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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
• Franz was the nephew of Emperor Franz Josef and heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
• His death day was also his wedding anniversary.
• Franz and his wife Sophie were touring Sarajevo when (after a failed bombing attempt by Nedjelko Cabrinovic) Gavrillo Princip fired bullets into their car.
• The Black Hand- a Serbian freedom fighter group, who hoped to eliminate the Archduke.
• Franz was assassinated because he planned to give concessions to the South Slavs. -
Period: to
WW1
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Austria declared war on Serbia
• Austria blamed Serbia for the death of the Archduke, Franz Ferdinand
• Austria-Hungary was made up of people of different ethnic groups: Germans, Czechs, Slovaks, Serbs and many more.
• Many of these groups wanted independence from Austria-Hungary
• Serbia, neighbour to Austria-Hungary, was becoming very strong, as well as another neighbour Russia, who supported Serbia and also had a strong army. -
Germany declared war on Russia
• The triple Alliance was formed in 1882 and included: Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy.
• The German army was not the biggest army, but the best trained and the most powerful.
• Germany warned Russia not to side with the Serbians, in defence against the Austrians.
• Germany felt threatened towards its two neighbours Russia and France being in rivalry against Germany. -
Germany declared war on France
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Britain declared war on Germany 4/8/1914
• Britain had eventually sided with Russia and France, after trying not to get involved.
• Britain’s navy was the most powerful in the world.
• Britain was threatened and concerned when the German Kaiser stated his plan to overpower and have an empire, and a powerful navy. -
Japan declared war on Germany
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The First Battle of the Marne begins. 15/9/1914
• Germany advanced to Paris on foot, as the French prepared to fight for their country.
• The British and French forces were able to stop the German advance along the line of the River Marne.
• Neither side made any progress, so each side dug trenches to protect themselves.
• Snipers and Shell fire were added into the mix, followed by Machine Guns and Barbed Wire. -
Russia declared war on Turkey
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Britain and France declared war on Turkey 5/11/1914
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Gallipoli campaign
• Britain and France swept through the Dardanelles strait, but mines and shell fire began to damage ships.
• A new German commander Otto Liman von Sanders has prepared the Turks for the invasion. He doubled the defensive troops, and dug them into strong positions on the hills which gave them the advantage of overlooking the shore at which the attackers would arrive at.
number of deaths caused by the Turks, that the British and French would -
Gallipoli (continued)
• By the end of the day, it was obvious by the extreme number of deaths caused by the Turks, that the British and French would have a slim chance; especially with the diseases spreading by the dead and the frostbite that was soon to come.
• The winter had closed in in November, claiming more than 300 dead, and 16,000 cases of frostbite.
• In December, tens of thousands of soldiers lay dead around the coast of Gallipoli. At last, the decision to withdraw from the battle was announced. -
Italy declared war on Germany and Austria
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Start of the Battle of Verdun 21/2/1916
• German Chief of General Staff, Von Falkenhayn, wanted to “bleed France white” by launching a massive German attack on Verdun. He believed that the French would lose so many men that the battle would change the course of the war.
• The German Chief thought the French would be an easy attack, even though the Germans defence had not been completed.
• By February 25th, the Germans had captured 10,000 French prisoners
• By the end of April, the Germans had lost 120,000 men and the French 133,000 m -
Battle of Verdun (continued)
• By the end of April, the Germans had lost 120,000 men and the French 133,000 men.
• The French lost over 360,000 and the Germans nearly 340,000
• The battle was decided in the favour of the French when the Germans finally withdrew. However, the French lost so many men that the battle is a major modern example of a Pyrrhic victory, in which the winner loses so much that it isn't much of a victory. -
Battle of Jutland
• The British Grand Fleet collided with the German High Seas Fleet off the coast of Denmark, which turned into a major sea battle
• The Germans sunk 14 British ships, and lost 11 themselves
• Both sides claimed to have won the battle. -
Start of the Battle of the Somme
• The ANZACS were called to attack with the British and the French against the Germans.
• The aim was to gain the territory.
• The attack was eventually called off on November 18th. Although General Haig was greatly criticised for his out of date of date attack plan, this ultimately saved Verdun, his main objective.
• There were more than 23,000 ANZAC’s, 400,000 British, and 220,00 French casualties. -
The first German air raid on London took place.
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The United States declares war on Germany. 6/4/
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The battle of Cambrai 20/11/1917
• Cambrai saw a mixture of tanks being used, heavy artillery and air power.
• The British took a large force of tanks across the barbed wire and machine gun posts at Cambrai. -
Airforces merged
The Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service were merged to form the Royal Air Force. -
Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated.9/11/1918
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The Armistice was signed
At the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day, the Armistice was signed declaring world war 1 officially over.
