World War 1

The First World War, also known as WW1, was a global conflict that erupted in Europe and lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. Often referred to as "the war to end all wars," it involved over 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, making it one of the largest and deadliest conflicts in history. The war led to the loss of approximately 8.5 million combatants and 13 million civilians as a direct consequence, and it was followed by genocides and the devastating 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, claiming millions more lives worldwide.

The spark that ignited the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb Yugoslav nationalist and member of the Serbian Black Hand military organization. The subsequent July Crisis saw Austria-Hungary issuing an ultimatum to Serbia on July 23, which eventually led to war between the two countries. The crisis rapidly escalated as it dragged in other European powers due to complex interlocking alliances.