Timeline Thursday 29 October 1914

Events on Thursday 29 October 1914 1

• 1914 Ottoman entry into WWI -- the German alliance The Ottoman decision to ally with Germany (secret treaty of 2 August 1914, active belligerency from 29 October 1914) is the most consequential and most debated decision in Ottoman history. Enver Pasha drives the decision, believing that only a German victory can reverse the Balkan Wars' territorial losses and restore Ottoman power. The CUP government harbours German warships (Goeben and Breslau) in Istanbul and allows them to bombard Russian Black Sea ports -- forcing Russia, Britain and France to declare war. The decision proves catastrophic: the empire fights simultaneously against Russia, Britain, France and (later) Arab revolt, and loses.