CHAPTER XIV
QUESTIONS OF THE COMING PEACE
There are two kinds of problems which must be solved by the American people before permanent peace conditions can be established. One group of problems is composed of international questions, largely pertaining to the European states, but in which the United States is vitally interested. The other group of problems relates to the restoration of our people and industries to a peace condition. On some points these two groups of problems are closely related and cannot be settled separately. Some internal questions will have to be viewed in the light of world affairs; and some international problems must be given solutions which will have influences within our own country. Ignoring the overlapping of the two groups, we shall study the problems of peace in this chapter under two headings: (i) national problems; (2) international problems.
I. National Problems
Among the many internal problems which the country will face at the close of the war, and to which every American should to-day be giving his earnest thought, the following are specially important.
Getting the Men Home.—Even while engaged in the task of getting every available man to the fighting line in Europe, the American authorities have found time to think of the return movement. It will be a great undertaking, requiring many months, to see that each man reaches American shores and after his dismissal is safely sent to his home town.
The Care of the Wounded.—During the war the greatest pains have been taken by the medical officers of the army, and by the Red Cross agents, to bring immediate relief to the brave wounded men, and to nurse them carefully back to health. But many of them will have sacrificed an eye or a limb, or will have received wounds which will prevent their engaging in their previous occupations. It is the high duty of the nation to save such men from a life of pain or of enforced idleness. It should not permit them to subsist by charity, or even pensions. The wounded man, crippled for life in his nation's service, will be educated in a vocation which will occupy his mind, make him independent, and render him a respected and self-respecting member of his community. This great educational work has already been started, courses of study have been put into operation, and positions in various industrial plants have been guaranteed to the men after the training is completed. The nation will perform its whole duty to its heroes.
The Reconstruction of Industry.—The war has called into existence great plants for the manufacture of the specialties needed in warfare. Such factories must, after the close of the war, be made over and set to the task of creating goods for the days of peace. Machinery will be reconstructed, agencies for the sale of goods must be established, and foreign trade sought as a possible market for the enlarged production.
The Reorganization of Labor.—American working people, whether they be managers of plants or workmen at the machine, have been wonderfully loyal to the nation during the war. They have shifted their work, their homes, and their aspirations to meet the needs of the war. When peace returns all this talent and skill must be turned into other channels. This we hope can be accomplished without unemployment on a large scale, and without any loss of time or pay. But it will require great directing ability, and a friendly attitude of employees and employers toward each other.
Financial Reconstruction.—The finances of the government, of corporations, and of business men have been greatly changed during the course of the war. There may never be a complete return to the old conditions. But it is certain that peace will create problems of finance almost as serious as those of war.
Legislative Changes.—Our legislative bodies, particularly the Congress, will be called upon to pass many laws to aid the country to resume its peaceful life and occupations. All of the problems mentioned here, as well as many others, will require the enactment of new laws. We shall need congressmen and state legislators of wisdom, patriotism, and special knowledge to act intelligently for the people on these problems. The international settlements mentioned below also may require the action of the Senate upon treaties, and the action of both houses where laws are necessary to carry out our international agreements. The war has called for statesmanship of the highest order; the coming peace will make equal demands upon the wisdom and self-control of our statesmen and politicians.
II. International Problems President Wilson, on January 8, 1918, addressed Congress in a speech which was designed to set forth the war aims and peace terms of the United States. Every American should be familiar with the terms of this "fourteen-point speech." Each one of the terms advocated by the President is given below in the President's own words, and a short explanatory paragraph is added to each.
1. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at, after which there shall be no private international understandings of any kind, but diplomacy shall proceed always frankly and in the public view.
The President here speaks against the underhand diplomacy and secret alliances which have been a feature of European history in the past. By this practice a few diplomats and monarchs made whatever treaties they wished, not presenting them for ratification to the people's representatives, and yet binding every individual citizen to abide by the terms adopted. Such secret provisions have often been agreed to simply upon the whim or the ambition or the likes and dislikes of the rulers. They have sometimes been opposed to the true interests of the nations involved. They are undemocratic, and are not in accord with American ideas.
2. Absolute freedom of navigation upon the seas, outside territorial waters, alike in peace and in war, except as the seas may be closed in whole or in part by international action for the enforcement of international covenants.
Since 1793 the United States has stood for the freedom of the seas and the right of neutrals to carry on their trade in time of war as well as in time of peace. Germany's violation of our rights as a neutral by her submarine warfare was one of the causes of our taking up arms against her. By territorial waters the President here means the waters within three miles from shore, which are universally held to be under the complete control of the adjoining state. By international covenants are probably meant such covenants and guarantees as those mentioned in points 14, i, 4, ii, 12, and 13.
3. The removal, so far as possible, of all economic barriers and the establishment of an equality of trade conditions among all the nations consenting to the peace and associating themselves for its maintenance.
Economic barriers are mainly restrictions upon trade and commerce. These restrictions take various forms; they may be prohibitive customs duties, or excessive port, tonnage, and harbor charges; they may be trade agreements granting favors to the citizens of one country and not to those of another. The President urges the establishment of an equality of such trade conditions.
4. Adequate guarantees given and taken that national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety.
The President here touches one of the most important problems of the coming peace. This has often been called a war against war; it has been said that it will be the last war. The sentiment which leads to such statements has its origin in a hatred of militarism. Great armaments were created because of the danger from Prussian militarism; and great armaments will still be necessary unless "this intolerable thing" is crushed or "shut out from the friendly intercourse of the nations." When it is crushed, some adequate steps must be taken by each state to reduce its armaments, on condition that all other states do the same. But many problems will face the world's statesmen in preparing a plan for guaranteed disarmament. How large a force will each nation need to maintain its "domestic safety"? How shall we be sure that Germany will not break her promise, as she has so often done in this war? How shall we be sure that Germany, or perhaps some other state, will not again secretly prepare for a war while others remain unprepared?
5. A free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims, based upon a strict observance of the principle that in determining all such questions of sovereignty the interests of the populations concerned must have equal weight with the equitable claims of the government whose title is to be determined.
In the opening chapters of this book we have seen how colonial rivalry was one of the causes of the World War. The President urges that the settlement after the war shall be "free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial." He introduces here the democratic principle that the interests of the populations in the colonies shall have equal weight with the just claims of the European states. Such a principle probably will mean that few if any of Germany's colonies can be returned to her, because her colonial management has been neglectful of the interests of the subject peoples.
6. The evacuation of all Russian territory and such a settlement of all questions affecting Russia as will secure the best and freest coöperation of the other nations of the world in obtaining for her an unhampered and unembarrassed opportunity for the independent determination of her own political development and national policy and assure her of a sincere welcome into the society of free nations under institutions of her own choosing, and, more than a welcome, assistance also of every kind that she may need and may herself desire. The treatment accorded Russia by her sister nations in the months to come will be the acid test of their good will, of their comprehension of her needs as distinguished from their own interests, and of their intelligent and unselfish sympathy.
No restatement of the President's words on this subject is necessary. The Russian revolution is one of the most important results of the Great War. How can the future welfare of Russia be best secured?
7. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored, without any attempt to limit the sovereignty which she enjoys in common with all other free nations. No other single act will serve as this will serve to restore confidence among the nations in the laws which they have themselves set and determined for the government of their relations with one another. Without this healing act the whole structure and validity of international law is forever impaired.
The evacuation of Belgium will follow the military victories of the United States and her associates. The restoration of Belgium will be difficult to effect. It implies relief to her suffering and starving people, the return of the many exiles to Belgium, the erection of new homes for them, the reorganization of industry and transportation, and the repair and rebuilding of her historic edifices. Where will the funds come from for such work? Germany, the aggressor, surely should bear a part or all of the cost.
8. All French territory should be freed and the invaded portions restored, and the wrong done to France by Prussia in 1 87 1 in the matter of Alsace-Lorraine, which has unsettled the peace of the world for nearly fifty years, should be righted, in order that peace may once more be made secure in the interest of all.
Here the President urges the same treatment for the occupied lands of northern France as for those of Belgium. The devastated lands must be reclaimed, the inhabitants cared for, and adequate means provided by which they can earn a livelihood. Further, he advises the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France. Such action not only will right the wrong done to France in 1871, but also it will take from Germany much of the iron-producing areas which have made it possible for her to prepare and carry on this war, and which might permit her to get ready for a yet more dreadful war in the future.
9. A readjustment of the frontiers of Italy should be effected along clearly recognizable lines of nationality.
We have seen how a considerable area inhabited by Italians was not freed from Austrian rule when the Italian kingdom was founded. This territory, called Italia Irredenta (unredeemed Italy), and this population, by its own desire and by natural right, belong to Italy and should be brought within the nation.
10. The peoples of Austria-Hungary, whose place among the nations we wish to see safeguarded and assured, should be accorded the freest opportunity of autonomous development.
Within the Austro-Hungarian boundaries are several nationalities which have been subjected to the oppressive rule of peoples different from themselves. Their attempts to obtain home rule or independence have been crushed. America now wishes to secure for these peoples the opportunity to establish governments for themselves. As we have already seen, our country in 1918 formally recognized the independence of one of these peoples—the Czecho-Slovaks, or inhabitants of Bohemia and neighboring districts. Moreover, in a note to Austria-Hungary, October 18, 1918, President Wilson stated that conditions had changed since January 8, and intimated that both the Czecho-Slovaks and the Jugo-Slavs should be given independence.
11. Roumania, Serbia, and Montenegro should be evacuated, occupied territories restored, Serbia accorded free and secure access to the sea, and the relations of the several Balkan states to one another determined by friendly counsel along historically established lines of allegiance and nationality; and international guarantees of the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of the several Balkan states should be entered into.
We have here a comprehensive plan for the settlement of the Balkan jealousies, which have disturbed Europe for many years. Evacuation and restoration is here proposed, as in Belgium and France. Serbia, always thwarted by Austria in her hopes for a port, is to be given access to the sea. Friendly counsel shall be given the Balkan peoples to aid them in establishing their governments along the lines of nationalities and of historic sympathies. All the countries of the world should unite to guarantee and protect the safety and independence of the governments established in the Balkan region.
12. The Turkish portions of the present Ottoman Empire should be assured a secure sovereignty, but the other nationalities which are now under Turkish rule should be assured an undoubted security of life and an absolutely unmolested opportunity of autonomous development, and the Dardanelles should be permanently opened as a free passage to the ships and commerce of all nations under international guarantees.
The horrible rule of the Turks over subject peoples must cease. The Turks, as well as all other peoples, should be allowed the right of self-government. But their subject peoples must also be protected in their lives, property, and occupations, and given an opportunity to establish self-government when they desire it. The Dardanelles strait must be taken out of the power of the Turks, and placed under the control of the associated nations.
13. An independent Polish state should be erected which should include the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be assured a free and secure access to the sea, and whose political and economic independence and territorial integrity should be guaranteed by international covenant.
A nation composed of Poles would imply the union of parts of Russia, Prussia, and Austria, since all of these three countries took part in the infamous partition of Poland in the eighteenth century. Access to the Baltic Sea would be necessary for the prosperity and independence of the new state. But such access could be gained only across territory which Prussia has held for a century and a half. The associated nations would guarantee the independence of Poland in the same way that they would protect Belgium, Serbia, and the other states erected upon the principle of national self-government.
14. A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.
This is the most important of the President's suggestions. Without some form of a league of nations it will be impossible to adopt and carry out the other terms of the President's program. International guarantees, so frequently mentioned in his proposals, imply some means by which the countries of the world can act together for their common purposes. Restoration of devastated lands, disarmament, new democratic governments, freedom of commerce,—all of these things will remain nothing but rainbow hopes unless the large and small nations of the world unite for their realization. A League of Nations, more or less regularly organized, must be formed if the democracies of the world shall be made safe from future wars of aggression.
Suggestions for Study.—1 . Why are waters within three miles of shore considered as territorial waters? (See War Cyclopedia, "Marine League.") What is meant by freedom of the seas? What is meant by the phrase "free ships make free goods"?
2. Make a map of Europe showing what it would be like if all of President Wilson's points were approved at the peace conference.
3. Are there any reasons why every nation should give up its colonies and permit them to be independent states? 4. Why is it dangerous as well as wrong to permit Germany to retain her control over the territory taken from Russia? 5. What was the "wrong done to France (by Germany) in 1870"? 6. What is autonomy? Name the peoples of Austria-Hungary who wish autonomous development, or complete independence. 7. Find some ways by which Poland and Serbia can get access to the sea.
8. Do you think it will take a longer or a shorter time to bring the soldiers home than it did to send them to France? Why?
9. What is meant by rehabilitation of the wounded? Find some ways in which other nations have made their maimed soldiers self-supporting. 10. How is it likely that Constantinople will be controlled after the war? 11. How would the league of nations enforce its decisions? (See President Wilson's second point.)
References.—War Cyclopedia (C. P. I.); McKinley, Collected Materials for the Study of the War; War, Labor, and Peace (C. P. I.); Conquest and Kultur (C. P. I.); The War Message and the Facts Behind It (C. P. I.); American Interest in Popular Government Abroad (C. P. I.).
CHRONOLOGY—PRINCIPAL EVENTS OF THE WAR
(Adapted from "War Cyclopedia" published by the Committee on Public, Information, Washington, D. C. Events which especially concern the United States are put in italic type.)
1914
June 28 Murder of Archduke Francis Ferdinand at Sarajevo.
July 5 Conference at Potsdam (page 70).
July 23 Austro-Hungarian ultimatum to Serbia.
July 28 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia.
July 31 German ultimatums to Russia and France.
Aug. 1 Germany declares war on Russia and invades Luxemburg.
Aug. 2 German ultimatum to Belgium, demanding a free passage for her
troops across Belgium.
Aug. 3 Germany declares war on France.
Aug. 4-26 Most of Belgium overrun: Liege occupied (Aug. 9); Brussels (Aug. 20); Namur (Aug. 24).
Aug. 4 Great Britain declares war on Germany.
Aug. 4 President Wilson proclaims neutrality of United States.
Aug. 6 Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
Aug. 12 France and Great Britain declare war on Austria-Hungary
Aug. 16 British expeditionary force landed in France.
Aug. 18 Russia invades East Prussia.
Aug. 21-23 Battle of Mons-Charleroi. Dogged retreat of French and British in the face of the German invasion.
Aug. 23 Japan declares war on Germany.
Aug. 23 Tsingtao (Kiaochow) bombarded by Japanese.
Aug. 25-Dec. 15 Russians overrun Galicia. Lemberg taken (Sept. 2); Przemysl besieged (Sept. 16 to Oct. 15, and again after Nov. 12). Dec. 4, Russians 3½ miles from Cracow.
Aug. 26 Germans destroy Louvain, in Belgium.
Aug. 26 Allies conquer Togo, in Africa.
Aug. 26-31 Russians defeated in battle of Tannenberg (page 85).
Aug. 28 British naval victory of Helgoland Bight, in North Sea.
Aug. 31 Name of St. Petersburg changed to Petrograd.
Sept. 5 Great Britain, France, and Russia agree not to make peace separately.
Sept. 6-10 First battle of the Marne (page 81).
Sept. 7 Germans take Maubeuge, in northern France.
Sept. 11 Australians take German New Guinea, etc.
Sept. 12-17 Battle of the Aisne.
Sept. 16 Russians driven from East Prussia.
Sept. 22 Three British armored cruisers sunk by a submarine.
Sept. 27 Invasion of German Southwest Africa by Gen. Botha.
Oct. 9 Germans occupy Antwerp, the chief port of Belgium.
Oct. 16-28 Battle of the Yser, in Flanders, Belgium. Belgians and French
halt German advance. Oct. 17-Nov. 15 Battle of Flanders, near Ypres, saving Channel ports. Oct. 21-28 German armies driven back in Poland. Oct. 28-Dec. 8 De Wet's rebellion in British South Africa. Oct. 29 Turkish war ship bombards Odessa, Russia.
Nov. 1 German naval victory off the coast of Chile.
Nov. 1-5 Russia, France, and Great Britain declare war on Turkey.
Nov. 7 Fall of Tsingtao (Kiaochow) to the Japanese and British.
Nov. 10-Dec. 14 Austrian invasion of Serbia (page 87).
German cruiser "Emden" destroyed in Indian Ocean.
Nov. 21 Basra, on Persian Gulf, occupied by British.
Dec. 8 British naval victory off the Falkland Islands.
Dec. 16 German warships bombard towns on east coast of England.
Dec. 17 Egypt proclaimed a British protectorate, under a sultan.
Dec. 24 First German air raid on England.
1915
Jan. 1-Feb. 15 Russians attempt to cross the Carpathians.
Jan. 24 British naval victory of Dogger Bank, in North Sea.
Jan. 25-Feb. 12 Russians again invade East Prussia, but are defeated in the battle of the Mazurian Lakes.
Jan. 28 American merchantman "William P. Frye" sunk by German cruiser.
Feb. 4 Germany's proclamation of "war zone" around the British Isles after February 18.
Feb. 10 United States note holding German government to a "strict accountability" for destruction of American lives or vessels.
Feb. 19 Anglo-French squadron bombards Dardanelles forts.
Mar. 1 Announcement of British "blockade" of Germany.
Mar. 10 British capture Nueve Chapelle, in northern France.
Mar. 22 Russians capture Przemysl, in Galicia.
Apr. 17-May 17 Battle of Ypres. First use of poison gas (page 95).
Apr. 25 Allied troops land on the Gallipoli peninsula.
Apr. 30 Germans invade the Baltic provinces of Russia.
May 1 American steamship "Gulflight" sunk by German submarine; two
Americans lost.
.
May 2 Battle of the Dunajec. Russians defeated by the Germans and
Austrians and forced to retire from the Carpathians.
May 7 British liner "Lusitania" sunk by German submarine (1,154 lives
lost, 114 being Americans).
May 9-June Battle of Artois, or Festubert (in France, north of Arras). Small gains by the Allies.
May 13 American note protests against submarine policy culminating in the
sinking of the "Lusitania." Other notes June q, July 21; German replies, May 28, July 8, Sept. 1. .
May 23 Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary.
May 25 American steamship "Nebraskan" attacked by submarine.
June 3 Przemysl retaken by Germans and Austrians.
June 9 Monfalcone occupied by Italians.
June 22 The Austro-Germans recapture Lemberg, in Galicia.
July 2 Naval action between Russians and Germans in the Baltic.
July 9 Conquest of German Southwest Africa completed.
July 12-Sept. 18 German conquest of Russian Poland; capture of Warsaw (Aug. 5), Kovno (Aug. 17), Brest-Litovsk (Aug. 25), Vilna (Sept. 18).
Aug. 19 British liner "Arabic" sunk by submarines (44 victims, two Americans).
Aug. 21 Italy declares war on Turkey.
Sept. 1 The German ambassador, von Bernstorf, gives assurance that German submarines will sink no more liners without warning.
Sept. 8 United States demands recall of Austro-Hungarian ambassador, Dr. Dumba.
Sept. 25-Oct. French offensive in Champagne fails to break through German lines.
Sept. 27 Small British progress at Loos, near Lens.
Oct. 4 Russian ultimatum to Bulgaria.
Oct. 5 Allied forces land at Salonica, at the invitation of the Greek government.
Oct. 5 German Government regrets and disavows sinking of "Arabic" and is prepared to pay indemnities.
Oct. 6-Dec. 2 Austro-German-Bulgarian conquest of Serbia; fall of Belgrade (Oct. 9), Nish (Nov. 1), Monastir (Dec. 2).
Oct. 13 Germans execute the English nurse, Edith Cavell, for aiding Belgians to escape from Belgium.
Oct. 14 Bulgaria declares war on Serbia.
Oct. 15-19 Great Britain, France, Russia, and Italy declare war against Bulgaria.
Nov. 10-Apr. Russian forces advance into Persia as a result of pro-German activities there.
Dec. 1 British under Gen. Townshend retreat from near Bagdad to Kut-el-Amara.
Dec. 3 United States Government demands recall of Capt. Boy-Ed and Capt. von Papen, attachés of the German embassy.
Dec. 6 Germans capture Ipek, in Montenegro.
Dec. 15 Sir Douglas Haig succeeds Sir John French in command of the British army in France.
Dec. 19 British forces withdraw from parts of Gallipoli peninsula.
1916
Jan. 8 Evacuation of Gallipoli completed.
Jan. 13 Fall of Cetinje, capital of Montenegro.
Feb. 10 Germany notifies neutral powers that armed merchant ships will be treated as warships and will be sunk without warning.
Feb. 15 Secretary Lansing states that by international law commercial vessels have right to carry arms in self-defense.
Feb. 16 Germany sends note acknowledging her liability in the "Lusitania" affair.
Feb. 16 Russians take Erzerum, in Turkish Armenia.
Feb. 16 Kamerun (Africa) conquered.
Feb. 21-July Battle of Verdun (pages 107-108).
Feb. 24 President Wilson in letter to Senator Stone refuses to advise American citizens not to travel on armed merchant ships.
Mar. 8 Germany declares war on Portugal.
Mar. 24 French steamer "Sussex" is torpedoed without warning (page 115).
Apr. 18 Russians capture Trebizond, in Turkey.
Apr. 18 United States note declaring that she will sever diplomatic relations unless Germany abandons present methods of submarine warfare.
Apr. 24-May 1 Insurrection in Ireland.
Apr. 29 Gen. Townshend surrenders at Kut-el-Amara.
May 4 Germany's conditional pledge not to sink merchant ships without
warning (page 116).
May 14-June 3 Great Austrian attack on the Italians through the Trentino.
May 19 Russians join British on the Tigris.
May 24 Conscription bill becomes a law in Great Britain.
May 31 Naval battle off Jutland, in North Sea.
June 4-30 Russian offensive in Galicia and Bukowina.
June 5 Lord Kitchener drowned.
July 1-Nov. 17 Battle of the Somme (page 108).
July 27 Germans execute Captain Fryatt, an Englishman, for having de-
fended his merchant ship by ramming the German submarine that was about to attack it.
Aug. 9 Italians capture Gorizia.
Aug. 27 Italy declares war on Germany.
Aug. 27-Jan. 15 Roumania enters war on the side of the Allies, and most of the country is overrun. (Fall of Bucharest, Dec. 6.)
Oct. 7 German submarine appears off American coast and sinks British
passenger steamer "Stephano" (Oct. 8).
Nov. 19 Monastir retaken by Allies (chiefly Serbians).
Nov. 20 United States protests against Belgian deportations.
Dec. 6 Lloyd George succeeds Asquith as British prime minister.
Dec. 12 German peace offer. Refused (Dec. 30) as "empty and insincere."
Dec. 18 President Wilson's peace note. Germany replies evasively (Dec. 26). Entente Allies' reply (Jan. 10) demands "restorations, reparation, indemnities."
1917
Jan. 10 The Allied governments state their terms of peace.
Jan. 31 Germany announces unrestricted submarine warfare in specified zones.
Feb. 3 United States severs diplomatic relations with Germany.
Feb. 24 Kut-el-Amara taken by British under Gen. Maude.
Feb. 26 President Wilson asks authority to arm merchant ships.
Feb. 28 "Zimmermann note" published.
Mar. 11 Bagdad captured by British under Gen. Maude.
Mar. 11-15 Revolution in Russia, leading to abdication of Czar Nicholas II (Mar. 15). Provisional Government formed by Constitutional Democrats under Prince Lvov. Mar. 12 United States announces that an armed guard will be placed on all American merchant vessels sailing through the war zone.
Mar. 17-19 Retirement of Germans to the "Hindenburg line" (page 118).
Mar. 24 Minister Brand Whillock and American Relief Commission withdrawn from Belgium.
Apr. 2 President Wilson asks Congress to declare the existence of a state of war with Germany.
Apr. 6 United States declares war on Germany.
Apr. 8 Austria-Hungary severs diplomatic relations with the United States.
Apr. 10-May 14 British successes in battle of Arras (Vimy Ridge taken Apr. 9) .
Apr. 16-May 6 French successes in battle of the Aisne between Soissons and Rheims.
Apr. 21 Turkey severs relations with United States.
May 4 American destroyers begin coöperation with British navy in war zone.
May 15-Sept. 15 Great Italian offensive on Isonzo front.
May 15 Gen. Petain succeeds Gen. Novelle as commander in chief of the French armies.
May 18 President Wilson signs selective service act.
June 7 British blow up Messines Ridge, south of Ypres, and capture 7,500 German prisoners.
June 10 Italian offensive in Trentino.
June 12 King Constantine of Greece forced to abdicate.
June 26 First American troops reach France.
June 29 Greece enters war against Germany and her allies.
July 1 Russian army led in person by Kerensky, the Minister of War, begins an offensive in Galicia, ending in disastrous retreat (July 19-Aug. 3).
July 20 Kerensky succeeds Prince Lvov as premier of Russia.
July 30 Mutiny in German fleet at Wilhelmshaven and Kiel. Second mutiny Sept. 2.
July 31-Nov. Battle of Flanders (Passchendaele Ridge); British successes.
Aug. 15 Peace proposals of Pope Benedict published (dated Aug. 1). United States replies Aug. 27; Germany and Austria, Sept. 21.
Aug. 15 Canadians capture Hill 70, dominating Lens.
Aug. 19-24 New Italian drive on the Isonzo front.
Aug. 20-24 French attacks at Verdun recapture high ground lost in 1916.
Sept. 3 Riga captured by Germans.
Sept. 8 Luxburg dispatches ("Spurlos versenkt") published by United States.
Sept. 15 Russia proclaimed a republic.
Oct. 17 Russians defeated in a naval engagement in the Gulf of Riga.
Oct. 14-Dec. Great German-Austrian invasion of Italy. Italian line shifted to Piave River.
Oct. 26 Brazil declares war on Germany.
Nov. 2 Germans retreat from the Chemin des Dames, in France.
Nov. 3 First clash of American with German soldiers.
Nov. 7 Overthrow of Kerensky and Provisional Government of Russia by the Bolsheviki.
Nov. 13 Clémenceau succeeds Ribot as French premier.
Nov. 20-Dec. 13 Battle of Cambrai (page 119).
Nov. 29 First plenary session of the Interallied Conference in Paris. Sixteen nations represented. Col. E. M. House, chairman of American delegation.
Dec. 3 Conquest of German East Africa completed.
Dec. 6 U. S. destroyer "Jacob Jones" sunk by submarine, with loss of over 60 American men.
Dec. 6 Explosion on munitions vessel wrecks Halifax.
Dec. 7 United States declares war on Austria-Hungary.
Dec. 10 Jerusalem captured by British.
Dec. 23 Peace negotiations opened at Brest-Litovsk between Bolshevik government and Central Powers.
Dec. 28 President Wilson takes over the control of railroads.
1918
Jan. 4 British hospital ship "Rewa" torpedoed and sunk in English Channel.
Jan. 8 President Wilson sets forth peace program of the United States.
Jan. 18 Russian Constituent Assembly meets in Petrograd.
Jan. 19 The Bolsheviki dissolve the Russian Assembly.
Jan. 28 Revolution begins in Finland; fighting between "White Guards" and "Red Guards."
Jan. 28-29 Big German air raid on London.
Jan. 30 German air raid on Paris.
Feb. 3 American troops officially announced to be on the Lorraine front near Toul,
Feb. 5 British transport "Tuscania" with 2,179 American troops on board torpedoed and sunk; 211 American soldiers lost.
Feb. 9 Ukrainia makes peace with Germany.
Feb. 10 The Bolsheviki order demobilization of the Russian army.
Feb. 14 Bolo Pasha condemned for treason against France; executed April 16.
Feb. 17 Cossack General Kaledines commits suicide. Collapse of Cossack revolt against the Bolsheviki.
Feb. 18-Mar. 3 Russo-German armistice declared at an end by Germany; war resumed. Germans occupy Dvinsk, Minsk, and other cities.
Feb. 21 German troops land in Finland.
Feb. 23 Turkish troops drive back the Russians in the northeast (Trebizond taken Feb. 26, Erzerum March 14).
Mar. 2 German and Ukrainian troops defeat the Bolsheviki near Kief in Ukrainia.
Mar. 3 Bolsheviki sign peace treaty with Germany at Brest-Litovsk. Ratified by Soviet Congress at Moscow March 15.
Mar. 7 Finland and Germany sign a treaty of peace.
Mar. 10 Announcement that American troops are occupying trenches at four different points on French front.
Mar. 11 First wholly American raid, made in sector north of Toul, meets with success.
Mar. 11 Great German air raid on Paris, by more than fifty planes.
Mar. 13 German troops occupy Odessa on Black Sea.
Mar. 21-Apr. 1 First German drive of the year, on 50-mile front, extending to Montdidier (page 143).
Mar. 29 General Foch appointed to supreme command in the west.
Apr. 9-18 Second German drive, on 30-mile front between Ypres and Arras.
May 6 Roumania signs peace treaty with the Central Powers.
May 7 Nicaragua declares war on Germany and her allies.
May 9-10 British naval force attempts to block Ostend harbor.
May 14 Caucasus proclaims itself an independent state; but the Turks overrun the southern part, and take Baku Sept. 19.
May 21 British transport "Moldavia" is sunk with loss of 53 American soldiers.
May 24 Major General March appointed Chief of Staff with the rank of General.
May 24 Costa Rica declares war on the Central Powers.
May 25-June German submarines appear off American coast and sink 19 coast-wise vessels, including Porto Rico liner "Carolina" with loss of 16 lives.
May 27-June 1 Third German drive, capturing the Chemin des Dames and reaching the Marne River east of Chateau-Thierry. American Marines aid French at Chateau-Thierry.
May 28 American forces near Montdidier capture village of Cantigny and hold it against numerous counter-attacks.
May 31 U.S. transport "President Lincoln" sunk by U-boat while on her way to the United States; 23 lives lost.
June 9-16 Fourth German drive, on 20-mile front east of Montdidier, makes only small gains.
June 10 Italian naval forces sink one Austrian dreadnaught and damage another in the Adriatic.
June 11 American Marines take Belleau Wood, with 800 prisoners.
June 14 Turkish troops occupy Tabriz, Persia.
June 15 General March announces that there are 800,000 American troops in France.
June 15-July 6 Austrian offensive against Italy fails with heavy losses.
June 21 Official statement that American forces hold 30 miles of French front in six sectors.
June 27 British hospital ship "Llandovery Castle" is torpedoed off Irish coast with loss of 234 lives. Only 24 survived.
July 10 Italians and French take Berat in Albania.
July 13 Czecho-Slovak troops occupy Irkutsk in Siberia.
July 15-18 Anglo-American forces occupy strategic positions on the Merman Coast in northwestern Russia.
July 15-18 Fifth German drive extends three miles south of the Marne, but east of Rheims makes no gain.
July 16 Ex-Czar Nicholas executed by Bolshevik authorities.
July 18-Aug. 4 Second battle of the Marne, beginning with Foch's counter-offensive between Soissons and Chateau-Thierry. French and Americans drive the Germans back from the Marne nearly to the Aisne.
July 22 Honduras declares war on Germany.
July 27 American troops arrive on the Italian front.
July 31 President Wilson takes over telegraph and telephone systems.
Aug. 2 Allies occupy Archangel, in northern Russia.
Aug. 8-Sept. Allies attack successfully near Montdidier, and continue the drive until the Germans are back at the Hindenburg line, giving up practically all the ground they had gained this year.
Aug. 15 American troops land in eastern Siberia.
Sept. 3 The United States recognizes the Czecho-Slovak government.
Sept. 12-13 Americans take the St. Mihiel salient near Metz.
Sept. 15 Allied army under Gen. D'Esperey begins campaign against Bulgarians.
Sept. 16 President Wilson receives an Austrian proposal for a peace conference, and refuses it.
Sept. 22 Great victory of British and Arabs over Turks in Palestine.
Sept. 26 Americans begin a drive in the Meuse valley.
Sept. 30 Bulgaria withdraws from the war.
Oct. 1 St. Quentin (on the Hindenburg line) taken by the French.
Oct. 1 Damascus captured by the British.
Oct. 3 King Ferdinand of Bulgaria abdicates.
Oct. 3 Lens taken by the British.
Oct. 4 Germany asks President Wilson for an armistice and peace negotiations (page 150); other notes Oct. 12, 20, etc.; similar notes from Austria-Hungary Oct. 7, and from Turkey Oct. 12. Wilson's replies Oct. 8, 14, 18, 23.
Oct. 7 Beirut taken by a French fleet.
Oct. 8 Cambrai taken by the British.
Oct. 13 Laon taken by the French.
Oct. 17 Ostend taken by the Belgians.
Oct. 17 Lille taken by the British.
Oct. 24-Nov. 4 Allied forces (chiefly Italians) under Gen. Diaz win a great victory on the Italian front.
Oct. 26 Aleppo taken by the British.
Oct. 31 Turkey surrenders.
Nov. 1 Serbian troops enter Belgrade after regaining nearly all of Serbia.
Nov. 3 Trieste and Trent occupied by Italian forces.
Nov. 4 Surrender of Austria-Hungary.
Nov. 5 President Wilson notifies Germany that General Foch has been authorized by the United States and the Allies to communicate the terms of an armistice.
Nov. 6 Mutiny of German sailors at Kiel; followed by mutinies, revolts, and revolutions at other German cities.
Nov. 7 Americans take Sedan.
Nov. 9 British take Maubeuge.
Nov. 9 Abdication of the German emperor William II and the crown prince; they flee to Holland Nov. 10.
Nov. 11 Armistice signed; Germany surrenders.