Timeline Game of WWI
Participants: USA, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman
Empire, Serbia, Russia, Italy, France, and Japan.
Each country begins with a certain amount of wealth and power. Each
amount of influence is represented by a gem. This is the amount each
starts with:
Serbia: 2
Austria-Hungary: 6
Russia: 8
Germany: 10
France: 9
Great Britain: 10
Ottoman Empire: 4
Italy: 5
Japan: 8
USA: 10
Once a year, at any point, your table may choose to veto one of the
effects on the timeline. However, other tables may choose to use their
veto to cancel your veto.
1914
June 28
Serbian Gavrilo Princip kills Archduke Franz Ferdinand (1
gem from Austria-Hungary to Serbia)
July 28
August 1
Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia
Germany declares war on Russia
Italy declares itself neutral
Germany makes a secret alliance with Ottoman Empire
August 3
Germany declares war on France
August 4
Germany’s von Schlieffen Plan attacks Belgium to get to
France: France is surprised
(2 gems from France to Germany)
Britain declares war on Germany
August 6
American President Woodrow Wilson’s wife dies
Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia
Serbia declares war on Germany
August 11
France declares war on Austria-Hungary
August 12
Britain declares war on Austria-Hungary
August 21-23 Battle of the Ardennes (1 from Britain to Germany, 1
from France to Germany)
August 23-30
Battle of Tannenburg (2 from Russia to Germany)
August 24-September 30
Great Allied Retreat (1 from France
and Britain each to Germany)
August 25
Japan declares war on Austria-Hungary
August 27-Nov 7
Battle of Tsingtao: British and Japanese
forces capture the German-controlled port of Tsingtao in China. (1
from Germany to Britain and Japan each)
Sept 4-13
First Battle of the Marne. The German advance
on Paris is halted, marking the failure of the Schlieffen Plan. (1
from Germany to France)
Oct 9-Nov 1 Austria-Hungary conquers Belgrade, Serbia’s
capital (1 from Serbia to Austria-Hungary)
Oct 19-Nov 22 The First Battle of Ypres ends the race to the sea.
Germans are prevented from reaching Calais and Dunkirk.
Nov 1
Russia declares war on Ottoman Empire
Nov 2
Britain begins naval blockade of Germany
Nov 5
France and Britain declare war on Ottoman Empire
Dec 22-Jan 2 The Russians win the Battle of Sarikamis, (Germans
give 1 to Russia)
1915
Jan 19 The first Zeppelin raid on Britain took place (1 from Britain
to Germany)
Jan 31 Battle of Bolimov: Germans use first poison gas of the war
against Russia (1 from Russia to Germany)
Feb 4 German unrestricted warfare begins
Feb 19 Gallipoli: bloody fighting in Ottoman Empire in which
Australians and British charge their soldiers into machine guns,
barbed wire, and certain death (2 from Britain to Ottoman
Empire)
May 7 Lusitania is sunk! 122 Americans die among the 1,000+
passengers. Germany is embarrassed and stop attacking British
civilian ships for two years (1 from Germany to Britain)
May 11
Armistice called at Gallipoli just to bury the dead
May 23
Italy joins the Triple Entente! Italy declares war on
Austria-Hungary
Sept 1 Germany temporarily stops unrestricted submarine
warfare
Sept 8 Russian czar Nicholas II fires his top general and leaves to
lead the war against the Germans himself
Oct 14 Bulgaria agrees to join the Central Powers (+1 to Germany,
Austria-Hungary, and Ottoman Empire)
1916
Feb 21-end of 1916 Start of the Battle of Verdun (1 each from
Germany, France, Britain)
April 29
British forces surrendered to Turkish forces at Kut
in Mesopotamia (1 from Britain to Ottoman Empire)
May 31
Battle of Jutland (draw between Britain and
Germany)
July 1-end of 1916 Battle of the Somme (1 each from Germany,
France, Britain)
Sep 15
Tanks introduced in The Somme:
Dec 7
Lloyd George becomes British Prime Minister of
Great Britain
1917
Feb 1
Germany’s unrestricted submarine
warfare campaign started
Feb 28
Zimmerman Telegram: German foreign minister
sends message to Mexico, promising parts of America to it if
Mexico would join Germany in fighting USA, if war broke out—
British get ahold of the note and tell Woodrow Wilson. Americans
are furious! Germany is embarrassed (1 from Germany to
America)
April 1
USA declared war on Germany
April 16
France launched an unsuccessful offensive on the
Western Front (1 from France to Germany)
July 31
Battle of Paeschendale/Third Battle of Ypres:
bloody awful fight in which Americans, British, and French defeat
a major German offensive of the war. (1 from Germany to USA,
France, and Britain each)
February
Russia’s Revolution: Czar Nicholas II abdicates the
throne and a Provisional Government is set up: Germany takes
advantage of the chaos to take over even more of Russia (2 gems
from Russia to Germany)
Oct 24
Battle of Caporetto – the Italian Army was heavily
defeated (Italy gives 1 to Austria-Hungary)
Dec 4
Armistice between Germany and Russia signedGermany smuggles Vladimir Lenin into Russia by train: very
quickly he initiates the Bolshevik Revolution. Huge civil war starts
in Russia: Reds vs. Whites. Russians drop out of the war: Germany
claims sooooo much of Russia (all but 1 gem from Russia to
Germany)
1918
July 15
Second Battle of the Marne started. Start of the
collapse of the German army
Summer
Austria-Hungary dissolves: Hungary demands
sovereignty and its own government (split up gems between
empire)—Hungary is no longer a part of Central Powers
April 21
The Red Baron is killed! Canadian pilot behind him
while Australian troops below, all shoot at him, and he is killed
before his plane crashes. Big disappointment to the Germans (1
from Germany to Britain)
Sept 19
Turkish forces collapsed at Megiddo (Ottoman
Empire gives 2 to France)
Oct 4
Germany asked the Allies for an armistice
Oct 18
Alvin York kills 20 Germans and captures 132 more
at Argonnes Forest by himself. This gets mass attention and he
earns the Congressional Medal of Honor. (1 from Germany to
America)
Oct 29
Germany’s navy mutinied (Germany lose 2)
Oct 30
Turkey made peace
Nov 3
Austria made peace
Nov 9
Kaiser William II abdicated
Nov 11
Germany signed an armistice with the Allies – the
official date of the end of World War One.
1919
Jan 18
Paris Peace Conference
Since 1918
Spanish Flu (all nations lose 1)