?The Only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing?.
History has taught us that peace must be kept at all costs. At the end of World War 1, the common goal between the victorious nations throughout the world was to declare peace. The leading statesmen of these triumphant nations met in Paris to draw up the Treaty of Versailles, which would decide the fate of the central powers. Woodrow Wilson, the American President, created fourteen points as the basis for peace negotiations. Among these fourteen points was the most controversial and yet the most important to President Wilson, the League of Nations. President Wilson developed its charter and soon died from exhaustion after his own country, the United States, refused to ratify it in the senate. American policy had temporarily shifted from isolationism to internationalism because of the war, however the United States senate was not ready for the responsibilities of a world peacekeeper. Due to a republican majority, senators Henry Cabot Lodge, Alfred Beveridge, and other isolationist senators helped to sway the rest of congress to deny the ratification of the Treaty of Versailles. These senators believed that by entangling themselves in an international organization they would create new alliances, which would commit them to go to war. Also, Lodge felt that the League of Nations would be able to control the United States military by limiting the number of armaments that a nation could have. Due to Article 10 and the limitations on armaments, which the senators objected, and the inability to compromise on the deadlock between the President's beliefs and the Senators, led to the failure to ratify the Treaty of Versailles. These factors lead the senate to their decision, which left the world vulnerable for another war and the eventual demise of the League of Nations.
The Fourteen Points were one of Wilson's major accomplishments while he held office.
