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Austria’s Ultimatum to Serbia
An ultimatum that Austria issued to Serbia on July 23, 1914, escalating tensions between the two nations. The ultimatum demanded that Serbia crack down on anti-Austrian propaganda in the Serbian press and that Serbia allow Austria to participate directly in judicial proceedings to prosecute the parties guilty of assassinating Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Battle of Mons
A battle on August 23, 1914, that was one of the earliest battles on the western front. The German advance in Belgium overwhelmed British and French forces, who began a 14-day retreat to the outskirts of Paris.
Battle of Tannenberg
A battle in Prussia (present-day Poland) on August 26–30, 1914, in which two German armies under command of General Paul Von Hindenburg engaged Russia’s Second Army under General Alexander Samsonov. It was a catastrophic defeat for Russia, which suffered over 120,000 casualties.
Battle of the Bight
A battle on August 28, 1914, in which the British Royal Navy baited German warships in Helgoland Bight (a German North Sea bay) out to sea, where British forces sank three of the German ships with few losses of their own.
The First Battle of the Marne
A battle on September 5–12, 1914, in which Allied forces, following their retreat from Mons, stopped German forces on the banks of the Marne River and forced them back 45 miles to the river Aisne.
Battle of the Masurian Lakes
An engagement on September 9–14, 1914, in which two German armies under the command of General Paul Von Hindenburg defeated Russia’s First Army under General Paul Von Rennenkampf. Russia suffered 125,000 casualties.
Battle of Coronel
A November 1, 1914, engagement in which the German East Asia Squadron defeated a weaker British squadron off the coast of Argentina.
Battle of the Falkland Islands
A battle on December 8, 1914, in which the British decimated the German East Asia Squadron during an attack on the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic.
Battle of Gallipoli
A lengthy campaign, lasting from April 25, 1915, to January 6, 1916, in which Britain invaded Turkey’s Gallipoli Peninsula as part of its effort to force open the Dardanelles, the strait between Europe and Asia. The operation failed and cost hundreds of thousands of lives before the British abandoned the operation and evacuated their forces at the start of 1916.
Battle of Verdun
The longest and one of the deadliest battles of the war, lasting from February 21 to December 18, 1916. Germany, hoping to wear France down and inflict large numbers of casualties, assaulted the fortified town of Verdun, which blocked the German forces’ path to Paris. The battle ended without a clear victor, despite the deaths of more than 650,000 soldiers.
Battle of the Somme
One of the largest battles of the war, fought in northern France from July 1 to November 18, 1916, simultaneously with the Battle Of Verdun. The Battle of the Somme was the result of an Allied offensive along a twenty-five-mile front. Although it ended up as a small victory for the Allied Powers, it cost them 146,000 lives in order to advance less than six miles.
Battle of Messines Ridge
An intensive June 7, 1917, assault by the British on German forces in northern France. The British began preparations six months in advance, digging nineteen tunnels under a ridge where the Germans were entrenched and then filling the tunnels with explosives. The operation was a success and forced the Germans to retreat.
Battle of Passchendaele
An engagement lasting from September 20 to October 12, 1917, in which British forces in Belgium continued to push the Germans back. The fighting was especially miserable because it was carried out during a period of heavy rains.
