War Deaths - World War I

World War I, also known as the First World War, Great War and War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved the majority of the world's great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Entente Powers and the Central Powers. Over 70 million military personnel were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history. In a state of total war, the major combatants placed their scientific and industrial capabilities at the service of the war effort. Over 15 million people were killed, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in human history.

The war started in 1914 with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, which prompted Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia. Russia, Germany and France then entered the war, with Great Britain declaring war on Germany after an appeal from Belgium.

There were major weapon developments during the war, including the first large-scale use of chemical weapons by the German military when chlorine gas was used in Ypres, Belgium. The first tanks (called Mark I) were used by the British at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette. Flamethrowers were developed by the Germans, which enabled them to neutralise the enemy without destroying trenches (grenades would destroy soldiers and inflict structural damage on trenches).

Some war memorials date the end of the war as being when the Versailles treaty was signed in 1919; by contrast, most commemorations of the war's end concentrate on the armistice of 11 November 1918. Legally the last formal peace treaties were not signed until the Treaty of Lausanne.

World War I records are available online and on CD.

World War I Timeline

1914

  • Franz Ferdinand is assassinated
  • Germany offers support to Austria
  • Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
  • Russia steps in to protect Serbia from attack
  • Germany declares war on Russia and France
  • Great Britain declares war on Germany after an appeal from Belgium
  • The British Empire becomes involved in the war, which expands across the world
  • The Battle of the Frontiers begins in France

1915

  • The first airship raid on England occurs
  • The Second Battle of Ypres begins with the first German gas cloud attack
  • The Allies suffer a crushing defeat in the Gallipoli Campaign

1916

  • Britain introduces conscription after heavy losses on the Western Front
  • The Battle of Verdun, the longest single battle of World War One, is fought
  • The biggest naval battle, the Battle of Jutland, occurs
  • The Battle of the Somme begins

1917

  • German forces begin withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line
  • The United States of America declares war on Germany
  • An uprising in Russia forces Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate

1918

  • Germany manages to push the Allies back in Arras, but cannot sustain its attack
  • The Allies carry out the Hundred Days Offensive
  • An Armistice is signed, which ends the war on the Western Front
Awaiting counter-attack

Scottish Soldiers Awaiting a Counter-Attack

Gunners

World War I Gunners