Great War" redirects here. For other uses, see Great War (disambiguation).
World War I
Clockwise from top: Trenches on the Western Front; a British Mark IV tank crossing a trench; Royal Navy battleship HMS Irresistible sinking after striking a mine at the Battle of the Dardanelles; a Vickers machine gun crew with gas masks, and German Albatros D.III biplanes
Date 28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918 (cease-fire)
Peace treaty signed 28 June 1919
Location Europe, Africa and the Middle East (briefly in China and the Pacific Islands)
Result Allied victory; end of the German, Russian, Ottoman, and Austro-Hungarian Empires; foundation of new countries in Europe and the Middle East; transfer of German colonies to other powers; establishment of the League of Nations.
Belligerents
Allied (Entente) Powers Central Powers
Commanders
Leaders and commanders Leaders and commanders
Casualties and losses
Military dead:
5,525,000
Military wounded: 12,831,500
Military missing: 4,121,000[1]
...further details. Military dead:
4,386,000
Military wounded: 8,388,000
Military missing: 3,629,000[1]
...further details.
[show]v • d • eTheatres of World War I
European
Balkans – Western Front – Eastern Front – Italian Front
Middle Eastern
Caucasus – Mesopotamia – Sinai and Palestine – Gallipoli – Persia
African
South-West Africa – West Africa – East Africa
Asian and Pacific
Other
Atlantic Ocean – Mediterranean – Naval – Aerial
World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars) was a global war which took place primarily in Europe from 1914 to 1918.[2] Over 40 million casualties resulted, including approximately 20 million military and civilian deaths.[3] Over 60 million European soldiers were mobilized from 1914 to 1918.[4]
The act which is considered to have triggered the succession of events which led to war was the 28 June 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to...