-
Period: to
World War I, the Treaty of Versailles, and the Great Depression
-
Alsace-Lorraine
France loses Alsace-Lorraine during the Franco-German War. This sparked the desire for revenge to take back the land France had lost. -
Serbia becomes an Independent Nation
Serbia emerged as an independent nation in 1878, it challenged the nearby empire of Austria-Hungary in two ways: by trying to gain territory controlled by the empire, where Serbs lived, and by the example it offered to Austria-Hungary’s diverse peoples. -
Triple Alliance
Germany had allied itself with Italy and Austria-Hungary. Their alliance with Austria-Hungary would get Germany and Italy involved in the war due to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. -
Period: to
Arms Race
Countries raced to increase their number of soldiers and warships. The US did not do much during most of the race by 1914 when the war started. -
Period: to
Wilson Gives Peace a Chance
Wilson attempts to use his influence to end the conflict among the warring countries, but fails. Thus causing the US to enter the war. -
Assassination of Achduke Franz Ferdinand
Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie were assassinated by a group of you Serbs. They were trying to send a message that Bosnia rightfully belonged to Serbia, little did they know that this would start a large, full scale war. -
WW1 Begins
Soon after the assassination, Kaiser William II, the German emperor, assured Austria-Hungary that Germany would stand by its ally if war came. Confident in Germany’s support, Austria-Hungary then sent a harsh ultimatum to Serbia demanding Serbia’s total cooperation in an investigation into the assassination. Whe Serbia refused, Austria declared war on them. -
U-boats
Germany begins using U-boats and submarines to destroy allied ships. -
Zimmereman Telegram
German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann sent a telegram to Mexico. The Zimmermann note proposed an alliance with Mexico, stating that if the United States declared war on Germany, Mexico should declare war on the United States. In return, after a German victory, Mexico would get back the states of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, which it had lost in 1848 after its defeat in the Mexican-American War. The telegram was intercepted by the British, who gave it to American authorities. Next, Germany -
US Declares War on Germany
After the incident with the Zimmerman Note, the US officially joined the war. -
Period: to
Red Scare
Red Scare, a wave of widespread fear of suspected communists and radicals thought to be plotting revolution within the United States. -
Flu
Influenza virus appears and travels around the world. -
Treaty of Versailles
The treaty signified the end of the war and was meant to prevent Germany from building up it's military and start another war. Little did everyone know, this would eventually become the basis for WW1's big sister, WW2. -
Palmer Raids
Police arrested thousands of people, some who were radicals and some who were simply immigrants from southern or Eastern Europe. Most were never charged or tried for a crime. The government then deported hundreds of radicals. -
Germany Disgraced
Due to the struggle on paying for the war effort, Germany lost it's place as the second most powerful country in the world. The Treaty of Versailles caused an increase of poverty and dispair within Germany. Germany also had to pay around 6.6 billion pounds, they could not afford this... German people lived in poverty and misery. -
Period: to
The Great Depression
Many people lost their jobs and the entire economy plummeted.
America called upon Germany to lend them the money they needed from the war. This lead to Hitler's rise to power. -
Hitler takes control of Germany
Hitler became the Chancellor of Germany, from there he used propaganda to show how Germans were the master race and Jews became persucuted. The Great Depression was just what he needed to make Germany into a putty in his hands. From here he would begin the second World War. -
World War 2 Begins
Germany invades Poland which, in turn, sparks the start of the second World War.
