Events

  • October21, 1916

    French renew attack on Verdun

  • November7

    Wilson reelected on antiwar platform; begins diplomatic initiatives

  • February1, 1917

    Germany begins unrestricted submarine warfare

  • February3

    German U-boat sinks U.S. cargo ship Housatonic

    United States breaks off diplomatic relations with Germany
  • February24

    United States learns of Zimmermann telegram

  • March1

    Zimmermann telegram published in American press

  • April2

    Wilson asks Congress to declare war

  • April6

    United States declares war on Germany

  • May24

    First U.S. convoy to protect shipping to Europe departs

  • July4

    U.S. troops march through central Paris to Lafayette’s tomb

  • September4

    First U.S. war fatalities

  • November23

    First U.S. combat mission

  • January8, 1918

    Wilson gives “Fourteen Points” speech before U.S. Congress

    • Key People

    • David Lloyd George

      British prime minister during the war; rejected Wilson’s peace initiatives in 1916

    • John J. Pershing

      Commander of U.S. forces deployed in Europe

    • Woodrow Wilson

      U.S. president during the war; attempted to maintain neutrality but saw it crumble in 1917

    • Alfred Zimmermann

      German foreign minister; sent telegram attempting to incite Mexico to attack the United States

    American Neutrality

    Since the beginning of World War I in 1914, the United States, under President Woodrow Wilson, had maintained strict neutrality, other than providing material assistance to the Allies. Even in May 1915, when a German submarine sank the British ocean liner Lusitania, killing 128 U.S. citizens out of a total 1,200 dead, the United States, though in uproar, remained neutral. In the autumn of 1916, Wilson was reelected after running largely on a platform of antiwar, pro-neutrality rhetoric.

    American Diplomacy

    By the time of Wilson’s reelection victory, the war had left millions dead, cities and economies in ruins, and no decisive victory in sight for any side. It seemed that the war might actually burn itself out. In November and December 1916, Wilson began a series of initiatives to broker a resolution, sending out diplomatic notes to the governments of every nation involved. Germany responded positively and went so far as to recommend opening immediate peace negotiations. France, however, responded by launching a renewed attack against the Germans in Verdun. British prime minister David Lloyd George rejected Wilson’s initiative directly.

    Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

    In January 1917, Germany announced that it would lift all restrictions on submarine warfare starting on February 1. This declaration meant that German U-boat commanders were suddenly authorized to sink all ships that they believed to be providing aid of any sort to the Allies. Because the primary goal was to starve Britain into surrendering, the German effort would focus largely on ships crossing the Atlantic from the United States and Canada.

    The Housatonic

    The first victim of this new policy was the American cargo ship Housatonic, which a German U-boat sank on February 3, 1917. In response, President Wilson broke off diplomatic relations with Germany the same day. The escalation was serious and turned out to be a major step toward the United States’ entry into the war.

    The Zimmermann Telegram

    In the meantime, other German mischief paved the road to war with the United States even more smoothly. In February 1917, British intelligence intercepted a telegram from Germany that they had intercepted in January. In the telegram, sent by German foreign minister Alfred Zimmermann to his ambassador in Mexico on January 16, Zimmermann instructed the ambassador to offer Mexico generous financial aid if it would ally itself with Germany against the United States. Furthermore, the telegram promised German support for Mexico in reconquering its lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.

    On March 1, 1917, the text of the Zimmermann telegram appeared on the front pages of American newspapers, and in a heartbeat, American public opinion shifted in favor of entering the war.

    Popular pages: World War I (1914–1919)