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Quote from Chicago Defender
Founded on May 5, 1905. "I beg you, my brother, to leave the benighted land... Get out of the South... Come north then, all you folks, both good and bad... The Defender says come." -
Archduke Francis Ferdinand and Wife Assassinated
On June 28th, 1914, Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife left for a routine visit to Sarajevo. Ethnic Serbians saw Francis Ferdinand as a tyrant, and prepared for his wife and his visit. Gavrilo Princip was one of the conspirators, and he shot both Ferdinand and his wife. This event was one of the major leadings to World War I. -
Austria-Hungary Declares War
On July 28th, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war. Austria-Hungary had demanded Serbia’s “total cooperation in an investigation into the assassination.” Serbia did not fully agree to the demands, thus leading to the declaring of World War I. -
Russia Mobilizes, Causing Threats
In Early August, 1914, Russia mobilized for war to help its ally Serbia against Austria. This mobilization was seen as a threat, and caused Germany to declare war against Russia. Because of this, France, Russia’s ally, then declared war against Germany. This created a domino-effect, because the next day Germany declared war against Belgium, which caused Great Britain to declare war against Germany. Within the next week, the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary were at war with the Allie -
The Battle of Tannerberg
On August 26, 1914, the Battle of Tannerberg began. The Battle of Tannerberg was between Russia and Germany within the first month of World War I. The battle resulted in almost the complete destruction of the Russian Second Army and as well as this, the suicide of its commanding general, Alexander Samsonov. -
The Battle of Marne
September, 1914- In September of 1914, the German advance was only 30 miles from Paris, so the French and the British counterattacked to stop German forces located near the Marne River. This counterattack is known at the Battle of the Marne, because it was near the Marne River. This also essentially caused the start of trench warfare. -
German U-Boats Sink Lusitania
On May 7, 1915, German U-boats sink the Lusitania. The passenger ship was cruising off of the coast of Ireland, when the German submarine U-20 fired a torpedo into its starboard side. The Lusitania sank within 20 minutes, and caused 1,200 deaths, 128 being Americans. This sinking was part of Germany’s submarine blockade of Britain, and caused many more events, eventually leading to the United States becoming a part of the war. -
Sussex Pledge
On September 1, 1915, Germany promises not to sink unarmed passenger ships without warning. This promise was between the United States and Germany, and was known as the Sussex Pledge. Germany had agreed not to sink merchant vessels without warning or without assuring the passenger's complete safety. -
Germany Breaks Promise
Germany breaks their promise with the Sussex Pledge by sinking the Sussex. Germany's UB-29 mistakenly sank a French cross-channel ferry, known as the Sussex. The Sussex was nearly 1,350 tons, and they said to have believed that it was a minelayer, thus why they sank it. -
Council of National Defense
The Council of National Defense was formed in August 1916, and created an array of new federal administrative agencies to oversee different phases of the war effort. This caused regulations on food producion, coal, and petroleum distribution, and also railway use. The government determined what crops farmers grew, what products industries produced, and how supplies moved around on trains, causing "freedom" to dim in America. -
The Zimmberman Note
On January 16, 1917, the Zimmerman Note came as a coded telegram by the Foreign Secretary of the German Empire.The Zimmerman Note proposed an alliance with Mexico,and it stated that if the United States delcared war on Germany, that Mexico should declare war on the United States. Even though leaders had known that Mexico had no desire to attack the United States, America was shocked by the Zimmerman Note. Because of this, Wilson had asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany. -
Quote from Peace Without Victory Speech
"Only a tranquil Europe can be a stable Europe... There must be a peace without victory... Victory would mea peace forced upon the loser, a victor's terms imposed upon the vanquished. It would be accepted in humiliation... and would leave a sting, a resentment, a bitter memory upon which terms of peace would rest, not permanently, but only as upon quicksad." -Woodrow Wilson -
Quote from Paul Truffaut
“The special shells the men call “shells on wheels” are whizzing by continuously. They explode silently and have no smell but can be deadly. They killed several men yesterday. One of my men refused to put his mask on because he couldn’t smell anything. All of a sudden, he was dizzy, foaming at the mouth and his skin went black, then he went rigid and died.” -
Wilson's Peace is Over
On April 2, 1917, Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany due to the Zimmerman Note, and America panicing. Congress then responded 4 days later, on April 6, 1917, with a declaration of war. Wilson had fought long and hard to keep America at peace, and that was now officially over. -
Quote from Woodrow Wilson
"The world must be made safe for democracy. Its peace must be plamted upon the tested foundations of political liberty...We are but one of the champions of the rights of mankind. We shall be satisfied when those rights have been made as secure as the faith and the freedom of nations can make them." -
US Declares War on Germany
On April 6, 1917, the United States declared war on Germany, officially making them part of World War I. This was two days after the US Senate had voted 82 to 6 to declare was against Germany, and then the US House of Representatives "endorsed" the decision by a vote of 373 to 50, officially entering the United States into war. -
The Selective Service Act
Wilson encouraged Amricans to volunteer for service and he pushed Congress to pass the Selective Service Act. The act was passed in May of 1917, and authorized a draft of young men for military service in Europe. The first day of the act's enactment was June 5, 1917. During this first day, more than 9.6 million Americans registered for the draft. This caused a major rise in enlistment in the war. -
Espionage Act
On June 15, 1917, Congress passed the Espionage Act. This act allowed postal authorities to ban treasonable or seditious newspapers, magazines, or printed materials from the mail. This act began to toy with the idea of America's freedom as well. -
President Wilson Favors Joining
"A general association of nations must be formed...for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike...It is the principle of justice to all peoples...and their right to live on equal terms...with one another, whether they be strong or weak." -
Russia Stops Fighting
Rusia stopped fighting in mid-December, caused by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, which essentially ended the war between Russia and Germany. This end of the war on the Eastern Front allowed Germany to send more soldiers to the Western Front, which caused major changes for the course of World War I. -
Germany Surrenders
On November 11, 1918, Germany surrendered to the Allies in a railway car in Compiegne, France. The war was finally over, leaving 5 million Allied and 8 million Central Power troops dead. Along with 6.5 million civilians dead as well. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles virtually ends World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. The treaty was signed exactly 5 years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. -
Wilson's Health Fails
Even though Wilson was ill and weak, he gave himself the task of crossing the country and giving 32 addresses in 33 days. But his health failed on September 25, 1919, in Pueblo, Colorado. He was rushed back to Washington, D.C., but suffered a debilitating stroke a few days later. As the Senate prepared to vote on the treaty, Wilson close to death, barely able to speak. -
Senator Borah Opposes Joining
"Mr. President, there is another reason... why I shall record my vote against this treaty. It imperils what I conceive to be the underlying, the very first principles of this Republic. It is in conflict with the right of our people to govern themselves free from all restraint, legal or moral, of foreign powers. It challenges every tenet of my political faith." -
Wall Street Bombing
Just days after Sacco and Vanzetti's murder indictment, a horsecart filled with dynamite exploded in the financial heart of NYC. The explosion and flying debris killed about 40 people and caused the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) to close early that day. Investigators suspected that anarchists had staged the bombing, but the culprits were never found.
