Wilson’s Fourteen Points
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Section Chronology
On January 8, 1918, President Wilson revealed to Congress his Fourteen Points, his blueprint for a new democratic world order. The first five points affirmed basic liberal ideals: an end to secret treaties; freedom of the seas; removal of economic barriers to free trade; reduction of weapons of war; and recognition of the rights of colonized peoples. The next eight points supported the right to self-determination of European peoples who had been dominated by Germany or its allies. Wilson’s fourteenth point called for a “general association of nations” — a League of Nations — to provide “mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.” A League of Nations reflected Wilson’s lifelong dream of a “parliament of man.” Only such an organization of “peace-loving nations,” he believed, could justify the war and secure a lasting peace.
Fourteen Points
Woodrow Wilson’s plan, proposed in 1918, to create a new democratic world order with lasting peace. Wilson’s plan affirmed basic liberal ideals, supported the right to self-determination, and called for the creation of a League of Nations. Wilson compromised on his plan at the 1919 Paris peace conference, and the U.S. Senate refused to ratify the resulting treaty.
League of Nations
International organization proposed in Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points designed to secure political independence and territorial integrity for all states and thus ensure enduring peace. The U.S. Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, and the United States never became a member.
CHAPTER LOCATOR
What was Woodrow Wilson’s foreign policy agenda?
What role did the United States play in World War I?
What impact did the war have on the home front?
What part did Woodrow Wilson play at the Paris peace conference?
Why was America’s transition from war to peace so turbulent?
Conclusion: What was the domestic cost of foreign victory?
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