US Enters WWI: Wilson Declares War on Germany
President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany on April 2, 1917, and received it on April 6 by a vote of 82-6 in the Senate and 373-50 in the House. Jeannette Rankin of Montana, the first woman in Congress, voted no. Wilson had won reelection five months earlier on the slogan "He Kept Us Out of War." Germany's resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare and the Zimmermann Telegram, proposing a German-Mexican alliance against the United States, made neutrality impossible. The US had 127,000 soldiers when war was declared. Within 18 months, four million Americans were in uniform, and two million had shipped to France, tipping the balance decisively against the Central Powers.
April 6, 1917
109 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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