-
Archduke Franz Ferdinand Assassination
Hours after they escaped an assassins bomb, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife the Duchess of Hohenberg were shot and killed while visiting Sarajevo in Bosnia by Gavrilo Princip. But ultimately, the US decided not to get involved and remained neutral. -
Great Britain declares war on Germany
The United Kingdom decides to declare war on Germany. This was because Germany refused to remove troops from neutral Belgium. The president Woodrow Wilson did not want to get involved with a European conflict, so he formally proclaimed the neutrality of the US. -
Lusitania Sinking
The German Submarine U-boat U-20 torpedoed and sank the Lusitania, which killed 1,195 people on board including 123 Americans. This Immediately strained relations between Germany and the neutral United States. Woodrow Wilson demanded an apology from Germany, compensation for American victims, and he pledged to discontinue unannounced submarine warfare. -
Wilson re-elected
Americans re-elect President Woodrow Wilson as president. His re-election campaign used the slogan, “He Kept Us Out of War." Since Wilson successfully kept the US from having direct involvement in the war. Although he soon realized that the US could not remain neutral in WW1. -
Zimmerman telegram
The Zimmerman telegram was a coded message sent by Germany to Mexico urging Mexico to join Germany in declaring war against the US. And to assist Mexico in gaining its lost territories. This intensified American public opinion against Germany and helped convince Congress to declare war against Germany. -
US declares war against Germany
The US Congress passes the declaration of war against Germany, entering World War I. Germany's resumption of submarine attacks on passenger and merchant ships in 1917 became the primary motivation behind Wilson's decision to lead the United states into World War I. -
US troops land in France.
British advance on Souchez river continues. French carry crest near Hurtebise. The First American troops land in France. The first 14,000 American soldiers began arriving at the port of St Nazaire in France. Their arrival had been kept a secret to further guard against German intervention. -
Sedition Act
The United States Congress passes the Sedition Act, which is designed to protect America's participation in World War I. The act made it a crime to convey information intended to interfere with the war effort. It forbade the use of "disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language" about the United States government, its flag, or its armed forces. However, this caused others to view the American government with contempt. The act imposed harsh penalties for a wide range of dissenting speech. -
WW1 Armistice
Inside of a railroad car at Compiegne, France, The Germans sign the Armistice which is effective at 11 am. Fighting continues along the Western front until 11 am, with 2,000 casualties that day. The armistice ended WW1. After the armistice, the US returned to civilian production in an even shorter amount of time. -
Treaty of Versailles
At the palace of Versailles in France, a German delegation signs the Treaty of Versailles formally ending the war. The four representatives of the principle allied powers were at the table: Clemenceau for France, Wilson for the USA, Lloyd George for Great Britain, and Orlando for Italy. The terms of the treaty required that Germany pay financial reparations, disarm, lose territory, and give up all of its overseas colonies. So, WW1 was ended and the US no longer had to be in a war.