1912, Balkans: The Balkan War . Troops marching. Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria called the 'Fox of the Balkans'. Generals look at a map. Prisoners standing in a group. Men walk in lines on a path. Soldiers in coats with rifles. Montenegro: King Nicholas I surrounded by military and other officials. A man helps the King put on his coat. Italy: The King and Queen with dignitaries at a ceremony to launch battleships. Spain: The young King Alfonso XIII surrounded by military officials. Germany: German troops march on the streets. Soldiers on horses during a parade. Kaiser William II inspects troops. The crown Prince is greeted by the people of Germany.
Newspaper headline declares Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Countess Sophie's assassination by a Bosnian youth in Sarajevo. The Archduke's bullet ridden uniform. The caskets carrying the bodies of the Archduke and his wife are taken to Vienna. The caskets wrapped in the Austrian flag at the port. Officers and soldiers salute in their honor. Priests lead the funeral procession followed by the caskets brought in horse carriages. Various New York newspaper headlines depicting beginning of World War I: Austria declares war on Serbia, Russia mobilizes against Austria, Germany declares war on Russia, France and England declare war on the Central Powers. Berlin: A large crowd gathered on the streets of Berlin. Mobilized German troops and band march on the streets. Crowd greets the German soldiers.
Tsar Nicholas II of Russia mobilizes ten million men on the Eastern border during the early stages of World War 1. The Tsar inspects Russian troops and consults with his uncle the Grand Duke Nicholas. Russian troops and the military band march. The Kaiser, and the king of Wurttenberg step from a car in Germany. Officers and civilians gathered around. The Kaiser reviews soldiers in Germany. The Crown Prince of Germany readies to command an army. Field Marshall August Von Mackensen, readies to fight the Romanian Army.
An order for mobilization of the French troops for World War 1. French troops march in the streets of France. A crowd cheers them on. Troops marching in a field. French President Raymond Poincare, General Joseph-Jacques-Cesaire-Joffre, and other officers inspect and salute the troops. The proclamation of a German general for the population of Luxembourg. Kaiser Wilhelm II with his military officers in Germany. The Kaiser inspects and salutes marching troops. German soldiers advance on cobbled streets.
Headlines in various New York and Belgian newspapers report the entry of Austria, Germany, Russia and Great Britain into the World War 1. A poster part of the recruitment campaign by Lord Kitchener, British Secretary of State for War. British troops in the streets of England, mobilize for the war. King George V, his son and uncle, inspect British troops. Turkey: The Sultan of Turkey and other military officials emerge from a building. The Sultan takes his seat in horse carriage and is driven away. Turkish troops at a port and soldiers seated in a ship. Belgium: Bombarded buildings and ruins in Louvain. People and soldiers on the street. People in carts on a road in search of new homes. Military officers study a map. Belgrade: Serbians bomb Belgrade. Soldiers fire artillery guns. Bomb explosions on a hill. British soldiers camp with French soldiers across the channel. Australian soldiers march ahead to join the war. Germany: Retired General Paul Von Hindenburg, commander of the Germans, and other military officers pose outside a building. The German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II ascends from the sand dunes of Belgium to inspect his troops in a field. France: French soldiers on alert in trenches and bunkers, defend the borders of Paris. General Gallieni and his troops leave Paris for the front in taxicabs.
Berlin: Fuhrer Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini of Italy confer in Berlin. Both leaders enter a building followed by officers. A soldier gives a Nazi salute. Officers confer in a room. Italy: Mussolini, accompanied by German Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel and Commander Rodolfo Graziani, inspects new Italian Division. He talks to the soldiers. Soldiers set up equipment for display. Mussolini inspects equipment. Soldiers cheer as the official motorcade leaves. (World War II period).