Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States and served in office from 1913 through 1921. He is primarily associated with progressive economic policies and leading the United States during World War I.
Though Europeans tend to honor Wilson for his famous 14-point plan, many of his domestic policies were lamentably racist. He broke many campaign promises while exploiting the African-American vote and bringing the American people into an unwanted war. Though responsible for legislation that shapes the American economy even today, his legacy is questionable. In this explanation, we'll delve into the life of one of America's most controversial leaders, Woodrow Wilson.
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President Woodrow Wilson, Harris and Ewing: Public Domain
Woodrow Wilson Life
Influential and intensely loved by many Europeans, historiographers agree that Woodrow Wilson, despite his legacy of positive economic changes, had a troubled side reflected in his deep racism and racist policies. He was also responsible for spreading a great deal of pro-war propaganda and passing the Espionage and Sedition Act, which has been considered an unconstitutional attack on freedom tantamount to censorship. Many prominent people ended up in prison thanks to their antiwar beliefs.
| Timeline of Woodrow Wilson's Life | |
|---|
| Year | Event |
| 1856 | Born in Staunton, Virginia |
| 1902 | Became President of Princeton University |
| 1913 | Became President of the United States |
| 1913 | Signed Federal Reserve Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act |
| 1914 | The Lusitania sinks off the coast of Ireland and England. |
| 1917 | The United States declared war on Germany |
| 1917 | Signed Espionage and Sedition Act |
| 1919 | First European visit by a sitting President for Paris Peace Conference |
| 1920 | Won Nobel Peace Prize |
| 1920 | Suffered second stroke and paralysis |
| 1924 | He died on Feb 3 at the age of 67. |
Wilson was born in Staunton, Virginia, in 1856, against the backdrop of the Civil War. His father was a Presbyterian minister. He was raised in Georgia and South Carolina, making him the first U.S. President born and raised in the South, the first of many firsts.
He attended Johns Hopkins University, practiced law for a while, then ultimately earned his doctorate in history. This would make him the first President to have earned a Ph.D. He authored several books to propagate his ideas, including creating a Parliamentary system in the U.S. similar to England.
Fig. 2: Seal of Princeton University
With his sterling academic reputation, Wilson seemed a natural choice as President of Princeton, where he served from 1902-1910. Ultimately, however, he grew tired of the conservative board's ongoing resistance to some of his more progressive ideas. He moved on when progressive New Jersey Democrats offered him the chance to run for governor.
Presidency of Woodrow Wilson
With his political career now begun in earnest, Wilson campaigned for the Presidency in 1912 on the promise of improving conditions for African-Americans in the United States. He earned support for this from the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). Among his campaign promises was one to take action to stop lynchings that had become frequent in southern states.
Broken Campaign Promises: Civil Rights
Once in office, Wilson came under political pressure to avoid intervening on the issue of lynching and changed his stance to say that he felt it was the responsibility of state governments to take action against lynchings and not the place of the federal government. Most controversially, Wilson imposed racial segregation of federal employees in Washington D.C.–an effort that inspired backlash from his NAACP supporters.
Wilson had also shown support at various points for giving women the right to vote during his campaigns, but his support became timid once in office for fear of dividing his party. Though women would ultimately win the right to vote through the 19th Amendment during Wilson's Presidency, it was not ratified until August 1920, after World War I significantly increased women's roles in working-class American society.
Woodrow Wilson WW1
For his second term, Woodrow Wilson ran on a campaign that all but guaranteed neutrality in World War 1. His campaign slogan was "He kept us out of war!" However, those who had voted for him based on these promises were in for a surprise. The continued and relentless submarine attacks by the Germans, including the Lusitania, upped the ante considerably. By the time Wilson began his second term in 1917, it had appeared that entry into the Great War would be all but inevitable.
Thus the first American draft since the Civil War became a reality under Wilson's watch. Under a fierce pro-war propaganda campaign, he signed the Espionage and Sedition Act, which meant the government could prosecute folks for their anti-war views. All told, a disastrous 116,000 Americans died in the trenches during the Great War.
The Fourteen Points, Paris Peace Conference, and League of Nations:
In 1919, Wilson became the first President to visit the European continent. This visit was the Paris Peace Conference, where leaders would draft a plan for peace following World War l, known as the Versailles Treaty. This would prove a complicated task.
While England, France, and Italy joined forces during the war, there were now disputes over the redrawing of Italy's borders. There was contentious land in Croatia on the Adriatic that had formerly belonged to the Venetian empire. Italy wished to reclaim the ground, but the treaty's architects prevented it.
Fig. 3 - Versailles Treaty
Wilson drafted his 14 points, a plan for post-war peace, at the end of World War l. The most important of the points was the very last one, which was the formation of the League of Nations. He passionately believed that this would prevent future wars.
However, this met stiff resistance in the Senate, with Republicans blocking the measure. Objectors included those who wanted no part of the Versailles Treaty and would sign off only on the condition that its architects draft amendments. Sadly, Senate approval was not forthcoming. Thus, though an American President was responsible for the birth of the League of Nations, the United States never participated in the body. It would ultimately lead to the formation of the United Nations, however.
Woodrow Wilson's 14 Points
- Transparent diplomacy
- Free trade by the sea at all times
- Equal trading conditions
- Decreasing the number of arms in each nation
- Impartial adjustment of colonial claims
- Self-determination of Russia and evacuation of all Central Powers
- Evacuation and restoration of Belgium
- Return of all French territories
- Redrawing of Italian borders
- Austro-Hungarian self-determination
- Creation of Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro in the Balkans.
- Development of a Turkish state
- Development of an independent Polish state
- Formation of the League of Nations.
Woodrow Wilson's Cause of Death
By 1920, Wilson's efforts to ratify the Versailles treaty hit a wall with the Republican majority in Congress. He then decided to decide on voters on the campaign trail. This feat required traveling thousands of miles and a punishing itinerary, which it turned out Wilson's body found too challenging to take. On October 2, 1920, he suffered a second catastrophic stroke. Half-paralyzed and incapacitated, he went into seclusion. During this time, his wife acted as his proxy, making many critical presidential decisions, and the media covered up his illness.
On March 4, 1921, Warren Harding took office as the next President of the United States.
Fig. 3: Wilson's Successor, Warren G. Harding
After a second stroke, Woodrow Wilson died on Feb 3, 1924, at age 67. He was confident that his legacy was untouched. But historians agree that it is qualified at best and troubled at worst. Some feel that he was the worst President of all time.
Facts About Woodrow Wilson
- Woodrow Wilson served as President of Princeton University.
- Wilson was the first President to be buried in Washington and a church.
- He was the first President to hold a press conference.
- He was the first President to hold a Ph.D.
- His nickname was "The Schoolmaster President."
- He was the first Democrat to serve in office since the Civil War.
- He had three children: Margaret, Jesse, and Eleanor.
- His first marriage was to Ellen Louise Axson (m. 1885).
- His second marriage was to Edith Bolling Galt (m. 1915).
Woodrow Wilson: Accomplishments and Legacy
Though the League of Nations ultimately became a reality, Republicans kept the Americans out. In any case, the body monitored and prevented several global conflicts. Its existence eventually led to the formation of the United Nations. While a healthy development, Wilson felt that the separate peace agreement brokered with Germany sulling the United States' image.
Some say that his post-war plans, rather than fostering peace, led to World War ll. Italian resentment had built up over the redrawing of its borders, and Germany had been hit with sanctions so punishing that the resulting dire economic straits led to the ascension of Hitler.
Wilson contributed much to our modern economic and banking system, the Federal Reserve's creation, and the income tax. However, his broken promises of peace and betrayal of African Americans sully these works.
Woodrow Wilson - Key takeaways
- Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States. He served in office from 1913-1921.
- Wilson was born in 1856 in Staunton, Virginia. He died in 1924 after suffering a stroke that rendered him paralyzed. His stern schoolteacher-ish manner earned him the nickname "The Schoolmaster President."
- Wilson's economic policies were largely progressive, though he was racist even for the times, and his segregation-based social policies left much to be desired.
- He initially boasted of a non-interventionist policy regarding overseas military adventures. Still, he broke his campaign trail promises and swiftly plunged the nation into World War l amid a swirl of pro-war propaganda.
- He drafted a peace plan following the war, encapsulated in his 14 Points. These points included the establishment of the League of Nations.
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