How did the USA profit from World War I
The American public did not know that over the past 10-15 years, Washington has established close friendly ties with London. This was known only to the American top. Already during the Russo-Japanese War, it was obvious that the United States and Britain were acting in a united front, supporting Japan against Russia. In 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt sent Senator Lodge on a special mission to the UK. Lodge informed King Edward VII of the president’s desire for "the United States and Britain to perform together (in Europe) just as they do together in the Far East."
The kinship of cultures, common language, extensive financial and economic ties and common global interests (the confrontation between Russia and Germany) brought the United States and England closer together, forced to forget about past differences. This rapprochement began during the Spanish-American war. Under the influence of the growth of the military and economic power of the German Empire, which extremely worried the British elite, rapprochement continued. The United States, which was faced with German economic penetration in Latin America, also quickly began to forget the former unattractive memories in Anglo-American relations. Japan’s support in the war with Russia brought the United States and England closer together. The Anglo-Saxon elite managed to pit Russia and Japan, and to solve a number of important tasks in the Far East. At the same time, the United States and Britain conducted a “general rehearsal” of the future First World War and the destruction of Russia with the help of a “detonator” of a big war in Europe and revolution.
In 1914, the Anglo-Saxons' brilliant operation was a success - they managed to push the Russians against the Germans, the main and most powerful rivals of England and the USA on the planet. It only remained to wait for Germany and Russia to exhaust each other in a titanic struggle, which would lead to the collapse of two great empires.
American soldiers in France. 1918 year
Who is war and who is mother
In the first months of the war in Europe, the US economy experienced problems due to a decline in trade. The hasty liquidation of European values in American banks was accompanied by a sharp fall in securities and US currencies. Trade with Europe has almost stopped. The United States harvested the largest crop in stories countries, and the grain could not take out. Wheat prices fell, cotton prices fell even more (Germany ranked second in US cotton exports). The southern states began to experience big problems.
However, these problems were short-term. Already in January, 1915, began the export of American weapons to England. The decline of US trade with the Central Powers was offset by increased trade with Britain and neutral countries, which in the beginning of the war used their neutrality and profited well from trade with Germany. In particular, US trade with Denmark increased over one year 13 times. Wheat exports from the USA to the neutral states of Europe grew by more than 1915 times in the 1913 year compared to the 2,5 year; export of pork - 3 times; shoes - 10 times; cars and auto parts - 15 times; cotton - more than 20 times. 1 January 1916, the New York Times reported that US foreign trade reached the largest in the entire history of the country and that the surplus for the past 1915 was more than 1 billion.
President Wilson, under the pressure of the industrialists of the North and the planters of the South, forced foreign trade. At first, American exports were hampered not so much by the blockade as by the lack of maritime transport. In 1913, only 9% of US foreign trade cargo was transported by US ships. The United States chartered mainly English and German ships. After the outbreak of the war, the German ships did not appear in the Atlantic Ocean, and the British transport was solving the problems of England, he could not satisfy US requests. Therefore, in 1915, Wilson proposed to Congress that a large merchant fleet be built at the expense of the state to trade and supply the warring states in Europe. For the same purpose, the president canceled the prescription of Brian, which prohibited American banks from lending to the warring powers.
True, England gradually expanded the naval blockade, strengthening control over the maritime trade of the United States and other neutral countries. British ships were guarding the entrances from the ocean to the North Sea. The cargo going across the Atlantic to Scandinavia and Holland was inspected in English ports. The list of goods banned from importing to neutral countries has been constantly increasing. In January, 1915, England smuggled food, in August, 1915 - cotton. As a result, almost all goods that Germany bought abroad became military smuggling. For neutral states, London set an import standard that did not exceed the pre-war importation of relevant goods into these countries. At the same time, England established a “black list” of Scandinavian and Dutch companies that traded with Germany. All shipments destined for these companies have been confiscated. A “black list” of American companies that traded in a roundabout way with Germany or neutral countries that had connections with the Germans was also compiled. In the end, after a year and a half, America was forced to restrict trade only with the Entente powers.
Washington, in a note directed to London, protested against such a blockade and a “black list”. But these American notes, as Colonel House of the British Ambassador to the United States assured then, were intended primarily for "domestic use." Since the loss of American trade and “black lists” was more than offset by growing trade with the allies. So, 1916 year gave the excess of exports over imports by more than 3 billion dollars. Thus, by the end of 1915, the United States was far from the principle of absolute neutrality proclaimed in August 1914.
In the American literature, forgetting about the strategic course of London and Washington on the construction of a “new world order”, the prevailing view is that the United States moved away from neutrality due to economic interests (sales to allies weapons war materials, food and raw materials). The crucial role in changing the attitudes and policies of Washington is attributed to Morgan’s banking house. They say that prudent and practical bankers, weighing the land and sea forces of the opposing military-political blocs, relied on the Entente from the very beginning. But in reality, this is only part of the truth. The top of the United States, in alliance with the masters of England, provoked the war, poisoned Germany and Russia. And in the course of the war, they only adjusted the course, gradually preparing American public opinion for the US to take the side of "justice and freedom."
Coordinated the general course of the United States and England Morgan's companion - Henry Davison. In November, 1914, he traveled to London to negotiate with the British on the financing of Allied orders in America. In 1915-1916 Henry Davison visited London and Paris several times. In London, he negotiated with the British elite - Prime Minister Asquith, Lloyd George, Balfour, Ridding, Gray, Kitchener, etc. Morgan himself took part in some of the meetings. In January, 1915, Morgan was appointed commercial representative of Britain to the United States. In May 1915, the Morgana firm was already a sales representative for all the allied states. Morgan’s exclusive authority as an observer for all Allied purchases in the United States allowed him to place huge orders among the companies under his control. As a result, Morgan’s firm has become the world's largest purchasing organization. She bought ammunition, food, raw materials, gasoline, steel products and non-ferrous metals, etc. In the summer of 1915, the cost of these purchases reached 10 million dollars a day. Allied military purchases that went through Morgan’s firm were valued at several billion dollars.
Soon the question arose of financing the huge military purchases of the Allies in America. Again, Morgan became the main intermediary for the financing of the Entente. In October, 1915, Morgan granted Britain and France the first loan in 500 million dollars. All loans made by these two countries in Morgan before the US entered the war in April 1917, amounted to 1 billion. 470 million dollars. In addition, European holders sold about $ 2 billion in securities in the US with the help of Morgan. In this case, the money is still not enough. The American market refused to continue to absorb British and French securities. 27 November 1916 of the Year The Federal Reserve has recommended that member banks refrain from buying allied bonds. This decision has shaken the position of the British pound sterling.
In London, responded immediately. The British Treasury Department reported that the gold fund in 600 million dollars will be concentrated in America to maintain British authority in New York. From Europe, South Africa, Australia and East Asia, high-speed cruisers loaded with precious metal hurried to the shores of America. The United States has become the center of concentration of world gold. Only during the 4 months — from December 1916 to March 1917 — did gold arrive in New York on 422 million dollars in the form of ingots and chased coins from different countries. Until April 1917, the Allies sent gold to the United States more than 1 billion dollars. But this was not enough.
However, in April, the United States sided with the Entente. The federal government has taken allied loans. Through 11 days after the US declared war on Germany, Washington granted the Allies a government loan of $ 3 billion. The problem of further funding the Allies for the Entente was resolved. But two and a half years earlier, America’s largest banking house (Morgan’s house), and the largest national banks controlled by this house (the directors of 61 Bank of New York and the US industrial concerns linked the fate of their capital with the fate of England and france. That is, from the very beginning of the war, the United States secretly fought on the side of England.
The issues of war and peace in Washington were determined not so much by the economic interests of industrialists and bankers, but by far-reaching economic and military-strategic considerations. The US masters built a “new world order, where America became the financial, economic and military center of the planet, the main“ command center ”of the masters of the West.
Leading American politicians from the very beginning of the war knew that the United States would come out against Germany, that it was only a matter of time. Presidential adviser House, who had a special influence on Wilson, argued that "the United States cannot allow the Allies to fail, leaving Germany with the military factor dominating the world." The former president of Harvard University, Charles Elliot, who was called "the smartest American of his time," wrote a week after the outbreak of war in Europe to President Wilson that the United States should join the allies in order to teach Germany a lesson. Another prominent American, former Secretary of State Ellio Ruth, issued a resolution stating that "for the US, the best way to bring peace is to go to war." Former US President Theodore Roosevelt, although at the beginning and approved a declaration of neutrality, soon with General Leonard Wood led the movement for accession to the allies. Republican leader Senator Lodge, Chief Justice White, former President Taft, Vice President Marshall Wilson, US Ambassador to London Paige, and other influential people representing the American elite also spoke in favor of the Entente.
Wilson himself violated his declaration of neutrality. In February, 1916 of the year he invited the leaders of the Democratic Party in Congress to the White House and, informing them about the possibility of war between the USA and Germany, argued that America’s entry into a world war would lead to its end even in the summer of that year and thus the USA would render great service to humanity. In the same month, House suggested that the British Foreign Secretary Gray convene a peace conference and offer conditions favorable to the allies. "And if it does not lead to peace, if Germany proves to be unreasonable, then the United States will leave the conference as a participant in the war on the side of the allies."
Rear Admiral Victor Blue (center, left), Head of the US Bureau of Shipping, 1918 year. During the war, women were officially enrolled in the ranks of US troops. The US Navy created reserve forces that allowed women to perform the duties of radio operators, nurses and other support positions.
Information training
However, in order to draw the 48 states and the 100 million population into the war, it was not enough just the consent of the elite financial-industrial and political stratum. Therefore, from the very beginning of the war, American society was treated in the right direction. It is worth noting that in the US, nothing has changed to the present; before each aggression, Americans are appropriately processed to believe that the “empire of Good” wages war in the name of “freedom and democracy”, “the good of all mankind”.
In this case The American top was actively assisted by the British, who were actively campaigning in America. In March 1918, Gilbert Parker, a former member of parliament and the head of British propaganda in the USA, said: “We supplied 360 local newspapers in the United States with English information, giving weekly reviews and commentary on the course of the war. We made contact with the mass of the population through films about the army and navy, through conversations, articles, pamphlets, etc., through letters printed as answers to questions from individual Americans in the major newspapers of the states in which these Americans resided; copies of letters were placed simultaneously in newspapers of other states. We convinced many people to write the articles we needed, used the services and help of confidential friends, and received reports from knowledgeable Americans. We have organized societies associated with leading and famous people of any profession from all walks of life in the United States, ranging from university and college presidents, professors and scientists. At our request, friends and correspondents arranged reports, debates and lectures by American citizens ... In addition to extensive informal communication with the population, we sent a huge amount of documents and literature to public libraries, youth societies, universities, colleges, historical societies, clubs, newspapers. ”
Germany also tried to organize its information network in the United States, but its direct "martinet" methods only benefited the enemies of Berlin. In particular, the Germans bribed the daily New York Mail, but found the bribe. The Germans spent large sums of money to finance pacifist societies, but these operations were immediately publicized, which severely damaged the image of Germany. The German ambassador in Washington, Bernstorf, requested Berlin's encrypted telegram for permission to spend a large amount on bribing the congressmen, but this telegram was decrypted. In addition, at the beginning of the war, the British cut the German ocean cable and attached it to English. From this time on, telegraphic communications between Germany and America passed through London. The British censorship was able to control the telegraph information that came from Germany to America. This greatly hampered German agitation overseas.
The British in terms of propaganda in the United States gained a complete advantage over the Germans. English culture and language were native to most Americans. London had a great influence on US cultural centers. Before the war, American newspapers had few correspondents in Europe; they used English channels. The largest New York newspapers, which set the tone for the whole country, took the pro-British position at the very beginning of the war.
Germany’s actions, which were appropriately handled by the press, provided rich material for anti-German agitation in the United States. In particular, Germany’s invasion of Belgium had a big effect. The statement of the German Chancellor Bettman-Golweg that the agreement between Britain, France and Germany on the neutrality of Belgium is a “scrap of paper” made a heavy impression in America. A month later, the German Kaiser gave another great reason for anti-German agitation - New York newspapers reported on the 50-million indemnity that Germany imposed on Liege and Brussels. Soon, American newspapers reported on the Louvain massacre — the German military destroyed an old cultural center, burned down houses around 1300, including a university library founded in the early 15th century, where 250 stored thousands of valuable rare documents, shot civilians without sparing women and old men.
Awkward Germanic explanations only worsened the impression of the Americans. The German Embassy in Washington officially announced that Louvain was destroyed in punishment for the fact that the civilian population of this city attacked the military. Such a “justification” in the USA seemed strange and outrageous. Kaiser Wilhelm II tried to “fix” the case and 7 of September 1914 wrote President Wilson that “the ancient city of Louvain ... had to be destroyed to protect my troops ... My generals were forced to take the most severe measures to punish the guilty and keep the bloodthirsty population from continuing their shameful actions. " It is clear that the talk of "defending German generals" and "bloodthirsty civilians" became first-class samples for anti-German propaganda in the United States. And the arrival in the US of ships with several thousand Belgian refugees, mostly women and children, increased the effect.
The activity of the German spies in America served as an excellent material for forcing anti-German hysteria. In 1915, the Allies began to receive large quantities of American shells. They were made of steel and had a large explosion force. In Berlin, decided to go on sabotage to stop the flow of ammunition from America to Europe. The German ambassador in Washington created a special company with the official sign of the American corporation, which was engaged in buying plants and equipment, taking large orders to sabotage them. Thus, the Germans tried to disrupt the supply of allies with ammunition. In March, an officer from the German naval headquarters, Captain Rintelen, arrived with a fake passport from Berlin to New York. A few weeks later, German military engineer Fay arrived. Rintelen promised the German command: "I will buy everything I can and destroy everything else." Shortly after the arrival of Rintelen and Fairy on the ships that were sent with military goods to Europe, fires began to mysteriously break out.
In New York, Rintelen contacted another German spy, a former artillery officer and chemist Shele, who lived in the States for more than 20 years. He invented a cigar-sized portable lead-igniting projectile. The "cigar" was divided inside into two parts by a copper disc. Both parts were filled with different acids, which when mixed silently ignited. The time that elapsed before the contact of liquids depended on the thickness of the copper plate. Thus, it was possible to calculate in advance the time of ignition of the "cigarette". In addition, Fey invented a bomb that was imperceptibly attached to the rudder of a steamer and in the open sea she incapacitated the ship. Interned at the port of New York, the German ship Frederick the Great became a factory for the production of explosive devices. And the interned German sailors, who worked as loaders at the docks and were recruited by Rintelen, brought “cigars” to the ships that went with military supplies to Europe.
In May, fires on ships on the high seas and explosions at US military factories became more frequent on 1915. This coincided with the great Austro-German offensive on the Russian front, when the Russian troops suffered a great shortage of heavy artillery, guns, ammunition, etc. In the United States, shells were ordered. But ammunition transports that went from America to Arkhangelsk were often delayed in transit and did not always arrive at their destination. The causes of fires on ships at sea were difficult to establish. Lead "cigars" melted at the fire, leaving almost no traces. The American police in the port, the German agents managed to send on the wrong track. Therefore, the production of "cigars" was continued.
In July 1915, the portfolio of the German commercial attaché Albert fell into the hands of the New York police. There were bills where Albert wrote down with German thoroughness where 28 million dollars went and what they were used for propaganda and sabotage in the United States. The press has published these documents. However, the Americans failed to find the main focus of sabotage activity. Could not cover the German saboteurs and sent agents of the British Scotland Yard. However, in London, British experts continued to decipher the German telegrams. From the reports of the German military attache in Washington von Papen, Rintelen's mission to the United States became known. Knowing the German cipher, they sent a telegram on behalf of Berlin in which it was withdrawn to Germany. In August, 1915, Rintelen went to Holland and the British intercepted him.
However, the production of "cigars" and sabotage continued. A few weeks after Rintelin left, 29 August, there was a big bang at Du Pont powder plants in the state of Delaware. On September 1, the steamer Rotterdam caught fire on the open sea. September 2 broke out the steamer "Santa Anna". October 24 Americans arrested Fairy. But the fires continued. In the following weeks, the 4 ship was on fire in the open sea, and two fires at the factories of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation destroyed entire hulls. In late November, an 31 man was killed by an explosion at the Dupont factory. In total in 1915, German agents staged large sabotage at 15 US military factories. From the beginning of 1915, before the US entered the war, acts of sabotage were carried out on 47 ships that sailed from the USA to Europe. The number of acts of sabotage was supposed to be more, but many recruited workers did not dare to perform the task, they simply threw "cigars" into the sea. During the same time, as a result of the explosions, the 43 plant and several large military warehouses in the United States were completely and partially destroyed.
In December, the German military and naval attache Papen and Boy-Ed were expelled from the US 1915. Gradually, the American police caught all the major saboteurs, but not all. Total for the war in the United States arrested 67 German agents. Most of the diversions were committed in 1915 year. However, the most serious acts were committed after the expulsion or arrest of the leadership of the German spy ring. So, 30 July 1916, an explosion of tremendous power woke the people of New York. The shop windows and skyscraper windows were broken. Projectiles were torn and it seemed that the city was subjected to artillery shelling. A large ammunition depot on the island of Black Tom exploded. Over a thousand tons of explosives, including 17 ammunition wagons, exploded. 11 January 1917, New York again experienced a panic from the rumble of torn shells. In the evening, a powder plant located in 15 km from New York was blown up. This plant produced up to 3 million shells per month and burned all. The fire lasted for several hours until 500 exploded. Thousands of 3-inch projectiles. Losses only from these two explosions amounted to about 40 million dollars.
However, neither buying up through the nominees of military factories, nor an attempt to undermine the production and export of ammunition with the help of sabotage acts yielded tangible results. The US military industry easily made up for all the losses. In exchange for one car of military materials bought out by Germany at the beginning of the war, American industry threw 10 cars into the market; instead of one projectile, destroyed by German agents, produced hundreds of new ones. Arson and explosions could not shake the powerful American industry. On the other hand, these sabotage and the actions of the German agents were an excellent reason for anti-German agitation. Even more outrage of the American public was caused by the actions of the German submarine fleet. This prepared US public opinion for entry into the war on the side of the Entente.
American gunners. 1918 year
One of the most successful fighter pilots is American Eddie Rickenbacker
The kinship of cultures, common language, extensive financial and economic ties and common global interests (the confrontation between Russia and Germany) brought the United States and England closer together, forced to forget about past differences. This rapprochement began during the Spanish-American war. Under the influence of the growth of the military and economic power of the German Empire, which extremely worried the British elite, rapprochement continued. The United States, which was faced with German economic penetration in Latin America, also quickly began to forget the former unattractive memories in Anglo-American relations. Japan’s support in the war with Russia brought the United States and England closer together. The Anglo-Saxon elite managed to pit Russia and Japan, and to solve a number of important tasks in the Far East. At the same time, the United States and Britain conducted a “general rehearsal” of the future First World War and the destruction of Russia with the help of a “detonator” of a big war in Europe and revolution.
In 1914, the Anglo-Saxons' brilliant operation was a success - they managed to push the Russians against the Germans, the main and most powerful rivals of England and the USA on the planet. It only remained to wait for Germany and Russia to exhaust each other in a titanic struggle, which would lead to the collapse of two great empires.
American soldiers in France. 1918 year
Who is war and who is mother
In the first months of the war in Europe, the US economy experienced problems due to a decline in trade. The hasty liquidation of European values in American banks was accompanied by a sharp fall in securities and US currencies. Trade with Europe has almost stopped. The United States harvested the largest crop in stories countries, and the grain could not take out. Wheat prices fell, cotton prices fell even more (Germany ranked second in US cotton exports). The southern states began to experience big problems.
However, these problems were short-term. Already in January, 1915, began the export of American weapons to England. The decline of US trade with the Central Powers was offset by increased trade with Britain and neutral countries, which in the beginning of the war used their neutrality and profited well from trade with Germany. In particular, US trade with Denmark increased over one year 13 times. Wheat exports from the USA to the neutral states of Europe grew by more than 1915 times in the 1913 year compared to the 2,5 year; export of pork - 3 times; shoes - 10 times; cars and auto parts - 15 times; cotton - more than 20 times. 1 January 1916, the New York Times reported that US foreign trade reached the largest in the entire history of the country and that the surplus for the past 1915 was more than 1 billion.
President Wilson, under the pressure of the industrialists of the North and the planters of the South, forced foreign trade. At first, American exports were hampered not so much by the blockade as by the lack of maritime transport. In 1913, only 9% of US foreign trade cargo was transported by US ships. The United States chartered mainly English and German ships. After the outbreak of the war, the German ships did not appear in the Atlantic Ocean, and the British transport was solving the problems of England, he could not satisfy US requests. Therefore, in 1915, Wilson proposed to Congress that a large merchant fleet be built at the expense of the state to trade and supply the warring states in Europe. For the same purpose, the president canceled the prescription of Brian, which prohibited American banks from lending to the warring powers.
True, England gradually expanded the naval blockade, strengthening control over the maritime trade of the United States and other neutral countries. British ships were guarding the entrances from the ocean to the North Sea. The cargo going across the Atlantic to Scandinavia and Holland was inspected in English ports. The list of goods banned from importing to neutral countries has been constantly increasing. In January, 1915, England smuggled food, in August, 1915 - cotton. As a result, almost all goods that Germany bought abroad became military smuggling. For neutral states, London set an import standard that did not exceed the pre-war importation of relevant goods into these countries. At the same time, England established a “black list” of Scandinavian and Dutch companies that traded with Germany. All shipments destined for these companies have been confiscated. A “black list” of American companies that traded in a roundabout way with Germany or neutral countries that had connections with the Germans was also compiled. In the end, after a year and a half, America was forced to restrict trade only with the Entente powers.
Washington, in a note directed to London, protested against such a blockade and a “black list”. But these American notes, as Colonel House of the British Ambassador to the United States assured then, were intended primarily for "domestic use." Since the loss of American trade and “black lists” was more than offset by growing trade with the allies. So, 1916 year gave the excess of exports over imports by more than 3 billion dollars. Thus, by the end of 1915, the United States was far from the principle of absolute neutrality proclaimed in August 1914.
In the American literature, forgetting about the strategic course of London and Washington on the construction of a “new world order”, the prevailing view is that the United States moved away from neutrality due to economic interests (sales to allies weapons war materials, food and raw materials). The crucial role in changing the attitudes and policies of Washington is attributed to Morgan’s banking house. They say that prudent and practical bankers, weighing the land and sea forces of the opposing military-political blocs, relied on the Entente from the very beginning. But in reality, this is only part of the truth. The top of the United States, in alliance with the masters of England, provoked the war, poisoned Germany and Russia. And in the course of the war, they only adjusted the course, gradually preparing American public opinion for the US to take the side of "justice and freedom."
Coordinated the general course of the United States and England Morgan's companion - Henry Davison. In November, 1914, he traveled to London to negotiate with the British on the financing of Allied orders in America. In 1915-1916 Henry Davison visited London and Paris several times. In London, he negotiated with the British elite - Prime Minister Asquith, Lloyd George, Balfour, Ridding, Gray, Kitchener, etc. Morgan himself took part in some of the meetings. In January, 1915, Morgan was appointed commercial representative of Britain to the United States. In May 1915, the Morgana firm was already a sales representative for all the allied states. Morgan’s exclusive authority as an observer for all Allied purchases in the United States allowed him to place huge orders among the companies under his control. As a result, Morgan’s firm has become the world's largest purchasing organization. She bought ammunition, food, raw materials, gasoline, steel products and non-ferrous metals, etc. In the summer of 1915, the cost of these purchases reached 10 million dollars a day. Allied military purchases that went through Morgan’s firm were valued at several billion dollars.
Soon the question arose of financing the huge military purchases of the Allies in America. Again, Morgan became the main intermediary for the financing of the Entente. In October, 1915, Morgan granted Britain and France the first loan in 500 million dollars. All loans made by these two countries in Morgan before the US entered the war in April 1917, amounted to 1 billion. 470 million dollars. In addition, European holders sold about $ 2 billion in securities in the US with the help of Morgan. In this case, the money is still not enough. The American market refused to continue to absorb British and French securities. 27 November 1916 of the Year The Federal Reserve has recommended that member banks refrain from buying allied bonds. This decision has shaken the position of the British pound sterling.
In London, responded immediately. The British Treasury Department reported that the gold fund in 600 million dollars will be concentrated in America to maintain British authority in New York. From Europe, South Africa, Australia and East Asia, high-speed cruisers loaded with precious metal hurried to the shores of America. The United States has become the center of concentration of world gold. Only during the 4 months — from December 1916 to March 1917 — did gold arrive in New York on 422 million dollars in the form of ingots and chased coins from different countries. Until April 1917, the Allies sent gold to the United States more than 1 billion dollars. But this was not enough.
However, in April, the United States sided with the Entente. The federal government has taken allied loans. Through 11 days after the US declared war on Germany, Washington granted the Allies a government loan of $ 3 billion. The problem of further funding the Allies for the Entente was resolved. But two and a half years earlier, America’s largest banking house (Morgan’s house), and the largest national banks controlled by this house (the directors of 61 Bank of New York and the US industrial concerns linked the fate of their capital with the fate of England and france. That is, from the very beginning of the war, the United States secretly fought on the side of England.
The issues of war and peace in Washington were determined not so much by the economic interests of industrialists and bankers, but by far-reaching economic and military-strategic considerations. The US masters built a “new world order, where America became the financial, economic and military center of the planet, the main“ command center ”of the masters of the West.
Leading American politicians from the very beginning of the war knew that the United States would come out against Germany, that it was only a matter of time. Presidential adviser House, who had a special influence on Wilson, argued that "the United States cannot allow the Allies to fail, leaving Germany with the military factor dominating the world." The former president of Harvard University, Charles Elliot, who was called "the smartest American of his time," wrote a week after the outbreak of war in Europe to President Wilson that the United States should join the allies in order to teach Germany a lesson. Another prominent American, former Secretary of State Ellio Ruth, issued a resolution stating that "for the US, the best way to bring peace is to go to war." Former US President Theodore Roosevelt, although at the beginning and approved a declaration of neutrality, soon with General Leonard Wood led the movement for accession to the allies. Republican leader Senator Lodge, Chief Justice White, former President Taft, Vice President Marshall Wilson, US Ambassador to London Paige, and other influential people representing the American elite also spoke in favor of the Entente.
Wilson himself violated his declaration of neutrality. In February, 1916 of the year he invited the leaders of the Democratic Party in Congress to the White House and, informing them about the possibility of war between the USA and Germany, argued that America’s entry into a world war would lead to its end even in the summer of that year and thus the USA would render great service to humanity. In the same month, House suggested that the British Foreign Secretary Gray convene a peace conference and offer conditions favorable to the allies. "And if it does not lead to peace, if Germany proves to be unreasonable, then the United States will leave the conference as a participant in the war on the side of the allies."
Rear Admiral Victor Blue (center, left), Head of the US Bureau of Shipping, 1918 year. During the war, women were officially enrolled in the ranks of US troops. The US Navy created reserve forces that allowed women to perform the duties of radio operators, nurses and other support positions.
Information training
However, in order to draw the 48 states and the 100 million population into the war, it was not enough just the consent of the elite financial-industrial and political stratum. Therefore, from the very beginning of the war, American society was treated in the right direction. It is worth noting that in the US, nothing has changed to the present; before each aggression, Americans are appropriately processed to believe that the “empire of Good” wages war in the name of “freedom and democracy”, “the good of all mankind”.
In this case The American top was actively assisted by the British, who were actively campaigning in America. In March 1918, Gilbert Parker, a former member of parliament and the head of British propaganda in the USA, said: “We supplied 360 local newspapers in the United States with English information, giving weekly reviews and commentary on the course of the war. We made contact with the mass of the population through films about the army and navy, through conversations, articles, pamphlets, etc., through letters printed as answers to questions from individual Americans in the major newspapers of the states in which these Americans resided; copies of letters were placed simultaneously in newspapers of other states. We convinced many people to write the articles we needed, used the services and help of confidential friends, and received reports from knowledgeable Americans. We have organized societies associated with leading and famous people of any profession from all walks of life in the United States, ranging from university and college presidents, professors and scientists. At our request, friends and correspondents arranged reports, debates and lectures by American citizens ... In addition to extensive informal communication with the population, we sent a huge amount of documents and literature to public libraries, youth societies, universities, colleges, historical societies, clubs, newspapers. ”
Germany also tried to organize its information network in the United States, but its direct "martinet" methods only benefited the enemies of Berlin. In particular, the Germans bribed the daily New York Mail, but found the bribe. The Germans spent large sums of money to finance pacifist societies, but these operations were immediately publicized, which severely damaged the image of Germany. The German ambassador in Washington, Bernstorf, requested Berlin's encrypted telegram for permission to spend a large amount on bribing the congressmen, but this telegram was decrypted. In addition, at the beginning of the war, the British cut the German ocean cable and attached it to English. From this time on, telegraphic communications between Germany and America passed through London. The British censorship was able to control the telegraph information that came from Germany to America. This greatly hampered German agitation overseas.
The British in terms of propaganda in the United States gained a complete advantage over the Germans. English culture and language were native to most Americans. London had a great influence on US cultural centers. Before the war, American newspapers had few correspondents in Europe; they used English channels. The largest New York newspapers, which set the tone for the whole country, took the pro-British position at the very beginning of the war.
Germany’s actions, which were appropriately handled by the press, provided rich material for anti-German agitation in the United States. In particular, Germany’s invasion of Belgium had a big effect. The statement of the German Chancellor Bettman-Golweg that the agreement between Britain, France and Germany on the neutrality of Belgium is a “scrap of paper” made a heavy impression in America. A month later, the German Kaiser gave another great reason for anti-German agitation - New York newspapers reported on the 50-million indemnity that Germany imposed on Liege and Brussels. Soon, American newspapers reported on the Louvain massacre — the German military destroyed an old cultural center, burned down houses around 1300, including a university library founded in the early 15th century, where 250 stored thousands of valuable rare documents, shot civilians without sparing women and old men.
Awkward Germanic explanations only worsened the impression of the Americans. The German Embassy in Washington officially announced that Louvain was destroyed in punishment for the fact that the civilian population of this city attacked the military. Such a “justification” in the USA seemed strange and outrageous. Kaiser Wilhelm II tried to “fix” the case and 7 of September 1914 wrote President Wilson that “the ancient city of Louvain ... had to be destroyed to protect my troops ... My generals were forced to take the most severe measures to punish the guilty and keep the bloodthirsty population from continuing their shameful actions. " It is clear that the talk of "defending German generals" and "bloodthirsty civilians" became first-class samples for anti-German propaganda in the United States. And the arrival in the US of ships with several thousand Belgian refugees, mostly women and children, increased the effect.
The activity of the German spies in America served as an excellent material for forcing anti-German hysteria. In 1915, the Allies began to receive large quantities of American shells. They were made of steel and had a large explosion force. In Berlin, decided to go on sabotage to stop the flow of ammunition from America to Europe. The German ambassador in Washington created a special company with the official sign of the American corporation, which was engaged in buying plants and equipment, taking large orders to sabotage them. Thus, the Germans tried to disrupt the supply of allies with ammunition. In March, an officer from the German naval headquarters, Captain Rintelen, arrived with a fake passport from Berlin to New York. A few weeks later, German military engineer Fay arrived. Rintelen promised the German command: "I will buy everything I can and destroy everything else." Shortly after the arrival of Rintelen and Fairy on the ships that were sent with military goods to Europe, fires began to mysteriously break out.
In New York, Rintelen contacted another German spy, a former artillery officer and chemist Shele, who lived in the States for more than 20 years. He invented a cigar-sized portable lead-igniting projectile. The "cigar" was divided inside into two parts by a copper disc. Both parts were filled with different acids, which when mixed silently ignited. The time that elapsed before the contact of liquids depended on the thickness of the copper plate. Thus, it was possible to calculate in advance the time of ignition of the "cigarette". In addition, Fey invented a bomb that was imperceptibly attached to the rudder of a steamer and in the open sea she incapacitated the ship. Interned at the port of New York, the German ship Frederick the Great became a factory for the production of explosive devices. And the interned German sailors, who worked as loaders at the docks and were recruited by Rintelen, brought “cigars” to the ships that went with military supplies to Europe.
In May, fires on ships on the high seas and explosions at US military factories became more frequent on 1915. This coincided with the great Austro-German offensive on the Russian front, when the Russian troops suffered a great shortage of heavy artillery, guns, ammunition, etc. In the United States, shells were ordered. But ammunition transports that went from America to Arkhangelsk were often delayed in transit and did not always arrive at their destination. The causes of fires on ships at sea were difficult to establish. Lead "cigars" melted at the fire, leaving almost no traces. The American police in the port, the German agents managed to send on the wrong track. Therefore, the production of "cigars" was continued.
In July 1915, the portfolio of the German commercial attaché Albert fell into the hands of the New York police. There were bills where Albert wrote down with German thoroughness where 28 million dollars went and what they were used for propaganda and sabotage in the United States. The press has published these documents. However, the Americans failed to find the main focus of sabotage activity. Could not cover the German saboteurs and sent agents of the British Scotland Yard. However, in London, British experts continued to decipher the German telegrams. From the reports of the German military attache in Washington von Papen, Rintelen's mission to the United States became known. Knowing the German cipher, they sent a telegram on behalf of Berlin in which it was withdrawn to Germany. In August, 1915, Rintelen went to Holland and the British intercepted him.
However, the production of "cigars" and sabotage continued. A few weeks after Rintelin left, 29 August, there was a big bang at Du Pont powder plants in the state of Delaware. On September 1, the steamer Rotterdam caught fire on the open sea. September 2 broke out the steamer "Santa Anna". October 24 Americans arrested Fairy. But the fires continued. In the following weeks, the 4 ship was on fire in the open sea, and two fires at the factories of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation destroyed entire hulls. In late November, an 31 man was killed by an explosion at the Dupont factory. In total in 1915, German agents staged large sabotage at 15 US military factories. From the beginning of 1915, before the US entered the war, acts of sabotage were carried out on 47 ships that sailed from the USA to Europe. The number of acts of sabotage was supposed to be more, but many recruited workers did not dare to perform the task, they simply threw "cigars" into the sea. During the same time, as a result of the explosions, the 43 plant and several large military warehouses in the United States were completely and partially destroyed.
In December, the German military and naval attache Papen and Boy-Ed were expelled from the US 1915. Gradually, the American police caught all the major saboteurs, but not all. Total for the war in the United States arrested 67 German agents. Most of the diversions were committed in 1915 year. However, the most serious acts were committed after the expulsion or arrest of the leadership of the German spy ring. So, 30 July 1916, an explosion of tremendous power woke the people of New York. The shop windows and skyscraper windows were broken. Projectiles were torn and it seemed that the city was subjected to artillery shelling. A large ammunition depot on the island of Black Tom exploded. Over a thousand tons of explosives, including 17 ammunition wagons, exploded. 11 January 1917, New York again experienced a panic from the rumble of torn shells. In the evening, a powder plant located in 15 km from New York was blown up. This plant produced up to 3 million shells per month and burned all. The fire lasted for several hours until 500 exploded. Thousands of 3-inch projectiles. Losses only from these two explosions amounted to about 40 million dollars.
However, neither buying up through the nominees of military factories, nor an attempt to undermine the production and export of ammunition with the help of sabotage acts yielded tangible results. The US military industry easily made up for all the losses. In exchange for one car of military materials bought out by Germany at the beginning of the war, American industry threw 10 cars into the market; instead of one projectile, destroyed by German agents, produced hundreds of new ones. Arson and explosions could not shake the powerful American industry. On the other hand, these sabotage and the actions of the German agents were an excellent reason for anti-German agitation. Even more outrage of the American public was caused by the actions of the German submarine fleet. This prepared US public opinion for entry into the war on the side of the Entente.
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