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By 1914, all great powers except Britain had large standing armies.
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In 1905 and again in 1911, Germany and France nearly fought over who would control Morocco, in Northern America. Most of Europe supported France, so Germany backed down. This event is significant because it shows how imperialism, expanding an empire by taking over weaker countries, led to intense competition and conflict between European countries.
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Austria declared war on Serbia in 1914. This was the main event to start World War 1.
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Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were driving in an open car through Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia, when they were shot point-blank. The killer was Gavrilo Princip, a 19-year-old Serbian and mem- ber of the Black Hand. The Black Hand was a secret society committed to ridding Bosnia of Austrian rule.
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Because the assassin was a Serbian, Austria decided to use the murders as an excuse to punish Serbia. Serbia knew that not following these demands would lead to a war with the more powerful Austria, therefore they agreed to most of these demands.
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Germany declared war on France two days after declaring war on Russia.
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Germany declared war on both Russia and France just two days apart.
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Germany was planning to attack Russia and then France, but before they could allies came together and attacked them. Every available soldier was invovlved, with more than 600 taxi cabs rushing soldiers over from Paris. The German generals gave the order to retreat after four days of fighting.
