Fishermen cheer as the American Eighth D estroyer D ivision steams into Queenstown on 4 May 19 17. ("The Return ofthe Mayflower, "by Bernard F. Gribble. Courtesy the US Naval Academy Museum)
''Pull-Together'' The Queenstown
Naval Command of World War I by William H. Langenberg
SEA HISTORY 99, WINTER 2001 - 02
W
hen W o rld W ar I began in E urope in 19 14, rhe U n ired Scares was resolved ro m ainrain neurraliry in rhe conflicr. During his 1916 reelecrion campaign, Presidenr W oodrow Wilson successfu lly ran on rhe sloga n "He kepr us our of rhe war. " Bur rwo evenrs in early 19 17 com bined ro compel rh e academic and ideali sric W ilson ro change his posirio n. Firsr was rhe "Zimmerman relegram ," in which rh e Ge rman gove rnmenr proposed an allian ce wirh M exico whereby, if America wenr ro war againsr Ge rmany and we re defea red, Mexico wo uld rega in sovereign ry ove r Texas, Arizo na, and New M exico. Publicari o n in rhe US press on 1 M arch 191 7 of rhis inrercepred offer caused o urrage amo ng Americans and rerminario n of diplom ari c relarions wirh Ge rman y. T he seco nd evenr was Germany's resumprion of unresrricred submarin e warfa re, allowing Ge rman U- boars ro rorpedo and sink wirhour wa rning merchanr shipping in rhose inrern ari o nal wa rers rhar Ge rm any had decla red belligerem zo nes . In resuming rh is pracri ce, previo usly haired in 19 16 because of inrernarional obj ec-
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