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World War 1 facts

Nat geo kids travels back in time to find out more about a conflict that rocked the world….

On  July 28th 1914 began the outbreak of the First World War, aka World War 1  or The Great War for Civilisation . Join us as we learn everything there is to know in our World War 1 facts …

World War 1 facts: Why did it start?

A hundred years might seem like a very long time ago, but it isn’t really. Your  great-great grandparents  were around then, and they would have lived through, and maybe even taken part in, this terrible conflict.

Lots of history books have been written on World War 1 facts and why it started. But it all boils down to the fact that Europe had split into two large families of countries. The Allies — the British Empire, France, Belgium, Russia and later, the USA — were in one family. And the Central Powers of Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey were in the other. On 4 August 1914 , Germany invaded Belgium, and so, standing by its promise to stick up for Belgium, Britain declared war on Germany. The world was at war…

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How long did World War 1 last?

When the First World War began that summer, most people thought it would be over by Christmas. Many believed that Britain was so powerful it could win very quickly. In fact, the First World War lasted four terrible years , not four months.

Life in the trenches in World War 1

By the winter of 1915, the opposing sides had both dug long ditches called trenches which faced each other, in some places just 30m apart! These lines of narrow trenches stretched from the Belgian coast to Switzerland, and were known as the Western Front . Over five million British soldiers spent time living in these muddy, miserable ditches, taking it in turns to be on the Front Line — the trench closest to the enemy.

Did you know that we have a FREE downloadable  First World War primary resource ? Great for teachers, homeschoolers and parents alike!

Day-to-day life there was smelly and grim. There were millions of giant rats, overflowing latrines (loos) and terrible lice infestations. Not to mention the dead bodies. Every so often, soldiers on the Front Line would be instructed to leave their trench and venture into dangerous No Man’s Land (the area between the sides) to try to push back the enemy.

A new type of war

This war was very different from conflicts of the past. For the first time, powerful new weapons and vehicles were used – at sea, on land and in the air – resulting in many people being killed or wounded. In Britain, you could sometimes hear what sounded like thunder coming across the English Channel from Europe . In fact, it was the huge boom of big guns, called artillery, being fired on the Western Front. 75% of all men who died in World War 1 were killed by artillery .

The largest battle of the World War 1 – the Battle of the Somme – is known as one of the bloodiest battles in history. It was fought by the French and British against the Germans on both sides of the River Somme in France , and lasted for more than five months . Over a million men were killed or wounded, and it was the first time that a tank was used in combat.

Animals during World War 1

Both on the battlefield and back at home, some incredible creatures helped to transport soldiers and goods – and save lives.

Almost a million horses were involved in the war. Soldiers on horseback were known as the  Cavalry  and horses also pulled some of the  gigantic guns ,  ambulances  and  supply wagons . Gas from horse droppings could even be used to power lamps!

British families gave their  pet dogs  to the army so they could carry messages in special tubes on their collars (see above). Dogs were fast, difficult to shoot at, and they also caught rats!  Pet pigeons  were drafted in to carry messages over long distances, often carrying news from the Front Line back to Britain — Germans trained  hawks  to kill any carrier pigeons they saw.  Goldfish  did their bit too — after gas attacks, the gas masks were washed and rinsed. And if the rinsing water killed a goldfish that was placed in it, that meant the masks still had poison on them!

Did you know that we have a FREE downloadable  War Horses: WWI primary resource ? Great for teachers, homeschoolers and parents alike!

What was life like in Britain during World War 1?

Just because you weren’t in the battle fields didn’t mean you weren’t in the danger zone. Back on the  Home Front ,  Britain  was under attack from all sides.

It was the first time in history that Britain had come under threat from the  sky . Gigantic German airships, known as  Zeppelins  (below), carried out 52 bombing raids on Britain during the war – killing more than 500. People were terrified of them! To avoid Zeppelin attacks, no lights could be used after sunset and loud noises were banned, too. Large scale bombing raids on British cities were carried out during the day by German biplanes called Gothas.

There were threats from the sea, too. Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby were the first seaside towns to be shelled by the German navy.  Battlecruisers , ships with huge guns, launched a surprise attack on 16 December 1914 – 137 people were killed and 592 injured that night alone.

But all these attacks on ordinary people only stirred up hatred against the enemy, encouraging more British men to  volunteer  and fight for their country against “The Beast”.  At the start of the war there were just 350,000 men in the British army. But by 1917, there were 3.5 million! Mind you, in 1916, conscription came in – a rule that said ALL healthy men aged 18 – 41 had to fight.

Women during World War 1

Women weren’t allowed to join the army, but the war still completely changed their lives – in some ways, for the better!

Before the war, a woman’s role was in the  home.  But with the men away at war, help was needed in the  workplace  – and so millions of women went to work in offices, factories, shops, transport and on farms. Many men were horrified by the idea of females working and, even worse,  wearing trousers ! But the women proved that they could do the work of men, and do it just as well. Without the women of Britain growing food and making weapons, the war could not have been won.

When the war was over and the soldiers came home, women were made to leave their new jobs and go back into the home. But not all of them wanted to do that anymore! Their experiences during the war eventually led to women getting more freedoms and rights – including the  right to vote !

Children during World War 1

Did you know that  Boy Scouts  and  Girl Guides  had a vital role on the  Home Front ? Girl Guides would make basic  medical equipment  for wounded soldiers, like bandages, swabs and slings. They also worked  growing vegetables  and  delivering milk . Boy Scouts  collected eggs  for injured troops,  protected roads  and  railway lines , and  delivered messages .

Children were even paid to  collect conkers  which could be turned into explosives! They also  wrote letters  to soldiers and helped to  knit socks and scarves  for the troops in the winter months. Some boys  lied about their age  and went off to fight. The youngest of these,  Sidney Lewis , was just 12 years old when he joined the army. He was sent home at the age of 13 after fighting in the  Battle of the Somme , one of the war’s bloodiest battles.

Children were also used to carry messages for  MI5 , the  British Secret Service . The Boy Scouts, who were MI5’s first choice for this work, apparently found it hard to keep sensitive secrets, so Britain’s agents turned to the  Girl Guides , instead!

Believe it or not,  Winnie The Pooh  has his roots in World War 1 Britain. At the time, a young bear cub called  Winnie  was one of the most popular attractions at London Zoo. He was a mascot belonging to the  Canadian Army,  who had been left there for safekeeping. The bear was seen by author  A. A. Milne ‘s son  Christopher Robin , who renamed his own toy bear Winnie – and it became the inspiration for his dad’s book,  Winnie The Pooh !

Armistice Day

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918 , World War 1 officially ended when an agreement (known as an armistice ) was signed by Germany and the Allies. This date is known as Armistice Day , and is still commemorated each year when people wear paper poppies to remember those who fought and died in conflicts around the world – the pretty red flowers were the only things that grew on the bloody battlefields of Western Europe.

Sadly, by the time World War 1 was over, more than 18 million people had been killed worldwide. It was hoped it would be the war to end all wars. But this wasn’t to be the case. Just 21 years later, World War 2  broke out.

Your connections to World War 1

What can you find out about  your family ’s involvement in World War 1? Ask your grandparents whether their parents, aunties or uncles ever talked about life during this time. Do you have any  postcards  or  photographs  from the war? Perhaps there are  campaign medals  belonging to a relative at home? Write in and tell us about it, we’d love to hear your family stories!

What did you make of our World War 1 facts? Let us know by leaving us a comment, below!

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I find this very interesting and I will definitly be using this website again. I love all the facts thank you vert much bye have a nice day

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MY GREAT GRANDPA FOUGHT IN WORLD WAR 1

MY GRANDDAD FOUGHT THERE

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ITS NOT VERY NICE ONE BIT, ALL I CAN SAY IS IT WILL BE REMEMBERD!

The war wasn`t a very nice time to live.

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They called soccer football?

This taught me a lesson, not to be enemies.

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Why stop fighting I for a day when it can be evey day

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i would not like to be in the war

helped alot

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i feel sorry for the family of people who died coz they would have been real upset

Learnt about this at school but not this much! Must have been terrible

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Cant have been nice! We should remember :)

that is about the frest would war

i would have hated it if i had to live in these conditions:(

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CUSTOMIZE YOUR AVATAR

More like general history.

The life of Florence Nightingale

10 facts about the Tudors!

The Amazing Adventures of Charles Sturt

Twenty top Titanic facts

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World War I

Zimmermann telegram.

In January 1917 British intelligence officers intercepted a secret telegram sent by German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German minister to Mexico. The message proposed an alliance between Germany and Mexico if the United States entered World War I. The decoded text of the telegram read:

“We intend to begin on the first of February unrestricted submarine warfare. We shall endeavor in spite of this to keep the United States of America neutral. In the event of this not succeeding, we make Mexico a proposal or alliance on the following basis: make war together, make peace together, generous financial support and an understanding on our part that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The settlement in detail is left to you. You will inform the President of the above most secretly as soon as the outbreak of war with the United States of America is certain and add the suggestion that he should, on his own initiative, invite Japan to immediate adherence and at the same time mediate between Japan and ourselves. Please call the President's attention to the fact that the ruthless employment of our submarines now offers the prospect of compelling England in a few months to make peace.”

Signed, ZIMMERMANN.

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• Primary Sources & E-Books

Introduction

A major international conflict fought from 1914 to 1918, World War I was the most deadly and destructive war the world had ever seen to that time. More than 25 countries eventually participated, aligned with either the Allied or the Central powers. The Allies—who won the war—included primarily France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, and, from 1917, the United States. The Central Powers consisted mainly of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). World War I felled four great imperial dynasties, in Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey. It led to revolution in Russia, destabilized Europe, and laid the foundations for World War II . (For a chronology of events for World War I, see World War I Chronology .)

On a human scale, the scope of the war was just as monumental. More than 65 million soldiers were mobilized for the armies, navies, and emerging air forces. Some 8.5 million lost their lives, and more than 21 million were wounded. In addition, civilian populations worked as never before to produce enormous quantities of guns, munitions, and other supplies. Because civilians played such an important role, World War I was the first conflict to be called “total war.”

The Onset of War

On June 28, 1914, Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated. He was murdered at Sarajevo, the capital of the Austrian province of Bosnia. The assassin was Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian-trained Bosnian terrorist. Austria claimed that Serbian government officials had trained and equipped Princip’s group, which was known as the Black Hand. For many years Serbia and Austria-Hungary had been unfriendly because Serbian nationalists wanted to unite all Slavic peoples living in the Balkan region into a single state. Slavs living in Austria-Hungary would be included, and Austria-Hungary strongly opposed this.

Austria-Hungary decided to use the assassination as an excuse to settle its quarrel with Serbia. Germany promised to back Austria-Hungary. On July 23 Austria-Hungary presented a warlike ultimatum to Serbia, allowing only 48 hours for an answer. Serbia responded by July 25 but suggested that some of Austria-Hungary’s demands be referred to the other European powers. Austria-Hungary refused Serbia’s suggestion, and on July 28 it declared war on Serbia.

All the nations in Europe had been expecting war. For many years rival groups of nations had been making treaties and alliances. By 1914 Europe had been divided into two camps. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy were members of the Triple Alliance. Later, after the withdrawal of Italy and the addition of the Ottoman Empire, the Triple Alliance took a new name, the Central Powers. Russia, France, and Britain formed the rival Triple Entente. Later they were called the Allies. Except for Bulgaria, the Balkan states sided with Serbia and the Allies. These alliances were brought into action July 28 by Austria-Hungary’s declaration of war. Within a week all Europe was at war.

Other Nations Involved

On July 29 Russia mobilized its troops near the Austrian and German borders, purportedly to keep Serbia from being crushed. However, Russia had plans in the Ottoman Empire that had been blocked by Austria-Hungary and Germany. Russia wanted to control Constantinople and the straits from the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea. On July 31 Germany demanded that Russia stop its war mobilization measures and delivered an ultimatum to France to declare itself neutral in the event of war between Russia and Germany. France and Germany had been enemies in many previous wars. They had also been divided by the question of Alsace-Lorraine .

Both Russia and France ignored the German demands. Fighting began on the German-Russian frontier on August 1. Germany declared war on France on August 3.

Britain Declares War

Britain and Germany had been growing more and more unfriendly before 1914. Germany claimed that Britain was trying to keep it from becoming a world power. With the start of the war Germany made clear that it planned to invade France through Belgium. Britain, along with Germany and France, had signed a treaty in 1838 guaranteeing the independence and neutrality of Belgium. On August 4 Britain declared war on Germany to protect Belgian neutrality. The rest of the British Empire immediately prepared to send troops.

Japan entered the war on the side of the Allies on August 23. Italy decided to remain neutral for the time being, despite its membership in the Triple Alliance. Many Italians favored joining the Allies, to help Italy obtain territories in Austria-Hungary in which people of Italian descent lived.

The War During 1914

All the major powers had war plans designed for quick victories but no plans for a long, drawn-out stalemate. The German Schlieffen Plan—named after Count Alfred von Schlieffen , a noted military strategist—was designed to avoid a long, costly war on two fronts. It called for the German left flank to hold the French army on the Rhine River. The right flank was to sweep through Belgium and northern France toward Paris, the French capital. After defeating France, the Germans then planned to quickly move these troops by rail to the east to defeat Russia.

The French had agreed to respect Belgian neutrality. Therefore they could not go through Belgium to attack Germany. Instead they intended to concentrate their troops on the center and right flanks. They then planned to strike a blow against the Rhine front.

The Russians planned to drive a wedge between Austria-Hungary and Germany. They then intended to make a direct attack on Berlin. Although all these war plans failed, the German Schlieffen Plan came close to succeeding. The right flank of the German army almost reached Paris but was thrown back by the French in the First Battle of the Marne, one of the few decisive battles of the war.

French Defense on the Marne

The French army of about 4 million was practically equal in size to the German army. Only a third of the soldiers, however, were fully trained first-line troops. The French were not surprised that the Germans came through Belgium. What they did not expect was that the Germans would immediately use so many of their reserves as first-line troops. This gave the Germans more effective manpower. French and British troops met the attacking Germans at the Belgian frontier in August. The French were driven back at Charleroi. The British were driven back at Mons. The Germans forced both armies to retreat south.

By the beginning of September a part of the German army was approaching Paris. Before the Germans were able to move past the city, however, the French attacked the exposed German right flank. They then advanced into a gap that this attack opened between two German armies. The French also counterattacked along the entire front. The First Battle of the Marne was fought September 6–10. The Germans, unable to gain a decisive victory, retreated some 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of the Marne River.

Trench Warfare and Blockades

With the hope of a short war now lost, the fighting on the Western Front settled down to trench warfare. Victories on the battlefield were soon being measured in yards, with enormous casualty rates.

Soon after the outbreak of war, the British Navy instituted an economic blockade of Germany. This move was very successful, bringing outward-bound trade from Germany to a standstill. The blockade also became important to the overall strategy of the war because it led to the beginning of Germany’s submarine campaign in October 1914. Germany’s submarines came very close to cutting off Britain from its supplies.

The Ottoman Empire Declares War

The Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers on October 29. Although the empire was in a state of decline, it made a substantial contribution to the Central Powers’ war effort. The empire’s entry into the war cut off Russia’s easy sea communications with its allies. The Ottoman armies also threatened Britain’s communications with the Far East through the Suez Canal by moving south and threatening to capture the canal. To prevent the fall of the canal, the Allies were forced to keep large forces near the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea throughout the war.

The stalemate on the Western Front was offset for Germany by its success against Russia on the Eastern Front. The Germans under the two brilliant generals Paul von Hindenburg and Erich von Ludendorff overwhelmingly defeated the Russians at Tannenberg in August 1914.

The War During 1915

Germany and Austria-Hungary made great efforts to defeat Russia in 1915. Early in the year the Russians invaded Hungary. The Germans counterattacked on May 2. In fighting centered around Brest-Litovsk the Germans broke through the center of the Russian front. Russian forces were driven back as far east as Pinsk. The Germans took 750,000 prisoners, but the Russians fought on.

There was a deadlock on the Western Front during 1915. This resulted partly because of a shortage of artillery shells. In April the Germans used the poisonous gas chlorine against the French at Ypres . Soon both sides were using various types of gas and gas-filled shells with devastating effects.

Italy and Bulgaria Declare War

In April 1915 Italy signed the secret Treaty of London with Britain, France, and Russia. The treaty offered Italy a large piece of Austrian territory in return for entering the war on the side of the Allies. On May 23 Italy declared war against Austria-Hungary. It did not declare war against Germany until August 1916, more than a year later.

On October 11 Bulgaria joined the Central Powers against the Allies. Bulgaria then joined with Germany and Austria-Hungary to overrun Serbia and Montenegro. This cleared a path to Turkey, the heart of the Ottoman Empire, which had been holding out against Allied attacks but was now in need of support from the other Central Powers.

The Gallipoli Campaign

In February and again in March British warships tried to force their way through the Dardanelles . Their plan was to get aid to Russia by way of the Black Sea. Both attempts were unsuccessful.

On April 25 Sir Ian Hamilton landed a force of Anzacs (Australia and New Zealand Army Corps) on the narrow Gallipoli Peninsula. A combined land-and-sea drive was then planned against Constantinople.

The Gallipoli expedition was a costly failure. In December 1915 and January 1916 the troops were withdrawn. Many were sent to Egypt to protect the Suez Canal, which was threatened by the Ottoman Empire. Some of these troops later formed a British and Arab force under Gen. Edmund Allenby that captured Jerusalem in 1917.

One of the many successful leaders in this region was Britain’s T.E. Lawrence . Lawrence was instrumental in organizing and leading the Arab revolt against the Turks. His forces also captured Damascus for the Allies.

Germany’s Submarine Campaign

Germany’s submarine fleet intensified its blockade of Britain during 1915. In February Germany announced that the waters around Great Britain, including the English Channel, were in the war zone. In addition, Germany clearly stated that merchant ships found in this zone would be destroyed. This included the ships of neutral nations.

On May 7 a luxury passenger liner, the Lusitania , was torpedoed and sunk off Kinsale Head, Ireland. Among the 1,198 persons drowned were more than 120 U.S. citizens.

Germany continued to build more and better submarines. By April 1917, when the United States entered the war, more than 3 million tons of British shipping had been sunk. This was 16 percent of the 1914 British merchant fleet. By 1915 the British were already beginning to fear that continued shipping losses might force Britain out of the war.

The War During 1916

The German surface fleet did not challenge Allied control of the oceans until the Battle of Jutland on May 31, 1916. The British Grand Fleet met the German High Seas Fleet off the Danish coast. The British fleet, commanded by Adm. John R. Jellicoe , suffered heavy losses in ships and soldiers. Nevertheless, Adm. Reinhard Scheer was forced to withdraw the German fleet. The British then won a costly but strategic victory. The Battle of Jutland was the most important surface naval battle of the war. It made possible the continued blockade of Germany.

Battles of Verdun and the Somme

On the Western Front the Germans launched a great offensive against the French at Verdun in February. Before the attack the Germans shelled the French with the most powerful artillery bombardment ever used in war. For a short time the Germans swept everything before them. Then the French checked the advance. The Battle of Verdun continued for many months, with little change.

In July the British came to the aid of the French with an offensive in the Somme River area. The artillery bombardment before the attack lasted for a week. The British gradually moved forward. When winter ended the fighting, they had driven a wedge 9 miles (14 kilometers) deep into the German line.

During the Somme offensive the British introduced an armored vehicle that ran on endless metal chains. The machine had been developed secretly, with different parts made in different factories. Some parts, which looked like they could be used to make containers for liquids, were called tanks by the workers. “Tank” came to be used as a code name during the weapon’s development and later became its permanent name.

War in the Air

Balloons and airplanes were first used mainly to carry observers. By 1915 photographs of enemy positions were being taken from airplanes. Anthony Fokker , improving on a French device, developed a machine gun for the Germans that was synchronized to fire through the whirling propeller of a flying plane.

The French and British soon had their versions of this synchronized machine gun. Both the Allies and the Germans sent up fighter planes to shoot down enemy observation planes. Fighter pilots and planes fought for control of the air throughout the war. Allied and German fighter pilots became international heroes.

Zeppelin Raids

Germany’s Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin had seen the value of the balloon as an aerial observation post in the American Civil War . When Zeppelin returned home to Germany after the Civil War he developed a navigable airship . It was a balloon of rigid construction.

A Zeppelin was first used to bomb London in May 1915. During the war Zeppelins made a total of 51 raids. However, 77 of the ships were destroyed in storms or by Allied attacks from fighter planes and antiaircraft fire. Their use as a war weapon was finally abandoned.

Both sides developed antiaircraft guns for use against bombing raids and strafing fighter planes. British pilots referred to inaccurate German antiaircraft fire as “Archie,” a name adapted from the song “Archibald, Certainly Not!” When the pilots returned to their airfields they would be asked, “Archibald give you any trouble today?” They would answer, “Archibald? Certainly not!”

American Fliers in Combat

The Lafayette Escadrille first saw action on April 20, 1916. This was a French squadron made up of American volunteers. It remained attached to the French Flying Corps until February 1918, when it transferred to the American Air Service.

In April 1918 the United States Air Service had three squadrons at the front. The number grew until there were 45 American squadrons. Most of them were equipped with French aircraft.

The War During 1917

On March 11, 1917, a revolution broke out in Russia. Four days later the tsar, Nicholas II , abdicated. The new republican government under Aleksandr Kerensky said it would continue the war. The Russian people, however, were sick of the war. The revolutionists had formed the Bolshevik party (renamed the Communist party in 1918). On November 9 the Bolsheviks overthrew the Kerensky government and asked Germany for an armistice.

On March 3, 1918, the Bolshevik government signed a separate treaty of peace with the Germans at Brest-Litovsk. By the terms of this treaty the Russians lost Poland and nearly all the territory bordering the Baltic Sea. They also had to surrender a large area of land in the Caucasus Mountains to Turkey.

The United States Declares War

U.S. public opinion had been slowly but steadily setting against Germany since 1914. In January 1917 Germany launched an unrestricted submarine campaign. All vessels, neutrals included, were to be sunk without warning if found in a zone off the Allied coasts. This was a violation of international law. Further, it was discovered that the German foreign minister, Arthur Zimmermann , had secretly sent a telegram to the Mexican government. The Zimmermann Telegram promised to reward Mexico with vast areas of the southwestern United States in return for Mexican support against the Americans. Although President Woodrow Wilson ’s great desire was for peace, he felt the United States was forced to go to war. War was declared on April 6, 1917 ( see United States history ).

Allied Struggles on the Western Front

In France, a disastrous offensive led by Gen. Robert Nivelle in April 1917 was followed by a series of mutinies in the French armies. In response, Nivelle was replaced by Gen. Philippe Pétain as commander in chief of the French armies. Pétain kept his troops out of major combat for a time to build up their morale. Late in the year they regained some territory they had lost earlier at Verdun.

British troops did most of the heavy fighting on the Western Front in 1917. Their losses were heavy. In one battle alone, for the high terrain near Ypres, their casualties were almost a quarter of a million men. Losses like these, plus the fact that Germany would now have more manpower with troops released from the Russian front, made the Allied chances for victory doubtful.

War weariness also brought disaster on the Italian front. In October 1917 the Austrians and the Germans suddenly attacked the Italian forces at Caporetto . A rout resulted, costing the Italians 265,000 prisoners. It was now clear that unless the United States could turn the tide, 1918 might bring victory to the Central Powers.

The War During 1918

On March 21, 1918, the Germans launched a great offensive in the Somme River region. This drive to win the war had been planned by the German generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff. The battle began with a great artillery duel, followed by a rush of German troops. In a few days the advancing Germans overran the entire territory, which the British and French had taken two years to capture. The offensive ended on April 6, after the Germans had gained about 35 miles (56 kilometers). About 2,000 Americans in small units served well with the British in preventing the drive from becoming a rout.

The situation, however, was grave. Marshal Ferdinand Foch was made commander in chief of the Allied armies. American troops, though not yet battle seasoned, were to be used in combat units.

On May 27 the Germans again attacked in great force, this time along the Aisne River. For a week the French retreated. The battlefront soon was back on the Marne River at Château-Thierry, only 44 miles (71 kilometers) from Paris.

Three U.S. divisions were thrown into action at Château-Thierry, Cantigny, and Belleau Wood. In both defense and counterattack the Americans showed they were willing to make heavy sacrifices for victory. In proving their fighting ability they also inspired the veteran French and British troops to heroic efforts in stopping the Germans. The German drive was halted on June 6.

The Allies Advance

On July 15 the Germans started another drive. This developed into the Second Battle of the Marne. Now, however, the tide turned. French and American troops crushed the western flank of the German line from Château-Thierry north. The Germans ran for the Aisne to avoid capture. Twelve hard-fighting American divisions took part in this Allied offensive.

On August 8 the British opened a drive along the Somme. The Canadian corps drove forward 8 miles (13 kilometers) on the first day. This was the greatest single day’s advance against resistance in the war. In a little more than a month the Allies took 100,000 prisoners, and the Germans were in full retreat.

To prepare the way for the final drive to victory, in September the American troops captured the St-Mihiel salient, a triangular piece of land between Verdun and Nancy that the Germans had been occupying since 1914. A major drive through the Argonne Forest, then northward along the Meuse from Verdun to Sedan, began on September 26. Continuing into November, the French and American forces moved northward.

To the north even the small Belgian army began a drive. In a few days it had won more territory than the British had been able to gain in four months during the previous year.

While Germany was receiving these staggering blows, its allies were collapsing. Bulgaria signed an armistice on September 30. The Ottoman Empire surrendered on October 31. Italy recovered from the Caporetto disaster and inflicted a sharp defeat on Austria-Hungary. Austria-Hungary was granted an armistice on November 3 to take effect November 4.

The armistice granted to Austria-Hungary required it to demobilize its army, to surrender large strips of territory, and to give up most of its navy. It also had to expel German troops from inside its borders, and it had to let the Allies use its railroads. These terms amounted to unconditional surrender.

Collapse of Germany

Germany’s home front collapsed as its armies retreated on all battle fronts. On October 3 the German rulers requested an armistice. While the Allies were discussing terms, mutiny broke out in the German fleet at Kiel. It spread to Hamburg and Bremen.

The Independent Socialists in Berlin then refused to support the government any longer. Rulers of the kingdoms of Bavaria and Württemberg abdicated. The German kaiser himself abdicated at Spa on November 9 and fled to The Netherlands the next day. A temporary government was formed in Berlin. This government arranged for a national convention to be held in Weimar to form a republic.

The armistice terms were now ready, and the Germans were called to receive them. A delegation crossed the lines and was taken to Marshal Foch’s railroad traveling car headquarters near Compiègne. At daybreak on November 11 the Germans signed a general armistice. Six hours later, at 11:00 am , the guns stopped firing.

Terms of the Armistice

The terms of the armistice were hard. President Wilson had warned the Germans that they would be. The German army was required to move all its forces to a line about 6 miles (10 kilometers) east of the Rhine River. Allied troops occupied the evacuated territory as well as the cities of Mainz, Cologne, and Coblenz.

Most of the German fleet, including all submarines, was surrendered to the Allies. The Germans also had to give up great quantities of military supplies. These included 5,000 cannons, 25,000 machine guns, 5,000 locomotives, and 150,000 railroad cars. The treaties that the Germans imposed on the Russians and the Romanians earlier in the war were revoked. The Germans, finally, had to surrender all their prisoners and promise to pay reparations for war damages.

The Germans began the withdrawal of their troops at once. The Allied troops followed closely without trouble. The war was now at an end. There still remained the task of planning for peace.

How the War Came to the United States

The United States was a neutral nation when World War I started in 1914. It was an American tradition that the wars of Europe were not the business of the United States. Under international law the United States as a neutral had the right to continue its trade with any of the nations at war ( see blockade ; international law ).

Events soon brought a change in the attitude of the United States toward the war. Germany’s actions caused this change. Most Americans objected to Germany’s violation of Belgian neutrality, and Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare was a violation of international law. Acts of German sabotage in the United States and the use of poison gas in warfare also helped to change American public opinion. But the trigger of the nationwide demand for war against Germany was the publication of the Zimmermann Telegram in the American press on March 1, 1917, revealing Germany’s secret overture to Mexico for support in war against the United States. Americans came to believe that democratic government would be unsafe if Germany won the war.

The United States Enters the War

President Wilson tried hard during his first term in office to keep the United States out of the war. He also tried to get the warring nations to negotiate a peace. These efforts failed. Germany continued its unrestricted submarine warfare. On March 4, 1917, Wilson was inaugurated for a second term. On April 2 he read to Congress a message stating that war had already begun with the acts of Germany. He stated that the aim of the United States in entering the war was to make a “world safe for democracy.” Congress declared war on April 6, 1917.

Some preparations for war had already been made in the United States. For example, Congress in 1916 had passed the National Defense Act, which enlarged the army. Appropriations for a larger navy had also been approved. In addition, Congress had created a Council of National Defense. The Council was to prepare for mobilization of the civilian population and to coordinate industries and resources for national security and defense.

All these efforts, however, had made the United States only partially ready for war. The greatest war effort the country had ever made still lay ahead.

Organizing the Army

The U.S. Regular Army numbered less than 135,000 soldiers. The Allies urged that a U.S. unit be sent overseas at once to help morale. The 1st Division landed in France on June 26, 1917. It fired its first shot on October 23, 1917.

Major General John J. Pershing was appointed commander in chief of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on May 26, 1917. He also landed in France in June. Pershing told the U.S. War Department soon after his arrival that the United States should try to have an army of 1 million soldiers in France by the following May. He also urged that the AEF should in time grow to from 3 to 4 million soldiers.

Nearly 3 million men were taken into military service under the Selective Service Act. This Act had been passed on May 18, 1917 ( see conscription ). Of the 93 combat divisions that were organized, 42 reached France and 30 saw combat service.

Some 20,000 freight cars and 1,500 locomotives were shipped in sections to France and assembled there by railway engineers. Every combat division needed 25 carloads of supplies for its daily use. The job of providing food and equipment was handled by the Services of Supply. The chief purchasing agent was Gen. Charles G. Dawes.

The Work of the AEF

In theory United States troops were to be sent to France in divisions of 30,000 soldiers. Actually they were sent as ships were found to carry them. Some troops that arrived in France were fully trained and equipped. Others had not even been taught how to load their rifles. Many of the soldiers had been called into service from reserve and guard units.

For a year after the United States entered the war Britain was slow in lending ships to transport U.S. troops. The danger of German success changed this. Britain provided troopships, and through the five months after April 1918 nearly 10,000 U.S. troops a day were sent to France.

It was not until August, however, that plans were made to use the U.S. First Army as a unit. Before that U.S. soldiers were used piecemeal to fill the gaps when troops of the other Allied armies broke before the German advance.

Organizing the Home Front

The troops needed clothing, food, and weapons. They also needed proper medical attention in camp and overseas. To meet all these needs the Council of National Defense set up the War Industries Board in the summer of 1917. The Food Administration urged greater production of food. It also taught the civilian population to go without sugar, wheat flour, meats, and fats. These foods were shipped overseas. The Fuel Administration stimulated coal production and restricted its use in the civilian sector of the economy.

Ships were needed to send soldiers, ammunition, and food overseas. The United States Shipping Board ordered ships in great numbers. The world’s greatest shipyard was built near Philadelphia. More than 60 million dollars was spent on this shipyard, which had 50 shipways. Many ships were also constructed in California shipyards.

The economic role of the United States in the war effort was critical. The country spent as much money in the war as it did on all the expenses of the government from 1791 to 1914. By June 30, 1919, the government had spent about 28 billion dollars directly for the war and had lent its allies nearly 10 billion dollars. Loans and costs growing out of the war were to continue for years.

The financial contribution of the United States was made possible largely because its citizens advanced more than 21 billion dollars to the government by purchasing Liberty and Victory bonds. The government increased its revenues also through a new income-tax law. Congress was given the legal authority to collect income taxes by the 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which was ratified in 1913.

How the Navy Helped

Admiral William S. Sims was sent to London in the spring of 1917. A fleet of destroyers followed him shortly thereafter. The destroyers helped to blockade Germany, pursued submarines, and convoyed merchant ships.

Several United States battleships joined the British fleet. The Navy helped to lay contact mines across the English Channel and also closed the northern outlet of the North Sea.

The AEF in Action

The AEF was tested in battle in the early summer of 1918. At Cantigny on May 26 the 1st Division took its objective and held it against counterattack. The next day the 2nd and 3rd Divisions hurried toward Château-Thierry to help fill the gap caused when the French armies broke before the Germans.

In the next two weeks Belleau Wood became a household name in the United States. There the Marine Brigade and the Army regiments of the 2nd Division fought heroically during June 1–26.

In August General Pershing and the Allied commanders agreed on a plan to use the U.S. First Army as a single unit in a major offensive. On September 12–13 the Americans, supported by French artillery, took St-Mihiel, which the Germans had held since their first drive in 1914.

The battle of the Meuse-Argonne continued from September 26 until November 11. In the 47 days of action, 29 American combat divisions were used. The battle was part of a general engagement that pressed against the entire length of the German line from Verdun to the English Channel. About 1.2 million Americans took part. When the drive ended, the war was over.

The Peace and Its Results

The Paris Peace Conference to draft the treaties to end World War I opened in January 1919. All the countries that had been at war with the Central Powers were represented.

One of the first acts of the Peace Conference was to draw up a constitution for a League of Nations . The League was planned to reduce the chances of another war. This Covenant of the League of Nations was made the first part of the Treaty of Versailles.

Signing the Treaties

The treaty was given to the German delegation to sign at Versailles (a town near Paris) on May 7, 1919. The German delegates strongly objected to its severe terms. They said the terms were not consistent with President Wilson’s Fourteen Points. The Allies made only small concessions. Finally, on June 28, 1919, the German delegates signed.

A treaty with Austria was signed on September 10, 1919, at St-Germain. Treaties were signed with Bulgaria at Neuilly on November 27, 1919, and with the Ottoman Empire at Sèvres on August 10, 1920.

The United States Rejects the League

The United States was not at first included among those nations making peace with Germany. The United States Senate rejected the act ratifying the Versailles Treaty on November 19, 1919, and again on March 19, 1920. Conservative Republican senators strongly objected to the United States entering the League of Nations, arguing that it would compromise national sovereignty. The lack of support from the United States seriously weakened the League.

The League was an issue in the United States presidential campaign of 1920. Republican candidate Warren G. Harding , who as a senator had opposed the League, was elected president with an overwhelming Republican majority in Congress.

A resolution was passed by Congress and signed by the president on July 2, 1921, ending the state of war between the United States and Germany and Austria. The United States then made treaties with Austria and Germany. These were signed on August 24 at Vienna and August 25 at Berlin.

Wars Continue

The Allied nations’ dreams of peace did not last long after the end of World War I. Most of the new disputes were over the control of certain European territories. These disputes and the efforts to settle them are discussed in the article on Europe .

One of the most serious tests of Allied peace plans occurred in the Ottoman Empire. The Treaty of Sèvres had greatly reduced the size of the Ottoman state, with Greece one of the major beneficiaries. Mustafa Kemal, a former Ottoman general, opposed the treaty and led a Turkish force that drove Greek troops from Asia Minor. The Allies then agreed to replace the Treaty of Sèvres with the Treaty of Lausanne. Signed on July 24, 1923, the new treaty set the boundaries of the modern state of Turkey .

Meanwhile, Syrians were rebelling against the French, who had taken control of Syria after the war. In October 1925 the French bombarded Damascus.

War Between “Whites” and “Reds” in Russia

The hardest and longest fighting was centered in Russia. In 1917 the Allies had stationed some 15,000 British and Americans in the city of Archangel. There were also some 8,000 Americans in Siberia. These forces remained in Russia at the close of the war.

From 1918 to 1920 fierce fighting took place in Russia between the Communist Bolsheviks (Reds) and their anti-Communist opponents (Whites). The Reds won this civil war. Allied troops were then removed, and the Allies gave up their policy of intervention in Russia. ( See also Russian Revolution .)

Russia was also at war with Poland during the early postwar period. On March 18, 1921, Russia and Poland signed a peace treaty that gave Poland a large slice of Russian territory. Russia also had to pay Poland a massive indemnity.

The Reparations Issue

A major postwar problem concerned the amount of money Germany should pay for its share in starting the war. On April 27, 1921, this sum was fixed by the Reparation Commission at 132 billion gold marks, or about 31.5 billion dollars. Part of this debt could be paid in goods.

In 1922 Germany fell behind in its reparations deliveries of coal. To enforce payment, in January 1923 France and Belgium occupied the Ruhr coal and iron district on the right bank of the Rhine. Germany responded by immediately stopping all reparations payments. In the economic panic that followed, German money became worthless and many Germans were financially ruined.

In 1923 two committees were formed by the Reparation Commission to solve these problems. The first and principal committee was headed by an American, Gen. Charles G. Dawes . The report that Dawes wrote came to be known as the Dawes Plan. It called for more reasonable reparations payments by Germany and also established a new German currency and a new Reichsbank.

At first the German debts were paid promptly under the Dawes Plan. By 1928, however, Germany again fell behind in its payments. A committee headed by Owen D. Young worked out a second agreement. The Young Plan went into effect on September 1, 1929.

Despite the Young Plan, by 1931 Germany was no longer able to make reparations payments. President Herbert Hoover suggested that Germany’s creditors grant Germany a delay of one year on all payments due them. This was called a moratorium. To make this possible he offered a moratorium on all debts due the United States by these same nations.

After Germany stopped making reparations payments in 1932, most of the other European nations stopped paying their war debts to the United States. One exception was Finland, which paid regularly.

Locarno and Kellogg-Briand Pacts

For a few years diplomatic relations among the nations of Europe seemed to run more smoothly. There were some territorial disputes during this period, but peace and friendship seemed to prevail between 1925 and 1930.

The major powers of Europe signed a nonaggression pact at Locarno, Switzerland, in October 1925. The Kellogg-Briand Pact, sponsored by U.S. Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg and French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand , was a further effort to ensure peace. It was signed in Paris by all the major nations of the world on August 27, 1928.

Period of Totalitarian Aggression

The territorial problems of Europe, however, had never really been settled. In 1929 a worldwide economic depression set in. As it spread more and more of the treaty agreements broke down.

Adolf Hitler became head of the German government in 1933. He soon announced that he intended to reject all the military limitations of the Versailles Treaty. The Allied nations protested and tried to meet the German challenge by increasing their own armaments.

It soon became clear that another war was in the making. Italy under Benito Mussolini allied itself with Germany. It seized Ethiopia and Albania. Further, the peace settlements at the end of World War I had forbidden the union of Austria with Germany. In 1934, however, Hitler’s Nazis assassinated Austria’s Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss. A few years later Germany occupied Austria. Next it moved into Czechoslovakia. Meanwhile, in the Far East, Japan invaded Manchuria and then China.

Lawrence D. Steefel

George Frederick Zook

Additional Reading

Adams, Simon . World War I (DK Publishing, 2023).

Freedman, Russell . The War to End All Wars: World War I (Sandpiper, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013).

Grant, R.G. World War I: The Definitive Visual History (DK Publishing, 2024).

Hale, Nathan. Above the Trenches (Amulet Books, 2023).

Hale, Nathan . Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood (Amulet Books, 2014).

Heinrichs, Ann . Voices of World War I: Stories from the Trenches (Capstone Press, 2011).

Nardo, Don . Cause and Effect: World War I (ReferencePoint Press, Inc., 2018).

Osborne, Linda Barrett . Come On In, America: The United States and World War I (Scholastic, 2018).

Otfinoski, Steven . World War I (Scholastic, 2017).

Pratt, Mary K . World War I (ABDO Publishing Company, 2014).

Rasmussen, R. Kent . World War I for Kids: A History with 21 Activities (Chicago Review Press, 2014).

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World War I (WW1) Facts & Worksheets

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Table of Contents

World War I (WW1) also known as the First World War, was a global war centered in Europe that began on 28th July 1914 and lasted until 11th November 1918. The war lasted exactly four years, three months and 14 days. Before World War II began in 1939, World War I was called the Great War, the World War or the War to End all Wars. 135 countries took part in World War I, and more than 15 million people died. See the fact file below for more information about World War I.

World War 1 was a military conflict lasting from 1914 to 1918 which involved nearly all the biggest powers of the world. It involved two opposing alliances – the Allies and the Central Powers. The countries of the Allies included Russia, France, British Empire, Italy, United States, Japan, Rumania, Serbia, Belgium, Greece, Portugal and Montenegro. The countries of the Central Powers included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria.

The WW1 facts listed on this page are amazing and very interesting when you consider that the events happened in very recent history.

WW1 Facts for Kids

• World War I triggered on June 28, 1914.  World War 1 was triggered on 28 June 1914 by the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his pregnant wife Sophie. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was the nephew of Emperor Franz Josef and heir to the throne of Austria and Hungary. The assassination was planned by a Serbian terrorist group, called The Black Hand and the man who shot Franz Ferdinand and his wife was a Bosnian revolutionary named Gavrilo Princip.
• A primary cause of WW1 was a difference over foreign policy.  Although the assassination of Franz Ferdinand triggered WW1, that was only the immediate cause. Differences over foreign policy between the major world powers was the underlying cause of the war.
• A tangle of alliances made between countries, to maintain a balance power in Europe, which brought about the scale of the conflict.
• The Bosnian Crisis where Austria-Hungary took over the former Turkish province of Bosnia in 1909 angering Serbia.
• Countries were building their military forces, arms and battleships.
• Countries wanted to regain lost territories from previous conflicts and build empires.
• The Moroccan Crisis where Germans were protesting in 1911 against the French possession of Morocco.
• World War I was known by a number of different names.  Other names for World War 1 include ‘The War to End All Wars’, The War of the Nations, WW1 and ‘The Great War’.
• The Americans joined World War 1 after 128 Americans were killed by a German submarine.  In 1915, the British passenger sip Lusitania was sunk by a German submarine. In all, 1,195 passengers, including 128 Americans, lost their lives. Americans were outraged and put pressure on the U.S. government to enter the war. President Woodrow Wilson wanted a peaceful end to the war, but in 1917, when the Germans announced that their submarines would sink any ship that approached Britain, Wilson declared that America would enter the war and restore peace to Europe. The United States entered the war on April 6, 1917.
• 8 million soldiers died in WW1 and 21 million were injured.  65 million troops were mobilized during during the war, 8 million troops died and 21 million troops were wounded. 58,000 British soldiers were lost on the first day at the Battle of the Somme. Chemical weapons were first used in World War I. The chemical was mustard gas.
• The United States only spent seven and a half months in actual combat.  The U.S. was in the war in actual combat for only seven and a half months during which time 116,000 were killed and 204,000 were wounded. In the Battle of Verdun in 1916, there were over a million casualties in ten months.
• By 1918, German citizens were striking and demonstrating against the war. The British navy blocked German ports, which meant that thousands of Germans were starving and the economy was collapsing. Then the German navy suffered a major mutiny. After German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated on November 9th, 1918, the leaders of both sides met at Compiegne, France. The peace armistice was signed on November 11th. By the end of the war four empires — the Russian empire, the Ottoman empire, the German empire, and the Austro-Hungarian empire had collapsed because of the war.
• In 1919, The Treaty of Versailles officially ended the WW1. The Treaty required that Germany accept full responsibility for causing the war; make reparations to some Allied countries; surrender some of its territory to surrounding countries; surrender its African colonies; and limit the size of its military. The Treaty also established the League of Nations to prevent future wars. The League of Nations helped Europe rebuild and fifty-three nations joined by 1923. But the U.S. Senate refused to let the United States join the League of Nations, and as a result, President Wilson, who had established the League, suffered a nervous collapse and spent the rest of his term as an invalid.
• Germany joined the League of Nations in 1926, but many Germans were very resentful of the Treaty of Versailles. Germany and Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in 1933. Italy withdrew three years later. The League of Nations was unable to stop German, Italian, and Japanese from expanding their power and taking over smaller countries. Many believe World War I never really ended, and that World War II never would have happened if not for WW1.

More Interesting Facts about WW1

• An explosion on the battlefield in France was heard in England.  Most of World War One was fought in mud and trenches, but a group of miners would also dug underground tunnels and detonate mines behind the enemy’s trenches. In Messines Ridge in Belgium, these miners detonated over 900,000lbs of explosives at the same time, destroying the German front line. The explosion was so loud and powerful that it was heard by the British Prime Minister David Lloyd George – 140 miles away in Downing Street.
• WW1 journalists risked their lives to report on the war.  The Government tried to control the flow of information from the frontline during the war and journalists were banned from reporting. The War Office considered reporting on the war as helping the enemy and if journalists were caught, the faced the death penalty. A handful of journalists did risk their lives to report on the war and the harsh realities that the soldiers faced.
• 12 million letters were delivered to the frontline every week.  Even during times of war, it only took two days for a letter to be delivered from Britain to France. A purpose-built mail sorting office was created in Regent’s Park before the letters were sent to the trenches on the frontline. By the time the war ended, over two billion letters and 114 million parcels had been delivered to the trenches!
• Plastic surgery was invented because of WW1.  One of the earliest examples of plastic surgery came during World War I when a surgeon by the name of Harold Gillies helped shrapnel victims with terrible facial injuries. Shrapnel caused many facial injuries in WW1 and the twisted metal would inflict far worse injuries than the straight-line wounds of a bullet. Dr Gillies pioneered the early techniques for facial reconstruction.
• The youngest British soldier in WW1 was just 12 years old.  Over 250,000 underage soldiers were allowed to fight in World War 1. The youngest was a boy named Sidney Lewis who was just 12 years old but lied about his age to join. There were many thousands of underage boys who enlisted and most lied about their age. Some joined for the love of their country, while others did it to escape from the lives and the poor conditions they lived in.
• Blood banks were developed during World War I.  It was during WW1 that the routine use of blood transfusion was used to treat wounded soldiers. Blood was transferred directly from one person to another. In 1917, a US Army doctor by the name of Captain Oswald Johnson established the first blood bank on the Western Front. He used sodium citrate the prevent the blood from coagulating and becoming unusable. The blood was kept on ice for as long as 28 days and was transported when needed to casualty clearing stations for use in life-saving surgery on soldiers who had lost a lot of blood.
• 9 out of 10 British soldiers survived the trenches.  British solders were rarely in the firing line in WW1. They moved around the trench system constantly and were usually kept from the dangers of enemy fire. Most British soldiers life in World War I would have regular routine and boredom.
• Army generals had to be banned from going ‘over the top’.  One common stereotype is that ordinary solders were used by the higher ups – lions led by donkeys as the saying goes. The donkeys being the incompetent generals who didn’t spend any time on the frontline while thousands of solders – the lions – were killed. Actually, so many British generals wanted to fight and they had to be banned from going over the top because they were being killed and the experience of a general was too important to lose.

World War 1 Worksheets

COMPLETE 40 page guide to World War 1.

This entire Unit plan will give your students or children the entire education they need on the Great War. With over 40 pages of challenging worksheets and activities, this is a comprehensive unit plan to use in any learning environment.

Within this unit you will explore all aspects of WW1. From the background & the cause of WW1 right through to the conditions those soldier’s had to endure who were in the trenches. Students are also challenged at the end of each study guide with a number of unique worksheets. Each worksheet has been designed to specifically test the child’s knowledge and understanding of the Great War. Below are listed the main concepts that students may understand by the completion of these worksheets.

Concepts taught in this unit plan

• Students carefully read the text and answer challenging questions based on the accompanying study guide.
• Variety of worksheets and concepts to expand the students mind and align with common core study criteria.

Key learning points:

• Highlight the severity & conditions men, women and children endured throughout the war
• Encourages the student to apply knowledge learnt to their studies.
• Engages their brain in critical thinking.
• Worksheets aim to generate analysis and understanding of this historic subject.
• The student will actively reflect on their studied and help them gain a deeper understanding of what conditions were like for those involved.

This download includes the following worksheets:

• Westward Expansion Facts
• The Original Thirteen Colonies
• Mapping the West
• Native American Indian Tribes
• Transportation and Communication
• California Gold Rush
• Pros and Cons of Expansion
• U.S Presidents
• Manifest Destiny
• Wild Wild West
• United States Today

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Home » World War 1

World War 1

World War 1 facts for kids learning KS2 at Primary School. Homework help about history of the Great War, how it ended and Remembrance Day.

Time:  28 th July 1914 - 11 th November 1918

World War 1 was also known as The Great War. It had more countries involved in the war than any other war. More than 65 million men fought in the war. Over 9 million soldiers were killed and 21 million men wounded.

So how did the war start? There was always problems with Britain, France and Russia on one side and Germany and Austria-Hungary on the other. But on 28the June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand (heir to the Austrian throne) was shot by a Serbian student.

Obviously the Austrians were not happy and with Germany's help they attacked Serbia. Russia then stepped in to help Serbia and the two sides were at war.

The German/Austrian side soon moved to northern France. Here the war didn't move any further for four years. This was known as the Western Front.

By this time many countries were involved. With Germany and Austria-Hungary were Turkey and Bulgaria. And with Britain, France and Russia were Italy, Greece and Portugal. The war also extended with fighting in Africa and the Middle East.

German submarines sank any ship going to a British port. Some of the ships were American. This caused the Americans to join the war in 1917. This was now The Greatest War of all time.

Frightful First World War

The war ended when the Russians were exhausted by the war and make peace with Germany. Germany continued to attack on the Western Front but they were forced back and Germany surrendered on 11 th November 1918. The war finally ended.

Remembrance Day

Every year on 11 th November we wear poppies and remember the millions of people that fought in this war and all the others since. This is called Remembrance Day but also called Armistice Day. It is on the same day as World War One ended. Not only do we remember and say thank you to the brave men and women who fought in the war, but we remember all the armed forces over the years and even the ones that protect us today.

Why do we wear poppies?

Poppies were the flowers that grew on the battlefields after World War I, and people wear them as a symbol of remembrance to honour those who fought and died in wars. We also have a minute of silence at the 11th hour (11 am). We all stop and think quietly about the war heroes that are no longer with us.

What is Remembrance Sunday?

Remembrance Sunday is always on the second Sunday of November. The Royal Family lay wreaths of poppies at the Cenotaph (war memorial) in London and will have a minute of silence at 11 am along with the rest of the country. Ceremonies take place at war memorials and churches all over the country.

Also on Super Brainy Beans

History for Kids

World War I Facts for Kids

Table of Contents

What was the First World War?

• During the beginning of the 20th century, various political powers across Europe had come face to face in what became one of the deadliest wars in human history. 
• The various battles fought among the world powers between 1914 to 1918 are collectively known as World War I or the Great War.
• Over 9 million military personnel and 13 million civilians died in the destruction caused by World War I. It was the first time machines were used on a large scale in military operations. 
• This war also saw the use of navy and airforce as independent military operations. Various new innovations were made to airplanes and submarines to support the cause of either side. 
• On 28 June 1914, a Bosnian-Serb nationalist called Gavrilo Princip assassinated the Archduke of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 
• This event sparked the outbreak of war between the European countries, however, soon many world powers like Japan and the United States of America also joined on either side. 
• The historical enmity between the European powers, the internal political instability, the existence of secret treaties among the nations, and the ambition to expand territories of their respective empires are considered as main causes for the outbreak of the Great War.
• The two blocks that fought the war initially were formed by the agreements of Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. They were meant to be defensive in nature with the goal of balancing power in Europe. 
• Russia, Britain, and France had created a coalition in order to check the rising aspirations of Germany, and Germany, in turn, had made arrangements with Italy and Austria in case of a war waged by France or Russia.
• However, despite several peace treaties and compromises, the great powers of Europe were not able to find a middle ground resulting in carnage and destruction at a never before seen scale caused due to trench warfare and new military technologies. 
• Over 70 million military crew were mobilized all over the globe out of which 60 million of the military personnel involved were of European ethnicity. The First World War was one of the biggest wars in history. 

Read about World War I Trenches Facts

Historical Background and Context

• The European landscape toward the end of the 19th century had rapidly changed due to industrialization and modern science. Several nations had heavily invested in innovation, technology, trade, and colonialism. 
• Britain was mainly concerned with the expansion of its colonies across the globe and ignored the politics of Europe in what they called the ‘splendid isolation’. 
• Russia had grown its military to compete with the other European powers, however, economically Russia was the most backward and faced internal political challenges.
• France had lost the territory of Alsace-Lorraine to Germany in the Franco-Prussian War of 1871. This had given rise to revanchism in France, wherein their foreign policy revolved around the reversal of the loss due to their defeat against Germany. 
• Germany, on the other hand, was successful in establishing the Prussian Hegemony due to their victory against Austria-Hungary in 1866 and later in 1871 by defeating France. The victory against France gave birth to the German Reich. 
• Austria-Hungary was under tremendous pressure due to the rising nationalism in her territory. 
• Furthermore, the region of Balkans had become a contentious issue resulting in tensions between Russia and Austria-Hungary and also Italy and Austria-Hungary as both believed that they had a justifiable claim on the said regions. 
• Italy was concerned with colonizing parts of Africa and needed alliances to fight against the French presence in the region.
• None of the European powers had solid friendships due to their violent past and often conflicting ambitions. They all were suspicious of each other and heavily invested in securing themselves in case of further attacks. 
• This gave rise to the signing of various secret pacts among the European nations. Chancellor Bismarck of Germany constructed an intricate web of alliances to protect Germany’s interests mainly against France and Russia. 
• The League of Three Emperors was formed in 1872 to unite the Germans, Austro-Hungarians, and Russians. The main goal of this treaty was to isolate France. 
• The Russians agreed to the treaty because it supported Russia against the anarchist unions. However, the compromise with Austria-Hungary over the Balkan issue soon became the reason for the deterioration of this alliance. 
• Due to Russia’s victory in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, many parts of the Balkan had been given to Russia according to the Treaty of San Stefano. However, the Austro-Hungarians strongly opposed it. 
• Germany then attempted to reverse the provisions of the Treaty of San Stefano in the Treaty of Berlin formed in 1878, severely restricting Russia’s political gains from the war.
• This resulted in tensions with Russia, which Chancellor Bismarck attempted to soothe with the Reinsurance Treaty in 1887. 
• However, the treaty lapsed and all hope of reconciliation died when Chancellor Bismarck was forced to resign by the new German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II.
• The Weltpolitik of the new German Emperor propelled him to challenge rival powers in the area of navy and colonialism. 
• At the suggestion of Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz, the German Navy Laws were created. This led to the exponential growth of the country’s navy and by 1914 it had become the second-largest in the world. 
• They had 17 modern dreadnoughts, 5 battlecruisers, 25 cruisers, and 20 battleships, 10 diesel-powered U-boats, and 30 petrol-powered submarines. 
• These developments in Germany woke Britain up from her ‘splendid isolation’ and many attempts were made to form a treaty between the two competing naval forces. 
• However, due to rumors about a possible alliance between Russia and Britain, the progress was thwarted and Britain chose to ally with Russia instead. 
• Russia and Britain also had several issues. Both nations had claims in the regions of the Middle-East and India. 
• However, for the sake of protecting their position in Europe, both countries agreed to put their differences behind and reach a compromise. 
• Similarly, France and England had to cross several bridges resulting from their historical wars and competing claims in Africa. They too decided to assist each other against the growing threat of the central European alliances. 
• With the signing of the Entente Cordiale in 1904 between Britain and France and the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907, a formidable force called the Triple Entente was formed. 
• This treaty was mainly an agreement and not an obligation to fight one another’s war. It was a direct result of the formation of the Triple Alliance which did promise the signing nations military support in case of aggression by any other state. 
• The Triple Alliance was formed on 20 May 1882 between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. It promised Germany and Austria-Hungary military support against France and Russia. It also promised neutrality from Italy if Russia were to attack Austria-Hungary.

Other Causes of World War I

• The Balkan issue was the most serious to the political situation in Europe before the outbreak of the war. It was known as the ‘power keg of Europe’ due to the various competing claims on the region and its territories. 
• In 1908, the Bosnian Crisis began because Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia from the Ottoman Empire. This outraged the Kingdom of Serbia and the Orthodox Russian Empire. 
• The Italo-Turkish War between 1911 and 1912 gave birth to nationalism in the Balkan states and led to the Balkan Wars. 
• The first two of the Balkan Wars were controlled by the European powers, however, the third one spread in a global war almost as soon as it began.
• In 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand who was the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary traveled to the capital city of Bosnia called Sarajevo with his wife Sophie. 
• A group of 6 assassins belonging to the Yugoslavian Youth Group called Mlada Bosna planned to kill Franz Ferdinand. They were armed with pistols and grenades supplied by the Serbian Black Hand. 
• The first attempt to assassinate the Archduke failed as the grenade missed the target and ended up hurting the bystanders. However, just an hour later Gavrilo Princip shot both Franz and Sophie with a pistol when they were returning from the Sarajevo hospital.
• This event did not provoke any strong reactions in Vienna, however, it did have a cathartic reaction in the politics of Austria-Hungary. Austria-Hungary accused the Serbian government and made the decision to settle the issue of Serbian nationalism for good. 

Important Details of World War I

• The decision to wage war against Serbia was strengthened when Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm assured Austria-Hungary of its support as a ‘carte blanche’ or a blank check.
• Austria-Hungary proceeded to make impossible demands from the Serbian government and Serbia in retaliation sought assistance from Russia. 
• Austria-Hungary declared war against Serbia on 28 July 1914 and from then on, the political situation in Europe rapidly devolved. 
• On the one side of the conflict were Austria-Hungary and Germany and the other side included Russia, Britain, Belgium, France, and Serbia. 
• The aggression on Serbia by Austria-Hungary was retaliated by the deployment of Russian forces in support of Serbia. This did not, however, deter Germany from joining the war on the side of Austria-Hungary. 
• Germany was following a military strategy known as the Schlieffen Plan. It was masterminded by German Field Marshal Alfred von Schlieffen.
• According to the plan, Germany would fight the war on two fronts to gain a quick victory against France by invading neutral Belgium and weaken Russian Forces by fighting on the eastern front. 
• The German army invaded Belgium on August 4, 1914, causing massive destruction on its way. The city of Liege was attacked with siege cannons and many civilians including a Belgian priest were killed by the army.
• The British and French forces fought against the German forces in the Battle of Marne when the German forces had invaded northeastern France as close as 30 miles from Paris. 
• The resistance put up by the British and French armies forced Germany to retreat back to the Aisne River. The plan for a quick victory in France was effectively thwarted. 
• Both sides then dug trenches and engaged in a 3-year long war of attrition. The resulting battles fought in Verdun and Somme cost the German and French troops over a million casualties and hundreds and thousands of deaths.
• On the east, Russia invaded Germany in East Prussia and Poland, however, they were stopped by the German and Austro-Hungarian army in the Battle of Tannenberg in August 1914.
• Russia’s ability to mobilize its war machinery in the east forced Germany to move two corps to the eastern front from the western front. This weakened Germany in the Battle of Marne and the long war effort crushed the plans made by Schlieffen.

The Russian Revolution and the American Entrance

• The grueling warfare against the German forces came at great costs to Russia. The poverty-stricken workers resented the economic instability caused by the continued war efforts against Germany.
• Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks staged the Russian Revolution in 1917 which brought an end to the rulership of Czar Nicholas II and paused Russia’s involvement in the Great War.
• An armistice was reached between Russia and the Central powers which allowed the Germans to concentrate their war effort only on the western front. 
• They declared that the water around the British Isles is a warzone and consequently sunk many commercial and passenger vessels. 
• Some of these vessels were US ships or ships carrying American passengers. Under the leadership of President Woodrow Wilson America had stayed neutral and conducted trade with both sides.
• However, the increasing protests in America over the sinking of the U-boat called Lusitania brought the US into the first world war as well. Congress had passed a $250 million arms appropriations bill for the purpose in February 1917. 
• In April 1917, after Germany sank four more U.S vessels President Wilson declared war against Germany.
• On the western front, Britain and France were finding it difficult to resist the German forces. Germany had launched another offensive in the Second Battle of Marne. 
• However, the reinforcements supplied by the US and Britain helped the Allied forces push the Germans back and also stage a counteroffensive in just 3 days. 
• This led to Germany calling off any further planned offensives and the Allies were able to regain large territories of France as well as Belgium.
• By this time the central powers had weakened on all fronts and their internal political instability forced them to reach a settlement with the Allies and end the First World War. 
• On November 11, 1918, Germany officially surrendered and on June 28, 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed between both sides. 
• The war had caused the death of over 13 million people. Over 2.64 million more deaths were caused in Europe due to the outbreak of the Spanish Flu during 1918. 
• The signing nations hoped that the destruction and carnage of the First World War will deter the world from ever warring again. 
• https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/world-war-i-history
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I#Background

World War I

• More than 65 million men fought in the war.
• Dogs were used in the trenches to carry messages. A well-trained messenger dog was considered a very fast and reliable way to carry messages.
• It was the first major war where airplanes and tanks were used.
• Ninety percent of the 7.8 million soldiers from Austria-Hungary who fought in the war were either injured or killed.
• When the British first invented tanks they called them "landships."
• The terrorist group responsible for assassinating Archduke Ferdinand was called the Black Hand.
• Famed scientist Marie Curie helped to equip vans with x-ray machines that enabled French doctors to see bullets in wounded men. These vans were called "petites Curies", meaning "little Curies."
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