An overview timeline of key events relating to New Zealand's participation in the First World War, 1914-1919.
| Dates | Event | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1914 | 28 Jun 1914 |
Assassination of Archduke Franz FerdinandThe assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in Sarajevo triggers the build-up to the First World War. |
 Image: Gavrilo Princip assassinates Franz Ferdinand, 1914 Wikipedia |
| 4 Aug 1914 |
Britain declares war on GermanyNew Zealand receives the news of the outbreak of war at 1 p.m. on 5 August (NZ time). It is announced by the Governor, the Earl of Liverpool, on the steps of Parliament to a crowd of 15,000. |
 Image: Evening Post, 5 August 1914, pg. 8 PapersPast, National Library of New Zealand |
|
| 29 Aug 1914 |
New Zealand forces capture German SamoaA 1374-strong 'Advance Party NZEF' captures German Samoa, the second German territory, after Togoland in Africa, to fall to Allied forces during the war. |
 Image: NZ troops land in Samoa, Malcolm Ross, August 1914 Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand, PA1-q-107-29-2 |
|
| 16 Sep 1914 |
Maori Contingent formedGovernment announces the formation of a 'Maori Contingent' of 200 men for service with the NZEF. This is expanded to 500 at the suggestion of the British War Office. |
 Image: The spirit of his fathers, William Blomfield, 1915 Alexander Turnbull Library, A-312-1-088 |
|
| 16 Oct 1914 |
NZEF Main Body departsThe NZEF Main Body, consisting of 8454 soldiers and about 3000 horses, departs Wellington in 10 troopships. They arrive in Egypt on 3 December and establish a camp at Zeitoun, near Cairo. |
|
|
| 02 Nov 1914 |
Ottoman Empire enters the warRussia declares war on the Ottoman Empire, an ally of the German and Austro-Hungarian empires. The British Empire (including New Zealand) and France declare war on the Ottoman Empire on 5 November. |
 Image: Ottoman war medal National Army Museum, 1983.953 |
|
| 8 Dec 1914 |
ANZAC name introducedThe NZEF combines with Australian Imperial Force units to form the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. ANZAC is adopted as the label for Australian or New Zealand soldiers following the Gallipoli landings. |
 Image: Remember ANZAC Christmas card Alexander Turnbull Library, Eph-A-WAR-WI-1916-02-front |
|
| 1915 | 3 Feb 1915 |
NZ soldiers see first combatNew Zealand soldiers see first combat of the war when they help defend the Suez Canal from an attack by Ottoman troops. Private William Ham, severely wounded during the fighting, becomes the NZEF's first combat fatality two days later. |
 Image: William Ham (photo courtesy of Lisa Ham) Auckland War Memorial Museum |
| 25 Apr 1915 - 1 May 1915 |
Gallipoli landingsThe ANZAC land near Ari Burnu at what has become known as Anzac Cove on the Gallipoli peninsula of Turkey. The first New Zealand troops land in the late morning. |
 Image: The landing at Anzac by Charles Dixon, 1915 Archives New Zealand, AAAC 898 NCWA Q388 |
|
| 5 May 1915 - 8 May 1915 |
Second Battle of KrithiaThe New Zealand Brigade deploys south to Cape Helles, Gallipoli and takes part in a series of unsuccessful attacks toward the village of Krithia on the slopes of Achi Baba. They suffer over 800 casualties. |
 Image: Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, 13 July 1915, pg. 7 PapersPast, National Library of New Zealand |
|
| 8 Aug 1915 |
NZ troops capture Chunuk BairThe Wellington Battalion captures the Chunuk Bair summit during the Battle of Sari Bair. New Zealand units hold the summit for two days until relieved by British troops on the night of 9-10 August. Chunuk Bair is recaptured by the Turks the next day. |
 Image: The battle of Chunuk Bair, 8 August 1915 by Major Ion George Brown NZ Parliament |
|
| 12 Aug 1915 |
National coalition government takes officeThe Reform and Liberal parties join together to form a National government under the leadership of Prime Minister William Massey and Sir Joseph Ward. The coalition lasts until August 1919. |
 Image: 'The new choirmaster' by Trevor Lloyd Alexander Turnbull Library, C-109-038 |
|
| 15 Dec 1915 - 20 Dec 1915 |
Evacuations from GallipoliAuthorities in London decide to withdraw from the Gallipoli peninsula. New Zealand troops are evacuated from the Anzac area between 15 and 20 December. The campaign has cost New Zealand nearly 7500 casualties, including 2721 dead. |
 Image: NZ troops evacuating from Gallipoli Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/4-008784-F |
|
| 1916 | 1 Mar 1916 |
New Zealand Division formedThe New Zealand Division is formed with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd (Rifle) brigades. Major-General Sir Andrew Russell is given command. The division is sent to the Western Front and arrives in France from Egypt in April 1916. |
 Image: Major General Sir Andrew H. Russell, George Edmund Butler Archives New Zealand, AAAC 898 125/NCWA 543 |
| 16 March 1916 |
NZ Tunnelling Company joins underground warThe New Zealand Division is formed with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd (Rifle) brigades. Major-General Sir Andrew Russell is given command. The division is sent to the Western Front and arrives in France from Egypt in April 1916. |
 Image: Men of the New Zealand Tunnelling Company below the ground at La Fosse Farm Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/2-012990-G |
|
| 25 Apr 1916 |
First Anzac Day serviceFirst Anzac Day services are held in New Zealand to mark the anniversary of the Gallipoli landings. The government had announced the establishment of 'Anzac Day' as a half-day holiday on 5 April. |
 Image: Anzac Day, Petone, 1916, by Albert Percy Godber Alexander Turnbull Library, APG-059-1/2-G |
|
| 31 May 1916 - 1 Jun 1916 |
HMS New Zealand takes part in the Battle of JutlandIn 1909 New Zealand offered a battleship to Britain to help strengthen their naval fleet. The battle cruiser HMS New Zealand joined the British battle fleet in 1912 and took part in the Battle of Jutland (1916). |
 Image: HMS New Zealand, Gerald Maurice Burn, 1915 Archives New Zealand, AAAC 898 NCWA 539 |
|
| 1 Aug 1916 |
Conscription introducedConscription is introduced in New Zealand by the Military Service Act. As a result 32,000 conscripts serve overseas with the NZEF alongside 72,000 volunteers. The first conscription ballot is held on 16 November 1916. |
 Image: Conscription poster, 1916 Alexander Turnbull Library, Eph-D-WAR-WI-1916-01 |
|
| 4 Aug 1916 |
Battle of RomaniFollowing Gallipoli, the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade take part in campaigns against Ottoman forces in Sinai and Palestine, 1916-1918. They see their first major action near Romani in the Sinai. |
 Image: NZ mounted patrol near Romani National Army Museum, 2008.34 |
|
| 15 Sep 1916 |
NZ Division goes into action on the SommeThe New Zealand Division takes part in its first major action near Flers during the Somme offensive (July-November 1916). Over the next 23 days, the division suffers 7000 casualties, including more than 1500 killed. |
 Image: In the trenches during Battle of the Somme Archives New Zealand, IA 76/13, H474 |
|
| 1917 | 9 Jan 1917 |
Battle of RafahNew Zealanders become the first Allied troops to cross into Ottoman Palestine. A charge by the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade results in the capture of Rafah and its Ottoman garrison on the Sinai-Palestine border. |
 Image: Sinai campaign map NZHistory |
| 7 Jun 1917 - 9 Jun 1917 |
Battle of MessinesThe New Zealand Division takes all its objectives, including the village of Messines. The New Zealanders suffer 3700 casualties, including 700 killed during the battle. |
 Image: NZ artillery in action at Messines by Henry Armytage Sanders, 8 June 1917 Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/4-009465-G |
|
| 25 Jun 1917 |
German raider lays mines off NZThe German armed merchant cruiser Wolf lays mines off the Three Kings Islands and off Farewell Spit two nights later. These mines sink the merchant ships Port Kembla (18 September 1917) and Wimmera (26 June 1918). |
 Image: The enemy at the gate', Observer, 20 Sept 1919 PapersPast, National Library of New Zealand |
|
| 4 Oct 1917 |
Third Battle of YpresNew Zealand's 1st and 4th brigades take part in a successful attack on Gravenstafel Spur, which runs off Passchendaele ridge. The attack costs more than 320 New Zealand lives, including that of former All Black captain Dave Gallaher. |
 Image: David Gallaher's grave (photo courtesy of Susan McConnell) Donegal Genealogy Resources |
|
| 12 Oct 1917 |
New Zealand's blackest dayThe 2nd and 3rd (Rifle) brigades suffer over 3700 casualties in a disastrous attack on Bellevue Spur, Passchendaele. About 960 men are left dead or dying. |
 Image: Passchendaele scene Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/2-C-003343-F |
|
| 1918 | 26 Mar 1918 - 30 Mar 1918 |
Back to the SommeA massed German attack on 21 March tears a hole in the British front. The New Zealand Division are among several units rushed to fill this gap near the Somme. They fight off several German attacks and hold their line. |
 Image: NZ on the Somme, 1918 Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/2-013089-G |
| 23 Sep 1918 |
Last major action in the Middle EastNew Zealand mounted troops help capture Es Salt and Amman (25 September) in Jordan. |
 Image: Detail from Turkish prisoner in Palestine, by Hans Hartmann Alexander Turnbull Library, PAColl-5456-1-12-2 |
|
| 29 Sep 1918 - 5 Oct 1918 |
Breaking through the Hindenburg LineNew Zealand troops help break through the Hindenburg Line - the main German defence system on the Western Front. |
 Image: Breaking of Hindenburg Line PapersPast, National Library of New Zealand |
|
| 31 Oct 1918 |
Ottoman Empire sues for peaceWith her armies defeated, and her German ally on the verge of collapse, the Ottoman Empire seeks an armistice with the Allies. This comes into effect on 31 October. |
 Image: Ottoman Empire map NZHistory |
|
| 4 Nov 1918 |
Liberation of Le QuesnoyNew Zealand troops liberate the walled town of Le Quesnoy, advancing 10km and capturing nearly 2000 prisoners in the process. This is the last major action of the war for the New Zealand Division. |
 Image: Capture of the walls of Le Quesnoy, 1920, George Edmund Butler Archives New Zealand, AAAC 898 125/NCWA 535 |
|
| 11 Nov 1918 |
Armistice DayFighting on the Western Front stops when an armistice comes into effect at 11a.m. |
 Image: Armistice signed headline PapersPast, National Library of New Zealand |
|
| 20 Dec 1918 |
Occupation dutiesThe New Zealand Division crosses into Germany. They take part in the occupation of Germany's Rhineland, stationed near Cologne. This is a short-lived assignment and the division is disbanded on 25 March 1919. |
 Image: NZ soldiers at Hohenzollern Bridge, Cologne Alexander Turnbull Library, 1/1-002098-G |
|
| 1919 | 15 Mar 1919 - 16 Mar 1919 |
Coming homeNew Zealand troops at Sling Camp in Bulford, England riot over delays in their repatriation home. Transport issues and the influenza pandemic mean that the last group of New Zealand soldiers do not arrive home until May 1920. |
.jpg) Image: Sling Camp Alexander Turnbull Library, Eph-A-WAR-WI-1919-03 |
| 28 Jun 1919 |
Treaty of VersaillesThe Treaty of Versailles peace agreement is signed between Germany and the Allies. Prime Minister William Massey signs for New Zealand. |
 Image: Pen used for signing Treaty of Versailles Parliamentary Services |
|
