Polish novelist Joseph Conrad, living in England, publishes Victory.

British novelist W. Somerset Maugham publishes Of Human Bondage.

Austrian novelist Franz Kafka publishes The Metamorphosis.

Japanese writer Ryunosuke Akutagawa publishes Rashomon.

Turkey attempts to force the entire population of Armenia to move to Syria and Mesopotamia. The resulting genocide takes the lives of hundreds of thousands of Armenians.

13 Jan.

Twenty-nine thousand people are killed during an earthquake in central Italy.

24 Jan.

An outmatched German squadron is defeated by the Royal Navy in the Battle of Dogger Bank. British battle cruisers sink the armored cruiser Blucher, and nearly two thousand German sailors perish.

18 Feb.

Using its force of deadly submarines (U-boats), Germany launches a naval blockade of France and the British Isles, announced on 2 February. German submarine commanders are ordered to fire without warning on any ship attempting to break the blockade, including merchant vessels and passenger liners...