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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austro-Hungarian empire, in Sarajevo, Bosnia
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Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
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WW1 Starts
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Austria-Hungary repeatedly invades Serbia but is repeatedly repulsed
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Outbreak of war - Germany declares war on Russia
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Germany invades neutral Belgium
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Germany declares war on France
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Britain declares war on Germany
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US President Woodrow Wilson declares policy of US neutrality
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Battle of the Frontiers begins
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Russia invades East Prussia
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Japan declares war on Germany
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Battle of Tannenberg, which Russia loses; Germany's greatest success of the war on Eastern Front
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Austria-Hungary invades Russian Poland (Galicia)
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First Battle of Marne, halts German advance, resulting in stalemate and trench warfare
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First Battle of Masurian Lakes, which Russia loses
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First Battle of Aisne begins
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Austro-German attack on western Poland
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First Battle of Ypres
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Turkey enters the war on the side of the Central Powers
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Battle of the Falkland Islands
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Austria-Hungary repeatedly invades Serbia but is repeatedly repulsed
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Unofficial Christmas truce declared by soldiers along the Western Front
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First German zeppelin attack on England
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German U-boat attacks on Allied and neutral shipping; declares blockade of Britain
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Russians suffer heavy losses at Second Battle of Masurian Lakes (also known as the Winter Battle)
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Britain announces blockade of German ports
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First use of poison gas by Germany starts Second Battle of Ypres
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France, Russia, Italy and Britain conclude secret Treaty of London
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Austro-German offensive on Galicia begins
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U-boat sinks British liner Lusitania with the loss of American lives, creating a US-German diplomatic crisis
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Second Battle of Artois begins
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Ignoring treaty agreements with the Central Powers, Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary
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Italians launch unsuccessful attack on Hungarians at 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th Battles of Isonzo; there are to be 12 in total
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Germans capture Warsaw
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Tsar Nicholas takes command of Russian armies
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Second Battle of Champagne begins
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German attack on Verdun in the longest battle of the war, ultimately defended by the French at great cost to both sides
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5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Battles of Isonzo between Italy and Austria-Hungary
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Germany renounces submarine policy
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Britain and France conclude Sykes-Picot agreement
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Battle of Jutland, the biggest naval battle in history, ultimately without a clear victor the biggest naval battle in history, ultimately without a clear victor
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Start of the Battle of the Somme, with the greatest number of casualties in British military history, 60,000
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Romania enters the war with the Allies, but is quickly overrun by German forces
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Italy declares war on Germany
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Germany suspends submarine assaults
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Tanks introduced for the first time on the Somme battlefield by the British
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Germany resumes U-boat attacks
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US President Woodrow Wilson secures re-election
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End of the Battle of the Somme
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David Lloyd George replaces Asquith as British Prime Minister
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German attack on Verdun in the longest battle of the war, ultimately defended by the French at great cost to both sides
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Germany announces unrestricted submarine warfare
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US severs diplomatic ties with Germany
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Zimmermann Telegram is passed to the US by Britain, detailing alleged German proposal of an alliance with Mexico against the US
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US declares war on Germany
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Nivelle Offensive (Second Battle of Aisne, Third Battle of Champagne) ends in French failure
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10th, 11th and 12th Battles of Isonzo fought, ending in Italian failure
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Greece enters the war on the side of the Allies
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Third Battles of Ypres (Passchendaele) begins
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Major British offensive launched at Ypres
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Bolshevik Revolution results in Lenin becoming leader of Russia
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US declares war on Austria-Hungary
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Germany launches second Spring offensive, the Battle of the Lys, in the British sector of Armentieres
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German U-boats appear in US waters for first time
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Third German Spring offensive, Third Battle of the Aisne, begins in French sector along Chemin des Dames
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Italians prevail against Austro-Hungarian forces at Battle of Piave
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Final phase of great German Spring push, the Second Battle of Marne, begins
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Germany and Austria send peace notes to US President Woodrow Wilson requesting an armistice
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Germany ceases unrestricted submarine warfare
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German republic is founded
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Start of peace negotiations in Paris
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Treaty of Versailles drafted and signed
