United States declaration of war on Austria-Hungary
Long title | Joint Resolution Declaring that a state of war exists between the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government and the Government and the people of the United States, and making provision to prosecute the same. |
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Nicknames | United States declaration of war on Austria-Hungary |
Enacted by | the 65th United States Congress |
Effective | December 7, 1917 |
Citations | |
Statutes at Large | Sess. 2, ch. 1, 40 Stat. 429 |
Legislative history | |
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The 1917 United States declaration of war on Austria-Hungary, officially House Joint Resolution 169, was a resolution adopted by the
Background
On April 6, 1917 the United States
that government [Austria-Hungary] has not actually engaged in warfare against citizens of the United States on the seas, and I take the liberty, for the present at least, of postponing a discussion of our relations with the government in Vienna.
Two days later, Austria-Hungary terminated
Declaration of war
Request
On December 4, 1917, Wilson appeared before Congress to deliver the 1917 State of the Union Address. In it, he requested a declaration of war against Austria-Hungary and stated such a declaration to be necessary to "clear away with a thorough hand all impediments to success." Wilson went on to charge that Austria-Hungary was "the vassal of the German government" and was acting as the "instrument of another nation."[2] However, Wilson's real impetus for seeking a declaration of war against was the situation in Italy. American military planners believed that it might soon be necessary to deploy American forces to shore up Italian defenses against robust Austrian gains.[3]
In response to Wilson's address,
Enactment
On December 7 House Joint Resolution 169 was adopted by the House of Representatives in a vote of 365-1, and by the Senate in a vote of 74-0. The president signed the declaration later that day.[4]
Debate
Jeannette Rankin, who had earlier voted against the declaration of war against Germany, voted in favor of the declaration of war against Austria-Hungary, stating that "the vote we are now to cast is not a vote on a declaration of war. If it were, I should vote against it. This is a vote on a mere technicality in the prosecution of a war already declared."[5]
The sole vote of opposition in the House came from Meyer London, a Socialist representative from New York, who had earlier cast the only Northeastern vote against declaring war with Germany.[5] On the floor of the House, London declared that he hated "professions of loyalty" but that he believed "I am as deeply in love with the United States as any man who can trace his ancestry to the Mayflower." However, London said that his constituents opposed war and that he preferred the United States to adopt an arms embargo against Europe, the same rationale that he had given for opposing the declaration of war against Germany. He was roundly denounced on the floor of the House.[6]
In the Senate, Robert M. La Follette did not vote on the resolution since he had departed the chamber to return to his office and to prepare an amendment to the declaration that would guarantee that the United States would not participate in the postwar dismemberment of Austria. While La Follette was out of the chamber, the vote was called. La Follette later said that he would have voted against the resolution in the form that it was passed.[7]
Text of declaration
Whereas the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government has committed repeated acts of war against the Government and the people of the United States of America : Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That a state of war is hereby declared to exist between the United States of America and the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government; and that the President be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the United States and the resources of the Government to carry on war against the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government; and to bring the conflict to a successful termination all the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States.
International reactions
- Austria-Hungary: the Austro-Hungarian foreign minister, Count Ottokar Czernin, remarked that the declaration of war "will be bad for Austro-Hungarians in America, but will not influence the results of the war."
- Italy: in Italy, the newspaper Corriere della Sera, in a staff editorial, stated, "Austria-Hungary has today a powerful enemy, and this enemy is for us a friend whose friendship must serve in war and peace "
- Soviet Russia: in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, the official Army Journal, in a staff editorial, declared, "Peace by means of war. This is the mark under which the American imperialists are posing. America declares herself the implacable enemy of Austria-Hungary without any evident reason, without any justifying motives save covetousness and greed. American capitalists talking with hypocrisy about the horrors of war are striving to lengthen the bloody terror."
Aftermath
In autumn 1918, the imperial government collapsed, and on October 18,
The sinking of the SV Marguerite has been credited to the
See also
References
- ^ "America enters World War I". history.com. History Channel. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- ^ JSTOR 2187624.
- ISBN 978-1616400774.
- ^ a b Elsea, Jennifer (April 18, 2014). Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications (PDF). Federation of American Scientists: Congressional Research Service. p. 4. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- ^ U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- Jewish Telegraph Agency. 8 June 1926. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- newspapers.com. 8 December 1917. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
- ^ "SV Marguerite (+1917)". wrecksite.eu. Wreck Site. Retrieved 10 July 2016.