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The Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated after a failed bombing attempt on his motorcade. The motorcade ended up taking a wrong turn and then backed up. They ended up in front of Princip, who was a member of the Serbian nationalist group, the Black Hand. He ended up shooting the Archduke and his wife, Sophie, at close range. This led to the start of WWI. -
The Battle of Marne was an important event during WWI. Allied forces stopped the German army from advancing towards Paris. The French and the British had launched a surprise counter-attack. They had created a gap in Germany's lines. France and Britain troops used aircraft and rushed into the gap to attack Germany's Second Army. The victory stopped Germany's “Schlieffen Plan”. This event also led to the start of Trench Warfare on the Western Front. -
A British ocean liner called the Lusitania was sunk by a German U-boat off the coast of Ireland. The ship was hit by a torpedo. The sinking caused the deaths of 1,195 people, 128 were American. It only took 20 minutes for the ship to sink. There was a second explosion that was likely caused by the ship's boiler room or the secretly stored munitions. This event led many people to turn against Germany, and it started to be used in propaganda to show how brutal Germany was. -
The Battle of Verdun was a long and very deadly war. It was fought in France between the German and French armies. The Germans had a strategy to “bleed France white”. They forced a massive battle, and it ended with many casualties. There were approximately 700,000 deaths from both the French and German forces. There were about 300,000 soldiers killed. The entire battle lasted for 302 days. This battle and the Battle of the Somme became some of the deadliest battles. -
Earl and his group waited all night for the trucks to come, but they never did. So, they had to sleep near the road. The next morning, they went to a nearby village and bought meat, bread, and jam. Then in the evening it started to rain. They spent the night again, but they were cold, wet, and miserable with very little shelter. In the morning, the trucks had finally come, and they went many miles before they reached Frettes, where they would be until September. -
Earl and his fellow soldiers left Camp Upton for Camp Meade. They trained hard and practiced with gas masks and rifles. In July, his unit boarded the USS Leviathan and headed to France. The trip was calm, and they spent most of their time below deck. After arriving, they worked long shifts unloading supplies, and they also lost valuable cargo in the sea. -
Earl Bellis was separated from his group. He explored a hill that was covered in trenches, and he found a stash of ammunition. He tried to rejoin his group, but he was faced with heavy gunfire. He ended up being shot in the wrist and had to bandage himself. He found other soldiers who had helped him with his injury. After a bit of resting, he decided to keep moving and rejoin his troops even though the area was still very dangerous. -
Earl and the other soldiers marched out of the woods at night. They followed a long line of troops toward the reserve line. As they moved through shell-filled fields and muddy trenches, he had lost his sense of direction and tried to focus on staying with his unit. They were all confused about their position and were ordered to move multiple times. The area was very crowded with soldiers. The first casualty they experienced was when a grenade exploded in a man's pocket. -
He and his group left the Abbey and traveled to Cholet, then to St. Nazaire to prepare for departure. They spent days in camps waiting for sailing orders, facing delays and long lines. On May 15th, they finally boarded the Princess Matoika to head home. After 10 days, they arrived in Hoboken and went through the final army procedures. Earl spent a year and 4 days in the army. He was grateful for his experience but says he hopes to never relive it. -
The Treaty of Versailles was the treaty that officially ended WWI between Germany and the Allied powers. There were harsh penalties for Germany. It included massive reparations, territorial losses, and severe military limitations. It also included the “war guilt clause”, which forced Germany to accept full responsibility for the war. The treaty had established the League of Nations; it was controversial, but it helped to prevent future conflicts.