-
World War 1, known as at the time as the Great War, was a largescale war between the major European powers.
-
The United States of America officially announced it was "impartial in thought as well as in action," though later the USA did join the war.
-
German U-boats sank the RMS Lusitania, a British ocean liner, killing 1,198, 128 of whom were Americans.
-
In an appeal to the Senate, President Woodrow Wilson expressed his hope to end the war in Europe.
-
Germany announced that its submarines would attack any foreign vessels sighted in the "war zone" around Great Britain.
-
Due to Germany's new policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, the USA cut all diplomatic ties with the country.
-
German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann wrote to Mexico to offer US territory in exchange for engaging the USA in battle on the homefront.
-
On this day, President Wilson convinced the Senate to join the Great War in Europe.
-
On this day, the Senate and the House of Representatives both formally agreed to declare war on Germany.
-
The United States of America contributed toward the end of the Great War.
-
The USA cut diplomatic ties with Austria-Hungary, one of the main enemy nations.
-
Bulgaria cut diplomatic ties with the United States.
-
The Committee on Public Information was formed by the US government to spread war propoganda to the American people.
-
Turkey, an ally of Germany's, formally cut all diplomatic ties with the United States.
-
All men in the US between the ages of 21 and 30 were required to sign up for the draft due to President Wilson's Selective Service Act.
-
The Espionage Act made interfering with the war effort or supporting the enemy a punishable crime.
-
On this day, the first American troops began to arrive in France to join the war.
-
After declaring war on Germany, the United States also formally declared war on Germany's ally: Austria-Hungary.
-
President Woodrow Wilson presented his 14 points, which he believed could essentially be a blueprint for world peace.
-
The Sedition Act outlined harsh punishments for those who disobeyed the Espionage Act.
-
Four thousand American soldiers captured the town of Cantigny under the command of Major-General Robert Lee Bullard. This extended the front by about a mile.
-
The Battle of Belleau Wood, part of the Allied response to the German Spring Offensive, was the first WWI battle in which the American marines fought.
-
After spending over twenty days clearing Belleau Wood, American marines declared the territory had been conquered.
-
As part of the Second Battle of the Marne, American and French forces fought Germans in the Battel of Château-Thierry.
-
General John J. Pershing lead the first American offensive attack on the Germans in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel.
-
After only a few days, the American and French forces had cleared out German occupants in the area.
-
The French and American troops once again attacked German troops as part of the three-pronged Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
-
On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, Germany officially surrendered World War One.
-
The Battle of the Argonne Forest concluded with the German surrender and the end of the Great War.
-
For just over a year, the Allies and the losers hammered out various treaties to settle the problems caused by the war.
-
After months of discussion, the Treary of Versailles was signed. This treaty forced Germany to accept all blame of the war as well as many other retributions.
