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The Archduke Francis Ferdinand is assassinated.
A Serbian nationalist assassinated the Archduke of Austria-Hungary. This led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia. -
War is Declared
At this point Austria-Hungary officially declares war on Serbia marking the beginning of WWI. -
Germany Invades Luxembourg
Germany would invade and occupy Luxembourg following the Schlieffen Plan. This was one of the steps needed to prepare to invade France, but it was a violation of Luxembourg's neutrality. -
Germany invades Belgium
Prior to Germany's invasion Belgium refused to let them go through them freely to get to France. This invasion violated the Treaty of London and brought in Britain to the war. -
France invade Alsace
France were looking to reattain Alsace after losing it to Germany in a previous war. This was also used to prove their strength to Russia and hopefully cause harm to Germany's forces. -
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The First Battle of Marne
The French and British hold off Germany forcing them to retreat. This is a detriment to the Schlieffen Plan where an easy win was expected. -
Germany sinks the Lusitania
The Lusitania was a British cruise liner going from New York to Liverpool. Germany torpedoed and sunk the Lusitania killing 128 Americans on board. -
Germany Attack Verdun
Becoming one of the bloodiest battles through out the war, Germany attack Verdun. The goal was to "bleed the French white" and try to weaken their will to fight. -
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The Battle of Somme
This was an offensive attack from the allies in attempt to gain ground and end the stalemate on the western end. It concluded with only 7 miles gained and the offensive was called off due to the amount of suffering that was occurring. -
The US enter the war
The US Senate voted in support of declaring war against Germany on April 4th, 1917. War was officially declared on December 7th, 1917. -
Russia sign an Armistice
Russia sign an armistice with the Central Powers basically pulling them out of the war. -
Germanys last Offensive
Germanys final offensive attack was the Second Battle of Marne. The objective was to capture Reims but they were ultimately stopped by the Allied Forces which would soon lead to their retreat and eventual armistice. -
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Attack on Meuse-Argonne
This was the last offensive attack from the Allies. This was one of the attacks to assist in the ending of the war. -
The Treaty of Versailles is Signed
The Treaty of Versailles would basically force Germany to give up a lot of resources and pay for many damages done throughout the war.