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Ch. 31: The War to End War. America in WWI. I. Reasons for American Entry into WWI. Germany’s declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare , which meant Germany would sink all ships (including America’s) in the war zone.
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Ch. 31: The War to End War America in WWI
I. Reasons for American Entry into WWI • Germany’s declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare, which meant Germany would sink all ships (including America’s) in the war zone. • The Zimmerman note, which proposed a secret alliance between Germany and Mexico. • As a result, Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war on April 6, 1917
I. Reasons for American Entry into WWI • Unrestricted submarine warfare is illustrated by these maps showing locations of ships sunk by the Germans.
II. Wilson’s 14 Points • Wilson’s plan for peace released a year before the war was over. • The fourteenth point would establish an association of nations to protect “mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small [countries] alike.” • Association would be called the League of Nations
III. George Creel: Master of Propaganda • During the war, George Creel was appointed leader of a new organization: the Committee on Public Information • His job was to sell America on the war. • He may have oversold the American people, leading to later disappointment.
IV. Anti-German Feeling and the Espionage Act of 1917 • Over 8 million German-Americans living in the U.S. sparked worries of spying and anti-German sentiment across the nation. • German breweries became targets and helped hasten prohibition. • Espionage Act of 1917 made it illegal to criticize the government and war effort. • Socialists and the Industrial Workers of the World Union were convicted and sentenced to jail for speaking out. • Schenck v. United States (1919)- the Supreme Court ruled that it was legal to revoke free speech if it posed a “clear and present danger.”
V. Workers During Wartime • “Work or fight” rule kept striking under control (with a few exceptions). • Most labor unions (except IWW) supported the war because they saw it as an opportunity to prove the worth of labor. • American Federation of Labor doubled its members after the war.
V. Workers During Wartime • African Americans filled new industrial jobs needed to supply the war effort. • “The Great Migration” of 1916-1919: 70,000 African Americans moved north. • Women also began working in industries previously closed to them. • War was over too fast for them to see any permanent gains. • Wilson endorsed suffrage during the war as a “vitally necessary war measure.”
VI. The Home-Front Economy • Herbert Hoover, head of the Food Administration, asked for voluntary compliance to ration food for the war effort. • Families were encouraged to plant victory gardens to grow their own food, saving farm food for export. • Production increased by 25%, and exports to allies tripled!
VI. The Home-Front Economy • “Liberty bonds” were purchased to fuel the war effort.
VII. Doughboys and the Draft • Selective Service Act of 1917 • 24 million men signed up for the draft. • 4.8 million served (2 million saw active combat). • Propaganda kept patriotism high. • Deployed to France, Belgium, Italy, and Russia
VII. Doughboys and the Draft • American soldiers were nicknamed “doughboys,” because of their lack of experience and training. • Despite this, American soldiers boosted the morale of the Allies. • They were needed because Russia withdrew their troops due to the Russian Revolution. • Germans no longer had to fight a two front war, meaning that France was at risk of defeat by a large, concentrated German army.
VIII. The American Expeditionary Force • The American Expeditionary Force (the formal title of the U.S. troops sent to Europe) was led by General John J. Pershing. • U.S. kept a separate army from the Allies.
IX. Trench Warfare • Opposing forces would dig trenches to avoid machine gun fire. • The space in between trenches was called “No man’s land.”
X. New Technology Flame Throwers Tanks Poison Gas Machine Guns
XI. Armistice Day • Cease fire began at 11 o’clock on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918. • Veterans Day!
XIII. Peace in Paris • Wilson was seen as a hero across Europe. • Germany believed that the 14 points would be used to develop a peace treaty which did not unfairly target the Germans. • “Big four” negotiators were all from the allies, Germany and Russia were left out completely. Georges Clemenceau France David Lloyd George Britain Woodrow Wilson USA Vittorio Orlando Italy
XIII. Peace in Paris • The Treaty of Versailles forced Wilson to compromise with European leaders with a huge grudge against Germany. • Only 4/14 points were honored in the treaty • A League of Nations was formed. • Germany was forced to pay huge reparations (money) to France for losses suffered during the war. • This pushes Germany into a severe depression, and directly leads to the rise of Adolf Hitler and fascism • Germany felt “betrayed” by Wilson, since his fourteen points were not the model used for the treaty.
XIV. The Senate Betrays Wilson • Republicans won a majority in congress in 1918. • No Republicans were invited to the peace conference in Paris. • Isolationists and Republicans (led by Henry Cabot-Lodge) were not interested in any entangling alliances with Europe, rejecting the League of Nations.
XIV. The Senate Betrays Wilson • The Senate does not approve the Treaty, leaving the U.S. out of the League of Nations (Wilson’s idea in the first place!). • Could a powerful League of Nations with U.S. support have prevented WWII?
