THE WORLD AT WARChapter 18.2 The United States in World War I

Focus Your Thoughts . . .

The Great War has reached a stalemate, yet the United States maintains

neutrality . . .

Why do you think this might be?

What, in your mind, likely led to U.S. involvement?

Leaning Toward the Allies

Privately, President Wilson was sympathetic to the Allied Powers He was very concerned with Germany’s war

tactics and the invasion and subsequent destruction of neutral Belgium

In addition, our financial ties to Great Britain and France were much stronger than our ties to Germany Financially, the U.S. was far from neutral . . . By

1917, Britain was purchasing nearly $75 million worth of war goods from American businesses each weekReview: Which three countries made up the Allied Powers

(The Triple Entente)?

Submarine Warfare

Great Britain’s navy was blockading German ports and transportation routes making it difficult for other countries to trade with them

Germany had to come up with some way to retaliate against the British . . .

Enter the U-Boats!

Submarine Warfare

Germany declared the waters around Great Britain to be a war zone and warned other countries not to sail into the area lest their ships be destroyed

Wilson considered this a violation of U.S. neutrality and warned Germany that if any American lives were lost, Germany would be held responsible . . .

Sailing into War

May 1, 1915, a British luxury ship, the Lusitania (sister ship of the Titanic), destined for Britain was torpedoed by German submarines

The Lusitania sank just eighteen minutes after it was struck killing 1,200 people 128 Americans among

the deadIllustration of the sinking of the Lusitania

Heading Toward War

Americans were outraged by the sinking of the Lusitania

Facing international criticism, Germany agreed to attack only supply ships, however . . .

Less than a year later, German u-boats attacked a French passenger ship, the Sussex, killing eighty people; Wilson threatens to end diplomatic relations with Germany

Germany, fearing U.S. involvement in the war, issues the Sussex Pledge

A promise not to sink merchant vessels “without warning and without saving human lives”

Wilson Works Towards Peace

In January of 1917, Wilson asks the Allied and Central Powers to accept “peace without victory”

This request angers the Allied Powers, who blame the Central Powers for starting the war and demand they be held responsible for wartime damage and destruction

Germany resumes unrestricted submarine warfare and the U.S. ends diplomatic relations with Germany

The Zimmerman Note

German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmermann sent a telegram to a German official in Mexico Proposed an alliance between Mexico and Germany In exchange, Mexico is to reconquer the lost territories of

New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona

The Germans hoped that an American war with Mexico would keep the U.S. out of the war in Europe

Mexico declined this offer, and the British intercepted the note, decoded it, and sent it to American officials

A Russian Uprising

Czar Nicholas II is overthrown in Russia, and a democratic government is put into place . . . The United States is

pleased with this because we’re very interested in spreading democracy

Support for the war increases now that we’re sympathetic to all three countries of the Entente Czar Nicholas II

The United States Declares War

German boats sink three American merchant ships

The United States joins the Allied Powers

“We shall fight for the things which we have always carried nearest our hearts, for

democracy . . . and to bring peace and safety to all nations and make the world itself at last free.”

- Woodrow Wilson

Allied Setbacks

In November, Vladimir Lenin, a communist, took control of the Russian government

He waged a peace agreement with the Central powers, freeing the German’s to focus on Americans Vladimir Lenin

U.S. Troops in Action

Twelve months after arriving in France, American troops finally saw combat

The American troops were a major factor in the war, U.S. troops helped the French retain control of Paris, the capital city and halting the German advance

On July 15, 1918, the German’s launched their last desperate offensive

The Second Battle of the Marne The U.S. 3rd Division blew up every bridge the Germans

had built across the Marne

The German army retreated on August 3, having suffered 150,000 casualties

In September, the Allies began a counterattack; for the first time, Americans fought as a separate army and defeated the German troops at Mihiel

Allied forces continued their advance for more than a month

The Armistice: November 11, 1918

Germany’s economy was crumbling

Food riots and strikes broke out and a revolution swept Austria-Hungary

Many soldiers abandoned the German cause; lacking the will to continue fighting, the Central Powers began to surrender

In early November, Austria-Hungary signs a peace agreement with the Allies; Germany quickly followed suit Conditions of the Armistice:

Germany must leave all the territories it had occupied Germany must surrender its aircraft, heavy artillery, tanks and u-boats

and allow Allied troops to occupy German territory

The War to End All Wars?

The world had grown weary of war and death

The magnitude of the tragedy muted any celebration

By the end of the war, some 8.5 million people had died . . .

Many hoped the ‘Great War’ would be the war to end all wars, unfortunately, this will not be the case.

In-Class Writing Assignment

Read the quote below:

“I can picture in my mind a world without war, a world without hate. And I can picture us attacking that world, because they'd never expect it.”

-Anonymous

What was it’s author implying about humanity in terms of our innate inclinations to wage war amongst ourselves?

Will we ever live in a world free of war? Why or why not.

Had you been alive during this time period, would you have supported U.S. involvement in World War I or continued neutrality? If you chose neutrality, how might this have impacted the outcome of World War I?