- In 1914, the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of Hunger and Austria, by Serbian terrorist led Austria to declare war upon Serbia.
- Later in the month of August Germany invaded Belgium and also declared war on France and Russia. These event led to the most terrible war of that time, The World War I.
- There were two main groups who waged war against each other. There were the Allies, made up of America, Britain, France, Russia and Italy on one side and Germany, Hungary, Austria, Turkey etc. on the other.
- Though most of this war was fought in Europe, there was also fighting in the Pacific, Middle East and in Africa.
- It was for the first time in World War I that airplanes were used to wage war. The German pilot Manfred Von Richthofen was one of the first ace pilots of the German Air Force.
- In 1916 the British used tanks for the first time in World War I in France. The Germans used submarines to attack and sink allied ships thus preventing supplies from reaching Britain.
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- In one such attack in May 1915, a German submarine sank the British Passenger liner Lusitania and killed over 100 people.
- During the initial years of the war, morale ran high and thousands of young men joined the armed forces and went to fight for their country.
- Gradually it became clear that little was being achieved at very high cost of human lives and sufferings.
- The war effort was supported by many women who worked day and night in ammunition factories.
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- Till 1918 the Austrian allies look stronger and it was felt that they might win. However the large British forces outnumbered the Austrians and Germans.
- The British Navy blocked the ports and cut off the supplies to the Germans and thus changed the fortunes of war.
- In November 1918 the Germans forces surrendered and the war ended. The war took its toll on all and over ten million people died within a span of almost for years.
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