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Key dates
The war in numbers
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Vatican
Tag
(06)
1914
August
20
Death of Pope Pius X
On 20 August 1914, in the first weeks of the war, Pope Pius X died. Witnesses said the outbreak of war had deeply shaken him. He was succeeded by Benedict XV.
September
03
Benedict XV elected pope
On 3 September 1914 the conclave elected Cardinal Giacomo della Chiesa pope. As Benedict XV he called for peace and helped victims throughout the war.
November
05
Belgium rejects papal mediation
According to a British chronology, on 5 November 1914 the Belgian government rejected papal mediation. A few days earlier Benedict XV had called for peace.
December
07
A British envoy to the Vatican
In December 1914 Sir Henry Howard became Britain's envoy to Benedict XV. He was London's first official envoy in Rome since the 17th century.
1915
July
30
Benedict XV appeals for peace
On the first anniversary of the war Benedict XV appealed to the warring peoples and their rulers to end the "horrible slaughter". It went unanswered.
1917
August
01
Benedict XV's peace note
In a note dated 1 August 1917 Benedict XV proposed disarmament, arbitration and the return of occupied lands. He called the war a "useless slaughter".