The War to End War

American Pageant Chapter 30

1917-1918

Militarism In Europe

Kaiser Wilhem II

Militarism In Europe

German Strategy Conquer France before Russia could mobilize Go through neutral Belgium

Major Players

Balkan Crisis
Sarajevo, Bosnia province of AustriaHungry Slavic nationalists wanted to annex nearby Serbia

Francis Ferdinand & Wife Sophia

The Collapse of the European Peace
June 28, 1914--

Assassination of Francis Ferdinand while on a state visit to Sarajevo (capital of Bosnia) by Serbian nationalist. (The Black Hand)

Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria and Family

Assassination

Assassination

Gavrilo Princip

Ethnic Tensions

Funeral of Arch Duke Franz-Ferdinand

World War I

Lusitania

The Zimmerman Telegram

Russian Revolution

Brutality of the War

Brutality of the War

Brutality of the War

New Technology

New Technology

Trench Warfare

Trench Warfare

Trench Warfare

Trench Warfare

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare

War by Act of Germany

Germans announce unrestricted submarine warfare--January 31, 1917 Wilson asks Congress to arm American Merchant ships
Western Congressmenfilibuster

Zimmerman telegram March, 1917

German-Mexican alliance (return of TX, NM, and AZ)

Germans sank to unarmed U.S. merchant ships in first 2 weeks of March Russian RevolutionU.S. could be allies w/democratic countries. April 6, 1917Declaration of War

Wilson Idealism & 14 Points

Wilson appeals to Americans:
Make the world safe for democracy

The Fourteen PointsJan. 8. 1918

Abolish secret treaties Freedom of the seas

Reduction of armaments
Adjustment of colonial claims Self-Determination League of Nations

Enforcing Loyalty & Stifling Dissent

Committee on Public InformationGeorge Creel
Propaganda to aid war effort
Four-minute men Bill boards, leaflets, songs, movies

German-Americans8% of population
Loyal, but Hatred of German music, literature, food (hamburgers called liberty steak)

Enforcing Loyalty & Stifling Dissent

Espionage Act (1917) & Sedition Act (1918)
Fear against Germans and anti-war Americans

Prosecution of IWW
Eugene Debs, William D. Haywood (10

year sentences)
Schneck v. United StatesNot violation of free speech if it posed a clear and

present danger.

Factories and Workers

U.S. unready for war Council of National Defense (1915) Economic mobilization
Still had laissez faire attitude War Industries Boardonly

feeble powers
Bernard BaruchMarch 1918

Factories and Workers

Work or fight & Labor will win the war
National War Labor BoardWilliam H. Taft
8 hour day & other concessionsbut no guarantee to right to organize union

Mainstream labor had some success

Samuel Gompers & American Federation of Labor
Supported the war; membership increased to over 3 million

Factories and Workers

Still..6,000 strikes during war years
Steel Strike (1919)1/4 million strikers; owners brought in 30,000 African American workers from the South Steel strike collapseddamaged union efforts

Many other southern African Americans also came North for work
Led to race riots, i.e. St. Louis, MO 1917

Women and the War

National Womens Partyantiwar progressives (Alice Paul) National American Woman Suffrage Associationsupported war
Wilson supported women suffrage

based on their efforts in the war Nineteenth Amendment passed in 1920

Job growth temporary--most women gave up war jobs Sheppard-Towner Maternity Act (1921)
Fed. Financed instruction in maternal

& infant health care

War Economy
Food AdministrationHerbert Hoover
Volunteer-based (meatless Tuesdays,

wheatless Wednesdays)very successful

Victory gardens Farm production increased & food exports to Allied tripled

Fuel Admin. copied Hoovers methods Treasury DepartmentLiberty Loan Drives

Made $21 billion

Social pressure to participate Prohibition18th Amendment (1919)

Suspicion of German beer, concern of grain

use, & self-denial

Preparing the Armed Forces

April-May 1917Allies desperate for supplies and men Conscription (draft)necessity (but
criticized)

Registration of all men 18-45

patriotic duty Army grew to 4 million Women admitted to armed forces 1st time
11,000 Navy; 269 marines

African Americans
segregated units Hesitant to train to fight; construction battalions

Draftees didnt have time for full

training

Fighting in France
With Russian Revolution experience German troops now fully face the west Fear of U.S. #s more than actual fighting demoralized Germany U.S. forces deployed in France, Belgium, Italy & Russia (capture military supplies from Communists at Archangel & Siberia)

Ending the War

Allied forces united under supreme commander French marshal Foch U.S.ill trained but just in time Chateau-Thierry (40 miles from Paris)30,000 fresh U.S. troops stop German advance Second Battle of the MarneJuly 1918
243,000 U.S. join French forces to push

German forces out of St. Mihiel Begins German withdrawal

Ending the War

Meuse-Argonne Offensive (SepNov. 1918)
General John J. Pershingseparate U.S. army 85 milesNW from Swiss border to French lines Battle lasted 47 days 1.2 million U.S. men fought 120,000 U.S. killed or wounded Alvin C. Yorkhero
Killed 20 Germans & captured 132 more

Germans ready to give up

14 Points Disarm Germany

Wilsons 14 Points dropped all throughout Germany Germany hope for Wilsons fair, idealistic plans November 11, 1918 at 11 A.M.cease fire U.S. contributions
Foodstuffs, munitions,

credits, oil, and manpowernot military victories

Cost of the War

More than 50,000 U.S. soldiers died in battlemany more died of disease
Would have been more but Red

Cross Mental scarsshell shocked

8 million soldiers (total) died or 5,000 soldiers/day Germany, Austria-Hungry, Russia & Francemore than a million soldiers each Just under 900,000 British troops died Most battles in Europebut some in Middle East & Africa Millions of civilians died of starvation & disease or war-related injuries

Wilsons Plans Fail

Wilsons idealspopular at home & abroadparades, etc.
Some critics, i.e. Rep. Senator Henry

Cabot Lodge

Paris Peace Conference-Jan. 1919

Big Four: Vittorio Orlando (Italy); David

Lloyd George (Britain); Georges Clemenceau (France); and Wilson Wilson had to compromise 14 points with European imperialism and vengeance Wilsons main goal: League of Nations

Treaty of Doom (a.k.a. Versailles)

Henry Cabot Lodge & other isolationists disliked League of Nations (Article X of treaty) idea, either:
It was too weak It was an all powerful super-state Worried U.S. morally responsible to help its allies 39 Republican senators did not want to ratify the Treaty of Versailles

Treaty of Doom (a.k.a. Versailles)

Unfair treatyviolates 14 points
Italy, France, & Japan all have claim to new land
Germany forced to take terms

Wilson compromised to preserve the Leaguetreaty fairer than if he hadnt been there

Treaty of Doom (a.k.a. Versailles)

Treaty is not received well by Americans
Isolations worried about entangling alliances

Liberals thought it was too harsh, others too harsh

Wilson tours country in 1919 to promote treaty

Midwestlukewarm reception; West coast-positive

Collapses on tourleads to a stroke

Treaty of Doom (a.k.a. Versailles)

Cabot-Lodge tacks on revisions to treaty
Wilson (from sick-bed) has loyal

democrats not ratify treaty WITH the revisions 2 votes--ends up treaty never is ratified

1920 Election
Bull Moosers now back in G.O.P. (T.

Roosevelt had died) Republicans elect Warren G. Harding (return to normalcy with Calvin Coolidge as V.P.
[Republicans] were willing to accept a second-rate presidentand they got a thirdrate one. (p. 716)