After the turn of the century, the major European powers were rapidly rearming. However, it was the small country of Bosnia-Herzegovina that would provide the spark that ignited World War One. On June 28,1914 Gavrilo Princip assissinated the heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, in Sarajevo in the hopes of achiving independence for Bosnia-Herzegovina. Within a month, Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. 3 days later, as an ally of Serbia, Russia announced full mobilization of her armed forces. That same day, August 1st 1914, Germany mobilized her armed forces and declared war on Russia, followed two days later with a declaration of war against France. The next day, Germany declared war on, and invaded neutral Belgium. As a result of this, Britain declared war on Germany.
The majority of Americans favored staying out of the war, and president Woodrow Wilson formally stated that the United States would officially follow a policy of neutrality. However, after intercepting the infamous "Zimmerman Telegram" in which the German ambassador Zimmer asked Mexico to attack America if war was declared between America and Germany, followed by the Kaiser's announcement of unrestricted submarine warfare, Wilson had no choice but to ask Congress to declare war on Germany on April 6th, 1917. As the president stated "The world must be made safe for democracy.".
The American contribution to the Allied Expeditionary Force eventually helped break the stalemate of trench warfare. On November 11th, 1918, an armistice was declared, with the final peace treaty signed June 28 1919 by German delegates and the Allies in Versailles. While the treaty formally ended what was hoped to be "The War To End All Wars", it's terms were so harsh that it made a second world war inevitable.
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