Frieda Cramer
History 148 – US History III
Fall 2011
Professor Benjamin Montoya
Class Discussion
What Did the Doughboys Find in France?
10/4/11
Summary
President Woodrow Wilson ran for re-election in 1916 under the slogan “he kept us out of the war.” Within the first year of his second term Wilson would be forced to reverse his position. America’s entry into World War I was a slow, tortuous process from neutrality to armed combat. Although the war was on European soil and did not threaten any critical American interests or breach any key doctrines (e.g., the Monroe Doctrine), even the threat of a blockade of American goods affected an economy already in recession. Wilson, like many Americans, also sympathized with Great Britain and France, democracies with historical ties to the United States, while Germany, by contrast, was a militaristic monarchy. By 1916, the United States was supplying the Allies with 40 percent of their war materiel and granting loans to the Allies to help finance their war effort; America’s façade of neutrality was replaced with outright support. When Germany sank five American vessels just off Great Britain’s coast, President Wilson saw no alternative but to ask Congress for a declaration of war. The United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917. Wilson appointed General John J. (“Black Jack”) Pershing as commander of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) and on June 13, 1917, the first American troops landed in France, almost three years after war broke out in Europe. But the Doughboys (or at least most of them), spent the first eight months essentially as tourists before they saw any real combat. Then, when they did, it was short, bloody and effective.
Question #1
Why did Pershing’s AEF succeed against the Germans where the French and British military failed?
Question #2
How did the status of American black soldiers during World War I change when they left the United States to fight in France?
Question 1:
ReplyDeleteDuring the war period in France, John Pershing used methods on his troops that allowed expert marksmanship and the French also provided American troops additional training. Pershing's AEF troops are "sturdy, eager, and well-disciplined" quoted a French general. After a while, the troops became used to the trenches and sounds of shell fire which gave them an advantage. When the red cross came to aid the troops, it gave the men higher morale and "tipped the balance toward an allied victory" (797).
Question 2:
During the World War I era black Americans were the target for racism. Even when recruited into the army, they were segregated from the other troop members and were abused and lived in miserable conditions. In 1917, Pershing received an urgent call for troops from the French, so he sent the 92nd Division of black troops to aid them. The outcome? The 92nd Division won numerous medals than any other American combat unit and earned silent respect from the French.
Question #1:
ReplyDeleteMajor General John Pershing was chosen by President Woodrow Wilson to command the AEF because he was a well experienced leader, fighting in many different wars and succeeding. With that experience, he created well-trained troops to fight against the Germans. A French general even said the American troops were “sturdy, eager, and well-disciplined.” The AEF also received additional training while in France which was why Pershing succeeded in defeating the Germans.
Question #2:
Racism existed throughout many years in history; especially during World War I. Black Americans were always segregated from white Americans, even amongst the military. The black soldiers were segregated into their own division, the 92nd Division, and still had to put up with abuse and being thought of as inferiors to the white soldiers that Pershing valued more. In 1917, the French urgently called for more troops, so the 92nd Division was sent so Pershing wouldn’t lose any white American soldiers that he thought were the better troops. The 92nd Division ended up earning more medals than any other American combat unit, which is what changed the status of the American black soldiers.