The title “World War I” emphasizes how unprecedented it was in history. For the first time, the number of war casualties reached millions, and for the first time, means of mass destruction were used. The illusion that humanity had left cruelty behind forever and set out on the path of progress was shattered. This is an objective chronicle of a brutal struggle that exhausted powerful European states and became a prelude to an even more destructive catastrophe. © Rupert Colley 2009, 2011 © Karaev N., Russian translation, 2014 © Russian-language edition, design. LLC “Publishing Group ‘Azbuka-Atticus’, 2014 CoLibri® Publishing House