Why did the US join World War I?

Question

What did the US want to gain/protect by joining the war? If you could direct me to any helpful sites, that would be GREAT.

Thank you in advance!

Answer 1

The United States so far had pursued a policy of isolation avoiding participation in the conflict whilst trying to broker a peace, this resulted in an increase in tensions with both Berlin and London. However, when a German U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania in 1915, a large passenger liner with 128 Americans also aboard, the United States President, Wilson, vowed "America was too proud to fight", and demanded an end to attacks on passenger ships. Germany complied. Wilson tried to mediate a compromise settlement; yet no compromise was discovered. Wilson also repeatedly warned that America would not tolerate unrestricted submarine warfare because it violated America's rights. Wilson was under great pressure from former president Teddy Roosevelt, who denounced German "piracy" and Wilson's cowardice. In January 1917, the Germans announced they would resume unrestricted submarine warfare. Berlin's proposal to Mexico to join the war as Germany's ally against the U.S. was exposed in February, angering American opinion. (see Zimmermann Telegram). After German submarines attacked several American merchant ships, sinking three, Wilson requested that Congress declare war on Germany, which it did on April 6, 1917.[10] The U.S. House of Representatives approved the war resolution 373-50, the U.S. Senate 82-6, with opposition coming especially from German American districts such as Wisconsin. The U.S. declared war on Austria-Hungary in December 1917.

The United States was never formally a member of the Allies but an "Associated Power". Significant numbers of fresh American troops arrived in Europe in the summer of 1918, and they started arriving at around 10,000 men per day. Germany miscalculated that it would be many more months before large numbers of American troops could be sent to Europe, and that, in any event, the U-boat offensive would prevent their arrival. In fact, not a single American infantryman lost his life due to German U-boat activity [2].

The United States Navy sent a battleship group to Scapa Flow to join with the British Grand Fleet, several destroyers to Queenstown, Ireland, and several submarines to the Azores and to Bantry Bay, Ireland, to help guard convoys. Several regiments of U.S. Marines were also dispatched to France. However, it would be some time before the United States would be able to contribute significant personnel to the Western and Italian fronts.

The British and French wanted the United States to send its infantry to reinforce their troops already on the battle lines, and not use scarce shipping to bring over supplies. Thus the Americans primarily used British and French artillery, aircraft and tanks. However, General John J. Pershing, American Expeditionary Force (AEF) commander, refused to break up American units to be used as reinforcements for British Empire and French units (though he did allow African American combat units to be used by the French). Pershing ordered the use of frontal assaults, which had been discarded by that time by British Empire and French commanders because of the large loss of life sustained throughout the war.

Answer 2

Some of the answers already given are very good, and I do not claim to do better. I would like to add a few points: The Lusitania was armed. Many of the "reasons" mentioned were not that serious, therefore they would not necessarily have resulted in declaring war. War is always good for industry and stock exchange. How much money had Americans lended to Britain, France, Italy and private persons and firms in these countries respectively? Could the USA hope to get this money back without clear cut victory of the Allies?

Answer 3

The US hates imperial goverments. They are not democatic.
Also Germans U-Boats were hampering US money making by blowing up their freights. US joined the war because there were more to gain after Europe was in ruins.

America #1 baby everyone else go to hell

Answer 4

Shortly before entering the war, the Passenger Ship Luxury Liner Lusitania was sunk by a German UBoat and it was carrying a passenger list of mostly American Citizens.

This directly resulted in the US entry into the war; without that stupid move by Germany (never an intelligent group of people to begin with) ... America would probably never have entered that conflict.

You can google Lusitania and find out all about it.
good luck

Answer 5

In my opinion, the U.S. joined World War I because it was secretly selling and shipping weapons to the allies which prompted Germany to attack American ships. One ship the Germans sank was a passenger ship (Lusitania, I think) that was rumored to be secretly shipping military aid to Britain. As a result of this sinking, the U.S. declared war.

Answer 6

What was the main objective for the USA's involvement in WW1?
WW1 started with assignation of Arch Duke Ferdinand by a Serb.
Via certain treaties and agreements, we agreed to support then in a time of war.
It was our agreements with the British and the French.

Answer 7

There were probably a half-dozen reasons why the U.S. entered the war in April, 1917 as an "Associated Power" (not as an Ally committed to the deals that haed been made among hte powers of the Triple Entente — France, Britain, Russia, plus later allies such as Italy and Japan). I will summarize them and you can see detail in articles such as those on World War I, U.S. Foreign Policy, Woodrow Wilson etc. in Wikiipedia and the online sources referred to therein.

(1) American public opiinion shifted from a general support for neutrality when the European War broke out in June/August 1914 through a phase of self interested pacifism (popular song: "I didn't raise my boy to be a soldier") to increasing distrust of Germany and the growth of an idealistic belief — encouraged by domestic propaganda — that unless the Americans intervened in Europe, the carnage would continue indefinitely and any chance of a constructive world order would be destroyed. It took almost three years for this shift to occur and without more specific causes that were highlighted by President Wilson (who had campaigned for reelectoiion in 1916 that "He kept us out of war") it would possibly not have happened even then.
(2) Germany was becoming increasingly desparate and in 1917 resumed unrestricted submarome warfare (without specific warning to merchant ships being attacked, though a general warning had been published in the neutral newspapers). Serious scholars, in Germany and elsewhere, recognized this in subsequent historical studies as the number one German blunder that turned American official policy and public opinion against her and provided a reason for war that could be presented in simpler, more direct forms, than complex arguments about cmpeting views of national interest.
(3) The British intercepted and decoded German diplomatic messages (The Zimmerman Telegram — see the book by that title by Barbara Tuchman) that they conveyed to the U.S. Admoinistration that demonstrated that there was a German plot to try to influence the Mexican government and, also, the Japanese, to go to war against the U.S., promising to support shifts of territory to Mexico and other considerations to Japan if they won due to the U.S. being impeded in hellping he Allies whether at war with them or as a neutral supplier).
(4) In Gerneral, Germany was perceived as an arrogant power on the make and a threat. The U.S. was also fighting a border war with Mexico which was in the midst of revolutionary upheaval. Increased military preparedness when the U.S. was technically at peace, voluntary training of young men to be officers (the Plattsburg movement) led to an upsurge of democratic militarism.
(5) As long as suppport for the Allie meant supporting the Tsarist despotism in Russia (which had many enemies in the U.S. among immigrants, Jews and others, who had fled the Russian Empire) there was a restraint on U.S. desire to enter the war. But the dempcratoc revolution that led to the fall of the Tsar in February 1917 led to a removal of this restraining factor. War could now be prtrayed as support for democratic countries versus autocracy and reaction.
(6) Both the Republican leaders (particularly ex-President Teddy Roosevelt, who had broken with the old guard of his paty in the 1912 election and ran as a Progressive "Bull Moose" party) and President Wilsonj, who had a change of heart, and believed increasingly that if the U.S. could not succeed as a mediator to bring the warring parties to their senses it had to actively enter the war and make it a crusade for the creation of a democratic world order, were willing (however reluctantly they expressed themselves) to provide leadership centering on joining the war and cleaning up the mess in Europe, so to speak. A press and offiicial propaganda came into existence to mobilize American opinion. Only some dissidents easily labeled as radicals (domestic or foreign) called the popullar view into question. Soon the popular song of the day was no longer "I didn't raise my boy to be a soldier" but was replaced with "Over There," with its refrain, "The Yanks are coming, the Yanks are comiing, and it won't be over till it's over. over there."

Answer 8

Go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wwi#Entry_of_the_United_States