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US HISTORY: SPICONARDI Causes of U.S. Entry into World War I.

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Presentation on theme: "US HISTORY: SPICONARDI Causes of U.S. Entry into World War I."— Presentation transcript:

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2 US HISTORY: SPICONARDI Causes of U.S. Entry into World War I

3 Quotes: Question: “…impartial in thought as well as action.” ~Woodrow Wilson, 1914 “He kept us out of war.” ~Wilson re-election campaign slogan, 1916 “The world must be made safe for democracy.” ~Wilson’s request for a declaration of war, April 2, 1917 By the end of the period, you will be able to express your opinion:  Did the U.S. policy contradict Wilson’s earlier statements and therefore involve the U.S. in the war, OR  Did circumstances beyond the United States’ control lead the nation to break its policy of neutrality? From the Mouth of President Woodrow Wilson

4 Neutrality At the start of the war, the official U.S. policy was neutrality NNeutrality  not favoring one side over the other in a dispute. However neutrality isn’t quite so easy when the opposing sides are England and Germany

5 Of which ethnicity can most Americans claim decent? What language do we speak? Who founded this country? Who was are biggest trade partner?

6 The Road to U.S. Involvement Exports TThe British blockaded the North Sea to prevent Germany from receiving goods UU.S. exports to Germany dropped from $345 million at the start of the war to $29 million by 1916. OOn the flipside, exports to nations of the Allies increased fourfold Loans TThe U.S. government loaned more than $2 billion to the Allies by 1917 Is this neutrality? MMost Americans didn’t think so.

7 Propaganda  Propaganda  the spreading of ideas or beliefs to help a particular cause and/or hurt an opposing cause  The Allies controlled the transatlantic cable, so they controlled the information leaving Europe and entering America Let’s look at some examples

8 How would this British propaganda poster appeal to Americans?

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12 The Road to U.S. Involvement German Submarine Warfare (U-boats)  Germans violated international law and sank all ships in the warzone.  This is known as UNRESTRICTED submarine warfare  Germans believed this was the only way they could end the British Blockade  Wilson knew this would impede munitions shipments to England

13 The Road to U.S. Involvement  Sinking of the Lusitania  In 1915, a passenger liner left New York City carrying 1200 passengers, food and 4.2 million rounds of ammunition for Remington rifles. Who do you think the ammunition was for?  Germany announced that any Allied ships in the warzone would be sunk  A German submarine sinks the Lusitania, on which 128 Americans died

14 The Road to U.S. Involvement  Many Americans call for the ban of Americans sailing on Allied ships  Wilson rejects this call  He believed Americans had the freedom to sail on whatever vessels they wanted and demanded Germans stop unrestricted submarine warfare  Germany did not want to go to war with the U.S. and promised not to sink any more ships without warning, but…

15 The Road to U.S. Involvement  Two other ships carrying Americans were sunk

16 The Road to U.S. Involvement The Zimmerman Telegram  British intelligence intercepted and decoded a message sent from Germany to their ambassador in Mexico  The telegram stated  If the Mexican government joined a military alliance against the U.S., the Germany would help Mexico recover the territories it lost in the Mexican- American War of 1848  Wilson asks Congress to arm merchant ships to protect American lives and commerce.

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18 The Road to U.S. Involvement In 1917, Germany sank 4 additional U.S. merchant ships, but that wasn’t the biggest surprise of 1917…

19 The Road to U.S. Involvement The Russian Revolution  In March of 1917, the Czar of Russia was overthrown and a new “democratic government”  More Americans could support entering a war on the side of a country that no longer had a tyrant as it’s leader  One year later, under communist leadership, Russia would surrender to Germany and drop out of the war

20 Declaration of War On April 2, 1917, President Wilson asks Congress for a declaration of War  “The world must be made safe for democracy.” Do you think this is the real reason Wilson wanted American to enter the war?

21 Quotes: Question: “…impartial in thought as well as action.” ~Woodrow Wilson, 1914 “He kept us out of war.” ~Wilson re-election campaign slogan, 1916 “The world must be made safe for democracy.” ~Wilson’s request for a declaration of war, April 2, 1917 By the end of the period, you will be able to express your opinion:  Did the U.S. policy contradict Wilson’s earlier statements and therefore involve the U.S. in the war, OR  Did circumstances beyond the United States’ control lead the nation to break its policy of neutrality? From the Mouth of President Woodrow Wilson


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