November 11 in the history of the homeland.
World War I End Day: As Celebrated in Russia and the World.
In Russia, November 11 marks the end of World War I, which became the first major armed conflict in human history. Before that it was called the Great War, which only emphasizes the scope of the conflict.
Until 1914, the great powers of Europe were divided into two military-political blocs: the Entente (France, Russia, Great Britain) and the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy), which was later joined by Turkey and Bulgaria.
The armed conflict between the opposing forces began on July 28, 1914 and lasted four years and three months. 38 of the 59 countries that existed at that time were involved in it, and hostilities spread not only to all of Europe, but also to the Middle East, Africa and certain parts of Asia.
The initiators of the military conflict were Germany and Austria-Hungary, who sought to redistribute the world. Other participants also had their own interests. The trigger was the murder of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Franz Ferdinand, by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo (Bosnia). In response, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Then Russia and France were dragged into the conflict and announced the mobilization of forces against Austria-Hungary.
After that, Germany entered the war. The Germans launched an invasion of Luxembourg and after capturing it in just one day, they secured open access to the French border. Then the Germans invaded Belgium. In early 1917, Germany began submarine warfare for supremacy in the Atlantic, bringing the previously neutral United States into the war.
Until the middle of 1917, the Entente countries succeeded in undermining the military power of the enemy. The actions of the Russian military played an important role in this. In particular, a severe defeat was inflicted on the armies of Austria-Hungary and Germany in 1916 during the offensive operation known as the Russilov Breakthrough.