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The Archduke and his wife were fatally shot by a Serbian nationalist. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for the attack and declared war with their ally, Germany, right beside them. Serbia was backed by Russia, Great Britain, Belgium and France.
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In response to the assassination of the archduke, Austria offered an ultimatum to avoid war. It stated that Serbia must end all anti-Austrian agitation and punish the official involved the in assassination. Serbia refused part of the ultimatum and Austria declared war on Serbia.
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Serbia turned to Russia who began preparing for war. Because of Russia's actions, Germany declared war on Russia (and Serbia) for not staying out of the issue. Russia then turned to it's ally France. When France refused to stay out of the conflict, Germany declared war on them as well.
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Germany invaded Belgium, a neutral country, enraging Britain who had signed a treaty ensuring Belgian neutrality.
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After the German invasion of Belgium, Britain declared war on Germany. Because of all the alliances made, many more countries got involved than needed.
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The First Battle of Manre forced Germans to the north side of the Marne River causing the Svhlieffen Plan to fail.
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The Empire joined in secret on the first of August but became pubic about it at this time. Again, more and more countries were getting involved.
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Ottoman Turkish army disarms Armenian troops for fear that Christian Armenians are aiding Orthodox Russians. Armenians are then forcefully removed to Syria and Mespotamia.
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Germans use a dangerous new weapon: poison gas. More than 10,000 Allied troops were affected. About half of those affected were killed. Allies withdraw their presence in the Second Battle of Ypers on the 25th of May.
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At first, Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary in May. After a month, Italy signed a treaty with London committing itself to enter the war on the side of the Allies. Later, Italy declared war on Germany.
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German U-boat or submarine, torpedoes British passenger ship called the Lusitania. 1,198 drown, 128 were US citizens. The orld is outraged by this attack.
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This elite group of mostly American volunteers took to the skies as part of the French Army is credited to 57 victories throughout the war.
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Because of the attacks on Allied passenger ships made by German U-boats, President Woodrow Wilson of the US warns Germany multiple times to stop or ties will be severed. After Germany decided that U-boats were their only advantage and continued attacking, ties were cut.
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After threatening to cut ties with Germany after a U-boat attack, things were rocky. Britain intercepted a note where a German official said they would help Mexico "reconquer the lost territory in New Mexico, Arizona and Texas." President Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany.
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As countries learned toward collapse, they wanted peace. Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire asked for peace. The German government sought an agreement to end fighting with the Allies. Without this, the war would not have ended at the time.
