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Archduke Assassinated
The Archduke and his wife visited Sarajevo, Bosnia. Although they were warned not to go, they went anyways and got a bomb thrown at them, but missed. They were not frightened so they continued their journey to the City Hall. They were later shot and killed by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist. This made the Austrian government angry which lead to Austria declaring war on Serbia. This event sparked World War I. -
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World War I
The beginning, middle, and end of the World War I with the selected veteran, Grover Carter. -
Russia Acts
Austrian warships bombarded the capital of Serbia. This causes Russia to sprint into action helping their ally. This erupts and mobilization of the rest of the European Great Powers begin. Russia also entered the war with the largest army in the world with over 1 million soldiers. -
Germany Invades Belgium
Germany wanted to declare war on France, but first, they needed a way to get there. So, Germany sent a letter to the Belgian government asking if they could get a free passage, but Belgium was a neutral country so they didn't support any side. Since their relationship was then broken, Germany forcefully invaded Belgium. Belgium's neutrality was affected so that is why Britain jumped in to help Belgium keep its neutrality. -
Germany Sinks The RMS Lusitania
The Lusitania, a cruise ship set sail on May 1, 1915, despite the warnings from the German that any Allied ship would be attacked if they entered British waters. People didn't believe that Germany would attack a luxury ship carrying 1,959 people aboard. On May 7, 1995, the Lusitania entered war-zone waters and was spotted by one of the German U-boats. It was torpedoed and the boat sank within 20 minutes. 1,198 people were killed including 100+ Americans. This outraged many countries. -
Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
Germany announces the return of submarine warfare in the Atlantic. Germans made it known that they will attack ALL the ships that enter war-zone waters. This broke up relations with the U.S. and Germany. Many of the U.S. ships were sunk by the Germans and that mde the U.S. very mad. Because of this, President Wilson called for a declaration of war and in a few months, the United States would sent its first troops to France to train in combat. -
Zimmermann Telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram was a secret coded message sent by German Foreign Minister, Arther Zimmermann. It was a message proposing for an alliance between Mexico and Germany. The message said that if the U.S. were to enter the war, joining the Allies, Mexico would enter the war as Germany's ally. Germany promised to help Mexico gain back their territory from the United States.
Valuable Website and Visuals: https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/zimmermann -
The U.S. Enters The War
The U.S. wanted to remain a neutral country. It was the middle of the war and it became increasingly difficult for the U.S. to keep it neutral status because Germany had sunk 6 of their merchant ships and the problem with the Zimmermann Telegram. On April 6, 1917, President Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany. The declaration was passed by Senate and agreed upon by the House of Representatives. President Wilson signed the resolution and the U.S. was officially at war. -
Selective Service Act
The Selective Service Act was also known as the Selective Draft Act. It was passed when the U.S. entered the war. When they joined the war, they were expecting more men to be deployed than the number of men they got (110,000). They immediately called for more volunteers and only enlisted 73,000 volunteers out of the 1 million they had wanted. There weren't enough men so Congress passed the Selective Service Act requiring all men between the ages of 21-30 to register for military service. -
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Russia had many problems of its own during the war like the Revolution of 1917 that overthrew the Russian government and created a Communist Government. Vladimir Lenin, a leader in the party that rose to popularity during the Russian Revolution wanted to concentrate on building up a communist state so they pulled Russia out of the war. Russia signed a peace treaty with Germany after many negotiations. Russian signed anyways and lost a lot of lands. Peace on the Eastern Front worried the Allies. -
First Night in France
It was Grover Carter's first night in France. It was okay, he had a place to sleep. But the conditions weren't really comfortable to sleep in. In his diary, he wrote, "My first night under canvas. Slept on floor. Cold and foggy." There weren't any orders given probably because they want everyone to settle and rest first. -
Sounds in The Distance
Carter would hear gunshots in the distance. It was the first gunshot he has documented in his diary. He wrote that conditions weren’t really good for him, "very cold winds," Carter wrote. This is probably when he knew that war was going to be like this. But he slept well for the first time since being in France in between the sheets. -
Memphis Blues
It was actually sunny outside this Easter Sunday. In his diary, Carter wrote that he was tired of living this life. He wrote 5 letters while resting because he had no work all day. He has received no mail for over 3 weeks and missed his family back home so much. Carter wrote that he was tired of the war and he misses Tennesee. -
Gas Experience
Carter had a little experience with the gas which made him sneeze and cried a little. They had walked up and down the trenches for around 3 miles. They checked the ruins of houses and made sure no one was hurt or left behind since it was bombed (he was in the Medical Corps). It was quiet and they didn't see anyone. After returning at 1 p.m, he said that he was hungry. -
Always On The Move
Carter wrote that they had to move all day since 6 a.m. They freed many civilians at Montigney and Clary. They kept on moving about 15 kilometers a day. They are going to move the next day too. -
The End of Grover Carter's Diary
While on duty in Bapaume, France, Grover Carter was killed in action. He was killed while trying to save one of his officers. A metal that is four inches long slashed his spinal cord causing him to die of his injury. He was then buried in the American Cemetery in Flanders Field only to be reburied by his family in Oak Hill Cemetery in Selmer, Tennesee. -
World War I Ends
At the 11th hour on the 11th day on the 11th month, World War I had ended. Germany didn't stand a chance and an Armistice agreement was signed in Compiegne, France. This war left many destructions and caused the loss of many lives. The Allies had won and Germany has been defeated.
Casualty data charts:
http://ww1facts.net/quick-reference/ww1-casualties/ -
Treaty of Versailles
To formally end all the fighting, Germany and the Allied Nations signed the Treaty of Versailles. This formed the League of Nations. Germany was humiliated and had to pay for what they had done. This starts the conflict of the next war to come involving Hitler.
Valuable Information:
https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/versailles.html
