Transcript America in WWI

America in WWI and
beyond
“Nous voilà, Lafayette”
1917 Selective Service Act: 24
million register, 2.8 million serve
 Arrive in large numbers in
summer 1918
 War ends 11/11/18
 Draft
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Opposition to Spanish American
War
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The Anti-Imperialist League
Prominent Americans including Mark Twain
and Andrew Carnegie
Opposition to War
Pacifists/Anarchists
 Eugene V. Debs - prosecuted
 Glorification of Military ?
 Jeannette Rankin,
congresswoman
 Robert LaFollette, governor
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Women’s Peace movement
 Women’s International League
for Peace and Freedom, WILPF
(1915)
 Jane Addams, president
 Aims: eliminate causes of War,
work for constructive peace
 Protested peace treaty
Espionage (1917) and Sedition
(1918) Acts made illegal:
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“To convey information with intent to interfere with
the oppression or success of the armed forces of the
United States or to promote the success of its
enemies”
“[To] cause or attempt to cause insubordination,
disloyalty, mutiny, refusal of duty, in the military or
naval forces of the United States, or… willfully
obstruct the recruiting or enlistment service of the
United States”
Prosecutions: Debs (10 yrs), Emma Goldman
(deported)
Schenck v. US (1919)
Charles Schenck urged opposition
to draft in mailed leaflets
 Supreme Court upheld conviction
under Espionage Act: “Clear and
present danger”
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Red Scare – 1919-1920
Patriotism
 Nativist Reaction to immigrants
 Mitchell Palmer, Attorney
General raids homes and
businesses
 600 deported as “Reds”
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Wilson’s Fourteen Points (1918)
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End secret agreements between nations
Recognition of every nation’s right to use the
seas
Arms reductions
Change borders of Europe according to
principle of self-determination
Establish of League of Nations to resolve
disputes
Place European colonies under control of
League of Nations
Treaty of Versailles
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Germany did not participate in the treaty
discussions!
Extremely harsh to Germany; European allies
want revenge
Alsace-Lorraine to France
Poland becomes independent
Germany loses all colonies
France controls Saar basin for 15 years
Treaty of Versailles
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Germany pays reparations – repayment for
damages (U.S. $ 26 billion)
Germany’s armed forces would be limited
Germany would be forbidden to manufacture
and import war materiel
Guilt clause
Peacekeeping organization, the League of
Nations, created (Wilson’s plan)
Opposition to Treaty of Versailles
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Isolationists: treaty involved too many commitments
abroad in the League of Nations
Reservationists: wanted certain clauses added
(Henry Cabot Lodge)
Outcome: 1920 majority of Senate votes for treaty
with Lodge’s reservations
Treaty is rejected by U.S. Senate: the isolationists
win!
Separate treaty signed in 1921; U.S. does not join
League of Nations
Post WWI treaties
Attempts at preventing a repetition of
the war
League of Nations
 International Treaty organization
 Ideal: member nations would
resolve disputes peacefully
 US never joined the League of
Nations
 Few enforcement powers
Washington Naval Conference 1923
 Reduced sizes of navies
 Signed by: USA, Britain, France,
Italy, Japan
 Attempted to reduce friction among
naval powers
 Little enforcement power in treaty:
Japan and Italy began to ignore terms
in 1930’s
Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928
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International Treaty in which signatory nations
renounced the use of war as an instrument of
foreign policy
US did ratify the treaty
Meaning: war could only be used in selfdefense
Ineffective, impossible to enforce: Japan in
Manchuria