July 28: 112 Years Since the Start of World War I, Which Caused Millions of Deaths and the Fall of Four Empires

On July 28, the world commemorates 112 years since the commencement of World War I, a cataclysmic conflict that reshaped the global order, claimed millions of lives, and led to the downfall of four major empires.

The spark that ignited the Great War was Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. This fateful decision came just one month after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo, an event that sent shockwaves through the already tense European political climate.

What began as a regional dispute rapidly escalated into a global conflagration, drawing in major powers from across Europe and beyond. The war's unprecedented scale and brutality resulted in an estimated 20 million deaths and 21 million wounded, leaving an indelible scar on the 20th century.

The aftermath of World War I witnessed the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman, Russian, and German empires. This dissolution paved the way for the creation of new nation-states and fundamentally altered the geopolitical map of Europe and the Middle East, setting the stage for future conflicts and developments.