United States President Woodrow Wilson listed the Fourteen Points in a speech that he delivered to the United States Congress on January 8, 1918. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28 1856—February 3 1924 was the twenty-eighth President of the United States. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses Events 871 - Battle of Ashdown - Ethelred of Wessex defeats a Danish invasion army Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

The 'Fourteen Points' were listed in a speech delivered by President Woodrow Wilson of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress on January 8, 1918. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28 1856—February 3 1924 was the twenty-eighth President of the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Joint sessions of the United States Congress are the gatherings together of both houses of the United States Congress (the House of Representatives The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses Events 871 - Battle of Ashdown - Ethelred of Wessex defeats a Danish invasion army Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common This speech was intended to assure the country that the war was being fought for a moral cause and for peace in Europe after World War I. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The common people of Europe welcomed Wilson as a hero but his Allied colleagues (Clemenceau, Lloyd George, and Orlando) remained skeptical of the applicability of Wilsonian idealism. Georges Benjamin Clemenceau ( Mouilleron-en-Pareds ( Vendée) 28 September 1841 24 November 1929 was a French statesman physician and Journalist David Lloyd George 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor OM, PC (17 January 1863 &ndash 26 March 1945 was a British Statesman and the only Vittorio Emanuele Orlando ( May 19 1860 - December 1 1952) was an Italian diplomat and Political figure. ^[1]

The speech was delivered over 10 months before the Armistice with Germany ended World War I, but the Fourteen Points became the basis for the terms of the German surrender, as negotiated at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 and documented in the Treaty of Versailles. The armistice treaty between the Allies and Germany was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on November 11, 1918 World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. However, the United States Senate did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. ^[2]

Background

The United States of America joined the Allies fighting the Central Powers in 1917. By early 1918, it was clear that the war was nearing its end. The Fourteen Points in the speech were based on the research of the "Inquiry," a team of about 150 advisors led by Colonel Edward M. House, Wilson's foreign policy advisor, into the topics likely to arise in the anticipated peace conference. The Inquiry was a study group established in 1917 by Woodrow Wilson to prepare materials for the peace negotiations following World War I. See also Colonel In the United States Army, the United States Marine Corps and the United States Air Force, colonel Edward Mandell House (July 26 1858 &ndash March 28 1938 was an American diplomat politician and presidential advisor

Wilson's speech on January 8 took many of the principles of progressivism that had produced domestic reform in the U. Events 871 - Battle of Ashdown - Ethelred of Wessex defeats a Danish invasion army Progressivism is a term that refers to a broad school of international social and political philosophies. S. and translated them into foreign policy (free trade, open agreements, democracy and self-determination). Free trade is a system in which the trade of goods and services between or within countries flows unhindered by government-imposed restrictions A secret treaty is a Treaty between Nations that is not revealed to other nations or interested observers Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system Self-determination is defined as free choice of one’s own acts without external compulsion and especially as the freedom of the people of a given Territory to determine their The Fourteen Points speech was the only explicit statement of war aims by any of the nations fighting in World War I: some belligerents gave general indications of their aims; others wanted to gain territory, and so refused to state their aims.

The speech also responded to Vladimir Lenin's Decree on Peace of October 1917, which proposed an immediate withdrawal of Russia from the war, calling for a just and democratic peace that was not compromised by territorial annexations, and led to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918. The Decree On Peace, written by Vladimir Lenin, was passed by the Second Congress of the Soviet of Workers' Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies on the 26 October Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Not to be confused with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (February 9 1918, a similar treaty involving Ukraine and the Central Powers.

Fourteen Points

1. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at, after which there shall be no private international understandings of any kind but diplomacy shall proceed always frankly and in the public view. A peace treaty is an agreement between two hostile parties usually countries or governments that formally ends an armed conflict Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting Negotiations between representatives of groups or states
2. Absolute freedom of navigation upon the seas, outside territorial waters, alike in peace and in war, except as the seas may be closed in whole or in part bye international action for the enforcement of international covenants. This article is about the concept in International law and Admiralty law.
3. The removal, so far as possible, of all economic barriers and the establishment of equality of trade conditions among all the nations consenting to the peace and associating themselves for its maintenance. Free trade is a system in which the trade of goods and services between or within countries flows unhindered by government-imposed restrictions
4. Adequate guarantees given and taken that national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety.
5. A free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims, based upon a strict observance of the principle that in determining all such questions of sovereignty the interests of the populations concerned must have equal weight with the equitable claims of the government whose title is to be determined. Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself
6. The evacuation of all Russian territory and such a settlement of all questions affecting Russia as will secure the best and freest cooperation of the other nations of the world in obtaining for her an unhampered and unembarrassed opportunity for the independent determination of her own political development and national policy and assure her of a sincere welcome into the society of free nations under institutions of her own choosing; and, more than a welcome, assistance also of every kind that she may need and may herself desire. The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The treatment accorded Russia by her sister nations in the months to come will be the acid test of their good will, of their comprehension of her needs as distinguished from their own interests, and of their intelligent and unselfish sympathy.
7. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored, without any attempt to limit the sovereignty which she enjoys in common with all other free nations. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those No other single act will serve as this will serve to restore confidence among the nations in the laws which they have themselves set and determined for the government of their relations with one another. Without this healing act the whole structure and validity of international law is forever impaired.
8. All French territory should be freed and the invaded portions restored, and the wrong done to France by Prussia in 1871 in the matter of Alsace-Lorraine, which has unsettled the peace of the world for nearly fifty years, should be righted, in order that peace may once more be made secure in the interest of all. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Prussia ( Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Prūsija Prūsija Prusy Old Prussian: Prūsa) was most recently a historic state Year 1871 ( MDCCCLXXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Alsace-Lorraine (Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen generally Elsass - Lothringen) was a territorial entity created by the German Empire in 1871
9. A readjustment of the frontiers of Italy should be effected along clearly recognizable lines of nationality. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest
10. The peoples of Austria-Hungary, whose place among the nations we wish to see safeguarded and assured, should be accorded the freest opportunity to autonomous development.
11. Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro should be evacuated; occupied territories restored; Serbia accorded free and secure access to the sea; and the relations of the several Balkan states to one another determined by friendly counsel along historically established lines of allegiance and nationality; and international guarantees of the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of the several Balkan states should be entered into. Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country Montenegro ( British English) Montenegrin / Serbian: PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE THE LANGUAGES WITHOUT CONSENSUS ON THE TALK PAGE! Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country Territorial integrity is the principle under International law that nation-states should not attempt to promote Secessionist movements or to promote Border
12. The Turkish portion of the present Ottoman Empire should be assured a secure sovereignty, but the other nationalities which are now under Turkish rule should be assured an undoubted security of life and an absolutely unmolested opportunity of autonomous development, and the Dardanelles should be permanently opened as a free passage to the ships and commerce of all nations under international guarantees. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish See also [[Hellespont]] The Dardanelles ( Turkish: Çanakkale Boğazı Greek: Δαρδανέλλια Dardanellia) formerly
13. An independent Polish state should be erected which should include the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be assured a free and secure access to the sea, and whose political and economic independence and territorial integrity should be guaranteed by international covenant. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Background Giving Poland access to the sea was one of the guarantees proposed by the United States President Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen
14. A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 ^[3][4]

Reaction

Influence on the Germans to surrender

The speech was widely disseminated as an instrument of propaganda, to encourage the Allies to victory. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people Copies were also dropped behind German lines, to encourage the Central Powers to surrender in the expectation of a just settlement. Indeed, a note sent to Wilson by Prince Maximilian of Baden, the German imperial chancellor, in October 1918 requested an immediate armistice and peace negotiations on the basis of the Fourteen Points. Prince Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm of Baden ( Max von Baden) ( 10 July 1867 6 November 1929) was the cousin and The Head of government of Germany is called Chancellor (Kanzler

The speech was made without prior coordination or consultation with Wilson's counterparts in Europe. As the only public statement of war aims, it became the basis for the terms of the German surrender at the end of the First World War, as negotiated at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 and documented in the Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I.

Opposition from the Allies

Opposition to the Fourteen Points among British and French leaders became clear after hostilities ceased: the British were against freedom of the seas; the French demanded war reparations. War reparations refer to the monetary compensation intended to cover damage or injury during a war

Wilson was forced to compromise on many of his ideals to ensure that his most important point, the establishment of the League of Nations, was accepted. In the end, the Treaty of Versailles went against many of the principles of the Fourteen Points, both in detail and in spirit. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. Rather than "peace without victory," the treaty sought harsh punishment of Germany both financially and territorially. The resulting bitterness in Germany laid the seeds for the rise of Nazism in the 1930s which resulted, in part, from the economic depression of the 1920s in Germany which the Versailles Treaty helped create. The stab-in-the-back legend ( German:, literally "Dagger stab legend" refers to a social Myth theory popular in Germany in the period after

Failure of the U. S. to ratify the Treaty of Versailles

United States Senator Henry Cabot Lodge opposed ratification of the Treaty of Versailles

The United States Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, making it invalid in the United States and effectively hamstringing the nascent League of Nations envisioned by Wilson. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the This article is about Henry Cabot Lodge (1850-1924 a US politician in the early twentieth century The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 The largest obstacle faced in the ratification of the Treaty of Versailles was the opposition of Henry Cabot Lodge. This article is about Henry Cabot Lodge (1850-1924 a US politician in the early twentieth century It has also been said that Wilson himself was the second-largest obstacle, not least because he kept the leaders of the Republican-led Congress in the dark during treaty deliberations, and refused to support the treaty with any of the alterations proposed by the United States Senate. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives One of the largest obstacles was over the League of Nations. Congress believed that committing to the League of Nations also meant committing U. S. troops to any conflicts that might have arisen (see also Article X of the Covenant of the League of Nations). Article X of the Covenant of the League of Nations Text of Article X The Members of the League undertake to respect and preserve as against external

Nobel Peace Prize

Wilson was awarded the 1919 Nobel Peace Prize in 1920 for his peace-making efforts. The Nobel Peace Prize ( Swedish, Danish and Nobels fredspris is one of five Nobel Prizes Bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor He also inspired independence movements around the world, including the March 1st Movement in Korea. The March First Movement, or Samil Movement, was one of the earliest displays of Korean independence movements during the Japanese occupation of Korea Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia.

See also

• American Commission to Negotiate Peace
• Treaty of Versailles

Notes

References

• Text and commentary from John Jay College of Criminal Justice
• Text and commentary from ourdocuments. The John Jay College of Criminal Justice is a senior college of the City University of New York in midtown Manhattan New York City and is the only liberal arts college gov
• Interpretation of President Wilson's Fourteen Points by Colonel House

External links

• Wilson's shorthand notes from the Library of Congress