World War I or the First World War[j] (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918) was a global conflict

fought between two coalitions: the Allies and the Central Powers. Fighting took place throughout
Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. One of the deadliest wars in history, it
resulted in an estimated 9 million soldiers dead and 23 million wounded, plus another 5 million
civilian deaths from various causes. Millions more died as a result of genocide, and the war was a
major factor in the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic.

Increasing diplomatic tension between the European great powers reached a breaking point on 28
June 1914, when a Bosnian Serb named Gavrilo Princip assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand,
heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Austria-Hungary held Serbia responsible, and declared war on
28 July. Russia came to Serbia's defence, and by 4 August, Germany, France, and Britain were
drawn into the war, with the Ottoman Empire joining in November of that same year. Germany's
strategy in 1914 was to first defeat France, then transfer forces to the Russian front. However,
this failed, and by the end of 1914, the Western Front consisted of a continuous line
of trenches stretching from the English Channel to Switzerland. The Eastern Front was more
dynamic, but neither side could gain a decisive advantage, despite costly offensives. As the war
expanded to more fronts, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, Greece and others joined in from 1915 onward.

In early 1917, the United States entered the war on the side of the Allies, and later the same year,
the Bolsheviks seized power in the Russian October Revolution, making peace with the Central
Powers in early 1918. Germany launched an offensive in the west in March 1918, and despite initial
success, it left the German Army exhausted and demoralised. A successful Allied counter-
offensive later that year caused a collapse of the German frontline. By the end of 1918, Bulgaria, the
Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary agreed to armistices with the Allies, leaving Germany isolated.
Facing revolution at home and with his army on the verge of mutiny, Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated on
9 November.

Fighting ended with the Armistice of 11 November 1918, while the subsequent Paris Peace
Conference imposed various settlements on the defeated powers, notably the Treaty of Versailles.
The dissolution of the Russian, German, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman Empires resulted in the
creation of new independent states, including Poland, Finland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. The
inability to manage post-war instability contributed to the outbreak of World War II in September
1939.

Names
The term world war was first coined in September 1914 by German biologist and philosopher Ernst
Haeckel. He claimed that "there is no doubt that the course and character of the feared 'European
War' ... will become the first world war in the full sense of the word,"[1] in The Indianapolis Star on 20
September 1914.

The term First World War had been used by Lt-Col. Charles à Court Repington, as a title for his
1920 memoirs; he had noted his discussion on the matter with a Major Johnstone of Harvard
University in his diary entry of 10 September 1918.[2][3]

Prior to World War II, the events of 1914–1918 were generally known as the Great War or simply
the World War.[4][failed verification] In August 1914, the magazine The Independent wrote "This is the Great
War. It names itself".[5] In October 1914, the Canadian magazine Maclean's similarly wrote, "Some
wars name themselves. This is the Great War."[6] Contemporary Europeans also referred to it as "the
war to end war" and it was also described as "the war to end all wars" due to their perception of its
unparalleled scale, devastation, and loss of life.[7]