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Archduke Franz Ferdinand Assassinated
Archduke Franz Ferdinand (the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne) is assassinated in Sarajevo, the Capital of Bosnia by a Bosnian Serb Nationalist named Gavrilo Princip. They were visiting Sarajevo to inspect the imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina (which were annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908). The annexation angered Serbian nationalist. They believed that Bosnia and Herzegovina should be a part of Serbia. A group of nationalist plotted to assassinate the Archduke, and succeeded. -
Austria-Hungary Declares War on Serbia
Austria-Hungary blamed the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on the Serbian Government. Serbia already had allies (Russia, France and Great Britain). Austria-Hungary quickly made alliances with Germany, Bulgaria, Italy, and the Ottoman Empire. Then Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia and throws Europe into war. -
The Lusitania is Sunk
In February 1915, Germany adopted a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. Germany said that even neutral ships were not safe from attack. Although the Lusitania was faster than any German U-Boats, the morning of May 7th was a foggy one. The Captain slowed the ship down a few knots. Then at 2:10pm, a German U-20 fired a torpedo at the ship. It was too late to evade it and the torpedo hit the Lusitania and it sunk killing 1,198 people. This was one of the events that brung the US into war. -
German Limits Submarine Warfare
Germany reacted to the international outcry about the Sinking of the Lusitania by limiting unrestricted submarine warfare. Kaiser Wilhelm does this to try to keep the US from entering the war. But by doing this, it severely hurts Germany's ability to stop American supplies from reaching Great Britain and France. -
Germany Resumes Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
Germany resumes unrestricted submarine warfare in European waters. This act was one that brought the U.S. into the war, along with the Sinking of the Lusitania and the Zimmerman telegraph. -
The Zimmerman Telegram
The British Intelligence intercepts a telegram from Germany to Mexico. In the letter, Germany tries to get Mexico to launch a surprise attack against the US. The German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann proposed that Mexico side with Germany in the war against the US. In return, Germany promises to give Mexico the territories that the US took from them. Mexico declines the offer but this outrages the US enough to send them into war. -
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Russia Has a Revolution, Drops Out of WWI
In March of 1917, Russia has to drop out of WWI to deal with an uprising. By November, Vladimir Lenin and his Marxist party took over the government and killed the leaders. Then in December, Germany began peace talks with Russia. In March of 1918, Lenin signed a peace treaty (the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk) with the Central Powers, keeping them out of the War. -
The US Enters WWI
President Woodrow Wilson asks Congress to declare war against Germany. On April 6th, congress authorizes it. The US enters the war on the Allied Powers' side. It is significant because the US declares war on Germany. Not Austria-Hungary who started the war. Congress declared war on Germany because of the threats made against the country and for them trying to get Mexico to attack us. Along with the sinking of the Lusitania and Unrestricted Submarine Warfare. -
The US Authorizes the Selective Service Act
About 6 weeks after the US enters WWI, Congress passes the Selective Service Act. It gives the President power to draft soldiers. The US only had a small army of volunteers, about 100,000 soldiers. The allied powers needed fresh troops more than anything. President Wilson pushed for military conscription, which he said was the most democratic way to do it. The act required all men in the US from ages 21-30 to register for military service. Within months, the military had about 10 million men. -
Kaiser Wilhelm Abdicates
Kaiser Wilhelm was forced to abdicate after he had lost support of his army, navy, most civilians and political leaders. Wilhelm's abdication was announced before he even agreed to it. In November, he took a train to the Netherlands (neutral) where he lived for the remainder of his life. In his later years, he wrote a memoir defending his actions during the war. When the allied forces wanted to punish Wilhelm as a war criminal, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands refused to extradite him. -
Armistice Day
An Armistice is signed that ends the fighting on the western front. It becomes a holiday and is now known as Veterans Day in the US. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The war officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. Germany was forced to accept responsibility for the war, and pay reparations to the allied forces. Germany also lost all of its territories and was only allowed to have a very small military. The Germans had almost no participation for the terms. This is significant because even though Austria-Hungary started the war, Germany was blamed. These terms made conditions bad in Germany and opened the door to Hitler and WWII.
