It was likely he could face death on charges of heresy.
A hundred years before Luther began his reformation efforts, Czech reformer Jan Hus was put to death by the Roman Catholic Church for being a heretic. There was much fear Luther would be treated like Hus had been treated. Luther had the advantage of having a strong prince in his territory in Saxony who was intent on protecting Luther as one of his subjects, preventing the pope (seen as another ruling prince) from interfering with the sovereignty that Elector Frederick the Wise of Saxony asserted over his domain.
The United States tried to remain neutral during World War I, but numerous things occured that tipped the balance and made the U.S. finally declare war. The first thing was the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915, by Germany. The Lusitania was a ship carrying over 1,000 innocent passengers, with over 100 Americans onboard, a German U-boat sank the ship, ultimately killing everyone. Americans were furious about this, but it was not enough for the United States to declare war and join the Allied powers during World War I. The Zimmerman Telegram was the occurrence that finally made President Woodrow Wilson finally declare war. The Zimmerman Telegram was supposed to be a secret telegram to Mexico from the Germans, however it was decoded and brought to the United States' attention in 1917. This telegram stated if Mexico sided with Germany during World War I, and attacked the states, when Germany won the war they promised they would give Mexico territories. This was a huge threat, as Mexico bordered the United States, and it was the final straw into the United States entering World War I. On April 6, 1917, after the speech of Woodrow Wilson, the United States had officially declared war on Germany and entered World War I as one of the Allied powers.
Purchase of Alaska
Just looked it up