A month after the armistice was signed on Nov. 11, 1918, which ended hostilities, Wilson arrived in France. He had committed himself to the unprecedented act of spending more than six months abroad. He, along with British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, French Prime Minister George Clémenceau, and Italian Prime Minister Vittorio Emanuele Orlando (who would resign during the peace process), would lead the Paris Peace Conference that ultimately culminated in the Treaty of Versailles.
Wilson’s Return
The Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919 in the Palace of Versailles’s Hall of Mirrors. The nations of the world came to an agreement on peace terms, though many were skeptical of how enduring it would be. One nation—America—was still technically at war with Germany and the newly separated empire of Austria and Hungary.Wilson, however, faced fierce opposition to the treaty from a Republican-led Senate. The primary sticking point was his “general association of nations,” which had become known as the League of Nations. Wilson was adamant that America join the League of Nations for a global collective security. He believed the League would stave off war in Europe. Meanwhile, Republican senators believed the League would undermine America’s sovereignty and automatically drag the United States into another European war. They began creating opposition camps.
One camp, the Reservationists, led by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Henry Cabot Lodge, was willing to accept the Treaty of Versailles, but with amendments; the second camp, the Irreconcilables, refused to budge.
A Political Failure
Wilson believed that if he could convince Americans that joining the League of Nations was necessary, then public sentiment would influence the Senate. He embarked on a U.S. tour on Sept. 3, 1919. After 22 days and 8,000 miles, Wilson suffered a severe stroke that nearly killed him. He returned to Washington on Oct. 2 to recover.Wilson practically remained in the shadows, as his wife, Edith, became the president’s go-between with his cabinet, members of Congress, and other diplomats. While Wilson recovered, the Senate voted on the treaty in November. It failed to pass. Wilson, nonetheless, continued to encourage ratification and joining the League of Nations without amendments. On March 19, 1920, the Senate took another vote. Ratification of the Treaty of Versailles was closer to passing, but still fell short by seven votes.
No Easy Resolution
After the failures of the Senate, Rep. Stephen Porter, the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, presented a resolution on April 9, 1920, that would “terminat[e] the state of war declared to exist April 6, 1917, between the Imperial German Government and the United States, permitting on conditions the resumption of reciprocal trade, and for other purposes.” The resolution was passed 242 to 150. The Senate amended the resolution to include ending the state of war with Austria and Hungary. The amendments were passed by the House on May 21 by a vote of 226 to 139.Wilson may have been defeated, but he refused to let go of his Versailles vision. On May 27, he vetoed the resolution. When the resolution returned to the House, it failed to receive enough votes to override the veto. It was a small victory for the president, but his political war would ultimately end in defeat.
Despite ill health and a Congress that refused to buy into his vision, Wilson pursued reelection. His effort was for naught. He lost the 1920 election to Republican senator, Warren G. Harding. Harding’s secretary of state, Charles Evans Hughes, was in favor of joining the League of Nations, yet the very possibility of the treaty being ratified had long become a pipe dream.
The Need for Peace
Indeed, Americans were “hungry for actual peace,” but the Treaty of Versailles lacked public support. Hughes informed René Viviani, the former premier of France, that “there was today in the United States greater opposition to the Treaty of Versailles than at the time of the last election even.” Considering public opinion regarding the Treaty and the League of Nations, Hughes believed that “a separate peace might be the only course left open to us.”Securing Peace Treaties
Peace was secured rather unconventionally, sans an official treaty between nations. Not until August of that year did the United Stated sign separate peace treaties with Austria, Hungary, and Germany—the latter and most significant known as the Treaty of Berlin. Upon hearing this, Wilson and Sen. Carter Glass reiterated the Democratic platform of 1920 regarding peace that stated, “We cannot make peace except in company with our allies. It would brand us with everlasting dishonor and bring ruin to us also if we undertook to make a separate peace.”Senate debate continued and Democratic resistance mounted. Republican senators were naturally concerned about passage of the treaties, and even more so when Sen. Knox died on Oct. 12, 1921, just before a vote was to take place. On Oct. 18, the Senate voted on the Treaty of Berlin. It passed 66 to 20 with 14 Democrats voting in favor of it.