January 3
January 3
British nurse Marion Rice writes from a hospital on the Western Front
You never know what is going to happen from one day to the next, nurse Marion Rice writes on this day in 1917, from an army hospital in Caux Seine…
A Year In History: 1917
Also Within This Year in History:
1917
Across the globe, 1917 brought upheaval. Russians overthrew Czar Nicholas II, then staged a second revolution, putting Vladimir Lenin’s Bolsheviks in power and sparking a civil war. The U.S. and China both declared war on Germany, entering World War I in its fourth year. Puerto Ricans gained U.S. citizenship. And as America’s first-ever female congresswoman took office, the push for women’s suffrage intensified, with increased picketing and the arrest of many activists, followed by jailhouse hunger strikes, force feedings and mistreatment.
January 8
January 8
Wilson outlines the Fourteen Points
In an address before a joint meeting of Congress, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson discusses the aims of the United States in World War I and outlines his famous “Fourteen Points”…
January 9
January 9
Battle of Khadairi Bend begins
After several months of preparations, British troops under the command of their new regional chief Sir Frederick Maude launch an offensive against Turkish forces at Khadairi Bend, to the north…
January 28
January 28
The 1917 Bath Riots
On the morning of January 28, 1917, a Mexican maid named Carmelita Torres refuses to put up with the indignity she has been made to suffer every morning since she…
January 31
January 31
Germany resumes submarine warfare
On January 31, 1917, Germany announces the renewal of unlimited submarine warfare in the Atlantic, and German torpedo‑armed submarines prepare to attack any and all ships, including civilian passenger carriers,…
January 31
January 31
Germans unleash U‑boats
On January 31, 1917, Germany announces the renewal of unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic as German torpedo‑armed submarines prepare to attack any and all ships, including civilian passenger carriers,…
February 1
February 1
Germany resumes unrestricted submarine warfare
On February 1, 1917, the lethal threat of the German U‑boat submarine raises its head again, as Germany returns to the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare it had previously suspended…
February 3
February 3
U.S. breaks diplomatic relations with Germany
On this day in 1917, President Woodrow Wilson speaks for two hours before a historic session of Congress to announce that the United States is breaking diplomatic relations with Germany.…
February 5
February 5
Immigration Act passed over President Wilson’s veto
With more than a two‑thirds majority, Congress overrides President Woodrow Wilson’s veto of the previous week and passes the Immigration Act of 1917. The law required a literacy test for…
February 5
February 5
Mexican constitution proclaimed
After seven years of revolution and civil upheaval, Mexican President Venustiano Carranza proclaims the modern Mexican constitution, which promises the restoration of lands to native peoples, the separation of church…
February 5
February 5
U.S. ends search for Pancho Villa
American forces are recalled from Mexico after nearly 11 months of fruitless searching for Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa, who was accused of leading a bloody raid against Columbus, New Mexico.…
February 7
February 7
German sub sinks Scottish passenger ship SS California
Just three days after U.S. President Woodrow Wilson’s speech of February 3, 1917—in which he broke diplomatic relations with Germany and warned that war would follow if American interests at…
February 12
February 12
American schooner Lyman M. Law is sunk
The Austrian submarine U‑35 bombs and sinks the American schooner Lyman M. Law in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Cagliari, Sardinia. The Lyman M. Law, captained by S.W.…
February 22
February 22
Mussolini wounded by mortar bomb
On February 22, 1917, Sergeant Benito Mussolini is wounded by the accidental explosion of a mortar bomb on the Isonzo section of the Italian Front in World War I. Born…
February 23
February 23
Germans begin withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line
On this day in 1917, German troops begin a well‑planned withdrawal—ordered several weeks previously by Kaiser Wilhelm—to strong positions on the Hindenburg Line, solidifying their defense and digging in for…
February 24
February 24
British troops recapture Kut in Mesopotamia
The Allied war against Turkish forces gains momentum (and ground) in Mesopotamia as British and Indian troops move along the Tigris River in early 1917, recapturing the city of Kut‑al‑Amara…
February 24
February 24
Zimmermann Telegram presented to U.S. ambassador
During World War I, British authorities give Walter H. Page, the U.S. ambassador to Britain, a copy of the “Zimmermann Telegram,” a coded message from Arthur Zimmermann, the German foreign…
February 26
February 26
President Wilson learns of Zimmermann Telegram
In a crucial step toward U.S. entry into World War I, President Woodrow Wilson learns of the so‑called Zimmermann Telegram, a message from German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann to the…
March 1
March 1
Zimmermann Telegram published in United States
On March 1, 1917, the text of the so‑called Zimmermann Telegram—a message from the German foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, to the German ambassador to Mexico proposing a Mexican‑German alliance in…
March 2
March 2
Puerto Ricans become U.S. citizens, are recruited for war effort
Barely a month before the United States enters World War I, President Woodrow Wilson signs the Jones‑Shafroth Act, granting U.S. citizenship to the inhabitants of Puerto Rico. Located about 1,000…
