The world war was a large, global conflict between many nations in which over 9 million people died. It was caused by many reasons including imperialism, alliances and nationalism. Imperialism was when countries expanded their territories and control, which led to tension between nations. Alliances were military agreements between countries. They helped to cause tension because they meant rivalry between different countries. Nationalism was a big factor in world war because it made people decide their loyalty based on ethnic or cultural background, rather than shared ideals.

By the summer of 1914, all the major European powers were preparing for war. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand started it all off and it didn’t take long for it to spread across the entire continent.

Countries spent lots of money on their militaries and arming for war, which led to a lot of tension between the countries. In addition to that, there was secret diplomacy, which means that countries would meet in private and try to work out their differences without letting the other side know about it.

In the US, Woodrow Wilson calls for a declaration of war against Germany. Millions of men sign up to be draftees, and the ANZACs are the first troops from Australia and New Zealand to enter the battle. British Prime Minister Lloyd George tasked General Allenby with capturing Jerusalem by Christmas, which he does weeks ahead of schedule and deals a major blow to Turkish forces.