The Bitter Peace of the Great War
Woodrow Wilson's Idealism Sets the Stage for Future Conflict
Aug 18, 2009
Eight months after American entry into World War I, President Woodrow Wilson worked secretly with advisor Colonel Edward House to devise a plan for future peace. On January 8, 1918, Wilson unveiled his “War Aims and Policy Terms” to Congress. These included his “Fourteen Points” for peace.
The Fourteen Points
The Fourteen Points were an idealistic attempt to prevent future world conflicts. The centerpiece was creating a League of Nations that would promote disarmament, democracy, and human rights. Some world leaders were shocked at Wilson’s presumptiveness in proposing how they should effect peace; upon reading the Fourteen Points, French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau proclaimed, “Even God Almighty has only ten!”
Peace Negotiations
After Germany surrendered to end the war, Wilson participated in peace negotiations with the other victorious Allied nations in Paris. As talks proceeded, it became clear that the Allied leaders were more interested in punishing Germany and securing their own empires than in achieving a “peace without victory” as Wilson had declared in his Fourteen Points.
Allied leaders used Wilson’s insistence on creating the League of Nations as leverage, threatening not to join the League if Wilson would not discard certain points. As a result many were not implemented, even though Germany had surrendered based on Wilson’s Fourteen Points. However with a decimated military and a starving population, the German delegation was at the mercy of the Allied powers.
Especially insulting to the Germans was the “war guilt clause,” in which Germany was to accept sole responsibility for the war and pay reparations. Tied to this was Wilson’s idea of self-determination, or the right of people to decide their own political fates. From this came the creation of many new nations, including Czechoslovakia, Austria, and Poland. Because these three were primarily German-speaking regions, Adolf Hitler invaded and annexed them back into Germany two decades later, citing Wilson’s own principle of self-determination as justification.
American Opposition to the Treaty
The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919, which included provisions to create the League of Nations, and Wilson returned to America to persuade the Senate to ratify it. However Wilson arrived to more opposition than he expected.
In the Senate, Republicans led by Henry Cabot Lodge opposed the Treaty of Versailles in general and the League of Nations in particular. The main objection was to Article 10 of the League charter, which obligated member nations to protect other members’ boundaries and independence. Many considered this an infringement on American sovereignty that weakened congressional power. Wilson refused to accept any compromise proposals regarding either the treaty or the League, instead embarking on a nationwide speaking tour to win public support.
Wilson delivered forty speeches denouncing opponents and pleading for national support. However there was much civil unrest due to Wilson largely ignoring the military demobilization process. This unrest developed into a general regret that America had gone to war, and consequently most people opposed Wilson's peace proposals. Wilson worked himself into exhaustion and suffered a debilitating stroke after returning to Washington.
Wilson’s Final Defeat
The Senate drafted a compromise proposal but Wilson, unhappy with the changes, ordered his supporters to vote against it. As a result, the Senate voted against the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations. Ironically Wilson received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the treaty and the League, even though his country never endorsed either one. Peace with Germany was not secured until two years later when Congress passed a resolution declaring the war over.
Many historians believe the Treaty of Versailles led directly to World War II. The vindictive measures imposed left the German economy in shambles and inspired the rise of the Nazi party to restore German honor and destroy perceived enemies. In addition the League of Nations proved ineffective in preventing Italy, Germany, and Japan from building new empires and alliances. Had Woodrow Wilson’s efforts to “make the world safe for democracy” not been so successful, perhaps a more terrible war would not have erupted two decades later.
Sources:
Wallechinsky, David and Wallace, Irving: The People’s Almanac (Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Co., Inc., 1975)
Woods Jr., Thomas E.: The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History (Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, Inc., 2004)
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