World War I: US Entry, Western Front, and the Treaty of Versailles

United States Enters World War I and Unpreparedness

• US Declaration of War: The United States entered World War I in April $1917$, declaring war on Germany after two and a half years of neutrality.

• Lack of Readiness: The US was significantly unprepared for war.

  • Military Size: In $1917$, the entire US military consisted of only $127,000$ men. For context, in a single battle in $1916$ (e.g., Battle of the Somme), the British suffered $50,000$ casualties, with $20,000$ killed in one day, almost half the size of the entire US military.

  • Comparison to Other Powers: Nations like Germany and France had armies of $5-6$ million men. Russia had an immeasurable number.

  • Eventual Growth: The US eventually mustered around $4,000,000$ men, with about $2,200,000$ deploying to France.

  • Allied Misconceptions: The British and French mistakenly believed the US would quickly deploy millions of soldiers, steamrolling the Germans. This was not the case; it took over a year to get a million Americans to France.

  • Initial Deployment: It took two months to get the first $14,000$ American soldiers, known as the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), to France.

  • Lack of Experience: Most AEF soldiers lacked combat experience, with recent experience limited to chasing Pancho Villa in Northern Mexico ($1916$) or the much older Spanish-American War ($1898$). They were