Review of "The Illusion of Victory: America in World War I," by Thomas Fleming

 Review of

The Illusion of Victory: America in World War I, by Thomas Fleming, ISBN 046502467x

Five out of five stars

Wilson the naïve sap to colonial thought

 Every person with any knowledge of history knows that the failures at the end of World War I led to the even more destructive World War II. Furthermore, even a minimal study of history will lead you to conclude that Woodrow Wilson was an idealistic fool that never really understood the expansionist and vindictive colonial thought processes of Britain and France. Wilson put forward his famous 14 points as a framework for peace talks and the German leaders thought that they were the basis for a peace to end the First World War in Europe. 

 This book is a thorough, well referenced explanation of the role of Wilson and the United States in World War I. Most of those actions in the early years of the war has been well documented, so that part is important, but not of compelling interest. What is fascinating is how the leaders of Britain and France, especially Lloyd George of England, manipulated Wilson into committing the United States to fighting against Germany. 

 The sections that should be required reading for all people that are studying the consequences of how peace was achieved are those about how the spoils were parceled out. By the time Wilson became a player, Britain and France had already reached an agreement on how the land of the Ottoman Empire would be allocated to them. The leaders of Britain and France were determined to punish Germany, justifying their actions by making false claims that the war was the fault of Germany and Austria-Hungary. 

 Wilson was extremely naïve in believing that he could attend the peace conference and achieve his idealistic goals through the force of his personality. As Fleming makes clear, while the European crowds were cheering Wilson, the other Allied leaders were hatching their schemes of grabbing territory and German assets. Wilson also demonstrated a lack of understanding of the political climate in the United States. He could have taken a small group of Senators with him that could have served as agents to argue his case in the U. S. Senate. 

Woodrow Wilson’s last two years in office were a disaster. Totally outmaneuvered by the other Allied leaders, his failures were monumental and consequential. I am a student of history, but until I read this book I was unaware of how much of a dupe he was.