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Archduke Ferdinand assassinated
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was shot and killed. He was in line for the Austro-Hungarian throne. He was killed by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian radicalist of sorts. This caused Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia, and was ultimately the catalyst for the war. -
Lusitania sunk by Germany
A German submarine sank the Lusitania, a passenger ship. This killed 1,198 people, 128 of them being American. This infuriated Americans, and was a big reason that the US enters the war almost 2 years later. -
Germany halts sinking of civilian ships
After the sinking of the Lusitania, and the global outrage that ensued, Germany halted the sinking of passenger liners. They did this in an attempt to keep the US out of the war. This allowed the US to continue helping Britain and France, without threat of killing innocent people. -
US Selective Service Act passes
After entering the war, the US realizes that they are going to need some more people. They enact the selective service, more commonly known as the draft. This called on able-bodied (of age) men to come fight in the war. While many were more than willing to go, some started draft-dodging, which is illegal. -
Armistice Day
Armistice Day marks the end of the first World War. This armistice was between the Allies and Germany. Previous armistices had been agreed to, with Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. It came into effect at 11 AM (local French time) on the 11th day of the 11th month.