istoryworld
All Events
Aleksei Brusilov leads a surprise Russian offensive against Germany and Austria-Hungary
Sharif Hussein, the emir of Mecca, proclaims himself the leader of the Muslim world, thus launching an Arab revolt against the Ottoman empire
Belgian troops from the Congo occupy the German colony of Ruanda-Urundi
An Allied advance in the valley of the Somme launches a four-month battle with very heavy casualties
Greece joins the Allies by declaring war on Bulgaria
A brief success in the front line against Austria prompts Italy to declare war on Germany
Romania, hoping for territorial gains from Hungary, joins the war on the side of the Allies
Eleven British tanks go into pioneering but ineffective action at the battle of the Somme
Baron von Richthofen, the 'Red Baron', shoots down the first of many Allied aircraft
Woodrow Wilson wins re-election as US president after campaigning on the slogan 'He kept us out of war'
The emperor Francis Joseph dies after 66 years on the thrones of Austria and Hungary, to be succeeded by his great-nephew Charles I
Bucharest, the capital of Romania, is captured by Austrian and Bulgarian forces
Herbert Asquith resigns in the face of a political coup against him, and is replaced as UK prime minister by Lloyd George
Philippe Pétain becomes a French national hero for his successful defence of Verdun
Leonard and Virginia Woolf buy a small hand-press and some old typeface, launching their adventure as printers and publishers of the Hogarth Press
Prince Georgi Lvov becomes prime minister in Russia's new Provisional Government
Returning to the front after being wounded in the leg, Hitler is promoted to the rank of lance-corporal
The Hogarth Press publishes its first book, Two Stories, containing a new short story by Leonard Woolf and another by Virginia Woolf
Wartime scarcity causes sugar rationing to be imposed in Britain, to be followed soon by meat and butter and related products
Chaim Weizmann, later the first President of Israel, uses a microbial culture to create corn starch in the first example of biotechnology, the use of living organisms to make useful products
Félix d'Herelle announces that he has discovered a microbe, a virus parasitic on bacteria, to which he gives the name bacteriophage ('eater of bacteria' in Greek)
Marcel Duchamp submits a ceramic urinal to the Society of Independent Artists in New York, giving it the title Fountain
The French poet Guillaume Apollinaire is the first to use the term Surrealism
New York responds with enthusiasm when the Original Dixieland Jazz Band performs a new kind of music in Reisenweber's restaurant
The Jones Act gives Puerto Ricans US citizenship and a popularly elected Senate and House of Representatives
