| 19
Jan |
The first German
Zeppelin raid on the east coast of England,
Great Yarmouth and King's Lynn are both bombed. |
| 4
Feb |
The German's declare
a submarine blockade of Britain, any ship
approaching the British coast is to be considered a legitimate target. |
| 19
Feb |
In response to a
request from Russia to help fend off a Turkish
attack, British naval forces bombard Turkish
forts in the Dardenelles. |
| 21
Feb |
Russia suffers
heavy troop losses following the Second Battle
of Masurian Lakes. |
| 1
Mar |
The British liner
Falaba becomes the first passenger ship to be
sunk by German U-boats. |
| 11
Mar |
Britain announces a
blockade of German ports. |
| 22
April |
The Second Battle of
Ypres begins. The Germans use poison gas for the
first time which results in many British and
Canadian causalities. |
| 25
April |
Several weeks after
the Anglo-French naval bombardment of Turkish
positions had ended, Allied forces are finally
landed in the Gallipoli region of the
Dardenelles. The Turkish troops had had plenty
of time to prepare for the Allied land assault
of the peninsula. |
| After April |
Critical of the
Dardenelles campaign, Winston Churchill resigns
his post as First Lord of the Admiralty and
rejoins the army as a battalion commander. |
| After April |
On the Eastern Front
the Austro-German forces launch an offensive
against the Russians breaking through at
Gorlice-Tarnow in Poland. |
| 7
May |
The British liner
Lusitania is sunk by a German U-Boat with the
loss of 1,198 civilian lives. Included in these
losses were over 100 American passengers, a US -
German diplomatic crisis erupted. |
| 23
May |
Italy joins the
Allies by declaring war on Germany and Austria. |
| 25
May |
The British Prime
Minister Herbert Asquith reorganises his Liberal
government as a coalition of the political parties. |
| 31
May |
The first Zeppelin raid on London killed 28
people and injured 60 more. Zeppelins would
continue to raid London without the risk of
being shot down as they flew too high to be
worried by most aircraft of that time. |
 |
| 5
Aug |
German troop capture
Warsaw from the Russians. |
| 19
Aug |
The British
passenger liner Arabic was torpedoed by a German U-boat off
the coast of Ireland, amongst the dead were two
Americans. |
| 21
Aug |
A story in the
Washington Post reports that the US General
Staff are planning to send a force of 1 million
soldiers overseas. |
| 30
Aug |
In response to
American demands, Germany stops sinking ships
without warning. |
| 31
Aug |
Having removed
Russian forces from much of Poland, Germany ends its
offensive against Russia . |
| 5
Sept |
Tsar Nicholas
(right) takes
personal command of the Russian armies. |
| 25
Sept |
Battle of Loos
starts. This marked the first time that the
British used poison gas in the war, it was also
famous for the first large-scale use of
"Kitchener's Army". Just prior to the initial
attack the British released some 140 tons of
chlorine gas into the German lines. Thanks to
shifting winds however, much of the gas was
blown back, gassing British troops in their own
trenches. |
 |
| 28
Sept |
Fighting at the
Battle of Loo subsides with the British
retreating to their starting position. The
British attack had cost 20,000 causalities,
including three divisional commanders. |
| 15
Dec |
General Sir Douglas
Haig takes Field Marshal Sir John French's
position as Commander-in Chief of the British
and Canadian Forces in France. |
| 18
Dec |
The Allies start the
evacuation of Gallipoli. |
