After Victory by G. John Ikenberry

Author:G. John Ikenberry [Ikenberry, G. John]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, pdf
ISBN: 9781400823963
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

WILSON’S FAILED DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION

Wilson’s optimism that his bold peace plan would work was premised on the belief that the Europeans were in the midst of a democratic revolution. The war itself was a war to democratize the world, and the peace settlement would push this movement further. With the assumption that Europe and the wider world would embrace American democratic principles, Wilson could pass over otherwise thorny issues of the postwar settlement. When Wilson set off for Europe to negotiate the peace in December 1918, it was still possible for him to be optimistic about the direction of political change in Europe. But, in retrospect, it was a democratic high tide rather than a gathering flood.

Wilson’s goal was to orchestrate a democratic movement in Europe and in the process encourage public opinion (what he called the “organized opinion of mankind”) to press the allied governments to support his postwar settlement goals.111 But although the public, particularly in Britain, did show considerable enthusiasm for Wilson’s program, political leaders were far less receptive. This was partly because the military success in 1918 confirmed the stability of incumbent conservative coalitions in Britain and France, thereby preventing the sort of domestic political upheaval that might have led to new coalitions committed to Wilson’s program. But just as importantly, because of continuing American reluctance to use its power fully for internationalist goals, Wilson’s program was not backed up by offers of economic and military assistance that might have made his settlement ideas more attractive and credible. However appealing the peace plans might have been to war-weary Europeans, the absence of political incentives and security guarantees dampened their appeal among European political leaders.

Wilson went to Europe in December 1918 to win over European opinion to his position on the peace settlement, and he articulated its liberal principles: open diplomacy, disarmament by all powers, freedom of the seas, removal of trade barriers, self-determination for minorities, restraint on reparations imposed on Germany, and the formation of a League of Nations to enforce the peace. The president sought to win European acceptance of these terms more by moral and ideological appeal than by the exercise of American power or diplomatic tact. He used the media as well as personal tours to launch a crusade that would appeal to the moral instincts of Europe’s masses and prompt them to reject the injustices of the old diplomacy.112 Wilson was attempting to speak directly to Europe’s conscience and to instill a new conception of world order. As one historian stated, “President Wilson applied the idea of international social control to American foreign relations, promoting collective security to restrain national egoism.”113

Liberal principles were gaining support in Europe throughout 1917 and 1918, partly as a result of events in Russia. The Russian Revolution gave momentum to leftist parties in Europe and caused intellectual ferment across the political spectrum. The Bolshevik peace plan, issued soon after the provisional government was formed in Petrograd, was boldly progressive and placed pressure on the Allies for a substantive response.

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