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== Events == Below, the events of [[World War I]] have the "WWI" prefix. === January === {{main|January 1917}} * [[January 9]] – WWI – [[Battle of Rafa]]: The last substantial [[Ottoman Army]] garrison on the [[Sinai Peninsula]] is captured by the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]]'s [[Desert Column]].<ref name="Force1924">{{cite book|author=New Zealand. Army. Expeditionary Force|title=Roll of Honour, the Great War, 1914-1918|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UtbFAAAAMAAJ|year=1924|publisher=W.A.G. Skinner|page=xv}}</ref> * [[January 10]] – [[Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition]]: Seven survivors of the [[Ross Sea party]] are rescued after being stranded for several months.<ref>{{cite book|author-link= Ernest Shackleton|last= Shackleton|first= Ernest|title= South|url= https://archive.org/details/South00Shac|publisher= William Heinemann|location= London|year= 1919|pages= 334–337}}</ref> * [[January 11]] – Unknown saboteurs set off the [[Kingsland Explosion]] at Kingsland (modern-day [[Lyndhurst, New Jersey]]), one of the events leading to United States involvement in WWI.<ref>{{cite book|author=Canada. Parliament. House of Commons|title=Official Report of Debates, House of Commons|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6iElAQAAIAAJ|year=1939|publisher=Queen's Printer|page=4044}}</ref> * [[January 16]] – The [[Danish West Indies]] is sold to the United States for $25 million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|25|1917}} million in {{Inflation/year|US}}). * [[January 22]] – WWI: United States President [[Woodrow Wilson]] calls for "peace without victory" in Germany. * [[January 25]] – WWI: British [[armed merchantman]] {{SS|Laurentic|1908|6}} is sunk by mines off [[Lough Swilly]] (Ireland), with the loss of 354 of the 475 aboard. * [[January 26]] – The sea defences at the English village of [[Hallsands]] are breached, leading to all but one of the houses becoming uninhabitable. * [[January 28]] – The United States ends its search for [[Pancho Villa]]. * [[January 30]] – [[John J. Pershing|Pershing]]'s troops in [[Mexico]] begin withdrawing back to the United States. They reach [[Columbus, New Mexico]] [[February 5]]. === February === {{main|February 1917}} * [[February 1]] – WWI: [[Atlantic U-boat campaign of World War I|Atlantic U-boat Campaign]]: [[German Empire|Germany]] announces its [[U-boat]]s will resume [[unrestricted submarine warfare]], rescinding the '[[Sussex pledge|''Sussex'' Pledge]]'. * [[February 3]] – WWI: The United States severs diplomatic relations with Germany. [[File:USA bryter de diplomatiska förbindelserna med Tyskland 3 februari 1917.jpg|thumb|200px|President Woodrow Wilson of the United States announces to Congress the breaking of diplomatic relations with Germany]] * [[February 12]] – [[Deportivo Toluca F.C.]] is founded as an Association football club in Mexico. * [[February 13]] – WWI: ** [[Mata Hari]] is arrested in Paris for spying. ** [[Raid on Nekhl]]: Units of the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] completely reoccupy the [[Egypt]]ian Sinai Peninsula. * [[February 21]] – British [[troopship]] {{SS|Mendi}} is accidentally rammed and sunk off the [[Isle of Wight]], killing 646, mainly members of the [[South African Native Labour Corps]].<ref name="Mendi">{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil.za/newnavy/mendi_history/mendi_hist.htm |author=SA Legion – Atteridgeville Branch |title=The SS Mendi – A Historical Background |work=Navy News |publisher=South African Navy |access-date=20 November 2008 |archive-date=March 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305223813/http://www.navy.mil.za/newnavy/mendi_history/mendi_hist.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> * [[February 24]] – WWI: [[Walter Hines Page]], United States ambassador to the United Kingdom, is shown the intercepted [[Zimmermann Telegram]], in which Germany offers to give the American Southwest back to Mexico, if Mexico will take sides with Germany, in case the United States declares war on Germany. === March === {{main|March 1917}} * [[March 1]] ** WWI: The U.S. government releases the text of the [[Zimmermann Telegram]] to the public. ** [[Ōmuta, Fukuoka|Ōmuta]], Japan, is founded by Hiroushi Miruku. * [[March 2]] – The enactment of the [[Jones–Shafroth Act|Jones Act]] grants [[Puerto Rico|Puerto Ricans]] United States citizenship. * [[March 4]] ** [[Jeannette Rankin]] of [[Montana]] becomes the first woman member of the [[United States House of Representatives]]. * [[March 7]] – "[[Livery Stable Blues]]", recorded with "Dixie Jazz Band One Step" on [[February 26]], by the [[Original Dixieland Jass Band]] in the United States, becomes the first [[jazz]] recording commercially released. On [[August 17]] the band records "[[Tiger Rag]]". [[File:Women's manifestation inPetrograd, 1917.jpg|thumb|Women calling for bread and peace - Petrograd, 8 March]] * [[March 8]] (N.S.) ** ([[February 23]], O.S.) – The [[February Revolution]] begins in Russia: Women calling for bread in [[Petrograd]] start riots, which spontaneously spread throughout the city. ** WWI: Norwegian tramp {{SS|Storstad}} (the ship that rammed and sank {{RMS|Empress of Ireland}} in [[1914]]) is torpedoed and sunk by [[SM U-62|SM ''U-62'']] in the Atlantic with the loss of 3 crew members. * [[March 10]] – The Province of [[Batangas]] is formally founded, as one of the [[Philippines]]' first [[encomienda]]s. * [[March 11]] – [[Mexican Revolution]]: [[Venustiano Carranza]] is elected president of Mexico; the United States gives ''[[de jure]]'' recognition of his government. * [[March 12]] – The Russian [[Duma]] declares a [[Russian Provisional Government|Provisional Government]]. It is dissolved 4 months later. * [[March 14]] – WWI: The [[Republic of China (1912–49)|Republic of China]] terminates diplomatic relations with Germany. * [[March 15]] (N.S.) ([[March 2]], O.S.) – Emperor [[Nicholas II of Russia]] abdicates his throne and his son's claims. This is considered to be the end of the [[Russian Empire]], after 196 years. * [[March 16]] (N.S.) ([[March 3]], O.S.) – [[Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia]] refuses the throne, and power passes to the newly formed Provisional Government, under Prince [[Georgy Lvov]]. * [[March 25]] – The [[Georgian Orthodox Church]] restores the [[autocephaly]], abolished by Imperial Russia in [[1811]]. * [[March 26]] – WWI: [[First Battle of Gaza]] – British [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] troops virtually encircle the Gaza garrison, but are then ordered to withdraw, leaving the city to the Ottoman defenders. * [[March 30]] – [[Hjalmar Hammarskjöld]] steps down as [[Prime Minister of Sweden]]; he is replaced by right-wing businessman and politician [[Carl Swartz]]. * [[March 31]] – The United States takes possession of the Danish West Indies, which become the [[United States Virgin Islands|US Virgin Islands]], after paying $25 million to Denmark. === April === {{main|April 1917}} * April – ''[[Imokawa Mukuzo Genkanban no Maki]]'', the first [[anime]], is released in [[Japan]]. * [[April 2]] – WWI: U.S. President Woodrow Wilson asks the [[United States Congress]] for a [[declaration of war]] on Germany. * [[April 6]] – WWI: The United States [[s:Woodrow Wilson declares war on Germany|declares war on Germany]]. * [[April 8]] (N.S.) ([[March 26]], O.S.) – In [[Petrograd]], 40,000 ethnic [[Estonians]] demand [[national autonomy]] within [[Russia]]. * [[April 9]]–[[May 16]] – WWI: [[Battle of Arras (1917)|Battle of Arras]] – British Empire troops make a significant advance on the Western Front but are unable to achieve a breakthrough. * [[April 9]]–[[April 12|12]] – WWI: Canadian troops win the [[Battle of Vimy Ridge]]. * [[April 10]] – [[Eddystone explosion]]: an explosion at an ammunition plant near [[Chester, Pennsylvania]], kills 139, mostly female workers. * [[April 11]] – WWI: [[First Brazilian Republic|Brazil]] severs diplomatic relations with Germany. * [[April 12]] (N.S.) ([[March 30]] O.S.) – The [[Autonomous Governorate of Estonia]] is formed within [[Russia]], from the [[Governorate of Estonia]] and the northern part of the [[Governorate of Livonia]]. * [[April 16]] ** (N.S.) ([[April 3]], O.S.) – [[Vladimir Lenin]] arrives at the [[Finland Station]] in [[Petrograd]] after a German-sponsored voyage in a [[sealed train]] from his exile in Switzerland through Germany and Scandinavia. ** WWI: The [[Nivelle Offensive]] commences. [[Image:Lenin.gif|thumb|150px|Lenin]] * [[April 17]] ** (N.S.) ([[April 4]], O.S.) – [[Vladimir Lenin]]'s [[April Theses]] are published.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-08-12 |title=April Theses |url=https://soviethistory.msu.edu/1917-2/april-crisis/april-crisis-texts/april-thesis/ |access-date=2025-04-06 |website=Seventeen Moments in Soviet History |language=en-US}}</ref> They become very influential in the following [[July Days]] and [[Bolshevik Revolution]]. ** WWI: The Egyptian Expeditionary Force begins the [[Second Battle of Gaza]]. This unsuccessful frontal attack on strong [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] defences along with the first battle, results in 10,000 casualties, the dismissal of force commander General [[Archibald Murray]], and the beginning of the [[Stalemate in Southern Palestine]]. ** ''[[The Times]]'' and the ''[[Daily Mail]]'' (London newspapers both owned by [[Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe|Lord Northcliffe]]) print [[atrocity propaganda]] of the supposed existence of a [[German Corpse Factory]] processing dead soldiers' bodies.<ref>{{cite news|title=Germans and their Dead. Revolting Treatment. Science and the Barbarian Spirit|newspaper=The Times|location=London|issue=41454|page=5|date=1917-04-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Cadavers Not Human.; Gruesome Tale Believed to be Somebody's Notion of an April Fool Joke|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=1917-04-20|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/04/20/102335496.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Badsey|first=Stephen|title=The German Corpse Factory: a Study in First World War Propaganda|location=Solihull|publisher=Helion|year=2014|isbn=9781909982666}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Neander|first=Joachim|title=The German Corpse Factory: The Master Hoax of British Propaganda in the First World War|publisher=Saarland University Press|location=Saarbrücken|year=2013|isbn=9783862231171}}</ref> * [[April 19]] – WWI: Army transport {{SS|Mongolia|1903}} fires the United States' first shots in anger in the war when her gun crew drives off a German [[U-boat]] in the [[English Channel]] seven miles southeast of [[Beachy Head]].<ref>{{cite DANFS|title=Mongolia|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/m/mongolia.html|access-date=2017-04-25}}</ref> * [[April 26]] – WWI: The [[Agreement of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne]], between France, Italy and the United Kingdom, to settle interests in the Middle East, is signed. === May === {{main|May 1917}} * [[May 3]] – WWI: [[1917 French Army mutinies]] begin. * [[May 9]] – WWI: The [[Nivelle Offensive]] is abandoned. * [[May 13]] – Nuncio Eugenio Pacelli, the future [[Pope Pius XII]], is consecrated [[Archbishop]] by [[Pope Benedict XV]].<ref>''[[L'Osservatore Romano]]'', Weekly Edition in English, 12/19 August 1998, p. 9.</ref> * [[May 13]]–[[October 13]] (at monthly intervals) – 10-year-old [[Lúcia Santos]] and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto report experiencing a series of [[Marian apparition]]s near [[Fátima, Portugal]], which become known as [[Our Lady of Fátima]]. * [[May 15]] – [[Robert Nivelle]] is replaced as Commander-in-Chief of the [[French Army in World War I|French Army]], by [[Philippe Pétain]]. * [[May 18]] – WWI: The [[Selective Service Act of 1917|Selective Service Act]] passes the [[United States Congress]], giving the [[President of the United States|President]] the power of [[conscription]]. * [[May 21]] – Over 300 acres (73 blocks) are destroyed in the [[Great Atlanta fire of 1917]] in the United States. * [[May 22]] **The [[NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps|Commissioned Officer Corps]] of the [[United States Coast and Geodetic Survey]] is established. **[[Lynching of Ell Persons|Ell Persons]] is lynched in Memphis, in connection with the rape and murder of 16-year-old Antoinette Rappal. * [[May 23]] ** A month of civil violence in [[Milan]], Italy ends, after the Italian army forcibly takes over the city from anarchists and anti-war revolutionaries; 50 people are killed and 800 arrested.<ref>{{cite book|last=Seton-Watson|first=Christopher|year=1967|title=Italy from Liberalism to Fascism: 1870 to 1925|location=London|publisher=Methuen & Co. Ltd|pages=468–9}}</ref> ** WWI: During the [[Stalemate in Southern Palestine]], the [[Raid on the Beersheba to Hafir el Auja railway]] by the British [[Desert Column]] takes place: large sections of the railway line linking [[Beersheba]] to the main [[Ottoman Army|Ottoman]] desert base are destroyed. * [[May 26]] – A [[May–June 1917 tornado outbreak sequence|tornado]] strikes [[Mattoon, Illinois]], causing devastation and killing 101 people. * [[May 27]] ** WWI: [[1917 French Army mutinies]]: Over 30,000 French troops refuse to go to the trenches at [[Missy-aux-Bois]]. ** [[Pope Benedict XV]] [[Promulgation (Catholic canon law)|promulgates]] the [[1917 Code of Canon Law|1917 ''Code of Canon Law'']]. === June === {{main|June 1917}} * [[June 1]] – [[1917 French Army mutinies]]: A French infantry regiment seizes [[Missy-aux-Bois]], and declares an anti-war military government. Other French army troops soon apprehend them. * [[June 4]] – The first [[Pulitzer Prize]]s are awarded: [[Laura E. Richards]], [[Maud Howe Elliott]] and [[Florence Hall (Pulitzer Prize winner)|Florence Hall]] receive the first [[Pulitzer Prize|Pulitzer]] for a biography, (for ''[[Julia Ward Howe]]''). [[Jean Jules Jusserand]] receives the first [[Pulitzer Prize|Pulitzer]] for history, for his work ''With Americans of Past and Present Days.'' [[Herbert Bayard Swope]] receives the first [[Pulitzer Prize|Pulitzer]] for journalism, for his work for the ''[[New York World]].'' * [[June 5]] – WWI: [[Conscription]] begins in the United States. * [[June 7]] – WWI: [[Battle of Messines (1917)|Battle of Messines]] opens with the British Army detonating 24 [[ammonal]] [[Mining (military)|mines]] under the German lines, killing 10,000 in the deadliest deliberate non-nuclear man-made explosion in history. * [[June 8]] – [[Speculator Mine disaster]]: A fire at the Granite Mountain and Speculator ore mine, outside [[Butte, Montana]], kills at least 168 workers. * [[June 11]] – King [[Constantine I of Greece]] abdicates for the first time, being succeeded by his son [[Alexander of Greece|Alexander]]. * [[June 13]] – WWI: The first major German bombing raid on London by fixed-wing aircraft leaves 162 dead and 432 injured. * [[June 15]] – The United States enacts the [[Espionage Act of 1917|Espionage Act]]. === July === {{main|July 1917}} * [[July]] ** The first [[Cottingley Fairies]] photographs are taken in [[Yorkshire]], England, apparently depicting fairies (a hoax not admitted by the child creators until [[1981]]). ** [[Suze Groeneweg]] becomes the first woman elected to sit in the [[House of Representatives (Netherlands)|House of Representatives]] in the [[Netherlands]] (although women will not be granted the right to vote until the following year).<ref>{{cite web|title=Women's Day The Netherlands|url=https://redyellowblue.org/data/nl/wdnl/|publisher=RYB|accessdate=2024-12-10}}</ref> * [[July 1]] – WWI: Russian General [[Aleksei Brusilov|Brusilov]] begins the major [[Kerensky offensive]] in [[Galicia (Eastern Europe)|Galicia]], initially advancing towards [[Lemberg]]. * [[July 1]]–[[July 3|3]] – [[East St. Louis massacre]]: A labor dispute ignites a [[race riot]] in [[East St. Louis, Illinois]], which leaves 250 dead. * [[July 2]] – WWI: Greece joins the war on the side of the [[Allies of World War I|Allies]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/greece-declares-war-on-central-powers |title=Greece declares war on Central Powers |language=en |work=history.com |date=November 16, 2009 |publisher=History |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150401184224/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/greece-declares-war-on-central-powers |archive-date= 2015-04-01 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/minorpowers_greece.htm |title=Minorpowers, Greece |language=en |work=firstworldwar.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150314161847/http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/minorpowers_greece.htm |archive-date= 2015-03-14}}</ref> * [[July 6]] – WWI: ** [[Battle of Aqaba]]: [[Arab Revolt|Arabian troops]], led by [[T. E. Lawrence]], capture [[Aqaba]] from the [[Ottoman Empire]]. ** The [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]] in Canada leads to passage of the Military Service Act. * [[July 7]] – The [[Lions Clubs International]] is formed in the United States. * [[July 8]]–[[July 13|13]] – WWI: [[Battles of Ramadi (1917)#First Battle of Ramadi|First Battle of Ramadi]] – British troops fail to take [[Ramadi]] from the Ottoman Empire; a majority of British casualties are due to extreme heat. * [[July 12]] – [[Bisbee Deportation]]: The [[Phelps Dodge]] Corporation has over 1,000 suspected [[Industrial Workers of the World|IWW]] members from its metal mines deported from [[Bisbee, Arizona]]. * [[July 16]]–[[July 17|17]] – [[Russian Empire|Russian]] troops mutiny, abandon the [[Austria-Hungary|Austrian]] front, and retreat to [[Ukraine]]; hundreds are shot by their commanding officers during the retreat. * [[July 16]]–[[July 18|18]] – [[July Days]]: Serious clashes occur in [[Petrograd]]; [[Vladimir Lenin]] escapes to [[Grand Duchy of Finland|Finland]]; [[Leon Trotsky]] is arrested. * [[July 17]] – King [[George V]] of the United Kingdom issues a proclamation, stating that thenceforth the male line descendants of the [[British Royal Family]] will bear the surname [[House of Windsor|Windsor]], vice the Germanic bloodline of ''[[House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]]'' (an offshoot of the historic (800+ years) [[House of Wettin]]). * [[July 20]] ** The [[Parliament of Finland]], with a [[Social Democratic Party of Finland|Social Democratic]] majority, passes a "Sovereignty Act", declaring itself, as the representative of the Finnish people, sovereign over the [[Grand Duchy of Finland]]. The Russian Provisional Government does not recognize the act, as it would have devolved Russian sovereignty over Finland, formerly exercised by the Russian Emperor as Grand Duke of Finland, and alter the relationship between Finland and Russia into a real union, with Russia solely responsible for the defence and foreign relations of an independent Finland. ** ([[July 7]], O.S.) – [[Alexander Kerensky]] becomes [[premier]] of the [[Russian Provisional Government]], replacing Prince [[Georgy Lvov]]. ** The Russian Provisional Government enacts [[women's suffrage]]. ** The [[Corfu Declaration]], which enables the establishment of the post-war [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]], is signed by the [[Yugoslav Committee]] and the [[Kingdom of Serbia]]. * [[July 20]]–[[July 28|28]] – WWI: [[Austria-Hungary|Austrian]] and [[German Empire|German]] forces repulse the [[Russian Empire|Russian]] advance into [[Galicia (Eastern Europe)|Galicia]]. * [[July 25]] – Sir [[William Thomas White]] introduces Canada's first [[income tax]] as a "temporary" measure (lowest bracket is 4% and highest is 25%). * [[July 28]] – The [[Silent Parade]] is organized by the [[NAACP]] in New York City, to protest the [[East St. Louis massacre]] of early July, as well as lynchings in [[Tennessee]] and [[Texas]]. * [[July 30]] – The [[Parliament of Finland]] is dissolved by the [[Russian Provisional Government]]. New elections are held in the autumn, resulting in a bourgeois majority. * [[July 31]] – WWI: [[Battle of Passchendaele]] ("Third Battle of Ypres") – Allied offensive operations commence in Flanders. === August === {{main|August 1917}} * [[August 2]]–[[August 3|3]] – The [[Green Corn Rebellion]], an uprising by several hundred farmers against the WWI draft, takes place in central [[Oklahoma]]. * [[August 2]] – [[Edwin Harris Dunning|Squadron Commander E.H. Dunning]] [https://web.archive.org/web/20060628134612/http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/server/show/nav.3919 lands his aircraft on the ship] {{HMS|Furious|47|6}} in [[Scapa Flow]], [[Orkney]]. He is killed 5 days later during another landing on the ship. * [[August 3]] – The [[New York Guard]] is founded. * [[August 10]] – A general strike begins in Spain; it is smashed after 3 days with 70 left dead, hundreds of wounded and 2,000 arrests. * [[August 14]] – The [[Republic of China (1912–49)|Republic of China]] declares war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. * [[August 17]] – One of English literature's important meetings takes place, when [[Wilfred Owen]] introduces himself to [[Siegfried Sassoon]] at the [[Craiglockhart War Hospital]] in [[Edinburgh]]. * [[August 18]] – The [[Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917]] in Greece destroys 32% of the city, leaving 70,000 individuals homeless. * [[August 29]] – WWI: The [[Military Service Act (Canada)|Military Service Act]] is passed in the [[House of Commons of Canada]], giving the [[Government of Canada]] the right to conscript men into the army. ===September=== {{main|September 1917}} * [[September 5]] – WW1: On the Eastern Front, German troops enter [[Riga]] after a successful offensive against the city's Russian defenders. * [[September 11]] – The [[Bellevue Conference (September 11, 1917)|Bellevue Conference]] is held. * [[September 14]] (September 1 [[Old Style]]) – Russia is declared a [[Russian Republic|republic]] by the [[Russian Provisional Government|Provisional Government]]. * [[September 23]] – [[Leon Trotsky]] is elected Chairman of the [[Petrograd Soviet]]. * [[September 25]] – The [[Mossovet]] ([[Moscow]] Soviet of People's Deputies) votes to side with the [[Bolsheviks]]. * [[September 26]]–[[October 3]] – WWI: [[Battle of Polygon Wood]] (part of the [[Battle of Passchendaele]]) near [[Ypres]] in Belgium – British and Australian troops capture positions from the Germans. * [[September 28]]–[[September 29|29]] – WWI: [[Battles of Ramadi (1917)#Second Battle of Ramadi|Second Battle of Ramadi]] – British troops take [[Ramadi]] from the Ottoman Empire. === October === {{main|October 1917}} * [[October 4]] – WWI: [[Battle of Broodseinde]] near Ypres – British Imperial forces overpower the [[4th Army (German Empire)|German 4th Army]]'s defences. * [[October 12]] – WWI: [[First Battle of Passchendaele]]: – Allies fail to take a German defensive position, with the biggest loss of life in a single day for New Zealand, over 800 men and 45 officers are killed, roughly 1 in 1,000 of the nation's population at this time. * [[October 12]]–[[October 19|19]] – WWI: [[Operation Albion]] – German forces land on and capture the [[West Estonian archipelago]]. * [[October 13]] – The [[Miracle of the Sun]] is reported at [[Fátima, Portugal]]. * [[October 19]] ** [[Dallas Love Field]] Airport is opened in Texas. ** [[Carl Swartz]] leaves office as Prime Minister of Sweden, after dismal election results for the right-wing in the Riksdag elections in September. He is replaced by liberal leader and history professor [[Nils Edén]]. * [[October 23]] – A [[Brazil during World War I|Brazil]]ian ship is destroyed by a German U-boat, encouraging Brazil to enter World War I. * [[October 24]] – WWI: [[Battle of Caporetto]] opens between the [[Kingdom of Italy]] and the [[Central Powers]] near [[Kobarid]] in the [[Austrian Littoral]]. It is the first major engagement for junior German officer Erwin Rommel. * [[October 26]] – WWI: [[First Brazilian Republic#Brazil in World War I|Brazil]] declares war against the [[Central Powers]]. [[File:Venceslau Brás declara guerra 1917.jpg|thumb|Brazilian President [[Venceslau Brás]] signs a declaration of war against the [[Central Powers]]]] * [[October 27]] – WWI: [[Battle of Buqqar Ridge]] – [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] forces attack British [[Desert Mounted Corps]] units garrisoning El-Buqqar Ridge, during the last days of the [[Stalemate in Southern Palestine]]. * [[October 31]] – WWI: [[Battle of Beersheba (1917)|Battle of Beersheba]] – The British [[XX Corps (United Kingdom)|XX Corps]] and [[Desert Mounted Corps]] ([[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]]) attack and capture [[Beersheba]] from Ottoman forces, ending the [[stalemate in Southern Palestine]]. The battle includes a rare (by this date) mounted [[Charge (warfare)|charge]], by Australian [[mounted infantry]]. === November === {{main|November 1917}} * [[November 1]] – WWI: ** The British [[XXI Corps (United Kingdom)|XXI Corps]] of the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] begins the [[Third Battle of Gaza]]. ** The British [[Desert Mounted Corps]] begins the [[Battle of Tel el Khuweilfe]], in the direction of [[Hebron]] and [[Jerusalem]]. * [[November 2]] – [[Zionism]]: The [[Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs|British Foreign Secretary]] [[Arthur Balfour]] makes the [[Balfour Declaration]], proclaiming British support for the "establishment in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]] of a national home for the Jewish people..., it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities". * [[November 5]] (N.S.) ([[October 23]], O.S.) – Estonian and Russian Bolsheviks seize power in [[Tallinn]], [[Autonomous Governorate of Estonia]], two days before the [[October Revolution]] in [[Petrograd]]. * [[November 6]] ** WWI – [[Second Battle of Passchendaele]]: After 3 months of fierce fighting, Canadian forces take [[Passendale|Passchendaele]] in Belgium (the battle concludes on [[November 10]]). ** WWI: The [[Battle of Hareira and Sheria]] is launched by the British [[XX Corps (United Kingdom)|XX Corps]] and [[Desert Mounted Corps]], against the central [[Ottoman Army|Ottoman]] defences protecting the Gaza to Beersheba Road. ** Militants from Trotsky's committee join with trusty Bolshevik soldiers, to seize government buildings and pounce on members of the provisional government. * [[November 7]] ** (N.S.) ([[October 25]], O.S.) – [[October Revolution]] in Russia: The workers of the [[St. Petersburg|Petrograd]] [[Workers' council|Soviet]] in Russia, led by the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union|Bolshevik Party]] and leader [[Vladimir Lenin]], storm the [[Winter Palace]] and successfully destroy the [[Alexander Kerensky|Kerensky]] [[Russian Provisional Government|Provisional Government]] after less than eight months of rule. This immediately triggers the [[Russian Civil War]]. ** [[History of Iran|Iran]] (which has provided weapons for Russia) refuses to support the [[Allies of World War II|Allied Forces]] after the [[October Revolution]]. ** WWI – [[Third Battle of Gaza]]: The British Army [[XXI Corps (United Kingdom)|XXI Corps]] occupies [[Gaza City|Gaza]], after the [[Ottoman Army|Ottoman]] garrison withdraws. ** WWI: The [[Battle of Hareira and Sheria]] continues, when the [[XX Corps (United Kingdom)|XX Corps]] and [[Desert Mounted Corps]] capture Hareira and Sheria, marking the end of the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] Gaza to Beersheba line. ** [[Women's suffrage in the United States|Women's Suffrage in the United States]]: Women win the right to vote in New York State.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Suffrage Wins by 100,000 in State; Kings by 32,640|date=November 7, 1917|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|page=1}}</ref> * [[November 8]] (N.S.) ([[October 26]], O.S.) – Following the [[October Revolution]], [[Alexandra Kollontai]] is appointed [[People's Commissar]] for Social Welfare in the [[Council of People's Commissars]] of the [[Government of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic]], the first woman [[Cabinet (government)|cabinet]] [[Minister (government)|minister]] in Europe. * [[November 13]] – WWI: ** [[Battle of Mughar Ridge]]: The British Imperial [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] attacks retreating Ottoman-German [[Yildirim Army Group]] forces, resulting in the capture of 10,000 [[Ottoman Army|Ottoman]] prisoners, 100 guns and {{convert|50|mi|km}} of [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]] territory. ** The [[ANZAC Mounted Division]] ([[Desert Mounted Corps]]) successfully fights the [[Battle of Ayun Kara]], in the aftermath of the [[Battle of Mughar Ridge]] against strong [[German Empire|German]] rearguards. * [[November 15]] ** [[Night of Terror (event)|"Night of Terror"]] in the United States: Influential suffragettes from the [[Silent Sentinels]] are deliberately subjected to physical assaults by guards while imprisoned. ** The [[Parliament of Finland]] passes another "Sovereignty Act", dissolving Russian sovereignty over Finland and effectively declaring Finland independent. ** (N.S.) ([[November 2]], O.S.) – The [[Estonian Provincial Assembly|Provincial Assembly]] of the [[Autonomous Governorate of Estonia]] declares itself the highest legal body in [[Estonia]], in opposition to [[Bolshevik]]s. * [[November 16]] ** WWI: [[Battle of Ayun Kara]]: The [[ANZAC Mounted Division]] occupies [[Jaffa]]. ** [[Georges Clemenceau]] becomes prime minister of France. * [[November 17]] ** WWI: [[Action of 17 November 1917]]: United States Navy [[destroyer]]s [[USS Fanning (DD-37)|USS ''Fanning'']] and [[USS Nicholson (DD-52)|USS ''Nicholson'']] capture [[Imperial German Navy]] [[U-boat]] [[SM U-58|SM ''U-58'']] off the south-west coast of Ireland, the first combat action in which U.S. ships take a submarine (which is then [[scuttled]]). ** WWI: The [[Battle of Jerusalem (1917)]] begins, with the British Imperial [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] launching attacks against [[Ottoman Army|Ottoman]] forces in the [[Judean Hills]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The British Dominions Year Book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vl8yAQAAMAAJ|year=1922|publisher=British Dominions General Insurance Company|page=107}}</ref> ** The [[People's Dispensary for Sick Animals]] is founded in the United Kingdom. * [[November 19]] – WWI: [[Battle of Caporetto]] ends with Austrian and German forces driving the Italian army to retreat 150 kilometres south to the Piave river. The Italians lose 13,000 killed, 30,000 wounded, around 270,000 taken prisoner (mostly willingly) and 50,000 [[Desertion|deserted]]; the government of [[Paolo Boselli]] collapses on November 29. * [[November 20]] ** WWI: [[Battle of Cambrai (1917)|Battle of Cambrai]] – British forces, using [[tank]]s, make early progress in an attack on German positions, but are soon beaten back. ** [[Ukraine]] is [[Third Universal of the Ukrainian Central Council|declared]] [[Ukrainian People's Republic|a republic]]. * [[November 22]] – In [[Montreal]], Quebec, Canada, the [[National Hockey Association]] suspends operations. * [[November 23]] – The [[Bolsheviks]] release the full text of the previously secret [[Sykes–Picot Agreement]] of [[1916]] in ''[[Izvestia]]'' and ''[[Pravda]]''; it is printed in the ''[[Manchester Guardian]]'' on [[November 26]]. * [[November 24]] – A bomb kills 9 members of the [[Milwaukee Police Department]], the most deaths in a single event in U.S. police history (until the [[September 11 attacks]] in [[2001]]). * [[November 25]] – WWI: [[Battle of Ngomano]] – German forces defeat a Portuguese army of about 1,200 at [[Negomano]], on the border of modern-day [[Mozambique]] and [[Tanzania]]. * [[November 26]] – The [[National Hockey League]] is formed in Montreal, as a replacement for the recently disbanded [[National Hockey Association]]. * [[November 28]] – WWI: The [[Bolsheviks]] offer peace terms to the [[German Empire|Germans]]. === December === {{main|December 1917}} * [[December]] – [[Annie Besant]] becomes president of the [[Indian National Congress]]. * [[December 3]] – After nearly 20 years of planning and construction, the [[Quebec Bridge]] opens to traffic (the bridge partially collapsed on [[August 29]], 1907 and [[September 11]], 1916). [[File:Senate1917.jpg|thumb|The [[Senate of Finland]] in 1917]] * [[December 6]] ** The [[Senate of Finland]] officially declares the [[Independence of Finland|country's independence]] from [[Russian Empire|Russia]]. ** [[Halifax Explosion]]: Two freighters collide in [[Halifax Harbour]] at [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]], and cause a huge explosion that kills at least 1,963 people, injures 9,000 and destroys part of the city (the biggest man-made explosion in recorded history until the [[Trinity (nuclear test)|Trinity]] [[nuclear weapons testing|nuclear test]] in 1945). ** WWI: [[U.S. Navy]] [[destroyer]] {{USS|Jacob Jones|DD-61|6}} is torpedoed and sunk in the [[Atlantic Ocean]] south west of the British Isles by German submarine {{SMU|U-53||2}}, killing 66 crew in the first significant American naval loss of the war,<ref>{{cite DANFS|author=[[Naval History & Heritage Command]]|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/j/jacob-jones-i.html|title=Jacob Jones|short=on|access-date=2025-01-09}}</ref> the first ever U.S. destroyer loss to an enemy. * [[December 9]] – WWI: ** [[Battle of Jerusalem (1917)|Battle of Jerusalem]]: The British [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] accepts the surrender of [[Jerusalem]] by the mayor, [[Hussein al-Husayni]], following the effective defeat of the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]]-German [[Yildirim Army Group]]. ** The [[Kingdom of Romania]] signs the [[Armistice of Focșani]] with the [[Central Powers]]. * [[December 11]] – WWI: General [[Edmund Allenby]] leads units of the British [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] into [[Jerusalem]] on foot through, the [[Jaffa Gate]]. * [[December 17]] – The ''[[Raad van Vlaanderen (World War I)|Raad van Vlaanderen]]'' proclaims the independence of [[Flanders]] from German-occupied Belgium. * [[December 20]] (N.S.) ([[December 7]], O.S.) – The [[Cheka]], a predecessor to the [[KGB]], is established in Russia. * [[December 23]] (N.S.) ([[December 10]], O.S.) – A local plebiscite supports transferring [[Narva]] and [[Ivangorod]] (''Jaanilinn'') from the [[Petrograd Governorate]], to the [[Autonomous Governorate of Estonia]]. * [[December 25]] – [[Jesse Lynch Williams]]'s ''[[Why Marry?]]'', the first play to win a [[Pulitzer Prize]], opens at the [[Astor Theatre, New York City]]. * [[December 26]] – United States President [[Woodrow Wilson]] uses the Federal Possession and Control Act to place most U.S. railroads under the [[United States Railroad Administration]], hoping to transport troops and materials for the war effort more efficiently. * [[December 30]] – WWI: The British [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] secures the victory at the [[Battle of Jerusalem (1917)#Defence of Jerusalem|Battle of Jerusalem]], by successfully defending Jerusalem from numerous counterattacks by the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]]-German [[Yildirim Army Group]]. === Date unknown === * The first edition of the [[World Book Encyclopedia]] – simply known as The World Book – is published by the Hanson-Roach-Fowler Company,<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-World-Book-Encyclopedia Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-04-19]</ref> and is one of the first American encyclopedias to cover the major areas of knowledge to a mass audience. * The [[True Jesus Church]] is established in Beijing.
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