Wilson silently gazed at the morning paper. He cringed and dared not read the headlines, which were sure to tell of the horrible, long-lasting war. “This is a war to end all wars,” he mumbled to himself. However, this was beginning to seem less and less likely. His suspicions were confirmed as a young man ran into the room, beads of sweat trickling down his brow.
“Our ship! It’s been sunk by the Germans!” The First World War had just begun for the Americans. The World War was one of the most horrific and bloody wars in history, certainly not one to halt the next war that was coming. The beginning of World War I threw the whole world into turmoil. The ‘Great War’ as it was called was waged in England. On the battlefield there were two powers, the Central and Allied powers. The Central Powers consisted of Austria, Germany, Turkey, and Bulgaria while the Allied Powers comprised of Russia, France, Italy, Japan, America, and England. Because of the potential of angering many Americans and other powerful countries, Woodrow Wilson, who was the President of the U.S. at the time, said Americans would remain neutral as they continued trading with other countries. Germany gave an ominous threat to obliterate and sink trade ships near England with her new, deadly U-boats or submarines. When Germany maliciously sank the Lusitania luxury liner, 2000 people (128 of whom were Americans) died. From then on, America was on her guard, and she officially joined the combat in 1917 when Germany attacked American trade boats. Now America was involved in the war, and that brought even more tumult.
The destruction caused by the war was mind-boggling. In the whole war, nine million people were killed. Because of the latest technology, there were myriads of lethal weapons. Some of these weapons, which were from all over the world, included machine guns, tanks, flamethrowers, blimps, submarines, and poison gas. Planes also swiftly and decisively augmented the fighting. Aircraft were equipped for the first time with machine guns. ‘Aces’ were the best pilots; Red Baron, a German pilot, shot eighty enemy planes, while others also dropped bombs on the peaceful cities below. Europe was in absolute ruins. The horrendous annihilation was specifically centered in Europe.
The war, which lasted from 1914-1918, was almost over, and Wilson penned the Fourteen Points of World Peace. In the end, Germany signed the blessed truce on November 11th. Because they ceased the vicious firing on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, Americans now joyously celebrate this victory on Veteran’s Day. The Allies rejoiced with song and merriment; the terrible war was OVER! Wilson went to France and proposed the League of Nations, but the U.S. Senate didn’t support it. However, the final peace treaty did contain some of Wilson’s Points of Peace. The other countries declared that Germany must be punished, and Germany was angry, realizing that this would bring serious economic hardship to her people. The peace which our president tried to establish was NOT permanent. Sadly, the War to End All Wars preceded another bloody war; the people little knew what was ahead for America…for the world. Woodrow Wilson stated: "I can predict with absolute certainty that within another generation there will be another world war if the nations of the world do not concert the method by which to prevent it." --Woodrow Wilson 1919 Speaking Tour
A War to End All Wars
By: Stella
Grade: 7th
Assignment: 3 Paragraph Essay Based on Lecture Notes
Writing Trails in American History-U.S. History
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