T2/26/13; T2/7/12; M2/14/11; T2/10/09; T2/26/08; H2/16/06; M3/7/05

Causes of U.S. Involvement in WWI

(Ch. 23.2; pp. 653-657)

I. Causes • long-term causes

• militarism• nationalism• imperialism• alliances• Pan-Slavism

• immediate cause– ass’n Franz Ferdinand – June 1914

• Two Fronts– stalemate in west– trench warfare

II. U.S. Response• Neutrality– Wilson – “neutral in thought and deed”– Q: were we neutral?

• Political– LDC – Allied • (Br., Fr., NOT Russia yet)

• Cultural– British tradition– propaganda (“Huns”)

II. U.S. Response (cont.)

• Military– British blockade– German submarines

• Economic– impact of British blockade – Trade

• Germany - $350M → $250K; ↓ 1400x (8/100%)• Allied - $825M → $3.2B; ↑ 4x (400%)

– Loans• Germany - $27M• Allied - $2.3B

• Is the U.S. neutral?

III. German Response• U-boats (unterseeboote)– surprise attacks– submarine warfare

• 1. Lusitania (Br.) – 128 Amer. killed – May 1915• 2. Arabic (Br.) – 2 Amer. killed – Aug. 1915• 3. Sussex (Fr.) – Amer. injured – March 1916

• Arabic & Sussex pledge – German warning

IV. American Entrance• Election of 1916 –Wilson (Dem.) – peace platform–Charles Evans Hughes (Rep.) – indecisive –close election

• preparedness program• unrestricted submarine warfare – Jan. 1917

• Zimmerman note – March 1917

• declaration of war – April 1917–Congressional vote: 82-6 & 373-50– Janette Rankin – “No!” (important later)