Wilson’s Fourteen Points

Wilson In 1918, President Woodrow Wilson issued the Fourteen Points. The Fourteen Points was Wilson’s statement of plans for peace after World War I, including plans to eliminate the causes of war.

Fourteen Points The key ideas of the Fourteen Points included: 1. Self-determination – National self-determination meant each national group should be in charge of its own destiny. For example, Polish people should live under a Polish government, if that was what they wanted.

Fourteen Points The key ideas of the Fourteen Points included: 2. Freedom of the sea – Freedom of the seas meant all nations’ ships would be able to sail in international waters without threat of attack by another country’s ships.

Fourteen Points The key ideas of the Fourteen Points included: 3. League of Nations – The League of Nations would be an organization of nations established at the end of World War I to maintain world stability and peace.

The Treaty of Versailles

League of Nations The Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended World War I, recognized Wilson’s ideas of self-determination, freedom of the sea, and a League of Nations.

The Treaty of Versailles also provided for the punishment of Germany, which was insisted on by the French and English. Against the wishes of President Wilson, France and Great Britain had demanded that the treaty hold Germany responsible for the war.

Finally, the Treaty of Versailles redrew national boundaries in Europe, which created many new nations including Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Poland.

In short, the Treaty of Versailles recognized the principle of national self-determination in Europe, but not in the Middle East, Africa, or Asia.

League of Nations Debate in the United States

After President Wilson negotiated the Treaty of Versailles, he sent it to the United States Senate for ratification (approval). Under the Constitution, the President is the nation’s chief diplomat with the sole power to make treaties. However, the Senate must approve all treaties by a two-thirds vote in order for them to become law.

- The Republicans, who controlled the U. S - The Republicans, who controlled the U.S. Senate after the 1918 congressional elections, questioned the wisdom of the Treaty of Versailles. - They particularly raised objections to U.S. foreign policy decisions being made by an international organization – like the League of Nations – rather than by American leaders.

After a long debate, the Senate failed to approve the Treaty of Versailles. Senate rejection of the Treaty of Versailles after World War I meant the United States did not join the League of Nations and demonstrated the historical influence of isolationism on American foreign policy.