-
The Election of President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson was elected president in 1912 after serving only two years as governor of New Jersey. President of Princeton University from 1902 until his election as New Jersey governor, Wilson succeeded in his campaigns for both governor and president with significant aid from practical political organizers. -
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The political objective of the assassination was to free Bosnia and Herzegovina of Austria-Hungarian rule and establish a common South Slav ("Yugoslav") state. -
America Proclaims Neutrality in World War 1
President Woodrow Wilson formally proclaims the neutrality of the United States, a position that a vast majority of Americans favored, on August 4, 1914. -
The Battle of the Marne
The First Battle of the Marne marked the end of the German sweep into France and the beginning of the trench warfare that was to characterize World War One. -
The Sinking of the Lusitania
he sinking of RMS Lusitania caused international outrage and helped turn public opinion against Germany, particularly in the then-neutral United States. Of the 1,200 people killed, 128 were American citizens. But the incident did not immediately bring the United States into the war. -
The Battle of the Verdun
Battle of Verdun, (February 21–December 18, 1916), World War I engagement in which the French repulsed a major German offensive. It was one of the longest, bloodiest, and most-ferocious battles of the war -
The Sussex Incident
The attack prompted a U.S. threat to sever diplomatic relations. The German government responded with the so-called Sussex pledge (May 4, 1916), agreeing to give adequate warning before sinking merchant and passenger ships and to provide for the safety of passengers and crew. -
The Battle of the Somme
A more professional and effective army emerged from the battle. And the tactics developed there, including the use of tanks and creeping barrages, laid some of the foundations of the Allies' successes in 1918. The Somme also succeeded in relieving the pressure on the French at Verdun. -
The Re-Election of President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson is reelected President of the United States by a 23-vote margin in the Electoral College. Wilson staves off stiff competition from Charles Evans Hughes, winning a 49.6 percent majority of the popular vote versus Hughes' 46.1 percent. Wilson runs on the slogan “He kept us out of War” despite the growing implausibility of U.S. neutrality in the Great War. -
The Beginning of the Spanish Flu Epidemic
The Spanish flu was the name given to a form of influenza (flu) caused by an H1N1 virus that started in some type of bird (avian origin). The Spanish flu was a pandemic — a new influenza A virus that spread easily and infected people throughout the world. Because the virus was new, very few people, if any, had some immunity to the disease. -
The Interception of the Zimmermann Telegram
The telegram further conveyed Germany's intentions should America enter the war. -
The Declaration of New Unrestricted Submarine Warfare by Germany
Germany declared a war zone around Britain, within which merchant ships were sunk without warning. This 'unrestricted submarine warfare' angered neutral countries, especially the United States. -
The United States Enters World War 1
The entry of the United States was the turning point of the war, because it made the eventual defeat of Germany possible. -
The Selective Service Act
The Selective Service System and the registration requirement for America's young men provide our Nation with a structure and a system of guidelines which will provide the most prompt, efficient, and equitable draft possible, if the country should need it. -
The Espionage Act
The Espionage Act broadly sought to crack down on wartime activities considered dangerous or disloyal, -
The Landing of the American Expeditionary Force in France
Just after their arrival in France some American soldiers became a symbol of deliverance for the French people. The first American Expeditionary Forces’ (AEF) contingent landed in France in late June 1917 at Saint-Nazaire. Every French family had been touched by the injury and loss of loved ones, and the austerities of war. The arrival of the first units of American soldiers was a much anticipated and welcome symbol of relief to the war weary French. -
The Fourteen Points by President Wilson
In this January 8, 1918, speech on War Aims and Peace Terms, President Wilson set down 14 points as a blueprint for world peace that was to be used for peace negotiations after World War I. The details of the speech were based on reports generated by “The Inquiry,” a group of about 150 political and social scientists organized by Wilson’s adviser and long-time friend, Col. Edward M House. In the end produced and collected nearly 2,000 separate reports and documents plus at least 1,200 maps. -
Russia Pulls Out of World War 1
World War I saw the crumbling of empires, and among those was the Russian empire of Czar Nicholas II. When Nicholas declared war against Germany and Austria-Hungary in July 1914, he was the absolute ruler of a realm of nearly 150 million people that stretched from Central Europe to the Pacific and the edge of Afghanistan to the Arctic.Less than three years later, in March 1917, after soldiers in Petrograd joined striking workers in protest against Nicholas’ rule, the czar was forced to abdicate. -
The Passing of the Sedition Act
Passed in preparation for an anticipated war with France, the Alien and Sedition Acts tightened restrictions on foreign-born Americans and limited speech critical of the government. -
The Battle of Argonne Forest
It was one of the attacks that brought an end to the War and was fought from September 26 – November 11, 1918, when the Armistice was signed.
The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the largest operation of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in World War I, with over a million American soldiers participating. It was also the deadliest campaign in American history, resulting in over 26,000 soldiers being killed in action (KIA) and over 120,000 total casualties. -
Armistice Day Ends World War 1
Marshal Foch sent word to Allied commanders that “Hostilities will be stopped on the entire front beginning at 11 o'clock, November 11th (French hour). The Allied troops will not go beyond the line reached at that hour on that date until further orders.” The war on the Western Front had finally come to an end -
The Paris Peace Conference & Treaty of Versailles
Formally opened on January 18, 1919, the Paris Peace Conference was the international meeting that established the terms of peace after World War I. Peacemaking occurred in several stages, with the Council of Four, also known as the “Big Four”—Prime Ministers Lloyd George of Great Britain, Georges Clemenceau of France, Vittorio Orlando of Italy and U.S. President Woodrow Wilson—acting as the primary decision-makers for the first six months