United States Victorious in War, but a Failure at Peace

President Woodrow Wilson was a very stubborn man, however the tour he went on across America to try and convince the people to accept the treaty failed and the Senators in general were isolationists, therefore the Senate and popular opposition led to the defeat of the Treaty of Versailles in the U.S. Senate.

In the year 1919, President Woodrow Wilson went on a tour around the country to try and convince the American people to support the Treaty of Versailles. This tour was a failure because the people did not accept the treaty and wanted nothing to do with it. There was a general disdain towards the Treaty of Versailles from the people of America. This is proven in Document B, when the New Republic voices the opinion of the general public’s disapproval of the treaty and says that, “The Treaty of Versailles...Does much to intensify and nothing to heal the old ugly dissension.” This shows the public’s complete objection of the treaty through the press. Jane Addams voices the opinion of the women on The League of Nations in Document H when she explains how, “The Women’s Peace Party held its annual meeting...and never for a moment did anyone doubt the need for continued effort to bring about an adequate international organization.”

The Senate was a big force in the defeat of the treaty. The Senators, in a general sense, were isolationists. They believed that we should stay isolated from the rest of the world and should not get involved in foreign affairs. For example, Henry Cabot Lodge was a Senator from Massachusetts who was strongly in opposition of the Treaty of Versailles. He led the fight against ratification of the Treaty of Versailles from his position of power as the chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and Senate Majority Leader when the Republicans gained control of the Senate.In Document A William Borah describes to the Senate that the “proposition” of the “proposed leauge” “is force to destroy force, conflict to prevent conflict,...