Exploring The World
History can be explored through various lenses such as Political, Economic, Environmental, Philosophical and Social. Historians will often focus on one of these aspects when exploring a topic to contribute to the overall story of that time, person or event.
Social
Affects on people
Religion
Belief systems
World War 1
World War I, also known as the Great War, started in 1914 after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. His murder catapulted into a war across Europe that lasted until 1918. During the four-year conflict, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire (the Central Powers) fought against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Canada, Japan and the United States (the Allied Powers). Thanks to new military technologies and the horrors of trench warfare, World War I saw unprecedented levels of carnage and destruction. By the time the war was over and the Allied Powers had won, more than 16 million people—soldiers and civilians alike—were dead.
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History.com Editors. “World War I: Summary, Causes & Facts | HISTORY.” History, A&E Television Networks, 29 October 2009, https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/world-war-i-history. Accessed 18 September 2024.
Australian troops in the Lone Pine trenches.
“First World War 1914–18.” Australian War Memorial, 2 June 2021,
https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/atwar/first-world-war. Accessed 17 September 2024.
Education in Context
How WW1 Began
Voices of WW1 Soldiers
The Ending of WW1
28th of June 1914
The spark that ignited a war
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo (the capital of the Austro-Hungarian province of Bosnia-Herzegovina) on 28 June 1914 eventually led to the outbreak of the First World War.
6th of August 1914
Australia joins the war
28th of July 1914
War is declared
July 28, 1914 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, beginning World War I.
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On 6th of August 1914 crowds gathered on street corners, engaged in animated discussions about Australia’s involvement in the international conflict that had begun only weeks earlier, when on 28 July 1914 Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. After Germany declared war on Russia and France and, on 4 August, invaded Belgium, Britain declared war with Germany, and Australia immediately pledged troops.
Early on the morning of 25 April 1915, Allied forces landed on the Gallipoli peninsula in Ottoman Türkiye. This marked the start of the Gallipoli Campaign, a land-based element of a broad strategy to defeat the Ottoman Empire.
25th of April 1915
The Gallipoli Campaign
The armistice was agreed at 5.10am on 11 November to come into effect at 11am. The news was conveyed around Europe within the hour. The original armistice was for a period of 36 days, after which it had to be renewed. This was done four times before the Treaty of Versailles was signed.
11th of November 1918
The war ends
On June 28, 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed at the Palace of Versailles outside Paris, France. The treaty was one of several that officially ended five years of conflict known as the Great War—World War I. The Treaty of Versailles outlined the conditions of peace between Germany and the victorious Allies, led by the United States, France, and the United Kingdom.
28th of June 1919
The treaty of Versailles
After WW1
Glossary of Key Terms
Key Political Terms
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Nationalism
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Imperialism
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Communism
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Socialism​​​
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Egalitarianism
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Authoritarianism
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Liberalism
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Capitalism
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Fascism
In the context of World War I
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Nationalism: A driving force behind many conflicts during WWI, as nations like Germany, France, and Austria-Hungary prioritised their national interests, pride, and territorial ambitions. Nationalist sentiment often fueled militarism and competition between countries.
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Imperialism: One of the root causes of WWI, as European powers like Britain, France, and Germany competed for colonies and global dominance. Tensions over control of territories, especially in Africa and Asia, contributed to the international rivalries that led to war.
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Communism: Though not a significant factor during the war itself, the Russian Revolution of 1917 led to the rise of communism in Russia, which would later form the Soviet Union. The war's devastation and the overthrow of the Russian monarchy were pivotal in this ideological shift.
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Socialism: Socialist movements gained traction during and after WWI, especially as workers and the lower classes suffered the most from the war. Socialists, especially in Europe, criticised the war as a conflict driven by imperialist and capitalist interests, harming ordinary people.
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Egalitarianism: The war stirred conversations about equality, particularly in the context of soldiers from different classes fighting together. In some nations, the experience of war led to demands for more egalitarian social policies, though this was more a post-war consequence.
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Authoritarianism: Many of the central powers involved in WWI, such as Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire, were governed by authoritarian regimes. The war also saw an increase in state control and censorship, even in more democratic nations.
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Liberalism: Before and during the war, liberalism was the dominant ideology in many European countries, particularly in France, Britain, and the U.S. It emphasized individual freedoms, democratic governance, and free markets. However, WWI strained liberal democracies, as governments imposed stricter controls (such as conscription and censorship) to support the war effort. After the war, liberalism faced challenges from both the rise of authoritarian regimes and socialist movements that critiqued liberalism for failing to prevent the conflict and address social inequalities.