US Entry into World War I

America Joins the War

• Europe entered World War I in 1914 without considering the implications or consequences.
• America debated the matter for two and a half years before joining the conflict.
• Woodrow Wilson initially urged Americans to be neutral. America adopted a policy of neutrality and isolation until April 1917.
• Many political and social reasons contributed to the desire to remain neutral, or at least, not actively involved.
• Woodrow Wilson won reelection in November 1916 using the slogan "He Kept Us Out of the War”.
• German- and Austrian-born Americans remained loyal to their homelands.
• Irish-Americans opposed fighting alongside the British Empire, who they saw as oppressive.
• Wilson understood the causes of war were complex and that America's involvement would not be to its advantage.
• As long as America's interests were not threatened and trade continued, he thought America should not get involved.
• America's neutrality meant that banks could lend money to either side and trade with both the Allies and Germans was permitted.
• The first American Red Cross Mercy Ship was sent to Europe with medical staff and supplies in September.
• Britain's blockade of German ports made trade with Germany nearly impossible.
• America suffered casualties on May 7, 1915, when 128 Americans died after a German U-boat torpedoed the Lusitania.
• Theodore Roosevelt condemned Wilson's neutrality and called for America to join the Allies.
• Some Americans enlisted to fight in France before America's entry.
• Henry Butters was the first American casualty, killed on August 31, 1916, while fighting for the Allies.
• In January 1917, events forced America to enter the war.
• On January 9, 1917, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare to defeat Britain, indirectly threatening American citizens.
• Washington severed diplomatic ties with Berlin.
• In March 1917, a German telegraph, decoded by British intelligence, was sent from Arthur Zimmerman to the Mexican president.
• The German telegraph suggested a military alliance in exchange for support in the war, Mexico would win back Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico if Germany won.
• The Zimmerman telegram caused outrage. America ended the policy of isolation and neutrality.
• On April 2, 1917, Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany, which they agreed to.
• On April 6, 1917, America officially went to war with Germany. The first US troops, led by General John J Pershing, were sent to France.
• Initially, America did not have a significant army, however the declaration caused an influx and the army quickly grew.
• The American Expeditionary Force (AEF) arrived on the Western Front with 10,000 men per day, boosting Allied morale.
• Ultimately, almost two million American soldiers fought alongside the Allies.
• Besides sending soldiers, America provided raw materials, arms, and supplies.
• Prior to America's entry, the Allies were spending over 75 billion dollars a week on supplies.
• After April 1917, this cost was reduced, possibly saving Britain and France from bankruptcy; American ships bolstered the strength of the naval blockade of Germany.

The Final Days of the War and the Treaty of Versailles

• The Hundred Days Offensive on August 8 to November 11, 1918, was the final Allied offensive.
• The Battle of Amiens marked the beginning of the end of the war: led by the British, the tank attack broke through German lines.
• General Erich von Ludendorff referred to the battle as "the black day of the German Army".
• The Allies gained 12 miles (19 km) in three days, slowing only because the troops outran their artillery and supply lines.
• On August 10, the Germans retreated toward the Hindenburg Line.
• On August 21, Haig launched a fresh offensive at Albert, successfully pushing back the German 2nd Army over 34 miles (55 km).
• The French won the Second Battle of Noyon and captured the town of Noyon. Bapaume was also captured that same day.
• With the front line broken, the Allies steadily forced the Germans back toward the Hindenburg Line.
• On September 29, 1918, the Allies attacked the central Hindenburg Line.
• Field Marshall Paul von Hindenburg and General Erich Ludendorff told Kaiser Wilhelm II the war was lost and peace talks should begin.
• By October 5, the Allies had broken through the Hindenburg Line, and on October 8, it collapsed, and the German High Command accepted defeat as Germany was on the brink of collapse.
• By October 1918, mass desertions occurred from the ranks.
• In November, the High Seas Fleet was ordered to attack the Royal Navy, and they mutinied.
• Socialists seized power in Munich, and soon Workers' and Soldiers' Councils controlled Dusseldorf, Stuttgart, Leipzig, Halle, Osnabrück, and Cologne.
• Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated and went to Germany.
• Fighting continued until the bitter end, with the last soldier killed, Henry Gunther, an American soldier who died one minute before the armistice came into effect.
• Just after 5 a.m. on November 11, the armistice was signed by the Allies and Germany at Compiegne in France.
• At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918 bugles across Europe signified an end to over four years of death.
• Ten million people died and the Europe grew silent and peaceful.

The Treaty of Versailles

• In January 1919, the Paris Peace Conference convened at Versailles to agree to the terms of peace after the Central Powers surrendered.

• Almost thirty nations attended the conference but "Big Four" dominated the proceedings: Britain, France, America, and Italy. Russia did not attend since the Allies didn't recognize the new Bolshevik government.

• The Central Powers was excluded even though it was their fate that was being decided.

• The French and British wanted to subject Germany to harsh punitive measures: punish and cripple the country to prevent from starting another war.

• The Treaty of Versailles outlined the terms of German surrender and comprises, including the League of Nations and the honoring of pre-existing agreements regarding the distribution of territories in Europe.

• Britain and France had fought side-by-side for four years, with Italy entering the fray a year later. Since America had only entered in 1917, they were not bound by any pre-existing agreements between the Allied Powers.

• The first task was to divide German territory, under treaty terms, with the new government of the Weimar Republic surrendering approximately 10% of pre-war territory in Europe and overseas holdings.

• The League of Nations would administer the Port of Danzig and the coal-rich Saarland.

• Germany lost Upper Silesia that came as a shock.

• Lost control of the region, and the Allies redrew the map of countries, much to Presdient Wilsons dislike

• War was Germany’s sole responsibility and a fine of 132 billion gold Reichmarks had to be honored.

• Limited the number of troops in the navy and demanded weaponry be limited

• Kaiser Wilhelm II trial happened

• Germans had expected to be treated with much more respect and not face the restrictions

• Resentment resulted in unrest and the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich.

• Economic, social, and political crises in the Weimar Republic lead conditions in which he rose to power

• By wanting to halt war the Allies made an intense dislike of the land and unleashed an unlikely force.