Special Sub-Topic: Wars of the World Click Here To Play: Wars of the World

We'll begin with World War I. Many theories state that the war began with the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Where was Ferdinand when he was killed?

Bosnia. Ferdinand was the first in line for the Austrian throne when he was assassinated on June 28, 1914. Both he and his wife were killed that day, while Gavrilo Princip was charged with their murder. Princip remained in prison for the rest of his life.

Two sides of the war formed. The "Triple Entente" and the "Central Powers". Which of these countries was NOT in the Triple Entente, but in the Central Powers?

Germany. The war began like this. Austria-Hungary (a Central Power) declared war on Serbia (an ally of the Triple Entente) after Ferdinand's death. Russia jumped in to help Serbia against Austria-Hungary. Germany joined Austria-Hungary on the Central Powers side, and France joined the Entente. The Germans decided to go for France, but on their way went through Belgium, a country that said they would not take part in the war. That made the British mad, so they jumped in to help the French. Italy also helped the Central Powers, but changed sides in the middle of the war. The British and French had many colonies around the world, so when they declared war, all the colonies did too and supplied men to help the war effort.

The Canadian army was able to capture Vimy Ridge, an important hill in North France.

t. April 1915 was a huge time for the Canadian Army, and was a major milestone in Canadian history, because no other country was able to capture the ridge. The French and British armies previously had tried to capture the ridge. The Canadian military lost 10,000 men. There is now a memorial at the highest point of the ridge to commemorate the battle.

The United States desperately did not want to take part in the war. However, many believe that the sinking of this boat on May 7, 1915, was the reason that the Americans joined the war two years later. What British boat was it?

Lusitania. The RMS Lusitania was a British merchant ship. When it sank, it killed 1198 of the 1959 people on board. The Germans warned people travelling on the Lusitania to beware that German submarines could easily target it. The ship was on its way from New York City to Liverpool.

World War I ended with the signing of what document, which blamed the Germans for causing the war, and led to penalties for this?

Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles was created in 1919. The German government was not allowed to participate in the creation of the treaty, but still were expected to sign it. Germany was forced to give back a province to France that they had claimed in a previous war. Germany was forced to limit their military to 100,000 men, down from 6 million and lose all submarines, aircraft and artillery.

Let's fast forward to the Second World War. What German leader (who was born in Austria) from the Nazi Party had taken control of the Germany prior to the start of the war?

Adolf Hitler. As a young boy growing up in Austria, Hitler fought in World War I with the Germans. He entered politics after the war, upset with the way Germany handled the war. After being elected as Chancellor in 1933, Hitler became Fuhrer in 1934.

Japan figured out that in World War II they would have to battle with the United States. So on December 7, 1941 they bombed Pearl Harbor, which is on what island, which is now a US state?

Hawaii. The morning of December 7, 1941 is a very important day in American history. Four US navy ships were sunk, and 2,402 people were killed. The US also lost 188 aircraft to damage. The next day the Americans declared war on the Japanese. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it "a date which will live in infamy".

This was one of the worst times in human history. During the Second World War, many European Jews were rounded up by German forces and sent to concentration camps. Here they performed heavy work for no pay and abysmal living conditions. Almost everyone died. What was this called?

Holocaust. The Holocaust was Adolf Hitler's way to make the "Master Race". Hitler never liked Jews, the disabled, political enemies and communists. Over 6 million Jewish people died. It is unclear why Adolf Hitler never got along with them. Anne Frank wrote her famous diary while hiding from the Nazis in the war. Anne was eventually caught and sent to a camp.

June 6, 1944 is the day when the British, Canadian, and American forces broke onto the beaches of Northwest France. The plan was to catch the Germans off-guard. It began to change the war, shifting power away from Germany. What is this day called?

D-Day. The attack on the beaches of Normandy was known as Operation Overlord. Through the attack, all of France was won back from the invading Germans. Less than one year later, Germany surrendered, ending the war.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Americans attacked the Japanese. On August 6, 1945 the Americans dropped the first atomic bomb on what Japanese city?

Hiroshima. The bomb went off at 8:16 am on that morning, while many kids were walking to school. Over 100,000 died and much of the city was destroyed. It was nicknamed the "Little Boy" bomb, after American president Franklin D. Roosevelt.