History quiz

What two factors influenced us sympathies in ww1?

The United States entered World War I in 1917, after a series of events that had turned public opinion against Germany. These included the sinking of the Lusitania, a British passenger ship, by a German U-boat in 1915, which killed over 1,000 people, including 128 Americans; the revelation that Germany had been using unrestricted submarine warfare, which meant that they were attacking ships without warning, even if they were carrying civilians; and the publication of the Zimmermann Telegram, a secret message from Germany to Mexico that proposed an alliance between the two countries in which Mexico would attack the United States.

These events, along with the fact that Germany had invaded neutral Belgium in 1914, led many Americans to believe that Germany was a threat to the United States and that it was necessary to enter the war on the side of the Allies.