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World War I was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, surpassed only by World War II. Though political tensions set the stage, it was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, by a Serbian nationalist that ignited the war.
Before the assassination, various nations and empires were focused on expanding their territories, curbing the growth of rival powers, and avenging past conflicts. This led to the formation of several alliances, and when the archduke was killed, these alliances pulled them into a war that wasn’t originally theirs.
10. The Three Major Empires Involved Were Led by Relatives
The three major empires involved in World War I—Germany, Russia, and Britain—were all ruled by cousins. Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and King George V of England were first cousins, King George V and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia were also first cousins, and Tsar Nicholas II and Kaiser Wilhelm II were third cousins.
As descendants of King George II of England, the three emperors were also fifth cousins. Wilhelm II’s mother was the sister of George V’s father, while George V’s mother and Nicholas II’s mother were sisters.
Queen Victoria, often called the 'Mother of Europe,' was closely related to many European emperors. For instance, George V and Wilhelm II were her grandsons. Despite this, she discouraged any relationship between the two and even prevented them from visiting her together.
Princess Alexandra of Denmark, George V’s mother, also discouraged any closeness between George V and Wilhelm II. However, she made sure that George maintained a strong bond with Nicholas II, the son of her sister, Dagmar. This rivalry and alliance lasted through their time as emperors.
Although the three rulers didn’t anticipate that the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand would trigger a war between Serbia and Austria-Hungary, they knew it was a possibility. Such a war would inevitably involve them, as Austria-Hungary was allied with Germany, Serbia with Russia, and Russia with France, while France was allied with Britain.
By the time war seemed inevitable, the cousins had lost their ability to prevent it. The assassination and ensuing crises were seized by army generals, politicians fixated on 'national pride,' and arms dealers eager for profit.
9. Russia Pleaded with Germany to Prevent the War
World War I officially began on July 28, 1914, when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. On that same morning, Nicholas II sent a telegram to Wilhelm II, pleading for him to stop the conflict. The telegram was informal, and Nicholas II even signed it with his nickname, Nicky.
In the telegram, Nicholas II warned that a war with Serbia would inevitably involve Russia, something he was determined to avoid. Wilhelm replied, stating that the looming war had no political intent and was only to address those responsible for the assassination of the archduke. He assured that he was trying to help Austria-Hungary reach a resolution with Russia. Wilhelm also signed the telegram with his nickname, Willy.
The cousins kept sending telegrams to each other but failed to find common ground, even though neither of them wanted war. At one point, Wilhelm proposed that Austria-Hungary's forces march into Belgrade, Serbia, without engaging the Serbs, and simply wait while Serbia dealt with the Black Hand terrorist group that had killed the Archduke.
He ordered his chancellor to pass the suggestion to Russia, but the chancellor instructed the German ambassador to Russia to inform them that Germany would mobilize its military in response to Russia's mobilization.
The two emperors kept exchanging telegrams but still couldn’t come to a resolution. They didn’t stop their armies from mobilizing, nor did they take steps to avoid war. On August 1, just days after the first telegram was sent, Germany declared war on Russia.
8. It Led to Russia Becoming a Communist State
It is highly probable that Russia would not have become a communist nation had Vladimir Lenin not come into power. His rise to political prominence only occurred because of the two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Those revolutions themselves were likely a result of Russia’s involvement in World War I.
The war severely damaged Russia’s economy. It dragged on longer than anticipated, and there was little hope for a Russian victory. After suffering multiple defeats, Tsar Nicholas II dismissed his inexperienced cousin, whom he had appointed as the general, and assumed command of the army himself. This decision proved to be his downfall. Previously, the empire had blamed military failures on its generals, but this time the blame fell directly on the tsar.
Another mistake made by Nicholas II was entrusting control of the empire to his wife, Alexandra, instead of appointing a prime minister. For one, Alexandra was German, a fact that was problematic given that Russia was at war with Germany. Furthermore, Alexandra became overly involved with Grigori Rasputin, a mystic who she believed could cure her son’s hemophilia.
However, Rasputin had other motives and soon began interfering in state matters. In December 1916, a group of Russians concerned about his influence assassinated him. Despite his death, Rasputin had already done significant damage to the tsar’s family’s reputation. At the same time, the ongoing war had continued to strain Russia’s economy.
By February 1917, inflation and food shortages sparked mass protests that quickly evolved into a revolution. Nicholas II left the front lines and headed home, but he was unable to reach his palace before being forced to abdicate. A provisional government took charge, but it did little to address the underlying issues that had ignited the revolution.
A second revolution led by Vladimir Lenin of the Bolshevik Party followed in November 1917. It toppled the provisional government and swept Lenin into power. All he did was to promise the Russian people “peace, bread, and land.”
Lenin also entered negotiations with Germany, leading to the March 1918 Treaty of Brest-Litovsk that ended Russia’s involvement in World War I. Russia ceded Ukraine, Finland, Poland, and the Baltic territories to Germany. In exchange, Germany retreated from Russia.
7. It Resulted In The Collapse Of Three Empires And The Founding Of Several Countries
World War I changed European and Asian borders forever. It led to the fall of three empires and the creation of several countries. The German, Ottoman, and Russian empires collapsed at the end of the war. Poland became independent of the Russian Empire and Austria-Hungary was split into Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia.
Austria lost territory to both Italy and Czechoslovakia, becoming a landlocked country. Bulgaria gave up its Mediterranean coastline to Greece, while Hungary lost most of its land to Czechoslovakia, and also ceded a portion to Romania.
The Ottoman Empire suffered the most, with its lands divided between Britain and France. Today’s Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovenia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates were all once part of the empire, either in whole or in part.
6. German-Inspired Foods, Dogs, and Terms Were Renamed
The United States entered World War I on April 7, 1917, when it declared war on Germany. Before the declaration, German was the second most spoken language in the US, following English. However, the surge in anti-German sentiment after the declaration led to a ban on the language.
German was removed from the curriculum in many US schools, and German books were banned. Music vendors also stopped selling German songs. This anti-German sentiment even influenced food names: German fried potatoes were renamed American fries, and sauerkraut was rebranded as liberty cabbage.
Even dogs weren't spared from the renaming trend. German shepherds were called Alsatians, named after the Alsace region in France where they were originally bred. The dachshund was referred to as a 'badger dog' or 'liberty pup.' These dogs became symbols of Germany and appeared in political cartoons. Some reports even claim that dachshunds in Britain were stoned to death, though this could not be confirmed.
5. Soldiers Endured Long Stretches in Trenches
World War I marked the first widespread deployment of machine guns. Soldiers quickly adapted by taking cover in holes they dug in the ground. These holes soon connected to form extensive trenches that stretched for miles. As the war wore on, additional trenches were dug behind the initial one, ensuring that an enemy would have to face multiple lines of defense even if they breached the first trench.
The longest trench ran along the Western Front, stretching from Belgium, through France, and down to Switzerland. With no way to bypass it, the only option was direct frontal assaults, which were essentially suicide missions due to the protection of the trenches with barbed wire and machine guns.
The attacking infantry was typically supported by heavy artillery, but this quickly became a problem that even contributed to the failure of assaults. The artillery barrage would alert the enemy, giving them time to fortify their defenses and prepare for the attack.
The artillery barrage also hindered the infantry’s progress, as the shells exploded just ahead of them. There was little a soldier could do when caught between machine gun fire from the enemy and artillery fire from their own side while trying to cross land protected by barbed wire.
4. The Emergence of Tanks
Trench warfare quickly reached a stalemate. Neither side was making progress, and both armies were stuck in their trenches, launching repeated frontal assaults that almost always ended in failure. Then, the tanks made their appearance.
Before the war, the idea of building tanks in England, France, and Germany was dismissed. However, during the conflict, both England and France secretly and independently worked on developing a tank, hoping it would break the deadlock. England was the first to successfully build a functional tank and deployed it at the Battle of the Somme on September 15, 1916.
The Germans were initially stunned by the sight of the tanks, which managed to break through two of the three German trenches. However, the tanks had to retreat due to problems with command and control. They were not without their flaws either. Heat and toxic fumes plagued their crews, and many tanks broke down. Of the 50 deployed, half were out of action before the assault even began.
Germany quickly adapted to the new threat, developing anti-tank weapons and tactics. However, it wasn't enough to stop the thousands of tanks the Allies deployed. In contrast, Germany only had 20 tanks. The Allied tanks broke through German lines, forcing a surrender. Essentially, machine guns pushed soldiers into the trenches, and tanks drove them out.
Fun fact: Tanks were originally referred to as land ships.
They became known as tanks because the British military told workers they were building “mechanized water tanks” to transport water to British troops in the deserts of present-day Iraq. The workers shortened “mechanized water tanks” to simply “water tanks,” and from there, it was shortened even further to “tanks.” Ernest Swinton, a British officer involved in the development, liked the name, and it stuck.
3. It played a pivotal role in Hitler’s rise to power and the onset of World War II.
The Treaty of Versailles officially concluded World War I. It required Germany to pay reparations amounting to 269 billion gold marks (Germany's currency at the time), equivalent to 100,000 tons of gold, to the Allied nations. Additionally, Germany was forced to accept full responsibility for the war. While the reparations were later reduced to 112 billion gold marks, this reduction did little to ease the growing resentment toward the Allies within Germany.
This massive debt weighed heavily on Germany. In fact, the country did not finish paying it off until 2010. After the war, Germany faced severe economic turmoil, with rampant unemployment and skyrocketing inflation. Yet, the country was still obligated to make reparations and bear the blame for the war—something its people deeply resented.
These circumstances played a key role in elevating Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party to power. The Nazis relentlessly attacked the Allies for their perceived injustices and promised to rescue the German people from their suffering. Upon assuming power, Hitler rejected further reparations and instead focused on building up the military, ultimately leading to the outbreak of World War II.
This conflict ultimately undermined the very purpose of the reparations. The Allies had imposed such a heavy financial burden on Germany to prevent it from having the resources to wage another war. However, the result was the opposite of what they intended.
The Allies took valuable lessons from this experience. While they did require Germany to pay reparations after World War II, the sum was significantly lower than what was demanded after World War I. This time, the Allies concentrated on rebuilding the country and holding its wartime leaders accountable.
2. It left the warring nations heavily indebted and contributed to the rise of the United States as a global superpower.
War is expensive, a hard lesson learned by the belligerents of World War I. The conflict ravaged the industries and economies of Germany, Russia, Britain, and France. With the exception of Germany, the other three nations relied on the United States for essential supplies.
The Allies purchased so many goods from the US that the American economy shifted from producing civilian items to military supplies. By the time the war concluded, the Allies were deeply in debt to the US, and in some cases, even to each other.
For example, Russia owed a significant debt to France, which, in turn, was indebted to both the US and Britain. France owed more to Britain than to the US, but Britain was also heavily in debt to the US. France wanted to settle its debts to the US and Britain using the money Russia owed, but Lenin refused to honor the debt, arguing that it was the tsarist government, not his, that had incurred it, and since the tsar had been overthrown, the debt was invalid.
On the other side, Britain relied on the funds owed by France and Italy to settle its own debts to the US. However, France couldn't repay because Russia hadn't paid. France tried to clear its debts using the reparations from Germany, but Germany had no money. It could only generate funds by exporting goods to the US. However, the US entered a recession in the 1920s and was unable to purchase goods from Germany.
The situation deteriorated to the point that in 1924, the US lent money to Germany so it could pay its reparations to France and Britain. In return, France and Britain used this money to settle their own debts to the US.
At the same time, most of the warring nations had abandoned the gold standard at the start of the war, causing their currencies to lose value by the war's end. This left the US with the largest gold reserves, which enabled the country to assume control of the global gold standard.
When the US devalued its currency, it placed other nations in a difficult position, as they had to either reduce their currencies to a lower value than the US dollar or adjust their currency values according to the new gold standard set by the US.
The first option would have led to widespread unemployment, while the second option would have resulted in the devaluation of their currencies relative to the US dollar. Most nations opted for the second choice, while Britain chose the first. Regardless of the decision, the US and its dollar came out as the clear victors.
1. It was referred to by many names, but not as World War I.
World War I was never called 'World War I' at the time. Clearly, no one anticipated the eventual outbreak of a World War II. In the US, it was known as the European War, while others referred to it as the Great War. The first use of the term 'World War' emerged from US newspapers when the country entered the war in 1917.
The war was referred to as 'Great' due to the vast number of nations involved. It was perceived as the conflict that would eliminate the 'evil' of the German state and, in doing so, bring an end to all future wars. How wrong they were. In addition to being called the Great War, it was also known as 'The Great War for Civilization.'
