1915: World War I Context Follow Up In 1915, Europe was embroiled in U.S. newspapers aroused outrage war, but U.S. public sentiment op- against Germany for ruthlessly kill- posed involvement. President ing defenceless Americans. The U.S. Woodrow Wilson said they would was being drawn into the war. In “remain neutral in fact as well as in June 1916, Congress increased the name.”23 size of the army. In September, Con- gress allocated $7 billion for national Pretext Incident defense, “the largest sum appropri- On May 7, 1915, a German subma- ated to that time.”30 rine (U-boat) sank the Lusitania, a In January 1917, the British British passenger ship killing 1,198, said they had intercepted a German including 128 Americans.24 message to Mexico seeking an alli- The public was not told that ance with Germany and offering to passengers were, in effect, a ‘human help Mexico recover land ceded to shield’ protecting six million rounds the U.S. On April 2, Wilson told of U.S. ammunition bound for Brit- Congress: “The world must be safe ain.25 To Germany, the ship was a for democracy.” Four days later the threat. To Britain, it was bait for lur- U.S. declared war on Germany.31 ing an attack. Why? A week before the attack, Real Reasons British Admiralty leader, Winston The maneuvre which brings Influential British military, political Churchill wrote to the Board of an ally into the field is as and business interests wanted U.S. Trade’s president saying it is “most serviceable as that which help in their war with Germany. important to attract neutral shipping wins a great battle. Beesly concludes that: “Unless and to our shores, in the hopes especially until fresh information comes to of embroiling the U.S. with Ger- Winston Churchill light, I am reluctantly driven to the 26 many.” Churchill, had previously First Lord of the conclusion that there was a con- asked Commander Joseph Kenwor- British Admiralty spiracy deliberately to put the thy, of Naval Intelligence (Political Lusitania at risk in the hope that even Section), to report on the “political an abortive attack on her would bring results of an ocean liner being sunk with American passen- the U.S. into the war. Such a conspiracy could not have gers on board.”27 been put into effect without Winston Churchill's express For his book, Freedom of the Seas (1927), Com- permission and approval.”32 mander Kenworthy wrote: “The Lusitania was deliberately In Churchill’s WWI memoirs, The World Crisis, he sent at considerably reduced speed into an area where a U- states: “There are many kinds of maneuvres in war, some boat was known to be waiting and with her escorts with- only of which take place on the battlefield.... The maneuvre drawn.”28 which brings an ally into the field is as serviceable as that Patrick Beesly’s history of WWI British naval intel- which wins a great battle.”33 ligence, notes: “no effective steps were taken to protect the In WWI, rival imperialist powers struggled for big- Lusitania.” British complicity is furthered by their fore- ger portions of the colonial pie. “They were fighting over knowledge that: boundaries, colonies, spheres of influence; they were com- § U-boat commanders knew of the Lusitania’s route, peting for Alsace-Lorraine, the Balkans, Africa and the § a U-boat that had sunk two ships [the Candidate and the Middle East.”34 U.S. war planners wanted a piece of the Centurion] in recent days was in the path of the Lusitania, action. § although destroyers were available, none escorted the “War is the health of the state,” said Randolph Lusitania or hunted for U-boats, Bourne during WWI. Zinn explains: “Governments flour- § the Lusitania was not specifically warned of these ished, patriotism bloomed, class struggle was stilled.”35 threats.29 Footnotes: Costs of War: America’s Pyrrhic Vic- 31. Wendy Mercurio, “WWI Notes, From 23. Woodrow Wilson, Message to Con- tories, 1997. Neutrality to War,” Jan. 2002. gress, Aug. 19, 1914, Senate Doc.566, 27. Simpson, p. 128. 32. Patrick Beesly, cited by Raico pp.3-4, WWI Document Archive. 28. Simpson, p. 129. 33. The World Crisis, cited by Simpson. 24. Greg Feldmeth, “The First World War,” 29. Patrick Beesly, Room 40: British Na- 34. Howard Zinn, “War Is the Health of U.S. History Resources, Mar. 31, 1998. val Intelligence, 1914-18, 1982, cited the State,” A People’s History of the 25. Colin Simpson, Lusitania, 1972, p.151. by Raico. United States, Sept. 2001. 26. Winston Churchill, cited by Ralph 30. Peter Young, “World War I,” World 35. Zinn Raico, “Rethinking Churchill,” The Book Encyclopedia, 1967, pp.374-375. 8 Press for Conversion! Issue # 50 January 2003 The Sinking of the Lusitania
n Lusitania (1972), Colin Simpson neutral crews and thus embroiling Naval Weapons on Deck presents detailed evidence showing Germany with other Great Powers.’ “The [Lusitania’s] shelter deck was Ithat in order to create a pretext in- In order to assist the making of adapted to take four six-inch guns on cident to draw the U.S. into WWI, the such a mistake, the Admiralty issued either side, making a total complement British Admiralty deliberately plotted an instruction ordering all British ships of twelve guns...each firing a shell of to ensure that a German submarine to paint out their names and port of high explosive. Her armament was in- would sink the Lusitania. registry, and when in British waters to stalled and on 17 September she en- fly the flag of a neutral power. These Churchills Strategy tered the Admiralty fleet register as an orders were distributed from the Ad- armed auxiliary cruiser, and was so On Sept. 21, Churchill, refering to the miralty to all shipping companies. On entered on the Cunard [Steam Ship Lusitania, said: “To me she is just an- the copy sent to Cunard is the note, Company] ledgers. The Lusitania was other 45,000 tons of livebait.” (p.34) ‘Pass the word around that the flag to ready for war.” (pp.31-32) “Churchill’s strategy was to use is the American.’” (pp.39-40) goad the Germans into a confrontation Since September 1914 the Ad- “Jane’s Fighting Ships 1914 and The with them [the Americans] and by do- miralty had been in possession of the Naval Annual 1914... were standard ing so... he hoped to neutralize pro- German naval cyphers and from Feb- issue to each U-boat. Both British na- German sentiment in America and to ruary 1915 a chain of ...stations estab- val publications listed her [the consolidate his own sources of supply. lished around the English and Irish Lusitania] as armed, Jane’s as an aux- From October 1914 on, a steady coasts, had enabled Naval Intelligence iliary cruiser, The Naval Annual as an stream of inflammatory orders were not only to read almost every German armed merchantman.” (pp.72-73) issued to masters of British merchant naval signal but also to pinpoint where A Cargo of Ammunition ships. It was made an offence to obey it came from.” (p.126) a U-boat’s order to halt. Masters must “On 5 May, the admiralty sig- Evidence shows that the Lusitania was immediately engage the enemy, either nalled the Juno to abandon her escort carrying about six million rounds of with their armament if they possessed mission... The Lusitania was not in- ammunition, including: it, or by ramming if they did not. formed that she was now alone, and • “1248 cases of 3 inch Shrapnel The World Crisis [Churchill’s closing every minute to the U-20 [Ger- shells filled; 4 shells to each case and memoirs] again identifies both the man sub]. It was an incredible deci- 250 cases to each lot; weight of the lot strategy and the responsibility: sion by any standards and can only be being 51 tons,” and ‘The first British countermove, made explained on two grounds. Firstly, that • “4927 boxes of cartridges. These at my responsibility...was to deter the Churchill and Fisher [Admiral of the had been consigned by the Remington Germans from surface attack. The Fleet] were so preoccupied...that they Small Arms Co. and were addressed submerged U-boat had to rely increas- failed to appreciate it; or secondly, that to the Royal Arsenal at Woolich. Each ingly on underwater attack and thus it was the pinnacle of Churchill’s case contained 1000 rounds of .303 ran the greater risk of mistaking neu- higher strategy of embroiling the U- ammunition, and the net weight of the tral for British ships and of drowning boats with a neutral power.” (p.128) consignment was 173 tons.” (p.106)
January 2003 Issue # 50 Press for Conversion! 9