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EWS-Forgein Policy 1912-20 (WW1) (US neutrality (Unrestriced submarine…
EWS-Forgein Policy 1912-20 (WW1)
US neutrality
Wilson and moral diplomacy
the belife that it was the responsability of the US to imporve the lives of forgien people
'moral diplomacy'-was to do good with US policy
Believed the US could benefit others as it was morally superior
also known as wilsonainism
USA gave columbia $20 million in reparations for the role the US had played in encouraging the Panamanians to rebel from the Columbine rule 1903
Wilson intervened many times in Latin America - continued and extended the policies of the progressives that he opposed before office
Wilsons idealism
on taking office claimed the future co-operation of Latin America would onyl be possible on a just governemnt not military dictatorship
Tooke Roosevelt Collary to a new level
'to support the orderly process of governemnt based upon law and not upon arbitrary or irregular forces'
'teach south americans to vote for good men'
Page one of the nvoys said ' shoot them until they learn to vote and rule themsleves'
Fought against special concession ie repealing the 1912 law exempting US ships from the tolls of the Panamar Canal
Us built highways bridges airfields hospitals schools and set up telephone serices
More to do with Forgien Affairs than any other President
The onset of 1914
1914 USA adopted neutrality until 1917 when they became an assossiated power on the side of the allies
not formal allies so had independacne
reasons for neutrality
Public opinion
war in Europe had nothing to do with them
Wars were wrong and achieved little
1914 1,500 women marched down fith avenue to protest the war
William Jennings Bryan organised and campaigned against the war
Wilsonianism
sought neutrality and saw hismelf as an honest broker that could negotiate peace
higly influenced by his christian principles
Declaration of Neutrality 1914 he offered to mediate
Warned US citizens against taking a side in the war but was desperate for the conflict to end
feared the war would escalate and the US would be sucked in so wanted to end it peacefully first
Tensions with neutrality
Pro-British Feeling
natural preference to British culture and customs
remembered being in the lake district as a young man
saw britian as the center of civilisation and decency
Anti-german feeling
close friends Edward House and Robert Langsing said that Germany posed a threat to US interests
If they didnt fight them now they might have to fight them alone one day
Message to congress 1915 Wilson attacked germ-Americans for disloyalty to the USA
confrontations with germany in Samoa 1889
worried about germanys growing interest in Latin America especially Mexco
Trade
1914 US was the worlds trading Nation
1914- $549 million worth of goods to Britian with a $300 million surplus
1914-$344 million to germany with a $154 million surplus
Some Americans did not want to trade with the countries at war
Some argued the war brough prosperity as it demanded US good being sold
Gov wanted to maintian trade as it god 40% of its revenue from Tariffs and loss of trade could see $60-100 million deficit
Wilson followed rule sof international law saying that neutrals could sell to countries of war
Trade favoured the allies also due to the British blockade of Germany
Trade with Allies ( munitions mostly ) 43.2 billion in 1916 10 times more than central powers
Germany only trading 15 that it was in 1914
Difficult to be neutral when selling more to the allies
$7 billion was borrowed from the USA by 1918
After the war the Allies debt to the USA was $10.5 billion
Freedom of the seas
Laws of the seas allowed countries to block enemy ports
initially caused conflict with the USA as the British kept seizing and confiscating US cargo going to neutral ports
Wilson could have legally made a big fuss as seizing neutral ships is nearly illegal but he wanted the Allies to win the war
American crews were always treated with courtesy from the British with no loss of life unlike German USW
Unrestriced submarine Warfare
1915 Germany declared Britshwarters a war zone and the right to sink an y ships en route to britian including those of neutral countries
This was an attempt to break the deadlock of trench warefare
Wilson responeded by saying germans would be held responsable for eny loss of American life
some Americans felt it was a reasonable tactic and just to avoid British waters
Jennings Bryan said that ships carrying war supplies couldnt count on women and children aboard to save them
German Embassy took advertisements to the US warning Americans not to travel to Britian
Second British Ship the Arabic was sunk 1915= 2 americans dead
First Luisitania 1915 128 Americans dead - Wilson demanded the germans revoke the policy and Bryans resigned oer the handelling of it germany was surprised
germany eventually agreed to stop and onyl attack after giving due warning giving time for crew and passangers to escape
US entry into the war
An end to war
Wilson was interested in a poet war world where there would be no more war
As early as 1912 wilson came up with 4 points
international assosiation of nations
rights for all people
agreed sanctions for agressors
remoal of manifactured of munions ofr profit making private concerns of the gov
May 1916 wilson amde a speech about factors that lead to war
Consent of people effected befor ethe transferrring of countries
Secret diplomacy breeding distrust
international peacekeeping organisation
formulating his 14 points
French President george Clemenceau ' what human beings might be capable of if only they werent human'
failure of peace intititives
April 1916 the Us was no longer enutral and entered the war
Wilson knew he would lose credibility
Sent envoy Edward House multiple times for negotiations of a truce in 1915 and 16 with ery little enthusiasm from both sides
Reasons for entry
Resumption of USW
Belived they could starve britian into surrender
Jan 1917 germany gave 8 hrs notice that all ships round war zone of british waters would be sunk
Gamble that the Allies lacking food and materials from the Usa would surrender beforr the US ships would be able to make it there
3rd of Feb Wilson broke of diplomatic relations with germany as he had still hoped to avoid entry into the war
Feb and Marh 1917 several Us ships were sunk
german activities in the USA
Wilosn distrusted German Americans
Black Toms munition plant 1916 mysterious blew up with 2 million pounds of ammunition
accusd many of sabotage and espionage
fuelled resentment
Zimmerman Telegram
coded tellegram from the German Forgien secretary Arthur zimmerman sent to german Ambassador to Mexico
1917
propsed a secret allience between mexico and germany if they wnet to war with the USA
Mexico would get back Texas Arizona and New Mexico
1917 the US Ambassador of Britian ane tot the State Department to intercept the telegramm
Mexico had not acted and knew nothing of it but with t civil war were not in the place to fight the US
Wilson was affronted and pushed him further towards war
Declaration of War
April 1917 wilson asked congress for permition to make war with germany
he had little choice due to how the USa had been prooked
1917 1 million tonnes of allied boats had been sunk by germany a dn Wilson feared defeat was more and more likely
only belligerents ( countries engaged in warefare) would have a sya in the peace negotiations
Different interpretations
Economic and isolationism
1918-1914
Grattan and Mills say Wilson as swayed by Big businesses
huge war profits
Allies brough the US out of Depression in 1914
Bryan resigned due to unfaire treatment of laons and exports thrateneing neutrality
Beard said that ordianry business interests pressured Wilson
many historians supported isolationsim and through it was wrong of America to break this
this opinion was discredidted after WW2
been reconsidered by Fordham using refined economic data
US exports doubled as a percentage of GNp between 1914-1916 70% went to Europe
Others Argue that by 1916 the USa was so economically healthy it didnt need the Allies trade due to taking up the trade the beligerant countries had lost
moral crusades
Wilson was often belied to see self-interest as unimportant
1950s
Deger argued wilosn inolemnt was legalistic due to the conept of the Neutrality rights asserted that USa should be free to trade and USW was illegal
1990's Evans
Evans wilosn though he would make the world a better place
Evans contrasts Wilson with Roosevelt who he belied woulf have joined the war earlier
Wilosn wanted to defeat the aggressor nation Germany, remedie Us greivences and restor a balance of power
destroy the old forms of diplomacy and introduce a new world
2008 kennedy
Wilosn balmed the old European reliance on the blanace of power for military expansion leading to war
Wilson recognised the power of collective security
Germany must return the lands it had taken and become a democracy
In this way US shared the aimes of the Allies
1960's Brogan
the Germans left wilson no choice
Feburary 1917 the renewed USW backed the US into a corner
But once the US had started fighting it wanted to fight for a better world
The US did not necessarly share the allies war aims
'Allies were theives and the germans were murdurerswe prefer theives but only as the lesser of the 2 eils'
fergerson 2003
Wilosn wanted a new international order with justice and fairness for all people
in 1914 Wilson argued any peace settlement would not impose a governemnt on alien people
1915 speech wilson said every nation has the right to choose the sovereignity under which they shall live
Wilson had something more sublime in mind
USA during the War
Economy
Paying for war
$33.5 billion in additon to $7 billion loaned to the allies
Liberty and Victory loans were used
5 war bond issues between 1917 and 1919 with celebs such as Cahrlie Chaplin encouraging them
Army Signal corps did areial displays in areas during the dives
for the 3rd loan in 1918 9 million poster and 5 million window stickers
$10.5 billion insteep graduated income tax ( 75%) at the highest end
25% inheritance tax
War Indsutrys board
July 1917 set up by Wilson
helped orgainse the indusrty
led to Us steel making half a billion in 2 yrs na dlead to accusations of war profiteering
Railroads
single centralised system
Director-General mcAdoo
pooled railway equiptment , standardised accounting , raised wages and increased passenger rate
Agriculture
Heretr Hooer as Food Administrator in 1917
Voluntary campiagn to eat sesibly ie Wheatless Mondays and Meatless thursdays
so good in Chicago that garbage fell from 12,862-8,386 tons per month
Wheat prices set at $2.20 per bushel
Gov coperation to buy US and Cuban sugar
food production increased from 12.3 million to 18.6 million tons a year
farmers income grew 30% between 1915-18
USA not prepared for massive war production as was in WW2
Gigantic Hog shipyard employed 3,400 workers and failed to complete the first vessle before the war ended
of the 8.8 million rounds fired by US troops less than 8,00 made in USA
Workers
women
supported the war but were not mobalised as in WW2
1 million men called up only 6,000 women engaged in aircraft manifacturing
there job was encouraging war bonds and sending comforts to troops
Labour unions didnt want women as they belived they would depress wages
women did suffer unequal pay poor promotions and little job security, generally discharged after the war ended
national War Labour Board set up in 1918 to settle industrial disputes and considered over 12,000 cases until its demise in May 1919
War Labour Policies Board set wages and standards of employment
wages doubled in the steel industry
Great influx and acceptance of unions
Union membership rose by 2.3 million in war years
African Americans
Migration
Flood of AA from the South to the North ie Chicago
500,000 migrated between 1914-1918
AA population in Ny 92,000 to 152,000
pay in industrial plants was better than cotton fields
riots against the AA ie East St Louis in summer 1917 where 39 AA died
Military was segregated witht the 200,000 AA in labour battilions ie construction and loading
AA saw the less racist attitutes esp the french and changed their own perceptions causeing tentions when returning home
Patriotism
360,000 volunteered and 200,000 sered abroad
July 1918 most AA organisations were supporting the war
experience abroad did help with Black consciousness
Supression
Many american politicians worried AA would not support the US in war ' to make a safe democracy' when they faced discrimination at home and were expected to fight
Gov listened to rumors the germans wanted to subvert the loyalties of AA a
Usa authorised the Beaureu of inestigations of the Justice Department to track down pro german feeligs in the AA community
big focus on the Black Press including 200 ppers a week
Cleeland Gazet did stress the AA were expected to be patriotic to a war when they didnt have fair reatment at home
NAACP paper The Crisis was an influential radical mouthpiece 1917-1918 circulating 41,000 to 74,000.
warned to publish only facts and constructie critisicsm nothing to cause dissatisfaction in the AA troops