Page 64 - 100 Events That Made History
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Franz Franz Ferdinand
died from a single
Ferdinand gunshot wound to
his neck.
assassinated
How the pulling of a trigger
set off a global WAR
In 1914, tempers in Europe were short
as different countries picked quarrels
with one another. When the heir to the
throne of Austria-Hungary was murdered
in Sarajevo, the built-up tension boiled
over into all-out war.
Divided Europe
Fierce rivalry between European
countries for trade and territory had
created a hostile atmosphere, with two
alliance systems at work. Germany,
Austria, and Italy worked together, with
Britain, France, and Russia declaring
each other allies. The German ruler,
Kaiser Wilhelm II, wanted to make his
country a world power. When he built
up a formidable navy, both France
and Britain were alarmed by the
German ruler Kaiser KAISER’S AGGRESSION.
Wilhelm II (left), and
Austria’s Emperor Franz
Joseph were staunch allies.
What came after…
At the BATTLE OF GALLIPOLI, During the five-month BATTLE OF
in 1915, the British and THE SOMME in France, in 1916,
their allies suffered huge more than a million soldiers
casualties fighting were killed. Britain lost
against Turkey, which about 20,000 men on
sided with Germany. the first day alone.
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