Question

For what reason did most of the opponents of the league of nations believe that the united states should not join it?

Answer 1

 

Overall, the question “Why did the United States refuse to join the League of Nations?” can be answered simply by looking at the reaction of important American leaders during the time period of when the United States was debating joining the League of Nations. Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points were a great foundation for the future United Nations and also an important starting point for the League of Nations, but the intense multilateralism that was expected of nations in the League had caused the United States to shy away from any possible agreement to be made. At the time of Treaty of Versailles and the development of the League of Nations, the United States chose to focus on growing as a nation itself, as opposed to potentially being dragged into more conflict that the Americans felt was no threat to their own nation. This is why Lodges Reservations were appreciated by many of the United States Senators when the time came to vote upon entry into the League of Nations. These reservations were important as it posed the fears of the United States in having their somewhat newly independence stripped from them in the form of being forced to defend a nation, attack a nation, or restrict imports and exports to and from a specific country. Ultimately, it falls down to the simple fact that the United States did not need the support of other nations to protect its land and independence, as well as the rebuild its land because it was not nearly as affected as nations like France and Britain who were devastated financially and morally after the brutal conditions of the war. Had the United States lost as much as the other countries that joined the United Nations, I believe that they would have quickly joined the League of Nations, and potentially become a global superpower, much like what occured after the Second World War in regard to the United Nations. However, this was not the case and the United States refused to join the League of Nations, which greatly hurt its reputation and power.