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Balkan Wars
There were two main conflicts during the Balkan wars. In the first main conflict, an ally of the Balkan states took out most of the Ottoman Empire in most of Europe. These states wanted to incorporate most of the people remaining under the ottoman rule to achieve the max of the nationalist claims. In the second conflict, the allies fought among themselves for the Ottoman public office. (Encycopedia, n.d) -
Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand (Greenspan, 2018)
The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand was caused by a nineteen-year-old named Bosnian Serb. He was one of the angry young men that wanted to free his country from the control of Austria-Hungary. Tensions between European powers were reaching an uncomfortable point, the assassination was the thing to tip things over. It shocked Europe and led to riots. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28th. Alliances pulled Europe into the conflict, and soon it led to the start of World War 1. -
World War 1 Begins (History, 2009)
After the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary blamed the Serbian government for the attack. They hoped to use this event to settle the questioning of Serbian nationalism. Austria-Hungary waited to declare war because they feared that Russia would join in and involve their allies as well, France, and Great Britain. The Serbian government had speculations that Austria-Hungary was readying for war. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Europes powers soon collapsed. -
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Battle of Gallipoli
The battle of Gallipoli was unsuccessful on the Allied powers of Gallipoli. They wanted to control the sea route from Europe to Russia. The battle began with an attack by the British and French ships on the Dardaines straits in the time around February and March of 1915, which ended up failing. In ended up switching to a land invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula. With a lack of intelligence and little knowledge of the terrain hindered the success of the invasion. -
Lusitania Sinks
In May of 1915, the Lusitania was returning to Liverpool with 2,000 passengers on board. Reports of merchant ships sinking off the coast of Ireland caused the British admiralty to warn the Lusitania to stay away from the area to avoid sinking. The ships captain, William Thomas Turner, chose to ignore it and soon the ship was attacked. A torpedo was sent to blow up the vessel, and within 20 minutes the Lusitania had sunk, along with its 2,000 passengers. (McDermott, 2018) -
Battle of Verdun (Image)
Soldiers resting far from the front line during the battle of Verdun. -
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Battle of Verdun (Brittanica, 2019)
The Battle of Verdun was one of the longest and the bloodiest battles of WWI. French casualties totaled to about 400,000, German casualties about 350,000. German General Erich von Falkenhayn thought that the war would be won or lost in France and that this would be the last battle of the war. He felt that constant abuse or attack was the best strategy for Germany to achieve its goals. Falkenhayn perceived Russia as already "paralyzed", and Italy was unlikely to affect the outcome of the war. -
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Battle of Somme
The battle of Somme was one of the most costly and bitter battles. The British forces had around 57,000 casualties, with more than, 19,000 soldiers killed. All of these casualties were only on the first day. At the end of the battle, more than 3 million soldiers, on both sides, were killed. -
Zimmerman Note
The Zimmerman telegram was a message written by the German foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmerman. The importance of the message was to propose a Mexican-German Alliance to Mexico in case of a war between the U.S. and Germany. The telegram was intercepted by the British intelligence and deciphered. In January of 1917, Zimmerman instructed the ambassador, Johann von Bernstorff to offer a generous amount of financial aid. (Andrews, 2018) -
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Russian Revolution (History, 2009)
This violent revolution marked the end of the Romanov Dynasty and Russian's imperial rule. During the revolution, the bolsheviks seized the power of the czarist rule and even destroyed their tradition. Russia brought many of its social and political changes when it industrialized western Europe and the United States. Russian cities, like Moscow, double in size. With the population boom, it meant frequent food shortages. Russian workers started to protest, which sparked the Russian revolution. -
Wilson asks for Declaration of War
President Woodrow Wilson asked congress if they could send US troops to the battle against Germany. -
U.S. Enters the War
Many of the nations turned towards the U.S. after the Zimmerman telegram, for their reaction. On April 6, 1917, the United States joined WWI to fight with its allies, Britain, France, and Russia. More than 2 million U.S. soldiers fought on the grounds of France. Many Americans wanted to remain neutral and not enter the war, but many events were adding up which led to the U.S. joining the war. (The world war, 2017) -
Selective Service Act
The U.S. congress passed the selective service act on May 18, 1917. The Act was to grant power to the U.S. president to draft young men into the war. -
Russia Withdraws from War
The Russians withdrew from the war when the communists took over, in 1917. The war was sacrificing the working classes for the financial of the wealthy. The Russians were unprepared to join the war in 1914. They had just been defeated by Japan in 1905. The un-organization by Czar and other high officials led to a situation were the communists could take over the government anytime. -
Germany and Russia Make Peace
Germany signed a peace treaty with the Bolshevik government of Russia. This meant that Germany could shift their soldiers over to the western front, causing problems for the US, the british, and French. -
Battle of Cantigny
The Battle of Cantigny was the first major battle of the Americans in World War 1. The US went on to fight despite their small size in numbers against Germany. -
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Battle of Chateau-thierry
The battle of the Chateau-Thierry was mainly initiated by the Germans. They were trying to take advantage of the American Fighting Force. But as they took advantage, the Americans went to the line of battle with little knowledge. The US took many casualties and soon the battle ended. (Bulletin, 2018) -
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Battle of the Argonne Forest
The battle of the Argonne forest was the last battle of World War 1. There was a massive attack amongst the whole line. The main goal of the whole battle was to reach the railroad junction as Sedan. During this battle, the Germans would strike surprise attacks against the Americans and the Germans. The Germans were cleared out of Argonne. -
Armistice
The purpose of the armistice was almost as a truce, or a cease-fire between the nations that were fighting. It did not put a complete stop to the war. German allies started to become tired of fighting, and many started to drop out of the war. The German government went to the US to request an armistice. Many citizens were happy that the war came to a "stop", but that meant they had to move on to mourn the loss of their loved ones. -
Treaty of Versailles Signed
On June 28, the treaty of Versailles was signed. The countries, including the Allies and associated powers of Germany signed the treaty in an agreement to stop all of the fightings, and Germany has to pay for all of the damage that the war caused. -
First Meeting of the League of Nations
The League of Nations came together at the end of World War 1. The main purpose was to make sure that war never broke out again. Many people looked toward the League of Nations to try and bring stability to the world. When America entered the war, the country itself was horrified by the destruction that went on. The solution to avoid any of this disaster happening again was to create the League of Nations, an international body that would try maintain world peace. (History learning site, 2015)
