1. World War I began with a conflict between Serbia and Austria. The already bad blood between the two
nations was escalated with the Serbian assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Within a
month, two sides had formed: the central Powers that included Austria, Hungary and Germany and the
Allied Powers which included France, Great Britain, and Russia. The first acts of war began in 1914 with
Russia mobilizing troops toward Germany. In retaliation, Germany declared war on Russia and moved
troops toward France and Russia. Great Britain sided with France when Germany moved their troops.
Meanwhile, President Woodrow Wilson insisted that the US remained neutral and a majority of the
citizens agreed. He said that it wouldn’t make sense for the US to be involved given the distance and
lack of conflict. European countries attempted to use propaganda to sway US citizens to either side.
Germany slandered Russia’s government and anti-Jewish beliefs while Britain played on the similarities
between Britain and the US. Both were unsuccessful and the US remained neutral.
Soon, the US’s neutrality was tested. Both Allied and Central powers began to try to gain an advantage
by controlling US ships and goods on open international waters. Britain tried to cut off trade routes and
seize goods to limit American-German trade. US ships tried to use alternate routes but they weren’t
effective. Britain’s tactics worked and American-German trade significantly decreased.
In response, Germany set up submarines in British Iles and threatened to destroy all merchant ships in
the area. Woodrow Wilson told Germany that they would be held “strictly accountable” for any US
casualties or loss of ships. Germany used a new technology, U-Boats or early submarines, to attack ships
in the harbor. U-Boat was short for the German word “Unterseeboot”. They were powerful because
they could attack without warning and being seen or detected. In 1915, Germany sank four three
shipping vessels that angered Americans. First was the British Falaba, second was the American Ship
Lusitania which killed 128 Americans, and third was the British Liner Ariabic which killed two more
Americans. These sinkings angered Americans who began to call for war. Germany tried to justify the
sinkings but Americans didn’t accept the excuse.
Woodrow Wilson still wanted the US to be neutral. Angry, he sent a note to the Germans asking that
they stop unregulated undersea warfare. The Secretary of State William Bryan reluctantly signed it,
knowing it might lead to war. The Germans didn’t respond, so about a month later Wilson sent another,
angrier message to them. Instead of signing off for a document he knew would start war, Bryan resigned
as Secretary of State. Germany was forced by the US and the Allied powers to agree to stop with the U-
Boat sinkings. Seven months later, a U-Boat sunk a French cargo ship, Sussex. Wilson began the Sussex
ultimatum which said that if Germany sunk more ships, the US would break all diplomatic relations with
them. Germany agreed but soon after declared war on all vessels, enemy or neutral in the war zone.
This broke the agreement but didn’t yet push Wilson to war.
War came when Germany began talks of an alliance with Mexico. In return, Germany would help Mexico
take Texas, New Mexico and Arizona from the US. Wilson saw this as a huge threat and the worst-case
scenario, so On April 2, 1917, the Senate and House voted and the US declared war. That day, Wilson
said that “It [was] a fearful thing to lead great, peaceful people into war.”

2. As the US went to war, the country was still split on the concept of war. So, President Woodrow Wilson
decided to launch a huge propaganda campaign to sway public opinion. The Creel committee was
created to head the propaganda. The committee involved 75,000 men, known as four-minute-men, who
gave short speeches to spread positive thinking toward the war and distribute hundreds of thousands of
pamphlets and posters. The US particularly targeted German culture for the propaganda. It was so
effective that Americans began to reject German food, music, and literature. It worked so well that
Americans began to falsely jail and prosecute German-Americans for espionage and terrorism, much like
Japanese-Americans in World War II.
The US encouraged people to help save food for the men in the war and help make the US more self-
sufficient. “Meatless Tuesdays” and “Wheatless Wednesdays” were conceived to help save food. These
efforts increased domestic food production by 25 percent. Although the US was doing very well to
support its troops domestically, Wilson’s inability to connect foreign affairs with domestic ones left
many soldiers without the food, weapons, or money they needed. This led to the Espionage Act of 1917
and the Sedition Act of 1918. They said that anyone suspected of working against the US Government
could be fined up to $10,000 and jailed for up to 20 years. Also, it became illegal to speak negatively
about the purchase of war bond and the US’s military efforts.
Almost 2,000 people were accused under these acts and many were jailed. However the acts saw a lot
of opposition. Many thought it violated the first amendment rights and the acts were brought to
Supreme Court in Schenk v. U.S. Ultimately, Schenk was arrested for trying to criticize a government
initiative. His actions were deemed as a “clear and present danger” because of the War-time setting.
US Troops began fighting in 1917. Shortly after, Russia pulled out of the war and sought peace. The US’s
only major battle was the final one in 1918 in France, which the Allies won. Seeing that the war was
ending, Woodrow Wilson outlined a plan for peace, known as Wilson’s Fourteen Points. Most accepted
the terms of his Fourteen Points but some allied powers didn’t agree with the lack of territorial gain. A
year after Wilson announced his plan; Germany surrendered and agreed to remove their head of state.
Wilson’s most important clause was the “League of Nations” that would help solidify the peace and keep
it for years to come. He was willing to bend on his other 13 points to keep the League of Nations intact.
The final revision of the treaty became known as the “Treaty of Versailles” and was signed on June 28,
1919. In Europe, Wilson was seen as a hero for creating the basis for the treaty. However, he was
treated coldly in the US as many feared greater power in Europe than the US. The treaty never gained
traction in America and never was ratified. After two years of campaigning, the US decided not to sign
the Treaty of Versailles and signed individual treaties with each of the Central Powers. The US was never
was part of the League of Nations as Wilson had envisioned.