[7.5-7.6] Wilson, American Foreign Policy and Great War

after slide 5

Moralistic Diplomacy in Mexico

What pushed the United States to join the Spanish Revolution?

  1. April 1914- Tampico Incident

  • Small group of US sailors arrested

  • Mexico released them and said sorry but Wilsom demanded a 21- gun salute opon their release

  • Mexico refused- wilson ordered US Navy to take Vera Cruz

  • The entire incident darkened US-Mexican relations for decades

The Spark That Ignited War

June 28, 1914

Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip assassinated Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinad in Sarajevo, plunging Europe into world war

August 4, 1914

War officially declared

  • Central Powers: Germany, Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary

  • Allies: Great Britain, France, Russia (Italy joins in 1915)

Naval Warfare and International Law

British Blockade

  • North Sea mined to bottle up German fleet

  • Violated international law

  • Wislson protested wakly-believed britain could pay compensatiojn later

German U-Boats

  • February 1915- Attack zone declared around British isles

  • Relied on suprise attacks, violated maritime law

  • British flew neutral flags

U.S. doesnt entire war till 1917

A Precarious Neutrality

  • Feb 1915 – Germany announced unrestricted submarine warfare around British Isles

    • Posed dire threat to US interests

  • Wilson proceeded with policy of calculated risk

  • May 7, 1915 -  sinking of the Lusitania

    • Germany justified attack with claim that it was carrying contraband

    • Americans outraged; US inched closer to war

    • Berlin agrees reluctantly to not sink unarmed  and unresisting passenger ships

  • March 1916 – sinking of the Sussex

    • Wilson threatened to break diplomatic relations

    • Result – Germany offered the Sussex Pledge

      • End of unrestricted submarine warfare; will provide warning to both passenger and merchant vessels

Election of 1916

With public opinion divided, Wilson ran as a peace candidate while building military preparedness.

National Defense Act

Increased size of army, navy, and National Guard

Campaign Slogan

"He kept us out of war" emphasized progressive reforms

Narrow Victory

Defeated Republican Charles Evans Hughes

wilson hates how they are doing illegal warfare

US Position in 1917

Jan 22 – Wilson’s 2nd inaugural address asks for American’s commitment to neutrality; declared only a negotiated “peace without victory” would prove durable

Jan 31 – Germany announced resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare

  • Wilson asks Congress for authorization to arm US merchant ships

March 1 – Zimmerman telegram intercepted

  • Proposed German-Mexican alliance

  • Promise to return the Mexican Cession back to Mexico

  • Infuriated Americans

Also – Russia Revolution changed some perspectives

Myth – US was dragged unwittingly into war by munitions makers & Wall Street

  • They were already thriving

Simple truth – British harassment of US commerce was annoying, but Germany had resorted to mass killing of civilians

Germany wanted mexico to come into war so US will just fight mexico instead of fighting the central powers in europe

Last straw- US declares war, we entered war bc of zimmerman telegram

America Enters the War

The reason we are going to war is to make the world a safer democracy, peaceful once again

November 1917- Russian Revolution installs Bolshevik regime, negotiates separate peace with Central Powers

Wilson’s Vision for Peace, The 14 points

  • Jan-8,1918-Fourteen Points Speech

  • Gives a speech to the country and world, wilson was now seen as the moral leader of the allied cause

  • Wanted to convince russia to re-enter the war

  • Wilson’s vision inspired the falling morale of the Allies and demoralized enemy nations

  • The points

  • Pt 1 – abolish secret treaties

  • Pt 2 – freedom of the seas

  • Pt 3 – removal of economic barriers among nations

  • Pt 4 – reduction of armaments

  • Pt 5 – adjustment of colonial claims (self-determination)

  • Pt 14 – League of Nations- work together under collective security

Mobilizing for War

3 millions drafted soldiers

Nearly 50,000 U.S. troops died in Argonne Forest offensive alone

The Horros of Modern Warfare

Trench Warfare

Soldiers dug into filthy trenches facing machine-gun fire and artillery

Chemical Weapons

Shells spewing poison gas created new horrors on the battlefield

Massive Casualties

Europeans suffered 8-10 million casualties; U.S. 230,000 injured in final push

Wilson’s 14 Points Disarm Germany/DoughBoys

  • Pamphlets of Wilson’s Fourteen Points were dropped all throughout Germany

    • Germans hoped for Wilson’s fair, idealistic plan; to be treated as an equal negotiating partner in pursuit of a peace settlement

  • November 11, 1918 at 11 AM – armistice took effect

    • Cease fire

  • Overall US contributions to the Great War:

    • Foodstuffs

    • Munitions

    • Credits

    • Oil

    • Manpower

    • Not overwhelming military victories

Costs of Wars

  • More than 500K US soldiers died in battle; more died of disease

    • Would have been more if not for the Red Cross

    • Mental scars – shell-shocked

  • 8M soldiers (total) died – 5,000 per day

  • Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, & France – more than a million soldiers each

    • 900K British troops died

  • Most battles took place in Europe, but some were in the Middle East and Africa

  • Millions of civilians died of starvation, disease, or war-related injuries

The Paris Peace Conference

First sitting president to travel overseas, Wilson greeted by joyous crowds. For six months, he fought to convince exhausted Allied leaders to accept his vision.

Allied Demands

  • Collect spoils of victory

  • Make Central Powers pay dearly

  • Keep colonial possessions

  • Britain refused to limit naval power

Wilson's Compromises

  • Agreed to "war guilt" clause

  • Accepted huge reparations on Germany

  • Sacrificed ideals to secure the League of Nations

3 leaders didn’t get along that well, gave up all 14 points except for the creation of the League of Nations

The Treatry of Versailles

Wilson's Rationale
League needed to keep peace so war-ravaged nations could practice economic freedom and political democracy—preventing spread of communism after 1917 Russian Revolution.

Treaty Provisions

  • Established League of Nations

  • Authorized collective military action against aggression

  • Signed at royal palace outside Paris

39 Republican senators did not want to ratify the Treaty of Versailles

The Battle for Ratification

Tragedy Strikes