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Impact of WWI on the us
Reasons why the united states entered world war 2
League of nations failure
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The United States objectives before the war were continued and added to during the war. A world safe for democracy, protecting trade and their economic interests were just some of the countless objectives stated by the U.S before the war. Other objectives such as Wilson’s fourteen points and the League of Nations were incorporated during the war. Entering World War I, the united States held many objectives some were soon achieved, others failed which caused the U.S to be viewed as a failure.
The United States President at the time Woodrow Wilson justified his reasons for entering the war with Congress on April 2, 1917. One of his main reasons is stated through this quote “for the rights of nations great and small and the privilege of men everywhere
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Free trade on seas was greatly threatened by Germany’s use of U-boats, or Unterseeboots which were famously used in sinking many ships including the Lusitania (Textbook pg. 555). After the War, tariffs rose and the United States became a debtor nation. This was followed by a national economic recession. Wilson’s Fourteen Points was a peace program Wilson delivered to Congress; used for peace negotiations leading to the end of World War I (Textbook pg. 568). The League of Nations was an organization in which the nations of the world would join and ensure safety to all members. Only some of Wilson’s Points were successful and The Treaty of Versailles was not ratified. Also The United States failed to join the League of Nations because president Wilson was unwilling to compromise. The United States entered World War one for many reasons but, the objectives they wishes to achieve through war were very different. The sinking of the Lusitania infuriated the U.S and created an objective free trade on seas. Each objective was articulately crafted for the benefit of the U.S. Not all of these were successful as shown through the Wilson’s desire to make the world safe for democracy and The League of Nations but, all had a direct purpose. Many objectives were proposed by the U.S, some successful and others not which created a lasting impact on the
As the Reconstruction Era ended, the United States became the up and coming world power. The Spanish-American war was in full swing, and the First World War was well on its way. As a result of the open-door policy, England, Germany, France, Russia, and eventually Japan experienced rapid industrial growth; the United States decided to pursue a foreign policy because of both self- interest and idealism. According to the documents, Economic self- interest, rather than idealism was more significant in driving American foreign policy from 1895 to 1920 because the United States wanted to protect their foreign trade, property and their access to recourses. While the documents also show that Nationalistic thought (idealism) was also crucial in driving American foreign policy, economic Self- interest prevailed.
Both sides accepted the United States’ aid but they also sought to cut-off each other’s supply chain. While the Allies barricaded Germany’s ports with the British Navy, Germany began attacking merchant ships using their submarines, or U-boats. While Wilson was angered by the British tactics he was even more infuriated by the German’s. This would be the ultimate end of U.S. neutrality as Wilson would sternly address Germany’s actions and not Britain’s.
While the naval war is usually known for only little attention in histories of World War I, the Royal Navy's blockade of Germany played a dangerous role in the War. The U.S. Navy linking with the Royal Navy played a significant role in overcoming the German U-boats in the North Atlantic. The Germany Navy while technically effective disastrously diminished the German war effort. Germany's building of a High Seas Fleet was one of the causes that public view on Britain turned against Germany and that Britain come unto the War. Yet, the small U-boat fleet, showed a key competition to the British. In the early war, U-boats drowned three British cruisers, shocking the people of both England and Germany. The U-boat campaign was a major reason that public opinion in America turned against Germany and that America entered the War. Despite the huge investment, the German Navy accomplished nothing in return to counter balance the cost for Germany.
Wilson's 14 Points vs. the Treaty of Versailles. When the peace processes were to start after the end of World War One, there were four people who were major components in the treaty of Paris: Clemenceau, George, Orlando, and Wilson. Clemenceau wanted revenge on the Germans by punishing them through the treaties because he believed that they were at fault for the war; George was in agreement with Clemenceau although he did not feel that Germany should suffer severe punishment; Orlando who wanted the irredenta to be re-established; and President Wilson of the United States of America wanted to create a mild peace with Germany in a fair way. In view of this, Wilson created fourteen points that he wanted accomplished in full as a result of the peace treaties. His fourteen points were his plan for a world peace and included plans for the end of secret treaties, freedom of the seas, free trade, arms reduction, the just settlement of colonial claims, the establishment of a League of Nations, and the evacuation of occupied territories and national self-determination.
That policy stance did not last longer because in 1914, he was confronted by the arrest of U.S. sailors in Mexico which forced him to dramatically change American foreign policy by sending troops across the border to depose the government of General Victoriano Huerta whom he had accused of being a dictator. He also accused Huerta of failing to maintain order in Mexico so that interests of the American people and their businesses can be protected. When World War I broke out in Europe in August of 1914, he came out declaring that the U.S. government and its people will remain neutral in the war. But a series of German attacks on U.S. and ally ships and vessels killing thousands of people including hundreds of Americans caused the general mood among the American people about the war to change. Congress declared war on April 6, 1917 in support of Britain and France.
Based on Wilson’s war message to Congress, It was believe that the United States had a moral and humanitarian obligation to intervene in World War I and “make the world safe for democracy” (Wilson). Luce’s point in The American Century was not imperial, but idealistic. It was America’s time to shine, “to be the powerhouse from which the ideals spread throughout the world and do their mysterious work of lifting the life of mankind from the level of the beasts to what the Psalmist called a little lower than the angels” (Luce). Both sources demonstrate that the ideals of Woodrow and Luce inspired many Americans and shaped much of the foreign policy for the remainder of the twentieth century and on. The more significant viewpoints are the differences.
On April 2nd 1917, President Woodrow Wilson of the United States of America, ??went before Congress and called for a declaration of war. Both the House and the Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of going to war with Germany.?# This was an act that led to much resistance among the American people. Not four months earlier the American people re-elected President Wilson, partly because of his success in keeping the United States out of this European war. However, a series of events, such as the Germans continuing submarine warfare and the attacks on five American ships, led President Wilson to sever diplomatic relations with Germany and send the United States into what would be labeled as World War I. As a result of the war the
The United States hoped to stay out of the way because war was viewed as wasteful, irrational, and immoral. There was no reason for the U.S. to intervene with European affairs. In addition, Wilson was aware of the huge immigrant populations whom have come to the United States just recently from those nations currently at war. Many immigrants, such as the Irish, would not support the war because of their previous hatred toward Great Britain.
Autonomy and Responsibility: Why the United States Entered World War II World War II was an exceptional war for the United States. The United States emerged from the war as a world superpower and protector of all other nations. There were many reasons why the United States entered World War II, however President Franklin Roosevelt was in some way directly connected to every reason. Roosevelt wanted to enter World War II as soon as it started for political and economic needs. However, the American people did not want to enter in another war, such as World War I, that costs so many lives and money.
On April 4, 1917 President Wilson asked Congress for the U.S. to enter the war. The U.S. declared war on April 6, 1917.
...Wilson took on the persona of the leader of a “righteous war”, and with much support from the people approached Congress asking for a declaration of war (James and Wells, 26). While not everyone was supportive of the war, the vast majority was extremely pro-war. Congress passed the declaration of war against Germany primarily based on its unrestricted usage of U-boats against American ships. Thus through actions taken by the Germans, the United States would begin its involvement in the Great War.
In World War I, we should have maintained our isolationist policy if possible. The main reason we became involved was because the new expansionist mood of the Axis Powers threatened the global empire we were apparently building. And, the war interfered with our prosperous trade system with the other countries. As Henry Ford put it, “Do you want to know the cause of the war? It is capitalism, greed, the dirty hunger for dollars.” And, in the end, I don’s think we could have stayed out of the war if we wanted to. The world at the time was a tangled web of alliances that meant a local conflict could start a massive war. The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife was the spark that ignited that web. Even after the start of World War I, the United States was content to sell food and munitions to the countries involved in the conflict. It wasn’t until Germany began to attack the ships taking those trade items to Europe that the U.S. started to get mad. They had been trying to pursue a policy of neutrality and semi-isolationism, but now they were being dragged into a conflict they had nothing to do with. The United States had nothing to gain but the money from trade. Therefore, we payed a price of many lives for little to no gain.
World War 1 was a worldwide conflict that took place mainly in Europe. It lasted from 1914 to 1918. Over 40 million people were killed. The war was fought by Britain, France, Russia, and the U.S. against Germany and its allies. Many people think that the U.S. should have stayed out of the war, but if we did it would have caused many problems here in the U.S.
The most important topics that both documents highlight is the need to stop secret negotiation, that diplomacy should always be a public event. The first point in The Fourteen Points is a direct agreement to the eighth paragraph in the Decree of Peace. Lenin says in paragraph seven that his decree should not be taken as ultimatum, rather that one should read this decree and return with their own conditions for negotiation. Wilson seems to have taken this quite literally, as the majority of the Fourteen Points can be attributed as a response with his/the American peoples own conditions on how to ensure peace. The difference between The Fourteen Points and Decree of Peace is that The Fourteen Points aim to completely end war and create an association of nations to stop future wars from occurring; whereas, the Decree of Peace states that wars can possibly ended by creating an armistice to further delay wars to talk of
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was determined to protect the national security of the United States. At first, Roosevelt felt that it was in the best interest of the United States to avoid involvement in the war. However, he knew “sooner or later, the threat to the European balance of power would have forced the United States to intervene in order to stop Germany’s drive for world domination” (Kissinger 369-370). But this was not Roosevelt’s main problem; Roosevelt had to prove to the American people that unlike World War I, US involvement was necessary. He had to “[transform] the nation’s concept of national interest and [lead] ‘a staunchly isolationist people’ into yet another global war” (handout).