World War 1(WW1) is one of the most bloodstained, unpleasant, wide-spread, and history-altering war ever to occur in human history. Many people know this, however, many are not aware of the important factors which impacted the Great War. One such factor is the sinking of the British Ocean Liner Lusitania, a passenger ship stacked with hundreds of civilians seeking a retreat through a vacation. The sinking of the Lusitania was a significant occurrence because it impacted the American public’s opinion significantly, which in result influenced the Great War. Hence, it is imperative one understands the role the Lusitania played during the Great War. To begin, During the Great War, the U.S. was in an economic slump, and the war was a means of jumping out of this recession. The U.S. merchants began trading arms with the Allies, especially Britain. To stop this, Germany initiated the Unrestricted Submarine Warfare policy. Unrestricted submarine warfare meant that whenever German U-boats saw ships or vehicles which were not under the control of the Central Powers or were believed to carry goods for the Allies, they destroyed them. This policy created …show more content…
Unrestricted submarine warfare outraged many Americans because its application was an attack upon innocent civilian. Unrestricted submarine warfare also breaks an international law which states that the civilians of two warring countries are not targets. Germany not only harmed civilians, but it also broke international law. Through the sinking of the Lusitania, the public’s view of Germany’s unrestricted warfare policy intensified, and more people began to favor American involvement in the war. The sinking of the Lusitania became one of the most important events of the Great War because its reaction is, “the first step towards American involvement in the war.” (Hill
In the novel, Dead Wake by Erik Larson, the author depicts a true tale of the sinking of the Lusitania. After setting sail from New York on May 1st, 1915, the Lusitania came into contact with a German U-boat, known as the U-20, who eventually sank the ship and killed thousands six days later on May 7th, 1915. However, as simple as the case may seem, Larson believes that the Lusitania’s destruction was very preventable, but those in control of the ship’s aid seemed to benefit greatly from its obliteration. This benefit, gained by Room 40, the British Royal Navy’s secret intelligence administration, was the hope that American’s on the Lusitania would die in the sinking, and therefore draw America into the war, aiding Britain. Throughout the very
There were two major events that took place that sent the United States into WWI. Before these events took place, America wanted to stay neutral with thoughts and action. On May 7, 1915, a German submarine, called U-boats, torpedoed and sank a British passenger liner Lusitania. About 1,198 lives were lost including 128 Americans. Many Americans were shocked and anger about this act and called it “mass murder and piracy”(671).
With the constant looming danger of the German navy bombing an innocent ship, the freedom of the sea was threatened. Merchants could no longer travel the oceans without the fear of being bombed - a direct menace to a country’s free trade. The bombing of the Lusitania two years prior to the war message was already a warning sign to the American people of Germany’s reckless naval power. Finally, numerous of Germany’s acts and agreements were conducted in the “insert quote” and “insert quote”.
Trade with Germany fell to less than 1% than it previously did.4. The U.S traded with the Allies massive amounts of munitions and went to great extents to do so. The U.S sent many of their trades with ships that contained innocent civilians in attempt to cover up their intentions. When Germany shot down ships that contained munitions the innocent Americans were killed. This set an uproar within the country and blamed Germany.
These documents corroborated each other to prove why the US had joined war. Zimmerman’s note and the sinking of the Lusitania were the two main reasons that US joined the Allied Powers. While the intention of Zimmerman’s plan was to keep the US neutral, that did not happen. When the Lusitania sunk with Americans on it, that broke the last straw for Americans. In a similar way, a leader of the In Flanders Fields Museum gave an explanation of the lack of respect Asian and Africans received after participating in World War
Germany provoked the United States, which eventually made U.S enter World War I, also known as the Great War. After World War ended in 1918, Wilson proposed (which was eventually passed internationally) the Treaty of Versailles, mainly punishing Germany and preventing it from causing future wars. The United States entered war, which made it official that they were, once again, involved with foreign affairs, disregarding Washington’s advice to not be involved with other countries. “The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible” (Washington). However, once Word War I was over, the “public opinion favored a return to
The Imperial German Government’s purpose was to put aside all restraints of law or of humanity and use it’s submarines to sink every vessel. “The present German submarine warfare against commerce is a warfare against mankind,” Woodrow Wilson mentioned in his speech. This speech was monumental because it convinced American citizens entry into the war was necessary, brought America into a devastating war, probed America was a power of the world, brought women into workplaces, and it pushed for women’s suffrage. Not every
A somewhat frequently discussed question in history is if the United States should have become involved in World War One. The conclusion to this might seem fairly simple, but in actuality, it is a complicated question. In the end, the answer is that we had to join the war, otherwise the aftermath might have been much worse. It was essential we join the allies because Germany was making threats of attack, and Germany killed many innocent Americans.
However, the US eventually entered the war after the sinking of the Lusitania, a British passenger ship, by a German U-boat, which resulted in the deaths of over 1,000 civilians, including 128
The long-term cause that contributed to the U.S. involvement consisted of this industrial rivalry between European Great Powers and an arms race between the Great Powers. Submarine warfare arose in February of 1915 when Germany retaliated by declaring a submarine blockade of the British Isles. In May of 1915, a U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania off the Irish coast. Even though the Lusitania was unarmed, it was carrying munitions to the English. The killing of hundreds of defenseless citizens caused an uproar in the U.S. Americans were to avoid traveling on belligerent ships.
By doing this, the Germans killed many Americans unjustly. If the U.S didn 't do anything, then the Germans would 've kept sinking more ships and killing the Americans that were onboard. Also, the Allies were losing the war. The soldiers were exhausted from all the years of fighting (trench warfare), it took a long time to even advance.
The German submarine blockade was effective for a while; after the U.S. declared war on Germany, however, the combined forces of U.S. and British navies were able to overpower the Germans with the help of new technologies including depth charges and hydrophone detectors. The blockade had failed and supplies, of which the U.S. was now producing enormous amounts, poured into Great Britain. The war was
World War I is often associated with trench Warfare and battles on the land, with very little thought given to the importance of naval warfare. Beginning with the Anglo-German Naval Race (1898-1912), Germany began building up their High Seas Fleet to challenge the Grand Fleet (“Anglo-German Naval Race”). Britain had been the World’s only international naval superpower for well over 100 years until Germany decided to challenge their dominance. Shortly after the start of World War I, the Anglo-French Naval Convention (1914) was signed, which greatly shaped Allied naval strategy. In 1914, Britain put a distant blockade on Germany, which allowed them to control exits from the North Sea and damaged both Germany’s economy and War effort (Roskill 4: 533).
Altogether, the US needed to secure its nation due to many threats across the world. During war, many things occurred and happened. Germany created some strategy against the United States, which was revealed in the
On May 7, 1915 the British luxury ocean liner, the RMS Lusitania, sunk within 18 minutes of being shot by a German U-boat in an act of self defense. Germany’s U-boats were latest technology; similar to submarines. They were hard to detect by radar and surprised the enemy. Out of 192 Americans onboard 128 died, which outraged Americans Eventually bringing them into the war. Despite a minimal amount of evidence on the contrary, Germany had every right to sink the Lusitania.