WORLD+WAR+I+DBQ

World War I DBQ

American perception of the first World War was very strange--we first feared it, then we eagerly participated, and then we just regretted it. To understand the post-World War I controversy in America, it is important to note that what ultimately determined the U.S.’s position was not the people, but political party conflict between the Democratic and Republican Parties. The United States was taken over by isolationist sentiments during the post-World War I era as a result of Republican victory and Democratic defeat regarding the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations.

Long before the last shots of WWI were fired, President Wilson began drafting a resolution to ensure lasting peace. In his //Address to a Joint Session of Congress// in 1918, Wilson proclaimed his Fourteen Points, an unpunitive and diplomatic guideline that required U.S. membership in the League of Nations and uncrippling punishments for Germany among many other points (Doc. A). The most prominent problem with the Fourteen Points was joining the League of Nations, which in turn was a problem because of the //Covenant of the League of Nations//; it bound all members to the minimum armament necessary for safety as well as giving financial and economic aid to other members in need; this was not attractive to the U.S. who had experienced a surge in both political and economic power during WWI (Doc. E). Wilson did his best to incorporate the United States into the League of Nations as can be seen in //President Woodrow Wilson’s Speech in Favor of the League of Nations// in 1919; in this speech, he indicated the benefits and advantages of joining the League of Nations, such as self-determinism and an end to all unjust wars (Doc. B). Wilson’s pleas for joining the League of Nations must have worked because the American Public were in favor of the Treaty of Versailles and membership in the League; this is transparent in “Public Sentiment”, a political cartoon, where Public Sentiment depicted defending the Treaty of Versailles and the League from the Anti-League Team (Doc. F). The president had succeeded in convincing the Democratic Party and the American public to support the Treaty of Versailles and U.S. membership in the League of Nations.

Although it seemed as if Wilson and the Democratic Party had the upper hand, Republicans, who were opposed to the treaty and the League and pro-isolationists, gained the upper hand by acquiring most of the seats of Congress. Republican Sentiments can be best represented by the political cartoon “All Tied Up”--The U.S. is restricted and limited by foreign nations such as England, other European Nations, non-European Nations, and Japan (Doc. G). Henry Cabot Lodge, a powerful Republican senator from Massachusetts, strongly opposed the //Fourteen Points//; he publicly showed his sentiments by writing that he would not divide his devotion to the U.S. in any way, nor would he allow the U.S. to become tangled and intermixed in European affairs (Doc. C). In //Reservations drawn up by Republican Senators to the Treaty of Peace with Germany// (1919), the U.S. Government officially rejects membership of the League of Nations and accepts passive neutrality and isolationism as her position (Doc. D). Although Wilson had the support of the Democratic Party and the people, Republican Isolationism ultimately triumphed as a result of Republican Domination in Congress.

When Wilson urged America to support the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations, he had the people and the Democrat Party on his side. However, the Republican Party, who composed most of Congress, were against Wilson’s //Fourteen Points//, American participation in the Treaty of Versailles, and membership in the League of Nations. To state the matter simply, the Republicans were strictly isolationists. In the end, the Republicans prevailed, and the United States became isolationist and assumed a passive position in international affairs. The United States’ rejection of partaking in the League of Nations and her isolationism would later contribute to the causes of the second World War.