Yesterday, February 3rd, 1917,The American cargo ship, Housatonic , a German U-boat sank. In response, President Wilson broke off diplomatic relations with Germany the same day. The attack on Housatonic is the first time in history that a submerged submarine had successfully sunk another ship. Aboard the Union vessel, two officers and three men were killed while the crew took to the boats or climbed into the rigging to await rescue. The reason as to what led to the sinking is unknown at this time. The escalation was serious and turned out to be a major step toward the United States’ entry into the war. The Housatonic had the same name as the first ship ever
On May 7, 1915 the British luxury ocean liner, the RMS Lusitania, sunk within 18 minutes of being shot by a German U-boat in an act of self defense. Germany’s U-boats were latest technology; similar to submarines. They were hard to detect by radar and surprised the enemy. Out of 192 Americans onboard 128 died, which outraged Americans Eventually bringing them into the war. Despite a minimal amount of evidence on the contrary, Germany had every right to sink the Lusitania. The first reason why Germany had every right to sink the Lusitania is because Great Britain wanted Germany to attack them. They wanted to aggravate Germany into sinking the ship which would sway America to join on the allied side. To do this they deceptively hung the
the wars that was going on. So Woodrow waited in till Germany did not hold up sinking
The first world war was not caused by any specific event whose nature can be pinpointed and avoided. Instead, an interrelating network of many things led to an environment which caused aggression and allowed it to grow into the tragedy of World War I. At the time, each country’s intense nationalism created an aggressive setting and an underlying desire to go to war and destroy other countries in order to be the best. Militarism and the arms race, fueled by this competition, gave countries the means for mass devastation. In addition, huge alliances with a mixture of smaller and bigger countries had the potential to involve the world’s strongest military powers in a small dispute between obscure countries. This situation all meant the countries created increasingly effective weapons in order to be the best started a war which was further escalated by the
America’s entrance in the Spanish-American War was primarily due to the random explosion of the USS Maine on February 15, 1898, which killed 267 service men aboard. This attack leads to Congress’s vote to go to war against Spain. The United States’ desire to expand military overseas also played a part in the American entrance to this war. Economically speaking, the U.S. wanted Cuban crops to come to America, and not only Spain. “The war enabled the United States to establish its predominance in the Caribbean region and to pursue its strategic and economic interests in Asia” (“Spanish-American War”). The United States wanted sole control over the island of Cuba in order to grow the American economy, and the congress stated that President William
In July 28, 1914 to November 11,1918 World War 1 took place where over 17 million lives were lost and over 20 million wounded soldiers. This war was between Britain, France, Russia, Italy and the United States against Germany, and Austria-Hungary. The main cause of World War 1 was militarism where many European countries kept increasing their size of their army and navy without a war going on.
for sea life, all those innocent, brave lives would not have died. The ship sank and failed due to
The RMS Titanic was a luxury steamship sailing from Southampton to France and Ireland then on to New York. The ship could occupy 2,435 passengers and about 900 crew members, which is a total of 3,300 people on board. The ship never made it to its final stop. The Titanic sank on April 15th 1912.
The naval race between Great Britain and Germany from 1898 to 1914 caused great friction among the two nations and was one of the causes for World War I. In 1898 Germany slowly began to create a naval fleet that was able to challenge the British Naval Fleet in the North Sea and the English Channel (“Anglo-German
On April 2, 1917, the 28th president of the United States of America, Woodrow Wilson, delivered a speech before the Congress in order to declare war against Germany. This period of history represents the first worldwide conflict and opposes the Allied forces of the United States, Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, and Japan against the Central Powers of Germany, Bulgaria, the Austrian-Hungarian empire, and the Ottoman empire. Woodrow Wilson involved the United States, which was originally neutral at the beginning of World War I when the Germans attacked and sank the Lusitania, a ship transporting ammunition to the allies but also American citizens.
After the sinking of Lusitania, Wilson made a pact with Germany for them to stop sinking civilian ships using their U-boats. Germany agreed with this proposal, and the conflict seemed to die down for a time. However, the Germans broke this agreement and violated the trust of the Americans yet again. German U-boats had started to sink several American merchant ships. These attacks took place all over the North Atlantic and Mediterranean oceans. The attacks were the last straw for Woodrow Wilson. As a result of these incidents, he officially declared war on Germany in April 1917. Directly following this announcement, the United States had to do a lot of preparation to get ready for a battle of this magnitude. This war cost the U.S, as well as many other countries, a lot of lives and millions of dollars. Germany acted as the warmonger in this war. Due to their stubbornness, millions of people had to pay the price with their lives.
World War 1(WW1) is one of the most bloodstained, unpleasant, wide-spread, and history-altering war ever to occur in human history. Many people know this, however, many are not aware of the important factors which impacted the Great War. One such factor is the sinking of the British Ocean Liner Lusitania, a passenger ship stacked with hundreds of civilians seeking a retreat through a vacation. The sinking of the Lusitania was a significant occurrence because it impacted the American public’s opinion significantly, which in result influenced the Great War. Hence, it is imperative one understands the role the Lusitania played during the Great War.
In the late 1800’s, Cuba was fighting for its independence and striving to break free from Spain’s control. On February 28, 1898, the U.S.S Maine mysteriously exploded, which was stationed on the coast of Cuba. This led to the U.S involvement in the Spanish-American War. There were many economic reasons why the U.S joined this war, however, there was nothing significant that would require their involvement. The U.S was already keeping a close eye on the battle between the other two nations; waiting for a reason to intervene. When the explosion of the U.S.S Maine occurred, it gave America the political push they needed to get involved in this war.
World War I occurred between July 1914 and November 11, 1918. By the end of the war, over 17 million people were being killed including over 100,000 American troops. The reason why war erupted is actually much more complicated than a simple list of causes. There are some chain of events that directly led to the fighting. Among all the reasons, let us highlight on the top and main five reasons/causes that led to World War I in Europe (1914). The first reason/cause is “Mutual Defense Alliance” - Over the time countries throughout Europe made mutual defense agreements that would pull them into battle. Simply it is nothing but if one country was attacked ultimately the allied countries were being bounded to defend them. Before the World War I Russia &Serbia, Germany & Austria, Japan & Britain, France &Russia were the only alliances that existed. The second reason/cause is “Imperialism” - when a country increases their power and wealth by bringing additional territories under their control. Before World War 1, Africa and parts of Asia were points of contention amongst the European countries. This was especially true because of the raw materials these areas could provide.