Zimmermann's Telegram During Ww1

The zimmerman telegram was a letter sent in 1917 from zimmerman who was the foreign minister of germany. the note contained information to ''proposed alliance aganinst america''. germany hopped that mexico would join them in their war againist america. The note also stated that if mexico joins the war againist america ''they would be rewarded with financial; support and reconqured land in new mexico, texas, and arizona. when america recived news about this note, they reacted strongy because germany was trying to get other countries to join the war againist them and they also treathen to take some of america's land and give it to the mexicans.

Before his election, Wilson promoted American neutrality. He endorsed what he believed his Americans wanted, for this would get him elected into office. However, after his election, Wilson had a change of heart. A few events, such as the German sinking of the Lusitania and the Zimmerman telegram swayed President Wilson’s stance on the war. He started a movement toward war. A large variety of pro-war propaganda was produced and American troops were sent to Europe to fight.

The Zimmermann telegram was a note sent from the Germans to Mexico, wherein the Germans were asking Mexico for an alliance, and gave subtle hints that Mexico would be able to reclaim Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona from the Americans. This helped push America into war with Germany, neutrality would no longer be a workable policy when the other side, Germany was scheming against the United States.

At the same time they attempted to sway Mexico into a alliance with them in case the United States declared war on Germany. The "Zimmerman Telegram" was intercepted by Allied forces and given to President Wilson. Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany on April 2, 1917. While Germany had done nothing to threaten our U.S. security, Wilson said in his speech that we would enter the war "to make the world safe for democracy". (Zieger, 53) A point that later spurn the effectiveness of Wilson's influence over peace was that America entered the war as an "associated power" rather than a true Ally.

George F. Kennan was an ambassador to the Soviet Union and sent an eight-thousand-word telegram to President Truman explaining the intentions of the Russians. This telegram was called the “Long Telegram”. He felt like he was isolated from the Washington while in Moscow. His intuition told him that things were bad under Stalin’s leadership and hated Germany because of it. “I HATE THE GERMANS”. HE did not think that the united states had what it took to get take care of things once and for all.

Late in the winter of 1917, tensions around the world grew in the midst of World War I. The U.S. remained neutral in the beginning; however, the U.S. severed diplomatic connections with Germany in early February after Germany announced their agenda (“Wilson's War Message to Congress.”). Germany had declared their intent to sink any sea vessel that sought to approach the ports of Great Britain, Ireland, or the ports of its enemies within the Mediterranean. Breaking its promise, Germany put aside all restraints of law or of humanity, sinking every vessel, along with passenger ships, with no warning. President Wilson, after witnessing a plethora of inhumane atrocities, spoke before an irritated and aggravated congress, asking them for a declaration of war. The congress, who had voted to abstain from entering the war, reversed their decision and overwhelmingly voted to enter World War I (“Wilson's War Message to Congress.”). President Wilson expertly used a variety of appeals and rhetorical devices to sway the congress in his favor.

All through the first three years, the Germans would use submarines to sink ships, often these were civilian ships with American citizens aboard. These actions began to change the public opinion about getting into the war. The last straw however was the Zimmerman telegram, a telegram from the German government to the Mexican government, encouraging Mexico to invade the US, in exchange, recouping some of the lost southwestern states(Shi, p. 826).

President Woodrow Wilson’s “War Message” addresses the momentous event of breaking neutrality and declaring war on the German government. Wilson explains that America can no longer remain stagnant. He calls his audience to action, through a tactical combination of both structured logic and emotional inclusion. Wilson begins his deduction with several points, starting with the details of the submarine warfare and the “wholesale destruction of men, women, and children” endured not only by the American people but various other countries (2). Wilson asserts that neutrality is no longer possible since peace and the freedom of the individuals of the world were under a direct threat (5). He reassures the audience that although his intentions were the same and he fully intended on keeping the American people safe, avoiding the war and remaining uninvolved was no longer a reality (4).

The Zimmerman telegram was the the last event that finally pushed the U.S. into the war. The Zimmerman telegram was a letter or note sent by Arthur Zimmerman that had basically asked Mexico to declare war on the U.S., only if the U.S. declared war on Germany. The Germans strategy involved keeping the Americans busy on their own borders and not on foreign conflict. If the U.S. was prevented from joining the war, Germany would have a better chance at winning the war. The telegram noted that Mexico would get the return of their lost land. The lost land being Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. However, the telegram never reach Mexico because Britain intercepted it and showed it to American leaders. This had pushed them to a new level and they were ready for war. Once news of this spread to the American people, everyone was pushing towards joining the war.

The Zimmerman telegram was the clear sign to Wilson that his neutrality was not working, and he had to take action to suppress dissent in light of the changes in his stance that were about to develop (Span, 41). Although there are various reasons as to why Wilson made such decisions, I will be examining his choices in reference to his previous loyalty to the peace movement. So, all things considered, Wilson’s choice to limit public involvement in the press in regards to the war was a means to squander those involved in the peace movement who would undoubtedly oppose the American entrance into the war. Once America entered World War I, it only took about three months for the Espionage Act to become law – showing that Wilson’s intentions for the law, possibly, were to limit opposition to the wartime involvement (Span, 41). It can be argued that the peace movement did in fact change Wilson’s stance on World War I in that he now sought to actively limit its influence instead of propagate it.

that caused the United States to enter the war are the Zimmerman Telegram and the issues of

The U.S. had a popular opinion against Germany because Germany’s tactics of warfare were affecting the U.S. In 1915, when the United States was still a neutral country, Germany sunk a British ship, resulting in the death of 128 Americans. After this incident, President Wilson signed a document asking congress to declare war (Doc6). He also informed Germany that if they continued to illegally attack ships than the United States would have had to take action (Doc6). The loss of American lives due to German U-boat attacks outraged the majority of the United States. In 1917 British intelligence intercepted a message, known as the Zimmerman note, that the German Foreign minister was sending to the government of Mexico. The Zimmerman note was an example of how Germany was against the United States, “We intend to begin...unrestricted submarine warfare. We shall endeavor in spite of this to keep the United States of America neutral” (Doc7). The German Foreign minister was saying that in order to prevent the U.S. from aiding Britain and France they were going to go against their agreement with the U.S. and continue to illegally attack ships through submarine warfare. The messages also called for an alliance with Mexico, “We make Mexico a proposal of alliance on the following basis...that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona” (Doc 7). The German Foreign minister explained to Mexico that if war broke out with the

The Zimmerman Telegram was a coded message that the Germans sent to the Mexicans which basically said, “if you become our allies in the war, we will get you your territory back to you that you once lost to the US.” But when Germany sent the message, their plan backfired as it was intercepted by the British Embassy and decoded by the British which showed it to the US. Finally after the third strike and the Zimmerman Telegram, the US joined the war. I think the Zimmerman Telegram and all the things I listed about it were yet more reasons (and one main reason) why I think the US did a good job of joining World War

On April 2, 1917, President Wilson wrote and spoke one of his famous speech: War Message. President Wilson wants to ensure the people 's hope and faith from the war. As President Wilson (1917) stated in his speech "Each nation must decide for itself how it will meet it... Our motive will not be revenge or the victorious assertion of the physical might of the nation, but only the vindication of right, of human right, of which we are only a single champion."was to fix the issue the nation was in. President Wilson wants to show the people that we need to get involved war for the loss of many American lives that Germany took. Wilson persuades to Congress to go to war. President Wilson shows his persuasion effectively by using rhetorical strategies. Each strategy he used gave more persuasion to Congress to declare war on Germany. All the persuasion he used to convince Congress was put in his famous speech War Message.

By January 1917 representatives from the German navy convinced the military leadership and Kaiser Wilhelm II that a resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare could help defeat Great Britain within five months. German policymakers argued that they could violate the “Sussex pledge” because the United States was not being neutral (Office of the Historian). In January of 1917, British cryptographers deciphered a telegram from German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to Mexico, offering United States’ territory to Mexico in return for joining the German cause (Childress). Accordingly, on January 31, 1917, the German Ambassador, Count Johann von Bernstorff, presented U.S. Secretary of State Robert Lansing with a note declaring Germany’s intention to restart unrestricted submarine warfare the following day. Stunned by the news, President Wilson went before Congress on February 3 to announce that he had severed diplomatic relations with Germany (Office of the Historian). Throughout February and March 1917, German submarines targeted and sunk several American ships, and many American passengers and seamen died (Office of the Historian). On February 26, Wilson asked Congress for authority to arm American merchant ships with U.S. naval personnel and equipment.