● Wilson's plan, presented to Congress before the end of the war, outlined a new world order to preserve peace. ● Among the main points of the plan were: ● There should be no secret treaties among nations and freedom of the seas should be maintained for all. ● Free trade should be established between all nations and arms should be reduced to just ensure domestic safety. ● Groups who claimed distinct ethnic identities were to form their own nation-states. ● The fourteenth point called for the creation of the League of Nations to provide a forum for nations to discuss and settle their grievances without having to go to war. The Allies Reject Wilson’s Plan ● Wilson went to Europe himself (a first for a president) to participate in the peace process. ● The leaders of France and Britain did not care about moralistic ideals. They wanted to ensure their own security and prevent Germany from ever threatening the peace of Europe again. They wanted to make Germany pay. ● Wilson conceded most of his Fourteen Points in return for the establishment of the League of Nations. Debating the Treaty of Versailles ● The Big Four (USA, GB, France and Italy) and the leaders of the defeated nations gathered at the Palace of Versailles to sign the peace treaty. Everyone hoped that the treaty would create stability for a rebuilt Europe. Instead, anger held sway. ● The Treaty created nine new nations, shifted the boundaries of other nations, carved up the Ottoman Empire, banned Germany from maintaining an army, took the Alsace-Lorraine region and gave it to France, required Germany to pay war reparations to the Allies and accept blame for the war. The Treaty’s Weaknesses ● The harsh treatment toward Germany weakened the ability of the Treaty of Versailles to provide a lasting peace in Europe. Several basic flaws in the treaty sowed the seeds of postwar international problems that eventually would lead to WWII. ● The treaty humiliated Germany and weakened them to the point where they could not pay the Allies what they were obligated to. This would create economic hardships and resentment among the German people and allow the Nazis to rise to power. ● It also took territory away from Russia (now the Soviet Union) which left the communist nation determined to regain lost territory in the future. Opposition to the Treaty ● When Wilson returned to the U.S., he faced strong opposition to the treaty. ● Some thought the treaty was too harsh. Others considered the treaty a sell-out to imperialism because it simply exchanged one set of colonial rulers for another. ● Some ethnic groups objected to the treaty because the new national boundaries it established did not satisfy their particular demands for self-determination. For example, before the war many Poles had been under German rule. Now many Germans were under Polish rule. Debate Over the League of Nations ● The main domestic opposition centered on the issue of the League of Nations. A few opponents believed that the League threatened the U.S. foreign policy of isolationism. ● Conservative senators, led by Henry Cabot Lodge, were not happy with the provision for joint economic and military action against aggression-they wanted to keep the power to declare war in Congress' hands and not a foreign League of Nations. Wilson Refuses to Compromise ● Wilson unwisely ignored the Republican majority in the Senate and did not allow them to offer any input or have any representation at the Paris Peace Conference. ● He also refused to accept any compromises on the League of Nations-demanding it be accepted as is by the Senate. America Doesn’t Join the League of Nations ● While Wilson was traveling around the country trying to rally support, he suffered a severe stroke. He was paralyzed on one side of his body and confined to his bedroom. His wife, Edith, hid the extent of his illness-his cabinet and members of Congress were not allowed to meet with him. America, in a sense, was without a proper president. ● When the Senate voted on the Versailles Treaty, Lodge offered an amendment keeping the power to declare war in Congress' hands, but Wilson refused any changes. The treaty failed to pass and the US signed a separate peace treaty with Germany after Wilson left office. Consequences of WWI ● Allied Victory ● End of German, Russian, Ottoman, and Austro-Hungarian Empires ● Formation of new countries in Europe and the Middle East ● Germany loses her colonies and must pay for the war ● 38 million deaths (the deadliest in history up to this point) ● America only lost 117,465 people (about 20% of Civil War deaths).