Lusitania Sinking

Britain entered the war because Germany invaded Belgium. Then the rest of the dominos fell.

Sir Edward Grey, the British Foreign Secretary, expressed his emotions when negotiations to avoid war failed:

The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.

What is most extraordinary is that many heads of European states were related. Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Kaiser Wilhelm II were cousins. The Kaiser called the King of England (George V) "Uncle." In short, a nasty squabble (among members of Queen Victoria's extended family) got out of control. Ultimately, millions of other people were pulled into the fight.

Diplomatic relations between the United States and Germany broke down in February of 1917. Before Gerard left the American Embassy in Berlin, he was asked to sign a reworked version of an old (1799) treaty addressing how the two countries would deal with each other's merchant vessels (like the Lusitania) if hostilities broke out.