When America Became a Superpower: How US Became Part Of World War 1
By Francis TranceOne hundred years ago, on April 6, 2017, The United States of America finally enters World War 1 and changed its political and military standing in the world ever since. America's decision to enter the great war ushered the start of America becoming a superpower.
By the end of 1917, America, through the Wilson Administration have been successful in refraining from entering a European conflict. This is because of the neutrality policy of the United States and the unwillingness of the American people to join a foreign conflict fighting for foreign ends. From 1914 - 1916, the United States kept a precarious balancing act in foreign diplomacy at it tries its best to remain neutral to both the Allies and the Central powers, though mainly with Germany.
The Sun Herald, posted on their webpage a historical image of a periodical issued 100 years ago, when the company was still called the Daily Herald, showing the sequence of events that happened in the first week of April 1917. America's move to war was prompted right after Germany declared unrestricted submarine warfare. Though the real incident that enraged the American public was the so called Zimmerman telegrams, which states Germany's secret agreement with Mexico if it will join the Central powers if America does joins the war with the Allies.
The Zimmerman telegram, which British cryptanalysts have deciphered and transmitted to the US, stirred the ire of America so much that the telegrams were published publicly. The telegram states the agreement of Germany and Mexico to join arms against the US when the latter goes to war against the Central powers. The telegram was intercept in January 1917, and in just three months, the United States decided to join the war against Germany.
This was the first major foreign conflict that the United States of America joined. A total of no less than 2 million soldier were shipped to Europe to join the war. The economy was mobilized for war and for the first time in history, America has joined the circle of global superpowers, which will last until today.
