Reference
15 million casualties; [Smithsonian, p. 478]
Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
Weapons in World War I included machine guns, tanks, military aircraft, chemical weapons, U-boats, flamethrowers, and modern artillery with fragmentation shells. [Wikipedia]
"The war shifted the balance of economic power across the Atlantic and undermined Europe’s hegemony. It led to the collapse of the Hohenzollern, Romanov, and Habsburg empires and to the creation of myriad successor states. It transformed the Middle East. It advanced Japan’s claims in the Pacific and Far East. It allowed the Bolshevik Revolution and boosted the tendencies toward Fascism elsewhere in Europe." [Kennedy: Parliament of Man, Kindle Edition, Location 207]
In June, Archduke Franz Ferdinand assassinated by Serbian nationalist-- war begins
War
1914
In August, first military action in World War I--Germany invades Belgium
War
1914
Ottoman Empires joins Germany in World War I
War
1914
Allies defeat German Army in the First Battle of the Marne or Miracle of the Marne
War
1914
Turkish massacre of Armenians
War
1915
In April, allies land at Gallipoli to execute Churchill's plan to cut off Turkey
War
1915
Passenger liner Lusitania sunk by German submarine--a factor drawing U.S. into war
War
1915
Nurse Edith Cavell discovered aiding Belgian soldiers and executed by Germans
War
1915
In February, Germans begin Battle of Verdun in France
War
1916
In May, Battle of Jutland in North Sea--both Germany and Britain claimed victory
War
1916
In July, Battle of the Somme begins--57,000 British casualties from machine guns
War
1916
Brusilov Offensive leads to failure of monarchies in Russia and Austria
War
1916
French ship explodes in Halifax, Nova Scotia
War
1917
Germany's ill-judged attempt to lure Mexico into war backfires
War
1917
In October, Ottoman rule over Arabs ends as Damascus falls to General Allenby
War
1918
Allies defeat Germans in final offensive at Second Battle of Marne
War
1918