Impact of the fourteen points by President Wilson Woodrock on the USA culture

President Wilson Woodrock declared war on the Germanys reluctantly and mainly aimed at making the world safe for democracy. The president’s aim was not only to protect Germany and France, but he wanted to engage in something that would be an end to all the other wars both in the present and the future. On this, he undertook various actions on the same and among them was the development of the fourteen points. These points offered a blueprint that would be followed in the path to establish peace for the nations which would last for an extended period. Also, the peace treaty was called that aimed at eliminating all the other wars among the different countries and it was the precursor of ending the First World War. The points that the president developed still have an impact on the American society today

The fourteen points were a speech that was delivered by the then president of the United States Wilson woodrock on the 18th of January 1918. The primary objective of the address was to reassure the country that the government aimed at bringing a just course to the people and also to establish peace in Europe. Many citizens of the United States welcomed the president’s ideas, but some of the allied forces were against them. The speech was, however, a significant turning point for the United States this is primarily on the culture and the overall history of the nation. This speech was delivered in ten months before the grand armistice with the German empire came to an end. The fourteen points acted the main basis through which the German began to surrender and helped in the negotiation of the Paris peace conference in the year 1919[1]. More so some of the points in the treaty were used as a basis for the formation of the Versailles treaty, and the impact has affected all nations including the United States in so many ways[2].

The Russian involvement in the World War ended in the autumn of 1917 due to the collapse of the Russian armies and the communist revolution that occurred at this time. The end of participation of Russian motivated Germany to prepare for a dominant offense to be performed against that French, but the American who had prepared their troops to serve in the country arrived just in time to counter the effects of the war on the people. This attack by the Americans made the Germans retreat, and they, later on, realized that the defeat was investable. They, therefore, resort to asking for peace based on the fourteen points rather than incurring further losses. Revolution occurred in 1918 that overthrew the existing emperor and the new government of Germany that was formed asked for peace basing on the Wilsons program. These points, however, were not well welcomed by Britain’s and the French. In the end, the allies determined the treaty that ended the world war one which Germany saw as a too strict on them. The fourteen points gave the Germans a starting point to stop the World War I and resort to seeking peace.  The relationship between the Germans and the American was established since the President of the United States seemed to be in favor with them wanting the war to end the countries to move forward. He didn’t want the Germans to pay for the damage caused, but every nation was to be established as a democracy. In today’s American culture it is evident that the country is always on the course to develop justice in all the countries that lack a stable government.

There are several ideas from the fourteen points that Wilson had proposed that were included in the treaty. Overall the significant part of the 14 points was ignored in the Paris conference, and only four of them were involved in the treaty.  In the first point it was suggested that there should be diplomacy where by no private treaties were allowed to be formed and all the other treaties should take place in the public. This bared all the private international understandings between nations that would result to treaties which had been the cause of the war. This point mainly lobbied against the existence of secret treaties that are hidden from the eye of the public. The aim was to prevent the formation of another secret alliance among the nation which had been the precursor of the Great War a significant factor of concern at that particular moment. The second point from the 14 points by Wilson that was included in the treaty is the freedom of seas.  Freedom was granted to all nations to all them to use the seas as they wanted even outside the territorial waters and this was regardless whether there was peace  or not. It only the leagues of nations that was allowed to close the waters and this depended on a probable reason given. The mores so had the mandate to place sanctions as they got it right.[3] Thus any nation had the freedom to navigate any waters as they deemed fit.

The third point that was incorporated in the treaty was the free trade and commerce. The main objective here was the elimination of all the trading barriers among nations and also the establishment of a business atmosphere that provided a level ground for all the players in the field. This treaty was meant to establish free trade between all countries by removing all duties and levies on the commodities that were exchanged among the countries in the times of peace. Also, the treaty aimed at promoting international trade that for a long time had stagnated and more so increase revenue especially in the US. This was mainly aimed at preventing another arms race to lead someone to war using their asset. Even though to some point the points were rejected and not included in the final draft of the treaty, the points had a significant impact on the nations and the Americans as well. Most Of the points are seen still operational today in various ways, and some of them found their way in the international policy of the United States guides the operations that they undertake with other countries. The points form a significant framework that is used to govern the overall functioning of the society and offers a guideline that is used in decision making by most of the countries which would have otherwise resulted in chaos.

The League of Nations

The league of nation refers to an international diplomatic group that was developed after the World War 1 with the primary aim of solving disputes between the countries before they resulted in warfare.  This is the primary precursor to today’s United Nations, and the league has achieved some victories so far, but there is still more effort that needs to be made on the same note. This league that was founded by President Wilson Woodrock in the fourteen points played an essential role in establishing peace after the First World War and also efficiently ceased the operations of the World War II. Despite the fact that the United States did not at first take a crucial role in the League of Nations, it, later on, shaped the operations of the nation and its impact is still being felt today. The league made several efforts and solved various disputes among them was the Geneva protocol which was established back in the 1920s with a central aim of limiting what today is understood as the biological and chemical weaponry. The league was aimed at making disarmament a reality but still failed in doing so. The association also formed the mandate commission that was mainly aimed at protecting the minority groups and among them was Africa an idea that was embraced by France and Belgium but ignored by South Africa. The mandates commission helped Iraq join in the league in 1929.  More so the mandate commission also got involved in the tensions in Palestine that were occurring between the Jewish populations and the Palestinian Arabs. The league was also on the forefront in the pact of 1928 which sought to outlaw war. This was successfully adopted by over 60 countries, and it put, however, the settlement proved ineffective in enforcing the agreement in Japan in 1931 after it invaded Mongolia.  Later on, the leagues fostered the formation of the United Nations a body that stands to support the activities of the countries ensuring that peace and stability are maintained. The United Nations has contributed a lot to the American culture of today[4].

Despite all the success that the league attained it still had some weaknesses. One of the major flaws was that despite the fact that it was President Wilson woodrock that had suggested the formation of the league, the Americans refused to joint into it. Their refusal to join in crippled the activities of the organization thus contributing to its downfall. More so Germany was barred from participating the league because they are the ones that had started the war and therefore it was seen as a punishment on them. This, however, meant that the league could not enjoy the benefits that could come along as a result of having support from the Germanys. At that time Russian had a communist government, and once more it was not allowed to participate in the league. Also in 1918, the royal family was murdered, and this contributed to them being left out entirely from the treaty. The three most powerful nations of the time thus suffered a significant blow and were not allowed to take part in the league which in turn crippled the activities. The two other countries France and Britain suffered a great deal both financially, and military and this resulted in their reduced contribution to the war which continuously hindered the activities of the league. As a result, the league could not survive past the Second World War[5]. But still the league was a basis of the formation of the United Nations, and America is a significant contributor of the policies of this body which makes the country be seen as the primary source of aid to the people.

Impact of the 14 points to the United States culture

Political impact

One significant political implication of the fourteen points were the overthrow of monarchies in Russia. A civil war arose in the country that led to the overthrow of the regime that had for a long time oppressed the people. The collapse of monarchy came along with its break from the Soviet Union. As a result, the United States took the example of Russia and recently broke away from the soviet[6]. The breaking of Russia from the Soviet Union came along with the significant economic impact that affected the whole world including the United States. Due to the revolution, Bolsheviks rose to power, and he forcefully ruled the people. This led to a conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union and for the next seventy years the two were never at per with each other.  In line with the persistent revolts that were taking place around the world, concern arose in the American officials as regards to order and stability. The United States saw Bolshevism as a mistake that had to be corrected and resisted. The United States then established a policy that was to guide the operation of leadership, and that was mainly to be based on the will of the people[7].  This was done to ensure that oppressive power was not entertained in the United States and up to date the culture of the nation is one that only supports democracy. The policy also prompted the non-recognition of the rulers in Russia that affected the relationship between America and the Russians to this present day. To gain more influence on the anti- Bolsheviks, the United States then started supporting the right-wing dictatorship from nations such as Italy and France that had not yet settled for democracy. The high concentration of the United States on international order led to the reduced influence on western power and more so the rise of radical nationalism among the nations. It is from this support that the United States suffered from racism and irrational fear of communism among the people. This has dramatically affected the United States today as racism and authority are evidently seen in the American leadership. More impacts that rose due to the 14 points were revolts against colonialism in the Middle East and Asia and as the United States took a position on the same the authority of many nations was strengthened. To date, it is a characteristic of the United States to seek peace for other countries that are in unstable conditions due to poor leadership. The state has sent various troops to different nations and hence always seen as a peace agent.  Many countries in the Middle East have had the United States military come over to maintain peace and stability in times when they are not able to do it themselves.

Economic Impact

The United States emerged as the world’s leading economic pillar and has remained to be so up to date. The Americans even though at first did not accept the points as the president had outlaid them, most of the principles in the treaty were translated into most of the policies that govern the nation, and this resulted into its magnificent economic stability as a nation.  In the current worlds, it is clear that the United States is among the significant economic influencers today and thus the need for it to be addressed. These points still opened the international trade, and once again the nations stated exchanging commodities among one another. As a result, the united states suffered inflation in the process of people trying to get what had been kept out of the country due to war. This inflation resulted in the formation of policies to govern trade within the state and to limit the number of exports. The trade policies have been changed over time, but still, they affect international trade in the country.  More so the country made treaties with several nations and did away with the trade restrictions on certain commodities to boost regional business in these areas[8]. The European market went into shamble as a result of the war, and thus the united states took the opportunity to supply them with commodities they needed which led to the increased economic status of the country and to date the united states still exports products to  Europe.

Social impacts

Still, various social implications were faced as a result of the fourteen points. One of the significant social consequences of the fourteen points is the 19th amendment to the constitution of the United States that gave women the right to vote. The fourteen points gave the women an opportunity to end over a centaury’s struggle in regards to their freedom of voting and President Wilson had no other alternative other than to grant them their wish as a way to show his democracy.  Therefore the women were given the right to vote, and this was a tremendous achievement so far. More so women were allowed into the task force, and many joined the various companies. This was still contributed by the joining of men to war that led to a gap that needed to be filled, and thus women were welcomed into the task force. The points resulted in equal rights between men and women and this forever changed the United States. Women thought that they would still lobby for more rights and the establishment of feminism in the United States gained more roots and support from the public[9]. As of today women always press for more support from the people and this is despite the fact that their position is already well established in the society.

In conclusion, it is evident that in so many ways the fourteen points have influenced the American culture of today.  First, these points have translated many of the principles if American domestic reform which is known as progressivism into s foreign policy. Some of them include aspects of free trade, open agreements, democracy and also self-determination. Another contribution of the points was that they became a basis for the German surrender and these are just a few among the many impacts of the fourteen points. The American culture has greatly been influenced by these points and shaped the way business is conducted within the country.

Reference list

2017. “President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points.” President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points1.

Cardoza, Thomas, and Blakely Hume. 2015. The American Experiment. Truckee Meadows Community College Custom Edition.

Dennis, P. M. (2018). 1918: Year Of The Conscript. Canada’s History, 98(2), 40-47.

Frandsen, Bert. 2017. “The Birth of American Airpower in World War I: Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the US Entry into the “Great War.” Air & Space Power Journal 31, no. 3: 60-73.

Hanedar, Avni Önder, Erdost Torun, and Elmas Yaldız Hanedar. 2015. “War-related risks and the İstanbul bourse on the eve of the First World War.” Borsa Istanbul Review 15, 205-212.

Roper, Michael, and Rachel Duffett. 2018. “Family Legacies in the Centenary: Motives for First World War Commemoration among British and German Descendants.” History & Memory 30, no. 1: 76-115.

Valent, Lucio. 2017. “Experiences, Images and Political Reflections on the First World War in Italian Interwar Literature.” History 102, no. 349: 92-110.

[1] Cardoza, Thomas, and Blakely Hume. 2015. The American Experiment. Truckee Meadows Community College Custom Edition.

[2] Hanedar, Avni Önder, Erdost Torun, and Elmas Yaldız Hanedar. 2015. “War-related risks and the İstanbul bourse on the eve of the First World War.” Borsa Istanbul Review 15, 205-212.

[3]  Dennis, P. M. (2018). 1918: Year Of The Conscript. Canada’s History, 98(2), 40-47.

2017. “President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points.” President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points1. [4]

[5] Valent, Lucio. 2017. “Experiences, Images and Political Reflections on the First World War in Italian Interwar Literature.” History 102, no. 349: 92-110.

[6] Hanedar, Avni Önder, Erdost Torun, and Elmas Yaldız Hanedar. 2015. “War-related risks and the İstanbul bourse on the eve of the First World War.” Borsa Istanbul Review 15, 205-212.

[7] Dennis, P. M. (2018). 1918: Year Of The Conscript. Canada’s History, 98(2), 40-47.

[8] Roper, Michael, and Rachel Duffett. 2018. “Family Legacies in the Centenary: Motives for First World War Commemoration among British and German Descendants.” History & Memory 30, no. 1: 76-115.

[9] Frandsen, Bert. 2017. “The Birth of American Airpower in World War I: Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the US Entry into the “Great War.” Air & Space Power Journal 31, no. 3: 60-73.