At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the major European powers entered the stage of imperialism, and the emerging imperialist countries strongly demanded the division of the colonies of the old imperialist countries. To this end, countries have expanded their armaments and wars and sought alliances. The two sides are even more fierce, and neither side will give in. Before the outbreak of the First World War, Europe seemed to be calm and quiet, but in fact, it had already surged undercurrents.
The trigger of the First World War: the events of Sarajevo.
With strong German support, Austria-Hungary decided to hold large-scale military exercises in Sarajevo, Bosnia, near the Serbian border. The date was chosen for June 28, the day of serbia's conquest by the Turks (June 28, 1386) and Serbia's "Day of National Shame". This action by the Austro-Hungarian Empire greatly infuriated the Serbian nationalists.
On June 28, 1914, after Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, commanded a military exercise, Ferdinand and his wife were shot and killed by the Serbian nationalist Princip. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 July, and World War I officially broke out.
Serbia turned to Russia for help, russia openly supported Serbia, and on the other side Germany allied itself with Austria-Hungary. The European powers chose to take sides one after another, and the countries involved in the First World War were divided into two major forces. On one side was the Allied Powers headed by Britain, France, and Russia, and serbia, Belgium, Romania, and Greece, while the other was the Allied Powers of Austria-Hungary, Italy, The Ottomans, and Bulgarian States, headed by Germany.
Many people jokingly called the First World War "a large family conflict dispute." King George V of England and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia are cousins. German Emperor Wilhelm II and British Emperor George V were cousins.
The royal families of other countries also have many blood relations, in a sense, it is a cousin beating a cousin, an uncle beating a nephew, and an uncle helping a nephew's relatives fight.
Beginning in August, the Germans, based on the Schlieffen plan drawn up before the war, intended to launch a large-scale offensive on the Western Front first. However, due to the strenuous resistance of the British, French and Belgian armies at the Battle of the Marne, the German plan for a quick battle collapsed. At the end of October, the Germans launched the first Battle of Ypres, in which the two sides won and lost each other, and finally reached a stalemate. Since then, the Western Front has formed a long front from the Swiss border to the Strait of Calais, entering the stage of position warfare.
In April 1915, Italy, which had originally belonged to the Allied camp, suddenly defected, signed the Treaty of London with the Allies and declared war on austria-Hungary, joining the Allies.
At sea, after the Battle of Jutland, Britain still had a firm grip on the sea. There was a strong anti-war sentiment among the armies and the populace, and Germany wanted to win as soon as possible. Launched an "unlimited submarine war", hundreds of submarines were ordered to arbitrarily attack merchant ships to Britain, in an attempt to cut off Britain's maritime supply chain, forcing Britain to surrender as soon as possible, the attack on merchant ships included a large number of American merchant ships, the United States wanted to remain neutral and make war money, but Germany's move angered the United States, in 1917, the United States declared war on Germany. The Entente camp increased to 27 countries. Beginning at the beginning of the same year, the "February Revolution" and the "October Revolution" broke out in Russia, and finally withdrew from the First World War. In March 1918, the Germans began an offensive on the Western Front, but failed. On 8 August, the Allied forces, under the command of Marshal Ferdinand Foch of France, began a counter-offensive, driving the Germans out of France and Belgium, and the main German forces began to disintegrate rapidly. On 15 September, the Bulgarian army was crushed and surrendered to the Allies on the 29th. Turkey surrendered on 31 October. On 3 November, austria-Hungary surrendered. On November 4, sailors of the Naval Fleet of Kiel Naval Harbor held an uprising, and on November 9, workers and soldiers in Berlin, Germany, held a general strike and an armed uprising, and Kaiser Wilhelm II was forced to declare his abdication under the condition of internal and external difficulties, and fled to the Netherlands on the 10th.
On November 11, 1918, Germany officially announced its surrender. On June 28, 1919, the victorious powers signed the Treaty of Versailles in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles. Under the terms of the treaty, Germany lost 13.5% of its territory, 12.5% of its population, all its overseas colonies, 16% of its coal-producing areas, and half of its steel industry. Germany needed to pay a total of 226 billion marks (about 11.3 billion pounds) in gold, which was later reduced to 132 billion Reichsmarks. In 1921, the amount of compensation was determined at 4.99 billion pounds, or 132 billion marks. Many believe that this heavy reparations put a heavy shackle on the German economy and indirectly led to the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany and became the cause of The Second World War.
With the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, World War I officially ended.