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On August fourth, Woodrow Wilson declares the U.S. as a neutral power in the war in Europe.
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On May seventh, a German U-Boat (submarine) sinks a passenger ship carrying American Citizens. The Germans claimed that the U.S was sneaking goods to the Allied Powers to support the war effort.
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J.P. Morgan and others loan millions to Britain and France to buy war supplies.
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Automotive giant Henry Ford launches Oscar II, a ship traveling to Europe to try and end the war. Many mocked the effort, calling it the "Ship of Fools"
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On April second, the U.S. declares war on Germany. This is the gateway to the full involvement of The United States in the war in Europe.
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During these months, the government establishes the Emergency Loan Act, Selective Service Act, and the Espionage Act. These laws restricted freedom in the name of national security during wartime.
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President Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points speech addressed the necessity of world peace. He laid out a plan to end the war and create an alliance called the League of Nations. The League of Nations failed, and the U.S. never joined.
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During these weeks, Czechoslovakia splits from Austria-Hungary, the Ottomans agree to peace, Austria-Hungary agrees to peace, and on November 11th, Germany agrees to armistice, ending the Great War.
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Woodrow Wilson becomes the first president to travel to Europe when he ventures to Paris for a postwar peace conference to sign the Treaty of Versailles.
