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Woodrow Wilson, who was the 28th president of the United States, began his presidency on March 4, 1913.
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On June 28, 1914, after Serbian Gavrilo Princip assassinated the Austro-Hungarian heirs to the throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Grand Duchess Sophie, vengeful nationalist leaders believed the time had arrived to eliminate the rebellious ethnic Serbian threat.
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On July 28, 1914, Austria declared war on Serbia for Serbia's failure to meet all of the demands that Austria gave to them in order to foster peace.
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On August 1, 1914, Germany declared war on Russia to protect Austria after warnings directed at Tsar Nicholas II failed to stop Russian preparations for war.
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On August 4, 1914, Great Britain declared war on Germany for failing to respect Belgium as a neutral nation.
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In May 1915, Germans sank the RMS Lusitania. Over a hundred American lives were lost.
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The United States Congress declared war on Germany on April 4, 1917 due to German actions such as sinking The RMS Lusitania.
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Despite fears of popular resistance, the United States Congress quickly instituted a reasonably equitable and locally administered system to draft men for the military. On May 18, 1917, Congress approved the Selective Service Act, and President Wilson signed it a week later. The new legislation avoided the unpopular system of bonuses and substitutes used during the Civil War and was generally received without major objection by the American people.
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November 11, 1918 marked the end of the first World War.