What did the Lusitania have to do with the entry of the United States into World War I?

The sinking of the Lusitania had an impact on the United States and was eventually a factor in our joining the war on the side of the Allies in World War I.

The Lusitania was a British passenger ship. There were over 1900 people on board when it was sunk by a German submarine. Over 1100 people died and over 120 of those people were Americans. The sinking of the Lusitania was an important event because it marked the beginning of American public opinion turning against the Germans. When Germany used the submarine to sink passenger ships or to sink ships of neutral countries such as the United States, Germany was violating the accepted rules of war. As more and more ships were sunk by Germany, American public opinion against Germany increased. Eventually, it was the resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare by the Germans that brought the United States into World War I on the side of the Allies in 1917. The sinking of the Lusitania helped increase anti-German feelings in our country.