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CHAPTER 24
THE NATION AT WAR
THE SINKING OF THE LUSITANIA
The author begins with an account of the episode that eventually led the United States into the First
World War.
A NEW WORLD POWER
American foreign policy since the late nineteenth century had been aggressive and nationalistic. As a
colonial power with increasingly valuable investments outside the country, the United States became
more and more involved in international affairs.
A. “I Took the Canal Zone”
America’s domination of the Caribbean was illustrated when the United States decided to build a canal
across the Isthmus of Panama, which at that time belonged to Colombia. When the Colombian senate
refused to allow the canal, in 1903, Roosevelt encouraged and abetted a revolution that separated
Panama from Colombia. The new nation agreed to let the canal construction proceed, and it was
opened in 1914.
B. The Roosevelt Corollary
Except for the Virgin Islands, purchased in 1917, the United States did not acquire territory in the
Caribbean, but the United States did treat Latin America as a protectorate. After several nations
defaulted on their international debts, thus provoking European reprisals, Roosevelt announced that the
United States would intervene to ensure the stability and solvency of Latin American nations. In
accordance with this “Roosevelt Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine, the United States intervened in the
Dominican Republic, Panama, and Cuba.
C. Ventures in the Far East
Under Roosevelt, the United States and Japan worked out several agreements that put Korea in the
Japanese sphere of influence, but kept Japan from interfering with the Philippines. Eventually, however,
Japan resented the Open Door policy in China and began to demand special rights for herself.
D. Taft and Dollar Diplomacy
Taft tried to substitute economic force for military power in American diplomacy. In the Caribbean, this
generally worked, and American bankers replaced Europeans in that area. In the Far East, Taft’s support
for American economic influence in Manchuria alienated China, Japan, and Russia.
FOREIGN POLICY UNDER WILSON
Wilson had little experience or knowledge of diplomacy, but felt that he could conduct a foreign policy
based on moral force.
A. Conducting Moral Diplomacy
Wilson achieved some successes in moral diplomacy, but when faced with crises in Latin America, he,
too, sent in the marines.
B. Troubles Across the Border
Wilson’s tendency toward moral self-righteousness showed itself when he refused to recognize the
government of Mexico in 1913 because it was headed by a man whom Wilson considered a murderer.
When Wilson tried to use the U.S. Navy to block arms shipments to Mexico, several incidents ensued,
resulting in the bombarding and seizing of Vera Cruz by the United States. Although Wilson backed
down after that, he ordered the U.S. Army into Mexico in 1916, in pursuit of the guerrilla and bandit,
“Pancho” Villa.
TOWARD WAR
The European system of alliances marched two great blocs into World War I. The Central Powers,
headed by Germany, faced the Allied Powers, headed by England and France. Although his sympathies
lay with England, Wilson hoped the United States could remain at peace.
A. The Neutrality Policy
There were several reasons for the strong force of neutrality in America. Progressives considered war
wasteful and irrational, and suspected that big business instigated the conflict for profits. Immigrants
generally preferred the United States to remain neutral, lest it come in on the wrong side. Americans
also believed they had a long tradition of neutrality and saw no reason to intervene.
B. Freedom of the Seas
The United States experienced immediate violations of its neutral right to trade with Germany, despite a
blockade by the English navy. Wilson protested, but accepted England’s promise to reimburse American
shippers when the war was over.
C. The U-Boat Threat
Germany’s use of submarines in reprisal for England’s naval blockade caused the greatest difficulty for
Wilson’s diplomacy. Since submarines had to shoot without warning, they violated international law.
When Americans were killed or injured in these attacks, most notably the sinking of the Lusitania in
1915, Wilson protested and finally issued an ultimatum in April, 1916. At that time, Germany backed
down and pledged to honor America’s rights as a neutral country.
D. “He Kept Us Out of War”
Wilson planned to run for re-election on the themes of Americanism and preparedness, but discovered
that his claim to have kept the nation out of war created greater enthusiasm. Women, voting in twelve
states, went heavily for Wilson. Nonetheless, the election was close. Wilson won by only about half a
million votes in a total of almost eighteen million cast.
E. The Final Months of Peace
Wilson moved to mediate the European conflict, but, by the beginning of 1917, Germany was confident
that she could win through a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare against England and all ships
sailing to England. In reply, Wilson ordered American merchant vessels to arm themselves and ordered
the U.S. Navy to fire on German submarines. In March, after U-boats sank five American ships, Wilson
decided on war. On April 2, 1917, he asked for a declaration of war, and Congress, applauding, gave its
consent.
OVER THERE
The United States entered the war when Germany was on the verge of victory. This section describes
America’s contribution to the Allied victory.
A. Mobilization
The United States had prepared no contingency plans for a military effort in Europe. There were only
two hundred thousand soldiers in the army, but Wilson promptly instituted a draft that eventually called
over two million men into military service.
B. War in the Trenches
The American and English navies teamed up to cut Allied losses to submarines by half. By June 1917,
American troops began arriving in France, and by the next spring and summer, American forces were
strong enough to help halt the final German offensive. Americans performed outstandingly in both the
battle of Château-Thierry and the battle of Belleau Wood. In September, the Americans pushed the
Germans out of St. Mihiel and added tremendous punch to the Allied attack that led the Germans to ask
for peace.
OVER HERE
President Wilson moved to enlist the hearts and minds of the entire population in the war effort.
A. The Conquest of Convictions
The war began with an outpouring of rage against Germany that Wilson encouraged and used to have
Congress pass the Sedition Act. Any criticism of the war was penalized, and dissenters, like Eugene Debs,
were imprisoned. Later, fears of a worldwide Communist revolution led Wilson to send American troops
into Russia to prevent the Bolsheviks from consolidating power. The crusade against Communism
gathered such momentum that “radicals” were rounded up and expelled from the country, even after
the war ended.
B. A Bureaucratic War
The war led to efficient government control of the economy. Various agencies, usually headed by
businesspeople, supervised all aspects of production and distribution to ensure a maximum war effort.
In some cases, the government seized businesses to keep them running, but for the most part,
government and business cooperated, and business profited.
C. Labor in the War
Labor also did well during the war. Union membership swelled, and Wilson did everything possible to
avoid strikes. An acute labor shortage raised wages and drew Mexican Americans and women into warrelated industries. Large numbers of African Americans left the South to find jobs in the northern
factories. Coming from a rural background, blacks now had to adjust to the pace of industrial work and
found that they were as disliked in the North as they were in the South. In east St. Louis, forty African
Americans were killed in a riot in 1917, and riots in other cities took the lives of more blacks. But blacks,
many of whom had seen combat in France, fought back, and the white death toll in the racial riots was
also significant.
Despite the tensions created by the war, the United States emerged from World War I as the
world’s strongest economic power.
THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES
Wilson hoped to bring a world order based on justice from the chaos of war. He wanted to give defeated
Germany generous treatment, and he insisted on the establishment of a League of Nations, to
guarantee the peace. This section explains the failure of Wilson’s peace plans.
A. A Peace at Paris
Wilson foolishly made his peace efforts a partisan issue, and he alienated many Republicans who might
have worked with him. He discovered that the Allies were determined to punish Germany and that they
could not be deflected from this goal. Wilson did succeed in creating the League of Nations, including
Article X of its charter, which required each member nation to protect the territorial integrity of all other
members. Anticipating a fight over the treaty in the Senate, Wilson agreed to limit the League’s
jurisdiction so that it could not interfere in a nation’s domestic affairs.
B. Rejection in the Senate
Wilson could have had the treaty ratified if he were willing to accept minor changes in the League, but
he refused. Republican Senator Henry Cabot Lodge organized opposition to the League and delayed a
vote on the treaty. Wilson went directly to the people in a tour of the nation, but in October 1918, a
stroke disabled him and doomed the League.
CONCLUSION: POST-WAR DISILLUSIONMENT
Wilson hoped that a Democratic victory in the presidential election of 1920 would demonstrate the
people’s desire for the League, but Republican Warren Harding won a landslide victory. Wilson’s defeat
in the struggle for a League of Nations coincided with a general feeling of disillusionment. Americans
were convinced that they had been duped into war and that the war had changed nothing. The
Progressive spirit was one of the war’s last casualties.