Transcript 10-29 Ch 14-1.2 American Neutrality

Ch 14 Sec 1: Roots of World War I
•
neutrality – President Wilson official took no side at the
beginning of World War I, although American businesses
sold supplies to the Allies (England, France and Russia)
•
propaganda – information designed to influence opinion.
Was used by the Allies and some Americans to sway
opinions against the Germans.
•
U-Boats – German submarines that patrolled the Atlantic.
•
Lusitania – British passenger liner that was sunk by the
Germans in May 1915 that killed 1200 people (128
Americans)
•
Sussex Pledge – German promise after the Lusitania to
sink no more U.S. merchant ships without proper warning
•
Zimmerman Telegram – Intercepted note from Germany to
Mexico in January 1917 that encouraged Mexico to invade
the United States.
Chapter Objectives
Section 1: The United States Enters
World War I
• Discuss the causes and results of American
intervention in Mexico and the Caribbean. 
• Explain the causes of World War I and why
the United States entered the war.
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Guide to Reading
Main Idea
Although the United States tried to remain neutral,
events soon pushed the nation into world War I.
Key Terms and Names
• Pancho Villa
• guerilla
•
•
•
•
nationalism
self-determination
Franz Ferdinand
Allies
• Central Powers
• propaganda
• contraband
• U-boat
• Sussex Pledge
• Zimmermann telegram
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American Neutrality
• Wilson declared the United States to be neutral.
• He did not want his country pulled into a foreign war.
• Americans, however, began showing support for one
side or the other with many immigrants supporting
their homelands.
• Most Americans favored the Allied cause.
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(pages 452–453)
American Neutrality (cont.)
• President Wilson’s
cabinet was proBritish, believing
that an Allied
victory would
preserve an
international
balance of power.
• The British
skillfully used
propaganda, or
information used
to influence
opinion, to gain
American support.
(pages 452–453)
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American Neutrality (cont.)
• Companies in the United States had strong ties to
the Allied countries.
• Many American
banks gave
loans to the
Allies.
• As a result,
American
prosperity was
tied to the war.
• The money
would only be
paid back if the
Allies won.
(pages 452–453)
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Moving Toward War
• While most Americans supported the Allies, they
did not want to enter the war.
• The British navy blockaded
Germany to keep it from
getting supplies.
• The British redefined
contraband, or prohibited
materials, to stop neutral
parties from shipping food
to Germany.
• To get around the blockade,
Germany deployed
submarines known as
U-boats.
(pages 453–455)
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• Germany threatened to sink any ship that entered
the waters around Britain.
• Attacking civilians
ships without
warning violated an
international treaty
and outraged the
United States.
• The Lusitania, a
British passenger
liner, was hit by the
Germans, killing
almost 1,200
passengers–
including 128
Americans.
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(pages 453–455)
Moving Toward War (cont.)
• Americans instructed Germany to stop U-boat strikes.
(pages 453–455)
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• Germany did not want the U.S. to join the war and
strengthen the Allies.
• The Sussex Pledge, a promise made by Germany
to stop sinking merchant ships, kept the United
States out of the war for a bit longer.
(pages 453–455)
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• A German official,
Arthur
Zimmermann,
cabled the
German
ambassador in
Mexico, proposing
that Mexico ally
itself with
Germany.
(pages 453–455)
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• In return, Mexico would
regain territory it had
earlier lost to the United
States.
• The Zimmermann
telegram was intercepted
by British intelligence and
leaked to American
newspapers.
(pages 453–455)
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• In February 1917, Germany went back to
unrestricted submarine warfare and, soon after,
sank six American merchant ships.
• After several pleas from the British and French, on
April 6, 1917, the United States declared war
against Germany.
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Moving Toward War (cont.)
• On April 6, 1917, the United States declared war
against Germany.
(pages 453–455)
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“My message was one of death for young
men. How odd to applaud that.”
WOODROW WILSON,
on returning to the White House
after asking Congress for a
declaration of war, 1917
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“America has at one bound become a world
power in a sense she never was before.”
BRITISH PRIME MINISTER
DAVID LLOYD GEORGE,
on the U.S. entry into
World War I, 1917
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