Essay On Woodrow Wilson's War Message To Congress

In Wilson’s War Message to Congress, on April 2nd, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson called Congress into session and asked them to declare war with Germany. Wilson spoke of the ruthlessness of German submarine warfare and the lack of compassion of the German government. He called it “warfare against mankind” and a “war against all nations” (Wilson). He expressed sympathy for not only Americans who lost their lives, but for people of other nations too. During this time in history, Woodrow Wilson was a leader of the Progressive Movement. His diplomatic policy was based on his democratic idealism and his desire to create a new world order governed by morality. He declared, “The world must be made safe for democracy” (Wilson). He insisted that the United States did not seek dominion and the country had nothing to gain from the war. Wilson, like the

Europe had been divided into a system of two military alliances: Germany and Austria-Hungary versus Britain, France and Russia. Wilson wanted to remain neutral, but he was still sending American shipments to Great Britain, thus aiding the Allies. In May of 1915, when Germany sank a British passenger liner and killed many innocent people, Americans were outraged. In April of 1917, Wilson asked Congress to declare war and it was approved. The authors insist that Wilson “began to turn the conflict into a crusade” (Tindall and Shi). Wilson wanted to change the way America handled foreign relations and promote peace. After attending a peace conference in Paris, Wilson presented a plan for a League of Nations that would police the world. The opponents to Wilson’s Peace Plan claimed it would transfer authority from the United States to another body of government. America was no longer neutral in the world; they found themselves in the center of international