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Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the leader of Austria at the time, was assassinated by Serbian, Gavrilo Princip. The Austrians used this as an excuse to humiliate Serbia.
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Austria gained Germany as an ally and gave Serbia an ultimatum. Serbia agreed to most of the ultimatum, but protested a few things. Austria was not happy with the response, so they wanted war. However, Russia sided with Serbia and declared that Austria should not be allowed to crush Serbia.
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A month after Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination, Austria declared war on Serbia. They began to bombard Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, the next day.
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All throughout August of 1914, many countries declared wars on each other. Germany declared war on Russia and France, Britain declared war on Germany, Austria-Hungary declared war on Russia, and Japan declared war on Germany as well.
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After four years of fighting, WWI has finally ended. The Armistice was signed at 11:00 am in Redonthes in France.
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There were several economic consequences. The countries who participated spent a lot of money on the war. So, these countries raised taxes and printed for money causing inflation.
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After WWI, Germany fell into depression and left the country needing a new government. The Nazi Party took over and cured their depression. In order to do this, they blamed other groups, like the Jewish. This was the beginning of the Holocaust.
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Germany, under Hitler's control, invades Poland. France and Great Britain declare war on them two days later.
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Japan bombs Pearl Harbor, causing the United States to join the war.
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Russia reaches Berlin, so Hitler kills himself and Germany surrenders.
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WWII left most of Western Europe in ruins.
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After WWII, the world was left with two main power countries, the United States and the Soviet Union. These groups had separate ideas about governing that led to the Cold War.
