The United States Failure to Ratify the Treaty of Versailles

The United States Failure to Ratify the Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was the most important of the five peace treaties that ended World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919 between Germany and the Allies (except Russia). The Treaty of Versailles was negotiated principally by Woodrow Wilson for the United States, Georges Clemenceau for France, David Lloyd George for England, and Vittorio Emanuele Orlando for Italy. Germany was not allowed into the negotiations and was forced to accept the treaty as the Allies proposed it. Ironically, since Woodrow Wilson was one of the main negotiators of the treaty, the United States Senate refused to ratify the treaty and the U.S. hostilities with Germany ended without a treaty.

There were numerous groups in the United States opposed to ratification of the Treaty of Versailles for a number of different reasons. Partisan politics were part of the problem. President Wilson, a Democrat, had been supported by Republican senators during the war, but he refused to involve any Republicans in the negotiations. Wilson compounded this insult during the 1918 election by calling on all Americans to vote Democratic to show their patriotism. Various ethnic minorities in the United States were opposed to the treaty for a variety of reasons. German-Americans felt the treaty was too harsh on Germany. Italian-Americans were upset that the treaty forced Italy to give up land captured during the war. Irish-Americans were angered that Wilson spent so much time and effort in Europe, but refused to support Irish independence.

The primary opposition to the treaty came from American isolationists of many types. America was finishing fighting a war in Europe that many believed wasn’t our problem and wasn’t worth the lives of our soldiers. Many Americans didn’t care about Europe, were tired of war, and wanted only to return to their normal lives and domestic issues. Some members of the Senate were completely isolationist and refused to support the peace treaty because it involved the United States heavily into foreign affairs by requiring the United States to join the League of Nations. Many Senators refused to ratify the treaty unless the provisions committing the United States to possible foreign military action under foreign command were removed. Wilson refused to allow modification to any parts of the treaty affecting the League of Nations. As a result, the Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, the United States failed to join the League of Nations, and the United States turned its back on Europe and returned its attention to domestic affairs.