-
Great War begins
The trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. -
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg. -
Kaiser declares “open season” on ships
Germany uses U boats to sink all ships. -
Sinking of the RMS Lusitania
German U-Boat Sinking of the RMS Lusitania. -
Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme Offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German Empire. -
Wilson re-elected
The United States presidential election of 1916 was the 33rd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 7, 1916. Incumbent Democratic President Woodrow Wilson defeated Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes, the Republican candidate. -
Zimmerman note intercepted
In the telegram, intercepted and deciphered by British intelligence in January 1917, Zimmermann instructed the ambassador, Count Johann von Bernstorff, to offer significant financial aid to Mexico if it agreed to enter any future U.S-German conflict as a German ally. -
US declares war on Germany
President Woodrow Wilson asked a special joint session of the United States Congress for a declaration of war against the German Empire. -
Sedition Act passed
An Act of the United States Congress that extended the Espionage Act of 1917 to cover a broader range of offenses. -
Selective Service Act
Authorized the United States federal government to raise a national army for service in World War I through conscription. -
Convoy system
Driven by the spectacular success of the German U-boat submarines and their attacks on Allied and neutral ships at sea, the British Royal Navy introduces a newly created convoy system. -
Espionage Age passed
a United States federal law passed on June 15, 1917, shortly after the U.S. entry into World War I. It has been amended numerous times over the years. -
Fourteen Points speech
The Fourteen Points was a statement of principles for peace that was to be used for peace negotiations in order to end World War I -
Flu Epidemic
The 1918 flu pandemic was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic, the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus. -
Russia pulls out of the war
A peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between the new Bolshevik government of Soviet Russia and the Central Powers . -
Germany signs armistice
the armistice that ended fighting on land, sea and air in World War I between the Allies and their last opponent, Germany.
