WW31+USA

=Impacts of the entry of the USA and of the Russian withdrawal=

=Impact of the entry of USA=

America declared war on Germany on 6 April 1917.

 * Focus questions**
 * What was the traditional foreign policy of the USA?
 * How did German unrestricted submarine warfare affect America?
 * What was the Zimmermann telegram?
 * What impact did the entry of the USA have on the morale of the Allies and of Germany?
 * What impact did the entry of the USA have on the seas?
 * What impact did the entry of the USA have on fighting on the Western Front?


 * What was the traditional foreign policy of the USA?**
 * USA had a policy of isolation from European conflicts.
 * Woodrow Wilson maintained this policy from the start of the war.
 * Wilson was re-elected in 1916 on a platform of continued isolation.


 * What brought USA into the war?**
 * In 1915, the Germans had initiated unrestricted submarine warfare to counter the British naval blockade.
 * 7 May 1915 the **Lusitania** was sunk. 1198 civilians died, including 124 Americans.
 * Allies tried to use this to bring USA into the war. The Germans backed down and restricted submarine warfare to Allied ships.
 * February 1917, Germans reintroduced **unrestricted submarine warfare**. They risked bringing USA into the war, hoping that Britain and France could be defeated before the USA could have an impact.[[image:Take_Up_the_Sword_of_Justice.jpg align="right"]]
 * The Zimmermann telegram, January 1917, further inflamed the American public when it was published in March 1917.
 * 6 April 1917 USA declared war on Germany.


 * What was the impact of the entry of the USA?**
 * US industry had supplied much of the war material for the Allies throughout the first three years of the war.
 * There was an immediate impact on the seas. The American navy organised the convoy system of protecting merchant shipping. The **naval blockade of Germany was strengthened** while Britain and France could now be freely supplied. In January 1918, a mine barrage blocked off the North Sea. German U-boats could no longer get into the Atlantic.
 * The biggest impact was the large number of fresh troops the Americans would add to the Allied lines. By 1918, the Germans didn’t have such reserves of fresh troops. The impact of these troops was not immediate. It was mid-1918 before they went into the fighting in large numbers. By then there were **two million American troops** in France.
 * In March 1917, after the withdrawal of Russia from the war, the Germans launched their Spring Offensive, a last-ditch massive offensive aimed at defeating France before the full impact of the American troops could be achieved.
 * **Allied morale increased**. They now believed they could win the war.
 * 275,000 American troops participated in the 2nd Battle of the Marne, July 1918. The failure of the German’s Spring Offensive and the prospect of many more American troops were **disastrous for German morale**. They lost hope of victory.
 * America would now have a place at the peace conference following the war. Wilson hoped that following the defeat of Germany there would be a just and lasting peace, based on his **Fourteen Points**.

President Woodrow Wilson, speech to Congress, 2 April 1917. Vessels of every kind, whatever their flag, their character, their cargo, their destination, their errand, have been ruthlessly sent to the bottom without warning and without thought of help or mercy for those on board, the vessels of friendly neutrals along with those of belligerents... The present German submarine warfare against commerce is a warfare against mankind. It is a war against all nations. American ships have been sunk, American lives taken... The challenge is to all mankind... Our motive will not be revenge or the victorious assertion of the physical might of the nation, but only the vindication of right, of which we are only a single champion... The world must be made safe for democracy. Its peace must be planted upon the tested foundations of political liberty. We have no selfish ends to serve. We desire no conquest, no dominion...
 * Source A**

//(Read the full text of President Wilson's speech to Congress here.)//

“//Over There//”, music and lyrics by George M. Cohan, 1917
 * Source B**

Over there, over there, Send the word, send the word over there - That the Yanks are coming, The Yanks are coming, The drums rum-tumming Ev'rywhere. So prepare, say a pray'r, Send the word, send the word to beware. We'll be over, we're coming over, And we won't come back till it's over Over there. ** Listen to a 1917 recording by Billy Murray: ** media type="file" key="Billy_Murray_-_Over_There.mp3" width="240" height="20"

**Source Based Questions:** **1. Using Source A and Source B and your own knowledge, explain the impact of the entry of the USA into World War One.** **2. Assess how useful Sources A and B would be for an historian studying** **the impact of the entry of the USA into World War One****.**  **In your answer, consider the perspective provided by the TWO sources and the reliability of each source.**