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Assassination of Ferdinand
Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife are assassinated. Ferdinand and his wife visited the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. As the royal entourage drove through the city, Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip stepped from the crowd and shot the Archduke and his wife Sophie. -
An Assassination Leads to War
The alliance system pulled one nation after another into the conflict. On August 1, Germany, obligated by treaty to support Austria-Hungary, declared war on Russia. On August 3, Germany declared war on Russia's ally France. After Germany invaded Belgium, Britain declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. The Great War had begun. -
Germany invades Belgium
Germany declares war on Russia and France. Great Britain declares war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. This plan called for a holding action against Russia, combined with a quick drive through Belgium to Paris; after France had fallen, the two German armies would defeat Russia. -
German U-Boat Response
German U-boats sink the Lusitania, and 1,198 people die. The Germans defended their action on the grounds that the liner carried ammunition. Despite Germany's explanation, Americans became outraged with Germany because of the loss of life. -
The Battle of Somme
The battle of the Somme claimed millions of lives. During the First Battle of the Somme, the British suffered 60,000 casualties the first day alone. Final casualties totaled about 1.2 million, yet only about seven miles of ground changed hands. This bloody trench warfare, in which armies fought for mere yards of ground, continued for over three years. -
Woodrow Wilson re-elected president
The Democrats renominated Wilson, and the Republicans nominated Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes. Wilson campaigned on the slogan "He Kept Us Out of War." The election returns shifted from hour to hour. In fact, Hughes went to bed believing he had been elected. -
German Provocation
The Germans ignored Wilson's calls for peace. Germany's leaders hoped to defeat Britain by resuming unrestricted submarine warfare. In January of 1917 the kaiser announced that U-boats would sink all ships in British wars, hostile or neutral, on sight. The German decision meant that the U.S. would have to go to war. However, the president held back, saying that he would wait for "actual overt acts" before declaring war. -
America Acts
A light drizzle fell on Washington in April of 1917, as senators, representatives, ambassadors, members of the supreme court, and other guests crowded into the Capitol building to hear President Wilson deliver his war resolution. Congress passed the resolution a few days later. With the hope of neutrality finally shattered, U.S. troops would follow the stream of American money and munitions that had been heading to the Allies throughout the war. -
Selective Service Act
The Selective Service Act sets up the draft. The act required men to register with the government in order to be randomly selected for military service. By the end of 1918, 24 million men had registered under the act.Of this number, almost 3 million were called up. -
Fourteen Points
Even before the war was over, Wilson presented his plan for world peace. In January of 1918, he delivered his now famous Fourteen Points speech before Congress. The points were divided into three groups. The first five points were issues that Wilson believed had to be addressed to prevent another war. The next eight points dealt with boundary changes. The fourteenth point called for the creation of an international organization to address diplomatic crises like those that had sparked the war. -
United States declares war on Germany.
Instead of building an entire ship in the yard, standardized parts were built elsewhere and then assembled at the yard. This method reduced construction time substantially. As a result, on just one day the U.S. launched 95 ships. -
American War Hero
During the fighting in the Meuse-Argonne area, one of America's greatest war heros, Alvin York, became famous. A redheaded mountaineer and blacksmith from Tennessee, York sought exemption as a conscientious objector, a person who opposes warfare on moral grounds, pointing out that the Bible says, "Thou shalt not kill." In October of 1918, armed only with a rifle and a revolver, York killed 25 Germans and captured 132 prisoners. -
The Collapse of Germany
In November of 1918, Austria-Hungary surrendered to the Allies. That same day, German sailors mutinied against government authority. The mutiny spread quickly. Everywhere in Germany, groups of soldiers and workers organized revolutionary councils. -
Debating the Treaty of Versailles
In June of 1919, the Big Four and the leaders of the defeated nations gathered in the Hall of Mirrors of the Palace of Versailles to sign the peace treaty. After four years of devastating warfare, everyone hoped that the treaty would create stability for a rebuilt Europe. Instead, anger held sway. The Treaty of Versailles established nine new nations- including Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the kingdom that later became Yugoslavia- and shifted the boundaries of other nations. -
Wilson Refuses to Compromise
Despite ill health, Wilson set out in September of 1919 on an 8,000-mile tour. He delivered 34 speeches in about 3 weeks, explaining why the U.S. should join the League of Nations. In October of 1919, Wilson suffered a stroke (a ruptured blood vessel to the brain) and lay partially paralyzed for more than two months, unable to even meet with his cabinet. His once-powerful voice was no more than a thick whisper.