2025 (Jan.): NY Regents - US History and Government - Sara Cowley | Library

...It is Ordered, sentenced, and decreed, that there shall be yearly two General Assemblies or Courts, the one the second Thursday in April, the other the second Thursday in September following; the first shall be called the Court of Election, wherein shall be yearly chosen from time to time, so many Magistrates and other public Officers as shall be found requisite [needed]: Whereof one to be chosen Governor for the year ensuing and another be chosen, and no other Magistrate to be chosen for more than one year: provided always there be six chosen besides the Governor, which being chosen and sworn according to an Oath recorded for that purpose, shall have the power to administer justice according to the Laws here established, and for want thereof, according to the Rule of the Word of God; which choice shall be made by all that are admitted freemen and have taken the Oath of Fidelity, and do cohabit within this Jurisdiction having been admitted inhabitants by the major part of the Town wherein they live or the major part of such as shall be then present.

Source: Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, Section 1, January 14, 1639

Base your answers to questions 1 and 2 on the excerpt below and on your knowledge of social studies.

The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut represent an early step in the colonial advance toward

Which colonial development was most similar to the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut?

Base your answers to questions 3 and 4 on the proclamation below and on your knowledge of social studies.
Whereas it appears that a state of war exists between Austria, Prussia, Sardinia, Great Britain, and the United Netherlands, of the one part, and France on the other; and the duty and interest of the United States require, that they should with sincerity and good faith adopt and pursue a conduct friendly and impartial toward the belligerent Powers; . . .
Source: President George Washington, Proclamation of Neutrality, April 22, 1793

What is the primary purpose of this proclamation?

Which later United States foreign policy action is most consistent with the ideas expressed in this proclamation?

Base your answers to questions 5 and 6 on the excerpt below and on your knowledge of social studies.
. . . The result is a conviction that the States have no power, by taxation or otherwise, to retard [slow down], impede, burden, or in any manner control, the operations of the constitutional laws enacted by Congress to carry into execution the powers vested in the general government. This is, we think, the unavoidable consequence of that supremacy which the constitution has declared. We are unanimously of opinion, that the law passed by the legislature of Maryland, imposing a tax on the Bank of the United States, is unconstitutional and void. . . .
Source: McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819

What was an important impact of the McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) decision?

The Supreme Court decision described in this excerpt is an example of which principle?

Base your answers to questions 7 and 8 on the letter below and on your knowledge of social studies.
. . . This treaty [Louisiana Purchase] must of course be laid before both houses, because both have important functions to exercise respecting it. They I presume will see their duty to their country in ratifying & paying for it, so as to secure a good which would otherwise probably be never again in their power. But I suppose they must then appeal to the nation for an additional article to the constitution, approving & confirming an act which the nation had not previously authorised. The constitution has made no provision for our holding foreign territory, still less for incorporating foreign nations into our union. . . .
Source: Thomas Jefferson, letter to John Breckinridge, August 12, 1803 (adapted)

Which claim about the Constitution is best supported by this letter?

One major goal for President Thomas Jefferson in purchasing the Louisiana Territory was that it would

Base your answers to questions 9 and 10 on the letter below and on your knowledge of social studies.
. . . As to the policy I “seem to be pursuing” as you say, I have not meant to leave any one in doubt.I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the nearer the Union will be “the Union as it was.” If there be those who would not save the Union, unless they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with them. My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored [African American] race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union, and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. . . .

Source: Letter from President Abraham Lincoln to Horace Greeley, August 22, 1862

According to this letter, President Abraham Lincoln’s primary goal in fighting the Civil War was to

What was one action President Lincoln took to achieve his primary goal?

Base your answers to questions 11 and 12 on the cartoon below and on your knowledge of social studies.

"HIT HARDER, THEODORE!"

Source: Charles Green Bush, August 7, 1902, Library of Congress (adapted)

Which statement most accurately represents the point of view of this cartoonist?

What law is this cartoonist referring to?

Base your answers to questions 13 and 14 on the photograph and map below and on your knowledge of social studies.

Mulberry Street in New York City, c. 1900

Source: Library of Congress (adapted)

Distribution of Foreign-Born Whites in the United States, 1910

Source: Edward Alsworth Ross, The Old World in the New: The Significance of Past and Present Immigration to the American People, 1914 (adapted)

Which conclusion is best supported by these documents?

The situation presented in these documents was addressed in the 1920s when

Base your answers to questions 15 and 16 on the message below and on your knowledge of social studies.
... As a people we have played a large part in the world, and we are bent upon making our future even larger than the past. In particular, the events of the last four years have definitely decided that, for woe or weal [poverty or prosperity], our place must be great among the nations. We may either fall greatly or succeed greatly; but we cannot avoid the endeavor from which either great failure or great success must come. Even if we would, we can not play a small part. If we should try, all that would follow would be that we should play a large part ignobly [dishonorably] and shamefully....
Source: President Theodore Roosevelt, Second Annual Message to Congress, December 2, 1902

In his 1902 message to Congress, President Theodore Roosevelt expressed support for the

Which action was most consistent with the ideas expressed in this message?

Base your answers to questions 17 and 18 on the statement below and on your knowledge of social studies.
 . . This social security measure gives at least some protection to thirty millions of our citizens who will reap direct benefits through unemployment compensation, through old-age pensions and through increased services for the protection of children and the prevention of ill health. . . .This law, too, represents a cornerstone in a structure which is being built but is by no means complete. It is a structure intended to lessen the force of possible future depressions. It will act as a protection to future Administrations against the necessity of going deeply into debt to furnish relief to the needy. The law will flatten out the peaks and valleys of deflation and of inflation. It is, in short, a law that will take care of human needs and at the same time provide the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness. . . .
Source: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, statement on signing the Social Security Act, August 14, 1935.

According to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a major purpose of the Social Security system was to

By signing the Social Security Act into law, President Roosevelt was keeping his promise that the federal government would

Base your answers to questions 19 and 20 on the document below and on your knowledge of social studies.

Why did the government establish a wartime rationing system?

Public acceptance of government rationing was based on the belief that it

Base your answers to questions 21 and 22 on the statement below and on your knowledge of social studies.

In [South] Korea the Government forces, which were armed to prevent border raids and to preserve internal security, were attacked by invading forces from North Korea. The Security Council of the United Nations called upon the invading troops to cease hostilities and to withdraw to the 38th parallel. This they have not done, but on the contrary have pressed the attack. The Security Council called upon all members of the United Nations to render every assistance to the United Nations in the execution of this resolution. In these circumstances I have ordered United States air and sea forces to give the Korean Government troops cover and support.

The attack upon Korea makes it plain beyond all doubt that Communism has passed beyond the use of subversion to conquer independent nations and will now use armed invasion and war. It has defied the orders of the Security Council of the United Nations issued to preserve international peace and security. In these circumstances, the occupation of Formosa [Taiwan] by Communist forces would be a direct threat to the security of the Pacific area and to United States forces performing their lawful and necessary functions in that area. . . .

I know that all members of the United Nations will consider carefully the consequences of this latest aggression in Korea in defiance of the Charter of the United Nations. A return to the rule of force in international affairs would have far-reaching effects. The United States will continue to uphold the rule of law. . . .

Source: President Harry Truman, statement on the situation in Korea, June 27, 1950

What was a major reason for President Harry Truman's June 27, 1950, statement?

What made the response to North Korea’s invasion of South Korea different from past conflicts?

Base your answer to question 23 on the excerpt from the speech below and on your knowledge of social studies.
Three years ago the Supreme Court of this nation rendered in simple, eloquent and unequivocal language a decision which will long be stenciled on the mental sheets of succeeding generations. For all men of good will, this May 17 decision came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of segregation. It came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of distinguished people throughout the world who had dared only to dream of freedom. It came as a legal and sociological deathblow to the old Plessy doctrine of “separate-but-equal.” It came as a reaffirmation of the good old American doctrine of freedom and equality for all people.Unfortunately, this noble and sublime decision has not gone without opposition. This opposition has often risen to ominous proportions. Many states have risen up in open defiance. The legislative halls of the South ring loud with such words as “interposition” and “nullification.” Methods of defiance range from crippling economic reprisals to the tragic reign of violence and terror. All of these forces have conjoined to make for massive resistance.But, even more, all types of conniving methods are still being used to prevent Negroes [African Americans] from becoming registered voters. The denial of this sacred right is a tragic betrayal of the highest mandates of our democratic traditions and it is democracy turned upside down. . . .
Source: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Give Us the Ballot,” May 17, 1957

What was one method that was used to deny African Americans the voting rights mentioned in this speech?

Base your answers to questions 24 and 25 on the headline below and on your knowledge of social studies.

Why were Americans worried by the event described in this headline?

What was one direct result of the event described in this headline?

Base your answer to question 26 on the message below and on your knowledge of social studies.
. . . Every device of which human ingenuity is capable has been used to deny this right. The Negro [African American] citizen may go to register only to be told that the day is wrong, or the hour is late, or the official in charge is absent. And if he persists, and if he manages to present himself to the registrar, he may be disqualified because he did not spell out his middle name or because he abbreviated a word on the application.And if he manages to fill out an application he is given a test. The registrar is the sole judge of whether he passes this test. He may be asked to recite the entire Constitution, or explain the most complex provisions of State law. And even a college degree cannot be used to prove that he can read and write. . . .
Source: President Lyndon B. Johnson, Special Message to Congress, "The American Promise"

Congress responded to President Lyndon B. Johnson’s message by passing the

Base your answers to questions 27 and 28 on the newspaper headlines below and on your knowledge of social studies.

Source: New York Times, December 20, 1998

Which constitutional principle is illustrated by these headlines?

Which president faced the same constitutional challenge as President Bill Clinton?

These Short-Essay Questions are based on the accompanying documents and are designed to test your ability to work with historical documents. Each Short-Essay Question set consists of two documents. Some of these documents have been edited for the purposes of these questions. Keep in mind that the language and images used in a document may reflect the historical context of the time in which it was created.

SEQ Set 1 (Question 29)
Task: Read and analyze the following documents, applying your social studies knowledge and skills to write a short essay of two or three paragraphs in which you:
Describe the historical context surrounding these documents
Identify and explain the relationship between the events and/or ideas found in these documents (Cause and Effect, or Similarity/Difference, or Turning Point)
In developing your short-essay answer of two or three paragraphs, be sure to keep these explanations in mind:
Describe means “to illustrate something in words or tell about it.”
Historical Context refers to “the relevant historical circumstances surrounding or connecting the events, ideas, or developments in these documents.”
Identify means “to put a name to or to name.”
Explain means “to make plain or understandable; to give reasons for or causes of; to show the logical development or relationship of.”
Types of Relationships:
Cause refers to “something that contributes to the occurrence of an event, the rise of an idea, or the bringing about of a development.”
Effect refers to “what happens as a consequence (result, impact, outcome) of an event, an idea, or a development.”
Similarity tells how “something is alike or the same as something else.”
Difference tells how “something is not alike or not the same as something else.”
Turning Point is “a major event, idea, or historical development that brings about significant change. It can be local, regional, national, or global.”

Document 1

AMENDMENT XIV (1868)
Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

AMENDMENT XV (1870)
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Source: 14th and 15th amendments, United States Constitution

SEQ Set 1 Directions (Question 29): Read and analyze the following documents before writing your short essay.

Based on your reading and analysis of these documents, apply your social studies knowledge and skills to write a short essay of two or three paragraphs in which you:
Describe the historical context surrounding these documents
Identify and explain the relationship between the events and/or ideas found in these documents (Cause and Effect, or Similarity/Difference, or Turning Point)
Guidelines:
In your short essay, be sure to
Develop all aspects of the task
Incorporate relevant outside information
Support the task with relevant facts and examples
You are not required to include a separate introduction or conclusion in your short essay of two or three paragraphs.

SEQ Set 2 (Question 30)

Read and analyze the following documents, applying your social studies knowledge and skills to write a short essay of two or three paragraphs in which you:
Describe the historical context surrounding documents 1 and 2
Analyze Document 2 and explain how audience, or purpose, or bias, or point of view affects this document’s use as a reliable source of evidence
In developing your short-essay answer of two or three paragraphs, be sure to keep these explanations in mind:
Describe means “to illustrate something in words or tell about it.”
Historical Context refers to “the relevant historical circumstances surrounding or connecting the events, ideas, or developments in these documents.”
Analyze means “to examine a document and determine its elements and its relationships.”
Explain means “to make plain or understandable; to give reasons for or causes of; to show the logical development or relationship of.”
Reliability is determined by how accurate and useful the information found in a source is for a specific purpose.

Document 1
Thomas Whately served as Great Britain’s Secretary to the Treasury from 1763–1765 under Prime Minister George Grenville and was the primary author of the Stamp Act.
. . . The Revenue that may be raised by the Duties which have been already, or by these if they should be hereafter imposed, are all equally applied by Parliament, towards defraying [paying] the necessary Expenses of defending, protecting, and securing, the British Colonies and Plantations in America. . . . They have indeed their own civil Governments besides to support; but Great Britain has her civil Government too; she has also a large Peace Establishment to maintain; and the national Debt, tho’ so great a Part, and that the heaviest Part of it has been incurred [assumed] by a War undertaken for the Protection of the Colonies, lies solely still upon her. . . .
Source: Thomas Whately, The Regulations Lately Made Concerning the Colonies, and the Taxes Imposed Upon Them, Considered, January 1765 (adapted)

SEQ Set 2 Directions (Question 30):
Read and analyze the following documents before writing your short essay.

Based on your reading and analysis of these documents, apply your social studies knowledge and skills to write a short essay of two or three paragraphs in which you:
Describe the historical context surrounding documents 1 and 2
Analyze Document 2 and explain how audience, or purpose, or bias, or point of view affects this document’s use as a reliable source of evidence
In your short essay, be sure to
Develop all aspects of the task
Incorporate relevant outside information
Support the task with relevant facts and examples
You are not required to include a separate introduction or conclusion in your short essay of two or three paragraphs.

Part III CIVIC LITERACY ESSAY (Questions 31-37)

This Civic Literacy Essay Question is based on the accompanying documents. The question is designed to test your ability to work with historical documents. Some of these documents have been edited for the purpose of this question. As you analyze the documents, take into account the source of each document and any point of view that may be presented in the document. Keep in mind that the language and images used in a document may reflect the historical context of the time in which it was created.

Historical Context: Debate Over Ratification of the Treaty of Versailles

Throughout United States history, many constitutional and civic issues have been debated by Americans. These debates have resulted in efforts by individuals, groups, and governments to address these issues. These efforts have achieved varying degrees of success. One of these constitutional and civic issues is the debate over ratification of the Treaty of Versailles.

Task: Read and analyze the documents in Part A. Using information from the documents and your knowledge of United States history, answer the questions that follow each document in Part A. Your answers to the questions will help you write the Part B essay in which you will be asked to:

• Describe the historical circumstances surrounding this constitutional or civic issue 
• Explain efforts by individuals, groups, and/or governments to address this constitutional or civic issue 
• Discuss the impact of the efforts on the United States and/or on American society

In developing your answers to Part III, be sure to keep these general definitions in mind:
describe means “to illustrate something in words or tell about it”
explain means “to make plain or understandable; to give reasons for or causes of; to show the logical development or relationships of”
discuss means “to make observations about something using facts, reasoning, and argument; to present in some detail”

Civic Literacy Essay
Part A
Short-Answer Questions (31-36)
Directions: Analyze the documents and answer the short-answer questions that follow each document in the space provided.

Document 1
During World War I, President Woodrow Wilson announced his 14 Points, which he hoped would be included in the Treaty of Versailles.

“I [Woodrow Wilson] can predict with absolute certainty that within another generation there will be another world war if the nations of the world do not concert the method [agree to a plan] by which to prevent it.”
Once Wilson knew that the U.S. would be unable to avoid entering the war, he worked to find a way to stop such a war from happening again. In January 1918 he announced the 14 Points, a set of principles designed to remove the causes of another great war. The 14 Points included an international organization to keep the peace, by providing a place where disputes could be discussed and mediated. The 14 Points inspired the peoples of the Allied Nations and gave them hope that another great war could be prevented. When Wilson traveled to Europe in late 1918 to attend the Paris Peace Conference, he was met by crowds numbering in the millions in Britain, France and Italy.
At the Peace Conference in 1919, Wilson moved the seat of the presidency to Paris for six months while he commanded the attention of the world. He was faced with the leaders of the Allied Nations determined to win as many concessions and as much territory as they could for their countries. Wilson argued and fought with them through June of 1919 to make as fair a treaty as possible under the circumstances. Wilson drew up terms of peace including his design for a League of Nations, a world body to settle future conflicts among nations.…
Source: “League of Nations,” The President Woodrow Wilson House (adapted)

Based on this document, what is one historical circumstance surrounding the ratification of the Treaty of Versailles?

Document 2
After discussing the proposed treaty provisions relating to the League of Nations with President Woodrow Wilson, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge gave an address to the United States Senate on February 28, 1919.

. . . Animated by the conviction that he would “follow no man and vote for no measures which, however well intended, seem in my best judgment to lead to dissensions [disagreements] rather than to harmony among the nations or to injury, peril, or injustice to my country,” and his insistence that the Senate, “which is charged with responsibility... should investigate every proposal with the utmost thoroughness,” Lodge’s address was a painstaking critique of the League’s constitution. He began with the impassioned argument that the document repudiated [contradicted] George Washington’s September 17, 1796, Farewell Address and the Monroe Doctrine, two sacred canons [principles] of American foreign policy. “I ask the press and the public and, of course, the Senate to consider well the gravity of this proposition,” Lodge pleaded, “before it takes the heavy responsibility of finally casting aside these policies which we have adhered to for a century and more and under which we have greatly served the cause of peace both at home and abroad.”
Turning to the specific provisions of the proposed draft, Lodge argued that the provision guaranteeing the independence and territorial integrity of all members was particularly troubling. He warned that, to insure that guarantee, the United States “must be in possession of fleets and armies capable of enforcing them at a moment’s notice.” . . .
Source: “Henry Cabot Lodge: Constitution of the League of Nations,” Classic Senate Speeches, U.S. Senate

Based on this document, what is one historical circumstance surrounding the debate over ratification of the Treaty of Versailles?

Document 3

Again and again, my fellow citizens, mothers who lost their sons in France have come to me and, taking my hand, have shed tears upon it not only, but they have added, "God bless you, Mr. President!" Why, my fellow citizens, should they pray God to bless me? I advised the Congress of the United States to create the situation that led to the death of their sons. I ordered their sons oversea. . . . They believe, and they rightly believe, that their sons saved the liberty of the world. They believe that wrapped up with the liberty of the world is the continuous protection of that liberty by the concerted [united] powers of all civilized people. They believe that this sacrifice was made in order that other sons should not be called upon for a similar gift—the gift of life, the gift of all that died. . . .
You will say, "Is the League an absolute guaranty against war?" No; I do not know any absolute guaranty against the errors of human judgment or the violence of human passion, but . . . I ask you this: If it is not an absolute insurance against war, do you want no insurance at all? Do you want nothing? Do you want not only no probability that war will not recur, but the probability that it will recur? The arrangements of justice do not stand of themselves, my fellow citizens. The arrangements of this treaty are just, but they need the support of the combined power of the great nations of the world. . . .
Source: President Woodrow Wilson, The Pueblo Speech, September 25, 1919

According to President Woodrow Wilson, why should the Senate approve the Treaty of Versailles?

Document 4

... Opposition in the Senate to the Covenant of the League of Nations, led by Republican Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts, was directed in particular at Article X, which stated that members would “undertake to respect and preserve as against external aggression the territorial integrity and existing political independence of all Members of the League” and that “the Council shall advise upon the means.” Many Americans believed with Lodge that through the treaty the United States would be committed to an “entangling alliance” and that other nations could determine its foreign policy by obliging it to participate in action against aggressors.
Deciding that an appeal to the country would force the Senate into line for the necessary two-thirds vote, President Wilson traveled over 8,000 miles by train and spoke forty times in twenty-two days. He became ill, and was forced to abandon his appeal. Wilson never succeeded in mustering enough votes to have the treaty passed as he had originally proposed it. Yet his belief in the original proposal was so intense that he used his influence to keep his supporters from agreeing to the changes which could have brought passage. . . .
Source: Leonard F. James, American Foreign Policy, Scott, Foresman and Company, 1967

According to Leonard F. James, what is one reason Senator Henry Cabot Lodge opposed the League of Nations? [1]

Document 5a
Source: New York Tribune, March 20, 1920

Document 5b
The Gap in the Bridge
Source: Leonard Raven-Hill, Punch (adapted)

Based on these documents, what is one impact of the efforts to ratify the Treaty of Versailles? [1]

Document 6

... In the end Wilson failed largely because the country had never really abandoned its isolationist predilections [preferences], particularly the assumption that the United States unaided could maintain its national security. During the war, these convictions were driven underground. It is astonishing that despite the tradition of isolation, despite Wilson's collapse, despite partisan bitterness and the animosity of ethnic groups, 85 per cent of the senators voting on November 19 were willing to accept the League in some form. Yet even if the country had entered the League, it is doubtful that Americans would have been willing to assume their full obligations. The United States had not been prepared by a threat to its own security for the kind of enterprise [action] it was later to undertake in Korea. It had insufficient incentive for abandoning either isolation or absolute national sovereignty. It would take the chastening experience of World War II, Hiroshima, and the Cold War to provide that incentive. ...
Source: William E. Leuchtenburg, The Perils of Prosperity: 1914–1932, The University of Chicago Press, 1993

According to William E. Leuchtenburg, what is one reason President Woodrow Wilson was not successful in gaining support for the Treaty of Versailles? [1]

Part B
Civic Literacy Essay Question (37)
Directions: Write a well-organized essay that includes an introduction, several paragraphs, and a conclusion. Use evidence from at least four documents in the body of the essay. Support your response with relevant facts, examples, and details. Include additional outside information.

Historical Context: Debate Over Ratification of the Treaty of Versailles
Throughout United States history, many constitutional and civic issues have been debated by Americans. These debates have resulted in efforts by individuals, groups, and governments to address these issues. These efforts have achieved varying degrees of success. One of these constitutional and civic issues is the debate over ratification of the Treaty of Versailles.

Task: Using information from the documents and your knowledge of United States history, write an essay in which you
Describe the historical circumstances surrounding this constitutional or civic issue
Explain efforts by individuals, groups, and/or governments to address this constitutional or civic issue
Discuss the impact of the efforts on the United States and/or on American society
Guidelines:
In your essay, be sure to
Develop all aspects of the task
Explain at least two efforts to address the issue
Incorporate information from at least four documents
Incorporate relevant outside information
Support the theme with relevant facts, examples, and details
Use a logical and clear plan of organization, including an introduction and a conclusion that are beyond a restatement of the theme

Document 1
During World War I, President Woodrow Wilson announced his 14 Points, which he hoped would be included in the Treaty of Versailles.
“I [Woodrow Wilson] can predict with absolute certainty that within another generation there will be another world war if the nations of the world do not concert the method [agree to a plan] by which to prevent it.”
Once Wilson knew that the U.S. would be unable to avoid entering the war, he worked to find a way to stop such a war from happening again. In January 1918 he announced the 14 Points, a set of principles designed to remove the causes of another great war. The 14 Points included an international organization to keep the peace, by providing a place where disputes could be discussed and mediated. The 14 Points inspired the peoples of the Allied Nations and gave them hope that another great war could be prevented. When Wilson traveled to Europe in late 1918 to attend the Paris Peace Conference, he was met by crowds numbering in the millions in Britain, France and Italy.
At the Peace Conference in 1919, Wilson moved the seat of the presidency to Paris for six months while he commanded the attention of the world. He was faced with the leaders of the Allied Nations determined to win as many concessions and as much territory as they could for their countries. Wilson argued and fought with them through June of 1919 to make as fair a treaty as possible under the circumstances. Wilson drew up terms of peace including his design for a League of Nations, a world body to settle future conflicts among nations.…
Source: “League of Nations,” The President Woodrow Wilson House (adapted)

Document 2
After discussing the proposed treaty provisions relating to the League of Nations with President Woodrow Wilson, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge gave an address to the United States Senate on February 28, 1919.
. . . Animated by the conviction that he would “follow no man and vote for no measures which, however well intended, seem in my best judgment to lead to dissensions [disagreements] rather than to harmony among the nations or to injury, peril, or injustice to my country,” and his insistence that the Senate, “which is charged with responsibility... should investigate every proposal with the utmost thoroughness,” Lodge’s address was a painstaking critique of the League’s constitution. He began with the impassioned argument that the document repudiated [contradicted] George Washington’s September 17, 1796, Farewell Address and the Monroe Doctrine, two sacred canons [principles] of American foreign policy. “I ask the press and the public and, of course, the Senate to consider well the gravity of this proposition,” Lodge pleaded, “before it takes the heavy responsibility of finally casting aside these policies which we have adhered to for a century and more and under which we have greatly served the cause of peace both at home and abroad.”
Turning to the specific provisions of the proposed draft, Lodge argued that the provision guaranteeing the independence and territorial integrity of all members was particularly troubling. He warned that, to insure that guarantee, the United States “must be in possession of fleets and armies capable of enforcing them at a moment’s notice.” . . .
Source: “Henry Cabot Lodge: Constitution of the League of Nations,” Classic Senate Speeches, U.S. Senate

Document 3
Again and again, my fellow citizens, mothers who lost their sons in France have come to me and, taking my hand, have shed tears upon it not only, but they have added, "God bless you, Mr. President!" Why, my fellow citizens, should they pray God to bless me? I advised the Congress of the United States to create the situation that led to the death of their sons. I ordered their sons oversea. . . . They believe, and they rightly believe, that their sons saved the liberty of the world. They believe that wrapped up with the liberty of the world is the continuous protection of that liberty by the concerted [united] powers of all civilized people. They believe that this sacrifice was made in order that other sons should not be called upon for a similar gift—the gift of life, the gift of all that died. . . .
You will say, "Is the League an absolute guaranty against war?" No; I do not know any absolute guaranty against the errors of human judgment or the violence of human passion, but . . . I ask you this: If it is not an absolute insurance against war, do you want no insurance at all? Do you want nothing? Do you want not only no probability that war will not recur, but the probability that it will recur? The arrangements of justice do not stand of themselves, my fellow citizens. The arrangements of this treaty are just, but they need the support of the combined power of the great nations of the world. . . .
Source: President Woodrow Wilson, The Pueblo Speech, September 25, 1919
Document 4
... Opposition in the Senate to the Covenant of the League of Nations, led by Republican Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts, was directed in particular at Article X, which stated that members would “undertake to respect and preserve as against external aggression the territorial integrity and existing political independence of all Members of the League” and that “the Council shall advise upon the means.” Many Americans believed with Lodge that through the treaty the United States would be committed to an “entangling alliance” and that other nations could determine its foreign policy by obliging it to participate in action against aggressors.
Deciding that an appeal to the country would force the Senate into line for the necessary two-thirds vote, President Wilson traveled over 8,000 miles by train and spoke forty times in twenty-two days. He became ill, and was forced to abandon his appeal. Wilson never succeeded in mustering enough votes to have the treaty passed as he had originally proposed it. Yet his belief in the original proposal was so intense that he used his influence to keep his supporters from agreeing to the changes which could have brought passage. . . .
Source: Leonard F. James, American Foreign Policy, Scott, Foresman and Company, 1967
Document 5a
Source: New York Tribune, March 20, 1920
Document 5b
The Gap in the Bridge
Source: Leonard Raven-Hill, Punch (adapted)
Document 6
... In the end Wilson failed largely because the country had never really abandoned its isolationist predilections [preferences], particularly the assumption that the United States unaided could maintain its national security. During the war, these convictions were driven underground. It is astonishing that despite the tradition of isolation, despite Wilson's collapse, despite partisan bitterness and the animosity of ethnic groups, 85 per cent of the senators voting on November 19 were willing to accept the League in some form. Yet even if the country had entered the League, it is doubtful that Americans would have been willing to assume their full obligations. The United States had not been prepared by a threat to its own security for the kind of enterprise [action] it was later to undertake in Korea. It had insufficient incentive for abandoning either isolation or absolute national sovereignty. It would take the chastening experience of World War II, Hiroshima, and the Cold War to provide that incentive. ...
Source: William E. Leuchtenburg, The Perils of Prosperity: 1914–1932, The University of Chicago Press, 1993

Write a well-organized essay that includes an introduction, several paragraphs, and a conclusion. Use evidence from at least four documents in the body of the essay. Support your response with relevant facts, examples, and details. Include additional outside information.