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By 1907 there were two major defence alliances in Europe. The Triple Entente, later know as the allies, consisted of France, Britain, and Russia.
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The Ottaman Empire mostly made up of Middle Eastern lands controlled by the turks, were later known as Central Powers
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Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the Archduke of Austria, had been in Sarajevo. When a Serbian Nationalist stepped from the crowd and shot him, Sparking the begining of WWI
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Germany had invaded Belgium, following a strategy known as the Schlieffen plan. This plan called for action against Russia
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One of the worst disaster occurred on May 7, 1915, when a U-boat sank the British liner off the southern coast of ireland. Of the 1,198 persons lost, 128 were Americans
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Another U-boat sank a the British liner, the Arabic, drowning two Americans. Again the U.S protested.
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Germany broke its promise of not sinking any more ships, and torpedoed an unarmed French passenger steamer the Sussex. 80 passengers were dead.
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During the First Battle of the Somme which began on July 1, 1916, and lasted until mid-November the British suffered 60,000 casualties.
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A telegram from the German foreign minister to the German ambassador in Mexico that was intercepted by British Agents.
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To meet the government's need for more fighting power, Congress passed the Selective Service Act in May 1917. The Act required men to register with the government in order to be randomly selected for military service.
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The main regulatory body was the War Industries Board. It was established in 1917 and reorganized in 1918 under the leadership of Bernard M. Baruch, a prosperous buissnessman.
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In June 1917 congress passed the Espionage act and in May 1918, it passed the sedition act. Under these acts, a person could be fined up to 10,000 dollars or 20 years for interfereing with any war efforts.
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In July and August, the Second Battle of the Marne had turned the tiede against German Central Powers.
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American Vice Admiral William S. Sims convinced the British to try the Convoy System in which a heavy guard of destroyers escorted merchant ships back and fourth across the Atlantic.
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To deal with disputes between management and labor. President Wilson established the National War Labor Board back in the U.S
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To help produce and conserve food, Wison set up the Food Administration under Herbert Hoover. Instead of rationing food, he called on people to follow the "Gospel of the clean plate"
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On November 3, 1918, Austria-Hungary surrendered to the Allies. That same day German soliders mutinied against the Government authority.
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On November 9th, socailist leaders in the capital, Berlin, established a German Republic, and the kaiser gave up its throne.
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On the 11th month, day, and hour, Germany agreed to cease fire, signed the truce and ended the war.
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To Popularize the war, the government set up the nation's first propoganda agency, the committee on public information.
