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Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand
They were trying to avoid bomb throwers and turned onto a side street where Princip was standing. The cars attempted to back out but Princip pulled out hi pistol and fired two shots point blank at Archduke piercing him in the neck and hitting his wife Sophies abdomen. This caused Austria-Hungary to become allies with Germany, they declare war on Serbia, and now Germany, Russia, France, Belgium, Montenegro. -
World War 1 begins
WW1 started after the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and lasted to 1918. The central powers were Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Ottomon Empire were the ones who fought against the Allied powers which were, Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan and the U.S. During WW1 there was new military technology and trench warfare. There was unprecedented levels of carnage and destruction. -
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Gallipoli battle
The Gallipoli battle aka Gallipoli campaign was an unsuccessful attempt to control the sea route from Europe to Russia. This began with a failed attack by the British and French ships. Then there was an invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula. -
Lusitania sinks
Without warning the Lusitania was torpedoed by a German submarine. The vessel sank into the Celtic Sea. 1,198 people drowned and 128 were Americans. President Woodrow Wilson pledged neutrality for the U.S. Multiple U.S. ships were damaged by German mines. In February 1915 Germany announced unrestricted submarine warfare. -
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Verdun battle
the major bloodshed from the French defense was around Verdun. The German forces advanced quickly. The Germans claimed Fort Douaumont and Fort Vaux. After the Germans called off their offensive the French took back their forts and pushed back their line. Both sides were left with 600,000 casualties. -
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Somme battle
The Somme battle aka Somme Offensive was one of the largest battles in WW1. This battle happened near the Somme river in France. This was also one of the bloodiest battles in history. By the end of the campaign / battle the Central Powers and the Allies would lose 1.5 million men. -
Russia withdraws from war
Russia withdrew from the war after the October revolution. The country turned in on itself with a bloody civil war with Bolsheviks and conservative White Guard. -
Zimmerman Note
This was a telegram that was sent by Arthur Zimmerman to the German Minister to Mexico. This telegram was an offering up U.S. territory to Mexico in exchange for joining the German cause. This message caused the U.S. to join the war. -
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Russian Revolution
This was one of the most explosive political events. This marked the end of the Romanov dynasty. -
U.S. enters war
The U.S. entered the war after the Zimmerman notes. Many Americans did not agree with the U.S. going into war and wanted to stay neutral. Major General John J. Pershing commanded 2 million American soldiers to fight in France. -
Chateau-Thierry battle
This battle took place in France, Chateau-Thierry and Belgium.
John J. Pershing and Charles Mangin led the the Allied forces. The Allied forces were the U.S. France and Belgium. The Allied powers fought against the German Empire who was led by Erich Ludendorff. Four men died. The victory went to the Allied forces. -
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Argonne battle
This battle was the last confrontation of WW1. The Americans were heading west of the Meuse River. The French were going west of the Argonne Forest. John Pershing had a surprise attack. All of the attacks caused them to move deeper into the German defensive area. The Germans realized that they were outflanked and drew back so they would not get captured. There was 26,000 soldiers being killed and 120,000 casualties. -
Armistice
The armistice was the agreement that ended fighting on the western front in Europe. The armistice began on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. It ended the actual fighting but it took 6 months before the terms of the Treaty of Versailles was signed and completed in June. Armistice day became a national holiday in 1926. In 1954 it was re-named as Veterans day to honor the soldiers. -
Treaty of Versailles signed
It was written by the Allies with almost no participation of Germans. It reassigned German boundaries. It also assigned liability fro reparations. There were a lot of parts to this treaty. The first part made the covenant of the new League of Nations. The second part gave Germany new boundaries. The third part stipulated a demilitarized zone. Part four stripped Germany of all its colonies. Part five reduced Germany's armed forces. -
First meeting of the League of Nations
The League of Nations was an international diplomatic group that was used to solve conflicts between countries so they don't break out into war. The league effectively ceased operations during the war.
