By international rules the neutral country could trade with any other neutral nation and also with other ’belligerent’ countries not facing a blockade. The Americans wished to continue trade with both belligerent sides.

In the initial stages of the war the British blockade of Germany created problems for the U.S. The British tried to stop all trade between Germany and the rest of the world. They extended their blockade by controlling imports to other neutral countries like Holland, Denmark and Sweden with are geographically close to Germany The Americans protested against the violation of neutral rights though Wilson never put undue pressure on England as no U.S. citizen lost his life due to the blockade. Moreover, all cargo seized was paid for at war. It was the German use of submarines in the war that brought the U.S. in direct confrontation with Germany. The German submarines fired indiscriminately at neutral ships too. The last straw was when the British passenger liner ’Lusitania’ was sunk by German submarines on May 7. It resulted in the loss of 1,200 lives which included 128 Americans. The American public was outraged.

President Wilson immediately demanded compensation from Germany in a series of notes to Berlin. The tone of these notes was very crisp and harsh. Ten months after the incident, Germany apologized for the sinking and offered a compensation for the loss. But the U.S. was not satisfied. Wilson wanted to make Germany stop the use of submarines in the war. The Germans refused to comply with this.

The tension with Germany resulted in many leaders advocating preparations for a possible war. The President was pressurized to order the enlargement of the army. Also, a 3-year building program for new ships was given the presidential nod. In 1916, Wilson was re-elected as the President of the U.S.

Meanwhile, Germany declared that the U-boats would sink all ships: passenger or merchant; belligerent or neutral in the war zone. This angered the President. Three days later, he broke off all diplomatic relations with Germany. America still did not wish to enter the war. However, she took precautions. Wilson ordered all American merchants ships to be armed. On March 18, 1917, Germany sank three more American ships without prior warning. By now, Wilson had realized that without fresh troops and ammunition, the Allies would collapse. This war partly due to the Russian Bolshevik Revolution where Russia signed a peace pact with Germany. This had weakened the Allied camp. So during an extra-ordinary session of the Congress, the President declared war on Germany (1917). In his war message he stated: "...We shall fight for the things which we have always carried nearest to our hearts - for democracy...for the rights and liberties of small nations, for a universal dominion of right by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all actions and make the world itself last free."

With the entry of the U.S. in the war, the Allies got a fresh lease of life. In 1918, the Central powers faced a crushing defeat. After America’s entry into the war, Wilson realized that the Allied nations had made several secret treaties among themselves. This, Wilson felt, would go against the maintenance of lasting peace in the region. On January 8, 1918 he delivered his now famous speech in the Congress on the 14-Point Plan. These points laid down that: there was to be freedom of seas; open covenants to be openly arrived at; to remove economic barriers between nations; to reduce arms; to reach an impartial settlement on colonial claims; to re-adjust boundaries of Europe with special attention to the principle of self determination; and the establishment of a general association of nations.

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Table of Contents

8.0 - Chronology of Major Events
8.1 - Woodrow Silson's Administration
8.2 - The U.S. And The First World War
8.3 - Neutrality Rights
8.4 - Peace And Diplomacy At The Versailles Conference
8.5 - Points To Remember

Chapter 9