History Chapter 23

What happened in Paris?

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What political issues did Wilson face after the war?

After the the war, Wilson tried to push the 14 Points, especially the League of Nations. Plus, the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, on June 28, 1919, were more severe than Wilson or Germany had expected. Wilson was determined to defeat the opposition for the peace treaty. Most Americans favored the Versailles treaty. But when Wilson called for the Senate to accept the "moral leadership . . . and confidence of the world" by ratifying the treaty, he met resistance. Some Republicans wanted to prevent the Democrats from campaigning in 1920 as the party responsible for a victorious war and a glorious peace. But most Republicans opponents of the treaty raised serious questions, often reflecting national traditions in foreign relations. Nearly all Democrats favored the treaty, but they were a minority; some Republican would have to be converted for the treaty to be approved.

How did the government respond?

At first the Senate refused to arm American merchant ships, but Wilson invoked the anti piracy of 1819 and armed the anyways. Then after the Mexico message, Wilson, on April 2, 1917, delivered his war message, declaring that neutrality was no longer possible as the German's submarine warfare was a "war against mankind".

What tensions existed in Europe?

Both Germany and Britain violated American neutrality rights, although as Wilson insisted, Britain's violations of international law costed American property, markets, and time, whereas Germany costed lives. When the U.S. asked the belligerents to respect the 1909 Declaration of London on neutral rights. Germany agreed to do so, but Britain refused. So instead, they skirted and violated procedures by blockading Germany, forced shipments to dock in Britain, confiscated materials that were deemed useful to Germany's war effort. Submarine warfare cost the lives of British and American civilians. Neutral boats were sunk by mistake.

How did the public feel about joining the war?

By then, Wilson was virtually committed to the war, and soon public opinion changed when the public found out about the telegraph message to Mexico from Germany.

How did the war conclude?

Despite severe casualties, the AEF had helped the British and French to defeat the enemy. With its allies surrendering, its own army in retreat, and revolution breaking out among the war-weary residents of its major cities, Germany asked for peace. On November 11, 1918, an armistice ended the Great War.

What factors led the U.S. into the war?

Despite the preparedness, Wilson made one last effort to avoid the war. In 1915 and 1916, he tried to mediate the European conflict, using Colonel House as a secret intermediary. He called for "peace without victory", anything else, he warned, would lead to another war. Neither side was interested, as they had invested so much into the war, that they wouldn't settle for anything short of outright victory. Plus, this was when Germany lifted the deadlock and resumed unrestricted submarine warfare. The German generals believed that the U.S. wouldn't make a huge impact and tried to cut the U.S. from the Allies. Then German issued a secret message to Mexico to turn on the U.S., and in return, receive Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico.

What were American economic issues?

Economic issues soon threatened American neutrality. International law permitted neutral nations to sell or ship war material to belligerents, and with the economy mired in a recession when the war began, Americans looked to war orders to spur economic recovery. But the british navy prevented trade with Central Powers. Thus, America traded primarily with the Allies. Plus, Germany soon began to destroy American boats under the impression that the shipment they carried was for the Allies. This not only cost American lives, but also tons of money in property damage. To finance their war purchases, the Allies borrowed from American bankers. Initially, Secretary of State Bryan persuaded Wilson to prohibit loans to the belligerents as "inconsistent with the true spirit of neutrality". But as the importance of the war orders to both the Allies and the American economy became clear, Wilson ended the ban.

What were some of the changes in American life as a result of the war?

Economic issues soon threatened American neutrality. International law permitted neutral nations to sell or ship war material to belligerents, and with the economy mired in a recession when the war began, Americans looked to war orders to spur economic recovery. But the british navy prevented trade with Central Powers. Thus, America traded primarily with the Allies. Plus, Germany soon began to destroy American boats under the impression that the shipment they carried was for the Allies. This not only cost American lives, but also tons of money in property damage. To finance their war purchases, the Allies borrowed from American bankers. Initially, Secretary of State Bryan persuaded Wilson to prohibit loans to the belligerents as "inconsistent with the true spirit of neutrality". But as the importance of the war orders to both the Allies and the American economy became clear, Wilson ended the ban.

What impact did it have on American society and government?

Fed by misleading reports about Russian Bolshevism and its influence in U.S., the Red Scare reached panic levels by mid-1919. Bombs mailed anonymously to several prominent people on May Day seemed proof enough that a Bolshevik conspiracy threatened America. The Justice Department, Congress, and patriotic organizations like the American Legion joined with business groups to suppress radicalism, real and imagined. In November 1919, Palmer and Hoover created a new agency to suppress radicals and impose conformity. They began raiding groups suspected of subversion, arrested people on sight, forced them to sign false confessions, and deported many immigrants. Other Americans began to recoil from the excesses and illegal acts. Soon support for the Red Scare withered, but the hostility towards immigrants, organized labor, and dissent it reflected would endure for a decade.

Who were the Central Powers?

Germany Austrian-Hungarian Empire Ottoman empire Bulgaria

How did Europe change after the war and why?

Germany was pretty much destroyed, nothing of its former glory. The Treaty of Versailles attempted to ensure Germany never regained its strength In the UK the war brought about universal suffrage The very outlook on life was changed, millions were dead and the vast majority of the male population were changed for life. The huge distrust of Germany did not change, leading to WWII

What were the economic problems in the U.S. after the war?

Grave problems shook the U.S. in 1919 and early 1920. An influenza epidemic had erupted in Europe in 1918 among the massed armies. Meanwhile, the Wilson no plans for an orderly reconversion of the wartime economy, and chaos ensued. The government canceled war contracts and dissolved the regulatory agencies, as well as demobilized the armed force. Veterans had no choice but to hustle back to civilian life and fight for scarce jobs. As unemployment mounted, the removal of wartime price controls brought runaway inflation.

Who were the Allies?

Great Britain France Russia Italy (formerly allied with Germany through a treaty, but recanted and secretly allied with the Allied Powers.)

What were our issues with Russia?

In July, Wilson also agreed to commit 15,000 American troops to intervene in Russia. Russia's provisional government had collapsed when the radical Bolshevik faction of the communist movement had seized power in November 1917. Under V.I. Lenin, the Bolsheviks signed an armistice with Germany in early 1918, which freed German troops were fighting Russian in an effort to influence Russia's internal affairs. This freed German troops for a summer offensive on France. The Allied interventions were initially designed to reopen the eastern front and later to help overthrow the Bolshevik government.

How did American troops help France?

In June, the fresh American troops helped the French repulse a German thrust toward Paris at Chateau-Thierry. In July the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) helped defeat another German advance, at Rheims. The influx of American soldiers had tipped the balance toward Allied victory.

What were the manpower issues in the U.S. military?

In May, Congress passed the Selection Service Act of 1917, establishing conscription. More than 24 million men eventually registered for the draft, and nearly 3 million entered the army when their number was drawn in a national lottery. Women were recruited in non-combative roles, such as clerks, translators, and switchboard operators, thereby enabling more men to be assigned to combat duty.

Why are Wilson's Fourteen Points important?

In his 19178 war message, Wilson had advocated a more democratic world system, and this new speech spelled out how to achieve it. But Wilson had a political purpose. The Bolsheviks had published the Allies' secret treaties dividing up the expected economic and territorial spoils of war. Lenin had called for an immediate peace based on the liberations of all colonies, self-determinism for all peoples, and the rejection of annexation and punitive indemnities. Wilson's 14 Points reassured the American and Allied poeples that they were fighting for more than imperialist gains and offered an alternative to what he called Lenin's "crude formula" for peace. 8 of Wilson's points proposed creating new nations, shifting old borders or ensuring self-determination for people previously subject to Austrian, German, or Russian empire. Another 5 points invoked principles to guide international relations: freedom of the seas, open diplomacy instead of secret treaties, reduction of armaments, free trade, and the fair settlement of colonial claims. Wilson's 14th and most important point proposed a league of nations to carry out these ideals and ensure international stability.

What were the health issues?

In poor health following a bout with Influenza, Wilson collapsed in Pueblo, Colorado. Taken back to Washington, Wilson on Oct. 2 suffered a massive stroke that paralyzed his left side and left him psychologically unstable and temporarily blind. This nature of his illness was kept away from the public.

How did Americans feel about the war?

Many Americans felt that the war had nothing to do with them, so they didn't wish to be involved. Wilson issued a proclamation of neutrality and urged Americans to be "neutral i fact as well as in name. . . impartial in thought as well as in action.

What resistance to the war did the government face?

Many people opposed the war, prompting the government to use propaganda in order to convince the Americans to help the war effort.

How were business interests involved?

Members of the business community exploited the hysteria to promote their own interests at the expense of farmers, workers, and reformers. On the Great Plains from Texas to North Dakota, the business target was the Nonpartisan league, a radical farm group was the Nonpartisan League, a radical farm group demanding state control or ownership of banks, grain elevators, and flour mills. Although the League supported the war, oversubscribed bond drives, and had George Creel affirm its loyalty, conservatives depicted it as seditious to block its advocacy of political and economic reforms. They were deemed as traitors and thus disbanded forcefully. In the West, business interests targeted labor organizations, epecially the Industrial Workers of the World. In Arizona, for example, the Phelps-Dodge Company broke a mine strike in 1917 by depicting the Wobbly miners as bent on war-related sabotage.

What were labor issues?

More than 3,600 strikes were carried out by 4 million angry workers in 1919. They were reacting not only to the soaring cost of living, which undermined the values of their wages, but also to the employers' efforts to reassert their authority and destroy the legitimacy labor had won by its participation in the war effort. The greatest strike involved the AFL's attempt to organized steelworkers, who endured dangerous conditions and 12-hour shifts. Employers hired thugs to beat strikers, used strikebreakers to take their jobs, and exploited ethnic and racial division. To undercut support for the workers, management portrayed the striker as disruptive radicals influenced by Bolshevism, after 4 months the strike failed. Employers used the same tactic to defeat striking coal miners, whose wages had fallen behind the cost of living. Even the two municipal strikes in 1919 alarmed the public when their opponents depicted them as revolutionary attacks on the social order. In Seattle, the Central Labor Council called a general strike to support 35,000 shipyard workers striking for higher wages. They protest peacefully and protected public health and safety by operating garbage and fire trucks and providing food, water, and electricity. Nonetheless, they were portrayed as Bolsheviks and anarchists and threatened with military intervention.

Who took which side and why?

Most German Americans often sympathized with Germans, and many Irish Americans hoped for a British defeat that would free Ireland from British rule. But most Americans sympathized with the Allies. Ethnic, cultural, and economic ties bound most Americans to the British and French.

What was the Red Scare?

Post- WWI anti-Bolshevik hysteria in the U.S. directed against labor activists, radical dissenters, and some ethnic groups.

What were the arguments for and against the ratification of the treaty in the U.S.?

Progressive Republican senators, such as Robert La Follette and Hiram Johnson, led one group of opponents. Called the Irreconcilables, they opposed participation in the League of Nations, which they saw as designed to perpetuate the power of imperialist countries. A larger group of opponents had reservations about the treaty's provisions. These Reservationists were lead by Henry Cabot Lodge, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. They regarded Article Ten as eroding congressional authority to declare war.

How well did the Allies succeed on the western front?

The Allies were more successive on the western front. Having stopped the German offensive in July, they launched their own advance. The decisive battle began in late September when an American army over 1 million strong attacked German trenches in the Argonne forest. The battle raged on for weeks, until the massive assault overwhelmed the Germans.

How did the government deal with dissent?

The Wilson administration also suppressed dissent, now officially branded disloyalty. Congress rushed to stifle the antiwar sentiment. The Espionage Act provided heavy fines and up to 20 years in prison for obstructing the war effort, a vague phrase but "omnipotently comprehensive," warned an Idaho senator who opposed the law. Postmaster General Albert Burleson banned anti war or radical newspaper and magazines from the mail, suppressing literature so indiscriminately that one observer said he "didn't know socialism from rheumatism." State and local authorities also suppressed what they saw as anti war, radical, or pro-German activities.

How did the war affect women?

The reorganization of the economy also had a significant social impact, especially for women and African Americans. In response to the shortages, public officials and private employers exhorted women to join the workforce: "For every fighter a woman worker". Women now took jobs previously closed to them. Many working women simply shifted to other jobs, where their existing skills earned better wages and benefits. The war also helped women achieve woman suffrage and prohibition.

How did the war affect African Americans?

The shifting of white women to other jobs opened up many jobs to black women. But their optimism was unwarranted and their gains were short lived. Racial as well as gender segregation continued to mark employment. Federal efforts to prevent pay inequities and sexual harassment in the workplace were half hearted and subordinated to the goals of efficiency and productivity. The demand for industrial labor caused a huge migration of black people from the South to the North.

What is neutrality?

The state of not supporting or helping either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.; impartiality.

What were the arguments for and against preparedness?

Theodore Roosevelt and a handful of other politicians, mostly NE Republicans convinced that Allied victory was in the national interest, advocated what they called Preparedness, a program to expand the armed forces and establish universal military training. Conservative business groups also joined the agitation. The National Security League, consisting of Eastern bankers and industrialists, combined demands for preparedness with attacks on progressive reforms. But most Americans, certain that their nation wouldn't join the bloody madness opposed expensive military preparations, Many supported the peace movement. Leading feminists, such as Jane Addams, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Carrie Chapman, formed the Women's Peace Party in 1915, and other organizations, such as the American League to Limit Armaments, also campaigned against preparedness. Wilson also opposed preparedness initially, but he reversed his position when the submarine crisis with intensified. He began to champion military expansion lest the Republican accuse him in the 1916 election of neglecting national defense.

Were there many casualties initially?

There were civilian casualties thanks to the attacks by the Germans and their U-boats. This was one of the reason America entered the war. Mass slaughter enveloped Europe as huge armies battled to a stalemate. The British and the French faced the Germans along a line of trenches stretching across France and Belgium from the English Channel to Switzerland. In the trenches, soldiers suffered in the cold and mud, surrounded by decaying bodies and human waste, enduring lice, rates, and nightmares, and dying from disease and exhaustion.

How did Germany respond?

They complied initially. But when Britain began to abuse the American's neutrality (flying American flags on their ships to disguise themselves) and Germany's passiveness (blockading them, and forcing their shipments to Britain where they can be confiscated), they resumed their underwater warfare.

How did Britain respond?

They refused. So instead, they skirted and violated procedures by blockading Germany, forced shipments to dock in Britain, confiscated materials that were deemed useful to Germany's war effort.

How did the government try to gain support?

They used propaganda in order to take advantage of the emotions of loyalty, fear, patriotism, and obedience for the war effort.

What were the issues surrounding submarine warfare?

They would often target presumably British ships only to have American passengers on board, thus killing them, or straight up destroy American ships. Not only did this cost lives and property damage, it also threatened America's stance on neutrality. Eventually, Germany declared to unleash their U-Boats and target any ship within the warzone; zero discrimination.

What were the issues in financing the war?

To finance the war, the government borrowed money and raised taxes. Business interests favored the first, but southern and western progressives argued that taxation was more efficient and would minimize war profiteering. The government raised ⅔ of the war costs by borrowing. Most of the loans came from banks or wealthy investors, but the government also campaigned to sell Liberty Bonds to the public. Using techniques of persuasion and control from advertising and mass entertainment, the Wilson administration thus enlisted emotions of loyalty, fear, patriotism, and obedience for the war effort.

What were the economic issues?

To manage the nation's economic power for the war, federal and state governments developed a complex structure of agencies and controls for every sector to the economy, from industry and agriculture to transportation and labor. The War Industries Board set industrial priorities, coordinated military purchasing, and supervise business. The WIB exercised unprecedented power over industry by setting prices, allocating scarce materials, and standardizing products and procedures to boost efficiency. However, they also promoted major business interests, helped suspend antitrust laws, and guaranteed huge corporate profit. Hoover had organized relief supplies for war-torn Belgium and now controlled the production and distribution of food for the U.S. and its Allies. He persuaded millions of Americans to accept meatless and wheatless days, so that the Food Administration could feed military and foreign consumers.

What did Wilson base his diplomacy of neutrality on?

Wilson's diplomacy on neutrality was imbalanced, and often favored the Allies rather than Central Powers. He issued warnings to both Germany and Britain to respect the Declaration of London, and asserted America's neutrality.

Describe the election of 1916.

Wilson's preparedness plans stripped the Republicans of one issue in 1916, and his renewed support of progressive reforms helped hold Bryan Democrats in line. He continued his balancing act in the campaign itself, at first stressing Americanism and preparedness but then emphasizing peace. The slogan "he kept us out of war" appealed to the popular desire for peace, and the Democratic campaign became one long peace rally. Republicans were divided. They were hoping to regain their progressive members after Roosevelt urged the Progressive Party to follow him back into the GOP. But many joined the Democratic camp instead, including several Progressive Party leaders, who endorsed Wilson for having enacted the party's demands of 1912. Roosevelt's frenzied interventionism had alienated many midwestern Republicans opposed to preparedness and cost him any chance of gaining the nomination for himself. The election was the closest in decades. When California narrowly went for Wilson, it decided the contest. The results reflected sectional differences, with the South and the West voting for Wilson and most of the Northeast and Midwest for Hughes.

How did these affect women and African Americans?

Women lost their wartime economic advances. Returning soldiers took their jobs, as Male Trade Unionists insisted that women go back to being housewives. State legislature passed laws prohibiting women from working in many of the occupations they had successfully filled during the war, Post war readjustments also left African Americans disappointed. Participation in the war effort, they had hoped, might be rewarded by better treatment thereafter. Now the meagerness of their reward became clear.

How did Western Americans feel about the war according to the primary source?

Woodrow considered the assault on the U.S. commerce ships by the german U-boats not only an act against commerce, but also a war against mankind as it endangered the lives of Americans. Not all Americans were for the war, such as Senator Robert La Follette who delivered a three hour speech against the war. He considered the President's call for war as a dangerous and reckless journey for the American nation. Woodrow, himself, acknowledged the despair and suffering that would follow should American join the war. But both the House and Congress overwhelmingly supported Wilson's request.

What were the issues in the election of 1920?

Workers resented the administration's hostility to the post war strikes. Ethnic groups brutalized by the Americanization of the war years blamed Wilson for the war or condemned his peace settlement. Farmers grumbled about the wartime price controls and postwar falling prices. The Republican ticket symbolized reassurance of simple times. Hardings was a genial politicians who devoted more time to golf and poker to public policy. An Old Guard conservative, he had stayed GOP when Theodore Roosevelt led the progressives out in 1912. Hardings was ambiguous about the league and the Democratic national platform endorsed it but expressed a willingness to accept amendments or reservations. Yet he won in a landslide reflecting the nation's dissatisfaction with Wilson and the Democratic Party.