Preview

Why the Us Entered Ww1

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
406 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Why the Us Entered Ww1
Why Did the United States Enter World War I?
Summary: A short overview of events that led to U.S. entry into World War I. Ensuring payment from the debt the Allies had built up with the U.S. and ensuring safety of U.S. shipping were two reasons for the U.S. entering the war.

Although many Americans would have rather had the allies win the world war, they did not want them to win enough to join in and help them. The United states entered the war for two reasons: 1) To ensure payment from allies' debt they had built up and 2) to ensure safety of United States shipping. Great Britain began to make more use of the naval strength. They set up a blockade near Germanys coast to prevent contraband, or weapons and military goods, from entering the country. However, Britain expanded this contraband to include food import. This disallowed the entry of American ships carrying food into the country and the entering of chemicals needed for farmers to grow food. By 1917, an estimated 750,000 people died due to famine throughout the country. Germany responded with the u-boat blockade disallowing ANY cargo boats entering Britain to be banned and any boat found in the waters were to be sunk and it would not always be necessary to warn crew and passengers before sinking.

America became upset at both sides for the blockades but even more so at Germany because the loss of lives. The worst disaster was when a u-boat sunk a British liner Lusitania off the coast of Ireland. Nearly 1200 people lost theri lives and 130 were Americans. America stayed neutral although it happened one more time and two more Americans died; Germany agreed not to blow up any more liners. Germany kept breaking its promise and threatened to renew unrestricted submarine warfare unless Britain removed its blockade. In 1916, Wilson was reelected president. He tried to call both side of the war to conference and settle disputes; it failed. When the Kaiser from Germany sent the Zimmerman note, a telegram

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In conclusion, President Woodrow Wilson tried his best to stay neutral in the European conflicts. However, he was not able to do this because of the attacks on many American crafts which lead to the death of many citizens. Woodrow tried to take a peaceful approach to the war by making many attempts to come to an agreement with Germany. Germany refused and their relations deteriorated. This lead to U.S. involvement in World War I. Wilson justified his actions by saying that he was making the world safe for democracy. In the end the war caused a lot of bloodshed, and most impacting a lot of social, political, and economic…

    • 476 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On April 6 of 1917 America officially entered WWI as an ally power after much vouching of their neutrality. Up to that point many government officials preached to America the great strategy of neutrality especially the president of the time Wilson. At the beginning of WWI in 1914 America did stick to practiced isolationists point of view but as the war progressed and German aggression increased the American extent of neutrality decreased leading to their eventual entrance into the war. Germany blamed much of Britain’s goings on the United States, and the United States tolerated these ‘retaliations’ for a while but eventually they had to pick a side and the growing tensions between themselves and Germany made it quite an easy decision.…

    • 1169 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The German naval attacks were mainly targeting the merchant ships carrying food and war material that was being sent to Britain. Germany’s naval policy allowed U-boats to sink any ships even if they were not war ships. The U-boats began sinking American merchant ships with American seamen in them. Another boat that was sunk by the U-boats was the cruise ship the Lusitania, the Lusitania went by a war zone and a German submarine sunk the cruise ship killing hundreds of Americans. After this incident many Americans where pushing closer and closer to war they believed that it was not right to sink neutral ships with innocent people that had no involvement in the war.…

    • 541 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Woodrow Wilson helped to win the First World War; he lost the peace back in America. Wilson claimed that he was a pacifist and that America would not fight the war that raged with a bloody vengeance in Europe. Wilson insisted that America must stay neutral publicly, but behind closed doors, he sought out ways to support Great Britain and France through the means of financial support. While the majority of Americans were pleased with being neutral, many immigrants from German and Europe were wanted America to fight for their side and created tensions between cultures. America also gave food and clothes to the Allie forces by putting them underneath a cruise ship with no one the wiser.…

    • 319 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    On May 7th, 1915, the German submarine, sunk the passenger ship ‘Lusitania”, which killed 1198 passengers, including 128 Americans, this incident provoked the government and the public. Wilson asked the congress to prepare the military, in case of a war while keeping the neutrality. Wilson ended up winning the 1916 presidential election for a second term. On January 1917, British cryptographers deciphered a telegram from German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German Minister to Mexico, Von Eckhardt which offered United States territory to Mexico in return for joining the German cause. This Zimmerman telegram, provoked both the public and the government, neutrality shifted against Germany and within a month America declared war on Germany and entered World…

    • 485 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Why Did The Us Enter Ww2

    • 505 Words
    • 3 Pages

    World War 2 began in the year of 1939 When Hitler invaded Poland causing both Britain and France to declare war on Germany. The United States began to provide significant military supplies to Britain in September 1940, even though the United States was still not officially at war. The U.S. did not enter WW2 till December 7, 1941 when the Japanese bombed pearl harbor. Although WW2 affected millions of people it also made the U.S. instructable leaving them stronger than ever.…

    • 505 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What countries may have had distinct disadvantages during the war? Why and what were they? Russia was at a disadvantage since they had outdated equipment and tactics. Their lack of new technology and advanced equipment was mirrored by other nations such as Greece might have had quite a disadvantage due to its size. 2.…

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chapter 21

    • 2918 Words
    • 12 Pages

    The United States, after initially seeking to avoid involvement in European quarrels, joined the war in 1917 when German submarines threatened American shipping. (p. 981)…

    • 2918 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lusitania Research Paper

    • 758 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Americans were outraged to learn 128 U.S. United States citizens had lost their lives in a war they were not even a part of. The sinking of the Lusitania heightened tensions between the U.S. and Germany and helped sway American opinion in favor of joining the war. The political fallout was immediate. President Wilson tried to negotiate with the Germans and protested their actions, Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan, resigned. In September, the Germans announced to the world that passenger ships would be sunk only with prior warnings and appropriate safeguards for the passengers. However, our anger towards the Germans did not change. Within two years America declared…

    • 758 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Why Did The Us Enter Ww1

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The United States entered the war late on April 6th 1917, it had to quickly ramp up its efforts to supply troops and ammunition to the front. Training camps started popping up all throughout the country to meet the demand. A draft was put in place to generate enough men to go over and fight. There was a social cry for war, many people hopped on the bandwagon to help out anyway they could. The United states had to quickly mobilize their forces deploying, a draft and creating many pop up training camps throughout the country as well as converting factories from commercials goods to munitions.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    First of all, the sinking of the Lusitania caused America to lose innocent civilians and the supplies and weapons it was carrying for Great Britain. The Lusitania was sunk without warning, killing over 12o American civilians. With America wanting to promote peace, they ignored it an accepted it as a loss. In addition to that incident, submarines sank seven U.S. merchant ships which pushed the U.S. to become involved. As much as I believe in peace and tranquility, America couldn’t just stand by and continue to lose innocent lives. America was nowhere near ready to join in the war.…

    • 467 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Warning America that any boat caught at sea carrying weapons and war supplies will be sunk. America did not care much about it because it was not their war until one day when a German submarine sunk the Lusitania without warning. The sunken ship was carrying over four million rounds of ammunition for allied troops and killed at least 1,198 and 128 Americans. Germany in fear of the Americans joining the war sent Mexico a telegram proposing an alliance granting them the territories they had lost in 1848, this telegram was called the Zimmerman telegram, but Mexico stayed loyal to America. This telegram was intercepted by the British and was the telegram was the last push America needed to join the…

    • 645 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Zimmerman Telegram

    • 394 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Zimmerman telegram was originally sent by Authur Zimmerman, the German Foreign Secretary on to the German Ambassador in the United States, and directed to the German ambassador in Mexico, von Eckhardt. The subsequent events that instigated the release of the Zimmerman Telegram began with German’s policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. This policy allowed German U-boats to attack merchant ships without warning, in hopes of undermining the British by blocking their line of supply from North America. The United States remained neutral at the time, however in 1915, a German U-boat sunk the British ocean liner Lusitania. The ship consisted mostly of passengers, in which 159 Americans had died. The Sussex Pledge was issued as another sinking of a French ship called, ‘The Sussex,’ caused many American casualties. The US president, Woodrow Wilson became concerned and proposed this ultimatum stating that US would break off diplomatic relations if Germany did not stop sinking passenger ships. However, this did not last long as Germany was outraged over the British naval blockade that deprived thm of supplies and food. Germany abandoned the pledge and in response, the United States cut their diplomatic relations with Germany. The Zimmerman telegram was released on March 1, 1917 to divert United States away from going to war with Germany on the Allies side. The telegram listed that Germany would return to the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, regardless of the neutrality of the US. It proposed an offer of military alliance to Mexico, in which Germany would provide financial aid and the return of their lost states, Texas, Mexico and Arizona. The telegram further advised Mexico to form an alliance with Japan to form a new Pacific and Central front, which would pose as a threat to the United States if war was declared. Germany’s plan was to use these alliances as a distraction to the United States on their Southern…

    • 394 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This happened so quickly because Germany's suspicions were correct as the passenger ship was carrying munitions being sold to England. They were struck by the u-boat and then exploded, immediately causing horrible damage to the ship causing it to sink along with 1200 people, 128 of which were American citizens. This incident was horrific and greatly impacted President Wilson's decision to join the…

    • 1040 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The U.S entry into World war one was extremely important for the allies. It is fair to say that without the Americans, the allies might have lost Paris and therefore lost the war. Their superior economy gave the allies and almost unlimited chain of supplies, ammunition and most importantly men. The effect was not just physical though. The morale of the German troops dropped greatly and mutinies and desertion was rife in their army, giving them one option, to retreat from the allies swarming fresh armies. The immediate impacts that its entry brought about were on morale and naval warfare.…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays