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British launch first "dreadnought" class battleship.
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Archduke Franz Ferdinand heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife are assassinated in Sarajevo.
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Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia.
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As an ally of Serbia, Russia announces full mobilization of her armed forces.
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Germany mobilizes her armed forces and declares war on Russia.
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Germany declares war on France.
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Germany declares war on neutral Belgium and invades in a right flanking move designed to defeat France quickly. As a result of this invasion, Britain declares war on Germany.
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Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
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First Battle of the Marne halts German invasion in France.
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First trenches of the Western front are dug.
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War becomes "Total War" with German Zeppelin air raid on England
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Germany declares a submarine blockade of Great Britain. Any ship approaching England is considered a legitimate target.
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Allies begin nine-month battle for the Turkish peninsula of Gallipoli.
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U-boat sinks the Lusitania. 1,198 civilians, including 128 Americans die.
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Germany responds to U.S. anger by ceasing to sink ships without warning
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Allies begin withdrawal of troops from Gallipoli.
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The longest battle of the war, the Battle of Verdun, is fought to a draw with an estimated one million casualties.
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US President Wilson publicly warns Germany not to continue unrestricted submarine warfare policies
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The Battle of the Somme results in an estimated one million casualties and no breakthrough for the Allies. British introduce the tank, an effective weapon but far to few to make much of a difference.
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The first wave of the American Expeditionary Force lands in France.
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David Lloyd George becomes Prime Minister of Britain.
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Reich Foreign Secretary Zimmermann's telegram to Mexico urging her entry into war against the United States is discovered and translated by the British.
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Germany again declares unrestricted submarine warfare.
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President Wilson asks Congress for a declaration of war with Imperial Germany.
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French launch disastrous offensive at Chemin des Dames, advancing only 500 yards at the cost of 250,000 plus casualties.
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Russian Army lead by Alexander Kerensky begins last -- and disastrous -- offensive in Galicia.
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American troops in France fire their first shot in trench warfare.
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President Woodrow Wilson declares his 14 points as the path to permanent world peace.
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Germans on the banks of the Marne near Paris are stopped by American forces at Chateau-Thierry.
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Allied counter offensives on the Somme push the German army back and into retreat
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A German republic is founded.
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At eleven o'clock on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, the war ends as Germany and Allies sign an Armistice.
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Woodrow Wilson sets sail for the Paris Peace conference.
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Demobilization of the armies, millions return home
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Peace Treaty signed by German delegates and Allies in Versailles.
