Historical Events
Elizabeth Ivanov
World War 1
- July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918
- Sides: the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire.The Allied forces of Great Britain, the United States, France, Russia, Italy and Japan.
- Casualties: 9 million soldiers were killed by the end of the war in November 1918.
- Archduke Frans Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Austria-Hungary blamed the Serbian government for the attack.
- There was widespread protest over the sinking of the Lusitania by Germany in May 1915. In February 1917 Congress passed a $250 million arms bill that intended to make the United States ready for war.
- April 2 President Woodrow Wilson appeared before Congress and called for a declaration of war against Germany.
- About 116,000 Americans were killed.
British soldiers lined up in the Trenches
Trenches
Tank used for WW1
Sinking of Titanic
- On April 15, 1912, Titanic sunk into the North Atlantic Ocean about 400 miles south of Newfoundland, Canada.
- The ship carried 2,200 passengers and crew.
- The Titanic was designed by William Pirrie, an Irish shipbuilder. It was thought to be the world's fastest ship.
- It was divided into 16 compartments that were presumed to be watertight. Four of the compartments could be flooded without sinking. It was called an unsinkable ship.
- At midnight on April 14, the Titanic hit an iceberg and ruptured five of its hull compartments.
- The water from the ruptured compartments filled each succeeding compartment. This caused the bow to sink and the stern to be raised up above the water. The Titanic broke in half at about 2:20 a.m. on April 15.
- More than 1,500 people went down with the sinking ship or froze to death in the icy waters. Most of the 700 or so survivors were women and children. Most of the people who died were American and British citizens.
- One hour and 20 minutes after the Titanic went down, the Carpathian arrived. Survivors in the lifeboats were brought aboard, and a handful of others were pulled out of the water.
The Great Depression
- Lasted from about 1929-1939
- The Great Depression began soon after the stock market crash of October 1929. This sent Wall Street into a panic and it wiped out millions of investors.
- By 1933, the Great Depression reached its lowest point. Some 13 to 15 million Americans were unemployed and nearly half of the country's banks had failed.
- Bank runs swept the United states in the spring and fall of 1931 and the fall of 1932. By early 1933, thousands of banks had closed their doors.
- Depression-era hardships had fueled the rise of extremist political movements in various European countries. One of them being, Hitler's Nazi regime in Germany.
- F.D.R announced a four-day "bank holiday" during which all banks would close so Congress could pass reform legislation. He began addressing the public directly over the radio in a series of talks which were called "fireside chats." The chats went a long way in restoring public confidence. During his first 100 days in office, F.D.R's administration passed legislation that stabilized industrial and agricultural production, create jobs and stimulate recovery. F.D.R created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to protect depositors' accounts. The Securities and Exchange Commission regulated the stock market and prevent abuses that could lead to another crash.
Men looking for a job.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Children waiting to be fed.
Works Cited
- History.com Staff. "The Great Depression." History.com. A&E Television Networks. 01 January, 2009. Web. 06 May, 2016.
- History.com Staff. "Titanic Sinks." History.com. A&E Television Networks. 2010. Web. 06 May, 2016.
- History.com Staff. "World War I History." History.com. A&E Television Networks. 01 January, 2009. Web. 06 May, 2016.