Abandoning American Neutrality: Woodrow Wilson and the Beginning of the Great War, August 1914 - December 1915

During the first twelve months of World War I President Woodrow Wilson had a sincere desire to maintain American neutrality. The president, however, soon found this position unsustainable. As Wilson sought to mediate an end to the European conflict he realized that the war presented an irresistible opportunity to strengthen the US economy though expanded trade with the Allies. As this carefully argued study shows, the contradiction between Wilson's idealistic and pragmatic aims ultimately drove him to abandon neutrality in late 1915 - helping to pave the way for America's entrance into the war.