First World War · 1914

1914: how Europe went to war

On 28 June 1914 two shots in Sarajevo set off a chain reaction. Within six weeks the great powers of Europe were at war. Students trace the alliances on the 1914 map and ask why one murder became a world war.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, AD 1914
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

On 28 June 1914 two shots in Sarajevo set off a chain reaction. Within six weeks the great powers of Europe were at war. Students trace the alliances on the 1914 map and ask why one murder became a world war.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Explain how the murder in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 led to a European war within six weeks.
  • Show on the 1914 map the two alliance blocs and at least two neutral countries.
  • Weigh at least two causes of the war, such as alliances, militarism, empire and nationalism.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1914

Europe in 1914

Open the map in 1914. Find the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, Russia and France. Which countries surround Germany and Austria-Hungary? Why might their leaders feel encircled?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1914

The shots in Sarajevo

Zoom in on Sarajevo in Bosnia, then part of Austria-Hungary. Find Serbia next door. Why did Austria-Hungary blame Serbia for the murder?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1914

The road through Belgium

Look at the border between Germany and France, then at Belgium. Ask the atlas: "What was the Schlieffen Plan?" Why did Germany march through a neutral country?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. What happened in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914, and who was killed?
  2. Why did a quarrel between Austria-Hungary and Serbia drag in Russia, Germany, France and Britain?
  3. Germany invaded neutral Belgium on 4 August 1914. Why did that bring Britain into the war?
  4. Many people in 1914 expected the war to be over by Christmas. Why were they so wrong?
  5. Historians still argue about who was most to blame for the war. Is it fair to blame one country?
4

Game round

10 min

No ruler in Rule History lived in 1914. Play one round as Napoleon Bonaparte, whose wars shaped this map a century earlier. Then compare: how did leaders like Kaiser Wilhelm II and Tsar Nicholas II make their decisions in July 1914?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.