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Central powers form
The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires, were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I. It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria; this was also known as the Quadruple Alliance. -
Archduke Francis Ferdinand's assassination
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was one of the key events that led to World War I. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated on 28 June 1914 by Bosnian Serb student Gavrilo Princip. -
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
A month after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on July 28, 1914, the Austro-Hungarian government declares war on Serbia. -
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Countries declaring war
Germany declares war on Russia, France, and Belgium. Britain declares war on Germany. Austria declares war on Russia. Montenegro declares war on Austria. France declares war on Austria. Britain declares war on Austria. Montenegro declares war on Germany. Japan declares war on Germany. Austria declares war on Belgium. -
Formation of the Allies
In London on September 5, 1914, Russia, France, and Great Britain formalized their alliance with a treaty stipulating that no member of the partnership would make a separate peace with their mutual enemies (“the Central powers”). It was from this point that the countries were called “the Allies.” -
Battle of the Marne
First Battle of the Marne begins. The Germans had advanced to within 30 miles of Paris, but over the next two days, the French are reinforced by 6,000 infantrymen who are transported to the front by hundreds of taxis. The Germans dig in north of the Aisne River, and the trench warfare that is to typify the Western Front for the next four years begins. -
First battle of Ypres begins
The First Battle of Ypres begins, the first of three battles to control the ancient Flemish city on Belgium’s north coast that allows access to English Channel ports and the North Sea. The massive conflict—involving an estimated 600,000 Germans and 420,000 Allies—continues for three weeks until brutal winter weather brings it to an end. Typical of so many World War I battles, both sides engage in trench warfare and suffer massive casualties, but neither makes significant gains. -
War against Ottoman Empire
British and France declare war on Ottoman Empire -
Second battle of Ypres
The Second Battle of Ypres begins. The German army initiates the modern era of chemical warfare by launching a chlorine attack on Allied trenches. Some 5,000 French and Algerian troops are killed. By war’s end, both sides have used massive quantities of chemical weapons, causing an estimated 1,300,000 casualties, including 91,000 fatalities. -
British Lusitania sinks
The British ocean liner Lusitania is torpedoed by a German U-boat off the southern coast of Ireland. It sinks in just 18 minutes, and nearly 1,200 people are killed, including 128 U.S. citizens. The ship had been carrying over 170 tons of rifle ammunition and artillery shells, and Germany felt fully justified in treating the Lusitania as a legitimate target in a declared war zone. -
Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun begins. Over the next 10 months, the French and German armies at Verdun, France, suffer over 700,000 casualties, including some 300,000 killed. By the battle’s conclusion, entire French villages had been wiped from the map; they were subsequently memorialized as having “died for France.” -
Battle of Jutland
World War I’s biggest naval conflict, the Battle of Jutland off the coast of Denmark marks the first and only showdown between German and British battleships. After German forces attack the Royal Navy, 250 ships and 100,000 men take part in the bloody fight, with both sides losing thousands of lives and several ships. Although there is no clear victor, Britain is able to secure North Sea shipping lanes and continue a blockade of German ports, proving pivotal in the Allies victory. -
Battle of Somme
The First Battle of the Somme begins. The British offensive is intended to draw German attention from Verdun, and in that regard only could it be considered a success. The nearly 20,000 killed in action on July 1 marks the single bloodiest day in the history of the British army. By the time the Somme campaign ground to a halt some four and a half months later, the combined casualties of both sides topped 1,000,000. -
U.S declares war on Germany
The United States declares war on Germany. In his address to Congress four days earlier, U.S. Pres. Woodrow Wilson had cited Germany’s practice of unrestricted submarine warfare and the “Zimmermann Telegram” as key reasons behind the abandonment of his long-standing policy of neutrality. -
British tanks
A British offensive at Cambrai, France, marks the first large-scale use of tanks in combat. Attacking with complete surprise, the British tanks ripped through German defenses in depth and took some 7,500 prisoners at low cost in casualties. Bad weather intervened, however, and adequate infantry reinforcements were not available to capitalize on the breakthrough. Within two weeks the British had been driven back almost to their original positions. -
Soviet government concludes peace
After months of delays, the Soviet government concludes a separate peace with the Central Powers when it accepts the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Russia surrenders its claim to Ukraine, to its Polish and Baltic territories, and to Finland. -
Second battle of Somme
Fought along the Somme River basin in France, the Second Battle of the Somme is launched by the Germans, hoping to capitalize on the Russian army's collapse and attacking British trenches with gas and artillery fire. The British are forced into retreat and the Germans win their biggest single territorial gain along the Western Front since the war's onset. But within a week the Allies regroup and the German offensive begins to lose steam and is eventually halted. -
Second battle of Marne
In their last offensive attack of the war, the Germans strike Ally troops near the Marne River in France's Champagne region in a diversionary attempt to lure them from a separate planned attack in Flanders. But fooled by a set of false trenches implemented by the French, the Germans are met by heavy fire and a counterattack by French and American troops as they approach the actual front lines and are forced to retreat. -
Signing of the Armistice agreement
Germany and the Allies conclude an armistice (peace agreement). With the threat of revolution gripping German industrial centers and Allied armies on the verge of flanking the entire German defensive line, the ability of Germany to continue the war seemed doubtful at best. Germany signed the agreement on 11 am, 11th November 1918, thus ending the war.