Why did the U.S. Enter World War One?

 

Initially, Wilson urged people to remain neutral, however, most people sympathized with the allies

 

Wilson won the 1916 election with the slogan: “He kept us out of war” but asked for a declaration of war in April 1917

 

Why?

 

Unrestricted submarine warfare:

            Wilson argued that interference violated our “freedom of the seas”

           

            Germans used submarines to counter Britain’s surface fleet

 

            Sinking of the Lusitania 1915:

                        Germans sank the ship without warning the crew and claimed that the

                        ship carried “contraband” to Britain

 

            Sussex Pledge 1916:

                        Germans promised not to sink merchant vessels without trying to save

                        human lives after the French ship was torpedoed

           

            Unrestricted Submarine Warfare II (1917)

                        Germans now believed that they could starve Britain and risk war with the

                                    U.S.

                        Wilson ordered ships to carry guns for protection

 

Allied Propaganda

            Americans felt a traditional bond with England and France

            People were easily swayed by the propaganda of the time

 

Hostility for Germany:

            invasion of neutral Belgium

            Zimmerman note: an attempt to get the Mexicans into the war

 

American Economic Interest:

            American trade with the Allies was heavy

            American investors loaned large sums of money to the allies

           

American Idealism:

            the world would be better if democratic allies defeated the autocratic powers

            this was a war to “make the world safe for democracy”

 

American Security:

            If Germany won, they would be the dominant power in Europe