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Assassination of Franz Ferdinand 28 June 1914
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, occurred on 28 June 1914 in Sarajevo when they were mortally wounded by Gavrilo Princip -
Great War Begins June 28, 1914
The trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. -
Kaiser declares open season on ships Feb 4, 1915
Kaiser Wilhelm proclaimed the North Sea a war zone where all merchant ships including those who are from neutral countries could be sunk without warning. On February 4, 1915, Kaiser announced that Germany wanted to sink all ships sailing under the flags of Britain, Russia, or France found in the British waters. He warned neutral countries that it was not safe traveling around the British Isles but if they chose to enter after February 18, they would be doing so at their own risk. -
Lusitania sank 7 May 1915
Lusitania fell victim to torpedo attack relatively early in the First World War, before tactics for evading submarines were properly implemented or understood. The contemporary investigations in both the United Kingdom and the United States into the precise causes of the ship's loss were obstructed by the needs of wartime secrecy and a propaganda campaign to ensure all blame fell upon Germany. -
Battle of the Somme Jul 1, 1916 – Nov 18, 1916
The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme Offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German Empire. -
Wilson re-elected November 7, 1916
The United States presidential election of 1916 was the 33rd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 7, 1916. Incumbent Democratic President Woodrow Wilson defeated Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes, the Republican candidate. -
Zimmerman note intercepted January 1917
In the telegram, intercepted and deciphered by British intelligence in January 1917, Zimmermann instructed the ambassador, Count Johann von Bernstorff, to offer significant financial aid to Mexico if it agreed to enter any future U.S-German conflict as a German ally. -
US declares war on Germany 2 April, 1917
President Woodrow Wilson asked a special joint session of the United States Congress for a declaration of war against the German Empire. -
Selective Service Act May 18, 1917
Authorized the United States federal government to raise a national army for service in World War I through conscription. -
Convoy system May 24,1917
On this day in 1917, driven by the spectacular success of the German U-boat submarines and their attacks on Allied and neutral ships at sea, the British Royal Navy introduces a newly created convoy system, whereby all merchant ships crossing the Atlantic Ocean would travel in groups under the protection of the British navy. -
Espionage Age passed June 15, 1917
The Espionage Act of 1917 is a United States federal law passed on June 15, 1917, shortly after the U.S. entry into World War I. It has been amended numerous times over the years. It was originally found in Title 50 of the U.S. Code (War) but is now found under Title 18, Crime. -
Flu Epidemic Jan 1918
The 1918 flu pandemic was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic, the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus. -
Fourteen Points speech January 8, 1918
The Fourteen Points was a statement of principles for peace that was to be used for peace negotiations in order to end World War I. The principles were outlined in a January 8, 1918 speech on war aims and peace terms to the United States Congress by President Woodrow Wilson. -
Russia pulls out of the war 3 March 1918
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between the new Bolshevik government of Soviet Russia and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire), that ended Russia's participation in World War I. -
Sedition Act passed May 16, 1918
Enacted on May 16, 1918, was an Act of the United States Congress that extended the Espionage Act of 1917 to cover a broader range of offenses, notably speech and the expression of opinion that cast the government or the war effort in a negative light or interfered with the sale of government bonds. -
Germany signs armistice Nov 11, 1918
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice that ended fighting on land, sea and air in World War I between the Allies and their last opponent, Germany. Previous armistices had eliminated Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
