Vast in scope and sweeping in impact, World War I cut through history to shape the modern world. The Great War toppled monarchies, re-drew the map of Europe and made the U.S. one of the major powers of the modern age. The war gave the world new weapons: warplanes and U-boats, dirigibles and machine guns, tanks and poison gas. Now TIME explores this four-year conflict in all its complex facets, from the trenches of France to the deserts of Arabia to the streets of revolutionary Russia. With scores of seldom-seen photographs, all-new graphics and an enlightening introduction by war novelist Jeff Shaara, TIME World War I is a fascinating journey through the war that created today’s world.