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Assassination of Archbishop Franz Ferdinand
Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were killed by Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip while on a formal visit to Sarajevo. Princip shot Ferdinand at point blank range while the latter was travelling in his car from a town hall reception. -
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World War I
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Austria Declares War on Serbia
one month to the day after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were killed by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, effectively beginning the First World War. -
The First Battle of Marne
Having invaded Belgium and north-eastern France, the German army had reached Paris. Their progress had been rapid, having successfully beaten back Belgian, French and British forces in advancing deep into north-eastern France. Their advance was in pursuance of the aims of the Schlieffen Plan, whose primary focus was the swift defeat of France in the west before turning attention the Russian forces in the east. -
The First Battle of the Dardanelles
The naval attacks upon the Dardanelles Straits on 19 & 26 February had nevertheless succeeded in achieving the first element of naval Commander-in-Chief Sir Sackville Carden's three-point blueprint for seizing control of the Straits and thus access to Constantinople and a supply route to Britain's ally in the east, Russia. -
Second Battle of the Dardanelles
The attack was to be launched on 18 March 1915, five days following a further minesweeping failure along the Straits. Immediately before the attack's launch however Carden collapsed from nervous exhaustion. Therefore, he was replaced by Sir John de Robeck. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
On May 7, the ship neared the coast of Ireland. A torpedo fired by the German submarine U 20 slammed into her side. A mysterious second explosion ripped the liner apart. Chaos reigned. The ship listed so badly and quickly that lifeboats crashed into passengers crowded on deck, or dumped their loads into the water. Most passengers never had a chance. Within 18 minutes the giant ship slipped beneath the sea. 1,119 of the 1,924 aboard died which included 114 Americans. -
Battle of Verdun
The attack on 21 February. Crown Prince Wilhelm opened the battle with 1,400 guns packed along the eight-mile front, the guns well served by good nearby railway facilities. 100,000 shells poured into Verdun every hour, Wilhelm's intention being to kill the majority of the French defenders before the infantry even started their advance into the fortress. -
Battle of the Somme
the Battle of the Somme is had a loss of 58,000 British troops on the first day of the battle, July 1,1916 to this day remains a one day record. -
Germany Unrestricted Warfare
On January 9, 1917, Bethmann-Hollweg went to a meeting at Pless. He found the navy's and army's hierarchy against him and they had already won over the Kaiser. The decision for unrestricted submarine warfare was made on that day and it started on February 1, 1917. Wilson broke off diplomatic relations with Germany in an effort to bring Germany to its senses. -
US Declares War on Germany
On April 2, 1917, President Wilson appeared before a joint session of Congress and asked for a declaration of war against Germany in order to make the world safe for democracy. On April 4, Congress granted Wilson's request. America thus joined the carnage that had been ravaging Europe since 1914. Germany's renewal of unrestricted submarine warfare and the revelation of a proposed German plot to ally with Mexico against the US prompted Wilson's action. -
Treaty of Brest-litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk brought about the end of the war between Russia and Germany in 1918. Lenin had ordered that the Bolshevik representatives should get a quick treaty from the Germans to bring about an end to the war so that the Bolsheviks could concentrate on the work they needed to do in Russia itself. -
World War I Ends
World War I was finally over. This first global conflict had claimed from 9 million to 13 million lives and caused unprecedented damage. Germany had formally surrendered on November 11, 1918, and all nations had agreed to stop fighting while the terms of peace were negotiated. This was thought to be the war to end all wars. -
Treaty of Versailles Signed
The Treaty of Versailles was the peace settlement signed after World War One had ended in 1918 and in the shadow of the Russian Revolution and other events in Russia. The treaty was signed at the vast Versailles Palace near Paris - hence its title - between Germany and the Allies.
