Panoramic shots from the Library of Congress show the brave, smartly-dressed men and women who served the U.S. in World War One, the battlefields where so many died and the mothers who were left at home waiting for news

These century-old panoramas from the Library Of Congress in the US capture the immense sense of duty displayed by American soldiers, officers, nurses and hospital corps - as well as that of their mothers. 

More than two million American citizens answered their country's call to arms over the course of the war, and still more were prepared to risk their lives - 815 men signed up on the very day the fighting ended. 

Their commitment, patriotism and despair is captured in the archive's collection, as well as some rare flashes of joy. 

Pictured are thousands of soldiers on horseback remembering dead comrades at the Suresnes American Cemetery on the outskirts of Paris in 1920, the officers and crew of the U.S.S. Mount Vernon which survived a German torpedo attack, and the freshly installed war graves at the Argonne Cemetery near Verdun.

Other more jubilant scenes show US troops returning home to their loved ones and a regiment of relieved men who signed up on the day the war concluded.

Under President Woodrow Wilson, the United States remained neutral until 1917 and then entered the war on the side of the Allied Forces - the United Kingdom, France, and Russia.

Wilson was keen to keep the US out of the gruelling war of attrition where thousands of people died each day in terrible conditions as they fought to gain just inches of ravaged No Man's Land.

But he was ultimately unable to keep the United States out of the war, largely because of escalating German aggression.

On May 7 1915, the Germans sunk the British ocean liner RMS Lusitania, which had over a hundred Americans on board. Wilson warned that the United States would not permit unrestricted submarine warfare or any further violations of international law.

Germany did not heed the president's warning and resumed submarine warfare several months later and even attempted to team up with Mexico to stand against the United States. Following more American deaths on ships, Wilson had no choice but to declare war on April 6 1917.

Top brass: Division commander, 84th Division, Major General Hale, with division staff and attached French officers at Camp Zachary Taylor in Kentucky, November 21, 1917. The United States entered the war in April that year, after President Woodrow Wilson had tried to keep them out of the conflict for two-and-a-half years 

Officers, nurses, and hospital corps at Camp MacArthur's Base Hospital in Waco, Texas, on June 24 1918. Over 1.3 million United States citizens immediately answered their country's call to arms and a million more signed up following conscription a couple of months later

No Mans Land in Flanders Field, France, 1919. The caption on the front of the photo reads 'Photo by W. L. King, Millersberg, Ohio; by courtesy of Military Intelligence Div., General Staff, U.S. Army.'

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A parade in 1918 to thank the brave soldiers who fought for peace in Europe. The guns felt silent on 11 November 1918, leaving more than 40 million people dead including 50,000 Americans 

Officers and crew in front of the U.S.S. Mount Vernon on October 30, 1918. The ship, carrying troops to Europe, was involved in a frantic battle with German submarines a year prior and was fortunate not to sink after it was torpedoed

These no-doubt very relieved 815 men signed up on the very day the war came to its conclusion - November 11, 1918. When the war ended with a victory for the Allies, more than 2 million U.S. troops had served at the Western Front in Europe, and more than 50,000 of them died

US Flying officers at Love Field in Dallas, Texas. The First World War saw rapid developments in airplane technology. American inventors, Elmer Sperry and Peter Hewitt developed the first pilotless drone for the U.S. Navy in 1916

Argonne Cemetery, Argonne Forest, France, 1919. Many of the dead here were killed in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, a major part of the final Allied offensive of World War I that stretched along the entire Western Front. It was fought from September 26 1918 until the Armistice of November 11 1918, a total of 47 days. The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the largest in United States military history, involving 1.2 million American soldiers

The fourth Liberty Loan parade, St. Helena Training Station on October 11 1918 - exactly one month before the Armistice. The 11th minute of the 11th day of the 11th month signified an end to the bloody four year war which saw more than 40 million people lose their lives

Mounted guards pay tribute to their fallen brothers at a Memorial Day ceremony at the American Cemetery at Suresnes, May 30 1920.  The graveyard is the final resting place for 1,541 American soldiers killed in World War I

Welcome home: Arriving back in Boston, on April 10th 1919, Troopship Mongolia with boys of the 26th ('Yankee') Division. It was the first US ship to sink a German submarine

Bring him home: Mothers of McLennan Company, whose hearts and hopes are in France, assembled for the 4th Liberty Loan Parade, September 27th 1918

Home-coming: The Calumet Co. boys of Chilton, Wisconsin on September 20 1919, nearly a year after the war was concluded