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{{Battle infobox
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|title=World War I
The major event that would lead to the start of '''World War I''' was known as the Assassination at [[Sarajevo]] .This assassination occured on June 28th, 1914. On this date, [[Archduke Franz Ferdinand]] , heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife,Sofia, were on their visit to the newest acquired territory of the Empire, [[Bosnia]] . However, they were unaware that a group of Serbian revolutionaries, known as "Young Bosnia", waited to fire upon them as they drove through the streets. At first, the couple escaped unscathed but when they made the mistake of turning, unknowingly, towards one of the revolutionaries, [[Gavrilo Princip]] , they were shoot dead and soon, anger of his and his wife's death boiled over on the empire and war began in a matter of a month.
 
 
|image=[[File:20151108_155112.jpg|thumb]]
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|date=28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918
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|location=Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands, China, Indian Ocean, North and South Atlantic Ocean
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'''World War I''', (abbreviated as '''WWI''' or '''WW1'''), also known as the '''First World War''', '''the Great War''', or the '''War to End All Wars''',<ref>"The war to end all wars". BBC News. 10 November 1998.</ref> was a global war originating in [[Europe]] that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history.<ref>Keegan, John (1998). The First World War. Hutchinson. ISBN 0-09-180178-8., general military history, p.8</ref><ref>Bade, Klaus J; Brown, Allison (tr.) (2003). Migration in European History. The making of Europe. Oxford: Blackwell. p.167-68; ISBN 0-631-18939-4. OCLC 52695573.</ref> Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a result of the war (including the victims of a number of genocides), a casualty rate exacerbated by the belligerents' technological and industrial sophistication, and the tactical stalemate caused by grueling trench warfare. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. Unresolved rivalries still extant at the end of the conflict contributed to the start of the [[Second World War]] only twenty-one years later.<ref>Willmott, H.P. (2003). World War I. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p.307; ISBN 0-7894-9627-5. OCLC 52541937</ref>
   
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==Components==
Much to the encouragment of the German Empire, formed years before by the prussian prime minister, [[Otto Von Bismarck]] , the Austro-Hungarian Empiror declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914 for being supposedly fully responsible for the assassination of Ferdinand. Then, fearing that Serbia would fall, Russia joined the battle on Serbia's side. The German Empire, also, fearing the same for Austria, entered the war with their ally. Germany, however, split their army into, mainly, two. One group marched through Belgium, into France in order to make sure that Germany was not defenseless when France would, supposedly, surprise attack Germany's western borders. While the other group marched eastwards against Russian borders. After Beliguim was attacked by the Germans, Britain joined the Entante's side, much against Germany's hopes that they would remain neutral.
 
 
* [[Origins of World War I]]
 
* [[Belligerents of World War I]]
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* [[Major events of World War I]]
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* [[Major battles of World War I]]
   
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==References==
The Germans, at first, struggled to even pass through Belgium's defenses, giving the French troops time to prepare against their enemy. When Germany finally passed Belgium, they very nearly reached Paris, passing many of the French defenses easily. However, the French army regrouped and chased the Germans north, towards the English Channel. By this time, both the Germans and the French had developed a Trench System in order to increase their defenses.
 
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The Trench System were hand-dug trench lines that were heavily protected. An average trench would have barbed wire covering the top and machine guns ready to fire at any unwelcomed guests. The Germans, however, advanced this further when they began using Chlorine as a poisonous gas against the allies, or Entente. This deadly advancement would contribute greatly to the high death rate of World War I. Then again, the trenches were already very unsanitary, even before Chlorine was being used. Epidemics of disease weren't uncommon when it came to the [[Trench System (WWI)|Trench System]] .
 
 
The war pushed on into the year of 1917, when neither side had any major advantage and both the allies and the Central Powers were losing or winning the same amount of battles. However, in Eastern Europe, the war seemed to be going the Central Powers' way. The Austro-Hungary and German Empire both won many successful battles against Russia and took large amounts of territory from the massive but declining country. The Russians, luckily, regrouped and took back the lost territory but, also, refused to fight anymore in the war, due to the Russian people's dissatisfaction with the Czar, or the ruler of Russia. Russia, however, also suffered attacks against another threat, the Ottoman Empire.
 
 
The sultan once had supreme control all over the Empire. However, in the past years before World War I, the empire had suffered a revolution by a group known as the "Young Turks". The Young Turks succeeded in forcing the sultan to agree to a constitution and by doing this, formed the CUP. The CUP had done successful progress in improving education and the economy but chose very poorly on who to support during World War I. In favor of the Central Powers, the Ottomans successfully destroyed many Russian Black Sea ports and crushed the allied force that attacked them over the Gallipoli Peninsula Straits. The Allies only found a weakness in the Ottoman Empire when British officer, T.E Lawrence, persuaded Sharif Hussein ibn Ali of Mecca to start a revolution against the Ottoman rulers. The Arab Revolt of 1916 then allowed the allies to capture Jerusalem and Istanbul, the capital, ending the war in this region in September 1918. However, in 1922, Kemal Mustafa Atatürk drove the Allies out of Istanbul and all of Turkey and became the president of the new Turkish Republic in 1923.
 
 
The German navy was filled with many heavily armored warships, known as dreadnoughts. However, these dreadnoughts could not win any battles or situations against the allies. The Germans then decided to use submarine warfare against the allies instead. The submarines, or German U-boats, proved to be quite successful, disrupting much of the British, French, etc., trade. However, the U-boats were also a contribution to the U.S entering the war when U-boat #20 sank the world-famous ocean liner, the Lusitania, which, when sunk, was carrying many inoccent American passengers.
 
 
The stalemate of 1917 was finally broken by reckless German action, such as their unrestricted U-boat attacks on foreign shipping, the sinking of the Lusitania and the most threatening of all, they were highly encouraging that Mexico attack the U.S. The U.S at last sent troops to assist the allies in Europe and crushed all the German forces that were outside of their home country. However, by this time, the Russian economy was near collapse. On November 7, 1918, (((((((((Vladimir Lenin))))))))) had seized power. In March, 1918, Russia and the German Empire signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, effectively ending Russian participation in the war. The Allies then surrounded Germany and began pressurizing the German Trench defenses. Germany slowly began to succumb to the Allies' pressure on them. Since, after all, their major ally, Austro-Hungary, had signed an armistice, agreement to stop fighting, with Italy and the allies after losing a series of battles against them. And now, the German people had started a revolution against Kaiser, or King, Wilhelm II of Germany, in response to Allies' presence. Finally, the Allies broke through the German Trenches and began marching eastwards towards the German capital, Berlin. Germany then finally gave in and signed an [[Armistice|armistice]] on November 11, 1918, ending the war for good.
 
 
The [[Treaty of Versailles]] aimed greatly to punish the Central Powers for the amount of destruction they caused during the war; especially Germany. The policy the Allies had put upon Germany and Austria could be certainly considered strict. Germany and Austria could not ever be allies with one another again and all future alliances of either country had to compromise with the policy of the Allies. Plus, the Central Powers were to pay an extremely large fee, some 11 billion euro. However, this policy and fee had sent both Austria and Germany into bankruptcy and marked the dissolution of both empires. The Germans could never let go of their grudge against the Allies and because of this, World War II was just waiting to occur.
 
 
 
 
 
==Origins of the War==
 
In 1870, the German Empire was formed from Prussia. During the remaining thirty years of the nineteenth century (the longest era of peace Europe had seen for centuries), two major armed camps were created. Firstly was the Triple Alliance, formed by Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. France and Russia formed an alliance to combat the Central Powers, as they became known. In 1907, Britain joined this alliance to create the Triple Entente.
 
 
On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand visited Sarajevo with his wife. During this visit, a bomb was thrown at the vehicle, but did not kill either person. When he learned that some Austrian officers had been injured by the bomb, he asked his driver to drive to the hospital where they were being treated. The driver took a wrong and Gavrilo Princip emerged from the crowd and fired two revolver shots that killed the Archduke and his wife. Austria-Hungary believed neighbouring Serbia to be behind the attack, and delivered an ultimatum to stop all Serb propaganda against Austria and to allow officials in to conduct an investigation. Serbia accepted all terms except the latter, and Austria declared war a month later.
 
 
Serbia was Russia's ally, and Germany warned Russia that any mobilisation in support of Serbia would be countered by German mobilisation. When Austria launched artillery fire on Serbia, however, Russia declared war, and Germany declared war against Russia in turn. Fearing a two-front war, Germany decided to first strike France before dealing with Russia. When France began to mobilise its forces (they saw this as an opportunity to recapture the regions of Alsace and Lorraine from Germany, who had taken them in 1870), it was enough for Germany to launch its own attack on France, using Belgium as elbow room.
 
 
Britain did not want to be involved at first, though it knew that an all-powerful Germany on the Continent would not be in her best interests. Britain invoked an old treaty with Belgium and delivered an ultimatum to Germany, warning her to exit Belgium immediately. Germany dubbed the ultimatum 'a mere scrap of paper', and Britain also found herself at war.
 
 
==Major Battles of World War I==
 
 
<u>The Western Front, or Western Europe</u>
 
*[[The Battle of 1st Marne]], occurred in 1914, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
*[[The Battle of 1st Aisne]], occurred in 1914, land battle, stalemate
 
*[[The Battle of 1st Ypres]], occurred in 1914, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
*[[The Battle of Verdun]], occurred in 1916, land battle, Entente/Ally (French) Victory
 
*[[The Battle of 1st Somme]], occurred in 1916, land battle, stalemate
 
*[[The Battle of Vimy Ridge]], occurred in 1917, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
*[[The Battle of Messines]], occurred in 1917, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
*[[The Battle of Passchendaele]], occurred in 1917, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
*[[The Battle of Cambrai]], occurred in 1917, land battle, stalemate
 
*[[The Battle of 2nd Marne]], occurred in 1918, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory
 
<u>The Eastern Front, or Eastern Europe and Asia</u>
 
*[[The Battle of Tannenberg]], occurred in 1914, land battle, Central Powers Victory (against Russia)
 
*[[The Battle of Gorlice-Tarnow]], occurred in 1915, land battle, Central Powers Victory (against Russia)
 
<u>The Middle East</u>
 
*[[The Battle of Kut-al-Amara]], 1915–1916, Siege, Turkish Victory (against British, Indians)
 
*[[Gallipoli Campaign]], 1915–1916, land battle, Turkish Victory (against British and ANZACs)
 
*[[The Battle of Megiddo]], 1918, land battle, Entente/Ally Victory (against Turks)
 
 
==The Countries of Both Sides==
 
 
<u>The Triple Entente/Allies</u>
 
*[[British Empire]]
 
*[[France]]
 
*[[Italy]]
 
*[[Russia]]
 
*[[America|U.S]].
 
*[[New Zealand]]
 
*[[Serbia]]
 
*[[Australia]]
 
*[[Belgium]]
 
*[[Montenegro]]
 
*[[Greece]]
 
*[[Japan]]
 
*[[Romania]]
 
*[[Portugal]]
 
<u>Central Powers</u>
 
*[[The Austrian Empire|The Austro-Hungarian Empire]]
 
*[[Germany|The German Empire]]
 
*[[The Ottoman Empire]]
 
*[[The Kingdom of Bulgaria]]
 
 
[[Category:World War I]]
 
[[Category:World War I]]

Revision as of 23:01, 22 April 2020

World War I, (abbreviated as WWI or WW1), also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars,[1] was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history.[2][3] Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a result of the war (including the victims of a number of genocides), a casualty rate exacerbated by the belligerents' technological and industrial sophistication, and the tactical stalemate caused by grueling trench warfare. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. Unresolved rivalries still extant at the end of the conflict contributed to the start of the Second World War only twenty-one years later.[4]

Components

References

  1. "The war to end all wars". BBC News. 10 November 1998.
  2. Keegan, John (1998). The First World War. Hutchinson. ISBN 0-09-180178-8., general military history, p.8
  3. Bade, Klaus J; Brown, Allison (tr.) (2003). Migration in European History. The making of Europe. Oxford: Blackwell. p.167-68; ISBN 0-631-18939-4. OCLC 52695573.
  4. Willmott, H.P. (2003). World War I. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p.307; ISBN 0-7894-9627-5. OCLC 52541937