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Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg were assassinated in Sarajevo -
Great Britain declared war on Germany -
The German submarine (U-boat) U-20 torpedoed and sank the Lusitania -
Presidential elections were held in the United States. Incumbent Democratic President Woodrow Wilson narrowly defeated former associate justice of the Supreme Court Charles Evans Hughes, the Republican candidate. -
British naval intelligence intercepted and decrypted a telegram sent by German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German Ambassador in Mexico City. -
The United States formally declared war against Germany and entered the conflict in Europe. -
The first American troops land in France. -
On November 11, 1918 an armistice was signed between the Germans and the Allies, ending World War I. -
The Sedition Act of 1918 was enacted on May 16, 1918 to extend the Espionage Act of 1917. The Sedition Act covered a broader range of offenses, notably speech and the expression of opinion that cast the government or the war effort in a negative light or interfered with the sale of government bonds. -
The Versailles Peace Treaty, signed on June 28, 1919, officially ended World War I.