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The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

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The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

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News of the killings appeared in the New Zealand press on 30 June, with headlines labelling the event the ‘Tragedy in Sarajevo’ and describing the assassinations as ‘Murder’. The Evening Post called the killings a politically motivated crime. The Auckland Star claimed that a ‘disregarded warning’ had placed the Archduke and his wife in danger – ‘It is reported that, in view of the Pan-Servian agitation in Bosnia, efforts were made to persuade the Archduke to relinquish his visit’. The New Zealand Herald of 3 July ran a story focusing on the personal tragedy of the ‘Three orphan children’, who ‘broke into convulsive weeping’ when told their parents had died. Those responsible were described as ‘callous’.

Significance: 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.

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The Russian Revolution of 1917 was one of the most explosive political events of the 20th century. The violent revolution marked the end of the Romanov dynasty and centuries of Russian Imperial rule. Economic hardship, food shortages and government corruption all contributed to disillusionment with Czar Nicholas II. During the Russian Revolution, the Bolsheviks, led by leftist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin, seized power and destroyed the tradition of czarist rule. The Bolsheviks would later become the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government following two successive revolutions and a bloody civil war.

Significance: The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social change in the Russian Empire, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government following two successive revolutions and a bloody civil war.

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Germany signs the Armistice, ending World War 1

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Germany signs the Armistice, ending World War 1

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On Nov. 11, 1918, after more than four years of horrific fighting and the loss of millions of lives, the guns on the Western Front fell silent. Although fighting continued elsewhere, the armistice between Germany and the Allies was the first step to ending World War I. The global reaction was one of mixed emotions: relief, celebration, disbelief and a profound sense of loss.

The truce, or Armistice, would start on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, November 1918.   The Armistice was signed at 5:00 a.m. by Marshal of France Ferdinand Foch, along with other Allies and Germany, inside of Foch's private railway car at Compagnie, France.  As part of the Armistice, all German Navy vessels were disarmed and moved to neutral ports.

Significance: The Armistice was the ceasefire that ended hostilities between the Allies and Germany on 11 November 1918. The Armistice did not end the First World War itself, but it was the agreement which stopped the fighting on the Western Front while the terms of the permanent peace were discussed.

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The stock market crashes, marking the start of the Great Depression

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The stock market crashes, marking the start of the Great Depression

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On that day, the value of stocks traded in the New York Stock Exchange dropped dramatically. In just three days, investors lost over $5 billion. By the end of the year, stock values dropped another $11 billion. Banks and investment companies that had put money in stocks lost fortunes. Factories began to close, laying off workers. Hard times were coming.

However, for Iowans and the Midwest, hard times had started about ten years earlier. During World War I, the government guaranteed farmers high prices for their crops and livestock. Farmers put more acres in cultivation and increased the size of their herds. They borrowed money from local banks to buy more land and machinery. As the demand for land increased, so did its price, and sales of Iowa farmland rose sharply.

In 1920, however, the government ended its guarantees. Farm prices were allowed to drop back to natural prices—determined by supply and demand. In this case, there were big supplies. Farmers continued to produce at high levels and soon surpluses appeared. As a result, prices for crops and for land fell. Those who had borrowed money could not pay off their loans. Even if they sold their farms, the money they received sometimes was less than what they owed. When banks could not collect the money they borrowed, they could not repay the people who had deposited money in their bank accounts. Many Iowa banks closed, and depositors lost their money. Around the state, 167 banks closed in 1920. That number rose to 505 in 1921. For several more years the number of bank failures remained high.

Low crop prices hurt farmers, but there were other factors at work. Farm families had to pay high prices for farm machinery through the 1920s. Also, rates to haul grain were much higher than they had been before the war. Many rural areas had built new schools and put gravel on country roads when times were good. Because they were still paying for those improvements, taxes were high. Many local school boards asked teachers to accept less pay for their work. Sometimes teachers resigned rather than accepting lower wages.

What made many Midwesterners angry was that the eastern cities seemed to be doing well. Before the collapse in 1929, wages for city workers were rising, and businesses were doing well. Most farm families still did not have electricity in their homes, and rural schools were clearly falling behind the educational instruction that town schools could offer.

Significance: The Great Depression caused the United States Government to pull back from major international involvement during the 1930s, but in the long run it contributed to the emergence of the United States as a world leader thereafter.

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Adolf Hitler becomes chancellor of Germany

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Adolf Hitler becomes chancellor of Germany

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He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then taking the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934. During his dictatorship, he initiated World War II in Europe by invading Poland on 1 September 1939. On 30 January 1933, the new cabinet was sworn in during a brief ceremony in Hindenburg's office. The NSDAP gained three posts: Hitler was named chancellor, Wilhelm Frick Minister of the Interior, and Hermann Göring, Minister Without Portfolio (and Minister of the Interior for Prussia).

Significance: Upon achieving power, Hitler smashed the nation's democratic institutions and transformed Germany into a war state intent on conquering Europe for the benefit of the so-called Aryan race. His invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, triggered the European phase of World War II.

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Nazis destroy Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues & send 30,000 Jewish men to concentration camps

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Nazis destroy Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues & send 30,000 Jewish men to concentration camps

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On November 9–10, 1938, Nazi leaders unleashed a series of pogroms against the Jewish population in Germany and recently incorporated territories. This event came to be called Kristallnacht (The Night of Broken Glass) because of the shattered glass that littered the streets after the vandalism and destruction of Jewish-owned businesses, synagogues, and homes. Nazi officials disguised the organized nature of the pogroms. They described the actions as justifiable and spontaneous responses of the German population to the assassination of a German diplomatic official, Ernst vom Rath, in Paris. This unprecedented violence against the Reich’s Jews generated international outrage. In the aftermath of Kristallnacht, the Nazi regime ordered the Jewish community to pay a 1 billion Reichsmark “atonement tax” and rapidly enacted many anti-Jewish laws and edicts.

Significance: Kristallnacht marks the first time that the police specifically extolled the extermination of Jews. Some would say it marks the beginning of the holocaust. It had a massive emotional, economical, social, political effect on the Jewish people.