wife Sophie traveled to Sarajevo to check in his military in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Archduke and his wife were traveling slowly down the street, due to a large concentration of people in the streets because of The Archduke's presence. A boy named Gavrilo Princip walked up to the car and shot the couple. The two both died within the hour. -
The Blank Check
This was an agreement that Germany made with Austria-Hungary. The agreement stated that Germany would support Austria-Hungary in their actions toward Serbia. -
Alliances are Formed
The first alliance was the Central Powers, which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. The other alliance formed was the Allied Forces, which consisted of France, Russia, Serbia, Britain, Italy, Belgium, and later in the war, the United States. -
World War I Begins
The immediate cause for the start of the Great War was the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The war was between the Allied and Central Powers. Since a Serbian nationalist killed the Archduke of Austria-Hungary, this meant war. This also meant Britain, France, and Russia would be fighting behind Serbia. On the other side, because of Germany's "black check" agreement with Austria-Hungary, this meant Germany would be fight behind Austria-Hungary. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
The Lusitania was the fastest passenger liner that was supposed to travel from New York to Liverpool. The Germans thought that the boat would be carrying great amounts of ammunition to the British. The captain of the ship didn't respect warnings sent by Germans and went on anyways. A German submarine locked onto the ship off the coast of Ireland and shot a single torpedo at the hull of the ship, which sunk the boat in a matter of minutes. -
German Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
This act was taken by the Germans when they purposefully torpedoed the Lusitania. This meant instead of warning ships before they were sunk, so that passengers could get to safety, the Germans were sinking the ships with no warning. This was a big reason the United States joined the war. -
Zimmerman Note
The Zimmerman Note was a telegram from the Germans to the Mexicans that was intercepted by the United States. The note was trying to get Mexico to join the Central Powers and in return Germany would help Mexico get California back from the United States. This note basically forced the United States right into the war. -
United States Joins the War
When the United States joins the war, it is a huge moral booster for the soldiers already fighting in Europe. American soilders helped to break the stalemate in the trenches and finally push bake German forces. -
Millions Die during the War
The total amount of deaths from both sides was 8.5 million and 21 million injured. Nine new countries were formed after the end of World War I; Finland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Latvia, and Lithuania. -
Treaty of Versailles
This ended the war between Germany and the Allied Forces. It punished Germany because it took away all overseas colonies from them, they were limited to 100,000 man army, and there were many other restrictions put on the German Navy. Disillusionment from the loss of World War I caused much spite amongst the German people, which later led to Nazi rule of Germany. -
Dawes and Young Plan
The Dawes Plan was a way of bringing Germany out of an extreme economic crisis. The United States loaned Germany 800 million gold marks. The Young Plan just made a few minor changes to the Dawes Plans. -
Great Depression
Many people were buying everything on credit which caused the stock market to crash on the day known as, "Black Tuesday". In addition to that, an extreme decrease in demand across the nation caused businesses across the nation to shut down. These reasons caused an extreme economic decline and eventually led to the Great Depression. -
The Rise of Hitler
The start of Hitler's major rule was when he was elected chancellor. Up to this point, Hitler did not have very much power in the government. Now that he is in a position of power, this fuels his fire to lead the Nazi Party to rule all of Germany. On August 19, 1934, Hilter completes his rise to power, as he is now at this point the Fuhrer of Germany. -
Hitler Takes Power
Germany is a great example of having extreme national pride. After the loss of World War I and the post war punishment caused by the Treaty of Versailles, Germans felt the need to prove something and gain back respect. Hitler, after being elected in 1934, was able to instill his extreme ideas such as a pure race and antisemitism.
