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Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, July 28, 1914. This happened one month after Franz Ferdinand was assassinated. He was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist, starting the First World War. Austria-Hungary was allied with Germany and received support. During this time, Russia, which supported Serbia, began plotting against Austria. -
The Battle of the Marne was between France and Germany. Germany had a plan to defeat France quickly, but was slowed by the Belgians. The Germans were within 30 miles of Paris. Then, on September 6, 1914, the French and British launched a counterattack, forcing the Germans to retreat. The battle drove the Germans back 50 miles and stopped Paris from being captured. -
The Battle of Dogger Bank was a naval battle between British and German cruiser ships, starting on January 24, 1915. It happened in the North Sea because the British intercepted German communication. This let them know the German Navy would be near Dogger Bank. The British won the war and stalled the German Navy for over a year. The Germans lost because they did not do a good enough job at securing ammunition magazines. -
The Battle of Verdun was a battle between France and Germany. It was fought from February 21st to December 18th in 1916. The Germans thought that the war would be won or lost in France. This caused them to attack Verdun because it was also a threat to Germany’s military communication. The Germans took over a few forts, but once the Allied forces arrived to help, the Germans were driven out of France. -
We got on board the Vaterland and set out for our trip. Quite a few sick, but great meals and pie when the canteen opened, each man had a ticket. A sub shot a torpedo at 8, and we changed our course so quickly that I almost fell down the stairs and slid across the floor. We dropped several depth bombs and got the sub. -
We pulled into Liverpool and took a hike to see the sights, but there were too many dirty, beggar kids searching for money. We took a compartment train for Winchester, then had a long, hard hike to camp. There was bread and cheese there and a lot of English kitchens, and I'm glad I swiped enough to eat. We then took a speedboat to Le Havre, and many men got drunk here. We then landed at Guer, and then headed to camp Coetquidan, then Belfort, and Ettonfont until June 11th. -
We were the first Americans to enter German territory, pulling in at night. We were in Alsace, and we put in hard work there, fixing positions, dougouts, and camofloge. The Germans would shell near us, but they never found us. We moved in two more miles and reserved positions there. We didn't have to work on the 4th of July in celebration of Independence day. -
Heard news that Germans are on retreat from the Marne. I had a horse fall while I was riding it, but I wasn't harmed and got off easily. We were traveling through Chateau, just vacated by the Germans, and it was destroyed. German weapons and gear were scattered throughout the woods, and many dead bodies from the battle four days prior. -
We fired at 3:30, then at 7:30 we moved positions, and four airpanes swept down, firing machine guns around us, and luckily nobody was hurt. We fired again at 3:30, and the Germans were being steadily driven back. We brought in a young German sniper, who was left behind during their retreat and was chained to the sniper, and he was only a kid. We fought Germany for 3 months until they signed the Armistice, and the war was finally over. -
The signing of the Armistice happened on November 11, 1918. It ended WWI from Germany and the Allied Powers fighting. The Armistice had harsh conditions for Germany. France and Great Britain represented the Allied powers when it was signed. A year after the Armistice was the Treaty of Versailles, and it brought peace to all European nations.