To End All Wars: Woodrow Wilson and the Quest for a New World Order [Paperback]

Thomas J. Knock (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0691001502 | ISBN-13: 978-0691001500 | Publication Date: May 26, 1995

In his widely acclaimed To End All Wars, Thomas Knock provides an intriguing, often provocative narrative of Woodrow Wilson's epic quest for a new world order. The account follows Wilson's thought and diplomacy from his policy toward revolutionary Mexico, through his dramatic call for "Peace without Victory" in World War I, to the Senate's rejection of the League of Nations. Throughout Knock explores the place of internationalism in American politics, sweeping away the old view that isolationism was the cause of Wilson's failure and revealing the role of competing visions of internationalism--conservative and progressive.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Knock, an associate professor of history at Southern Methodist University, traces Woodrow Wilson's conception of the League of Nations as it evolved within the context of U.S. neutrality during the first two years of the Great War. Against this background he defines the conservative and progressive views of internationalism, and shows how Wilson won support from a large bloc of socialists by pushing through Congress an impressive list of reforms on the eve of his 1916 reelection. Knock then reveals how Wilson, during the Paris Peace Conference and the battle for ratification of the Treaty of Versailles, lost domestic support because of his apparent acquiescence to the suppression of civil liberties during the so-called Red Scare. Despite the glorification of "Saint Woodrow" by the common people of Europe, Wilson foresaw what he called a "tragedy of disappointment" even as he called for a new world order based on the arbitration of disputes among nations, general disarmament, self-determination and collective security. Not for the casual reader, Knock's analysis of the rise and fall of "progressive internationalism" will be of interest mainly to specialists. Photos.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This is not a biography of Wilson but a story of the man and his vision of a League of Nations. Knock (history, Southern Methodist Univ.) tries to show that Wilson embraced the concept during his first term, before the United States entered World War I. The author argues that Wilson failed to get the United States to join the league because he had abandoned the liberal and radical alliance that formed his power base in an unsuccessful attempt to appease Senate Republicans. As one of Wilson's critics put it, "he puts his enemies in office and his friends in jail." Compromises on civil liberties at home and with imperialist powers at Versailles helped doom Wilson's progressive internationalism, but the story makes for good reading. Recommended.
- Gary Williams, South eastern Ohio Regional Lib., Caldwell
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (May 26, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691001502
• ISBN-13: 978-0691001500
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #248,344 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Turning Your Head Around on Woodrow Wilson, May 30, 2000

By 

Michael H. Ebner (Lake Forest, IL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: To End All Wars: Woodrow Wilson and the Quest for a New World Order (Paperback)

Professor Knock turned my head around on the foreign policies of Woodrow Wilson. This book takes the reader back into the 1890s, when Wilson was a professor of politics and history, in its quest to understand the evolution of his foreign policy thru American entry into the First World War. Nothing is sacred in this author's hands either. He devises a large-scale drama encompassing a spectrum of players--Jane Addams, William Howard Taft, Elihu Root, Eugene Debs, and more--as he dissects how and why Wilson failed to gain Senate ratification for the Treaty of Versailles. If it is a familiar story, Professor Knock's retelling of it is both original and compelling. I think this is the single most important book currently available on Wilsonian foreign policy.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Analysis of President Wilson's Views, September 21, 2001

By 

James Wink (Virginia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: To End All Wars: Woodrow Wilson and the Quest for a New World Order (Paperback)

To End All Wars attempts to show where President Wilson's ideas on the League of Nations came from and why he ultimatly failed. A fascinating protryal of early 20th century poltics, Knock successfully intergrates both the domestic policies of Wilson with his international policies. The links between the progressive, pacifist leagues and Wilson's views are clearly marked and appear credible. What is not examined is the moral conflict between Wilson's anti-war views and the fact he lead the country into World War I. Further research into this inconsitency could have led insight into why Wilson treated his former progrssive allies with such contempt as the war progressed. The ultimate result was his political inability to convince the American people to join the League of Nations after he alientated his greatest supporters.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Meticulous study on the League of Nations, December 31, 2001

By 

Kim Ha Woong "puxley" (Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: To End All Wars: Woodrow Wilson and the Quest for a New World Order (Paperback)

When I was very young, I read somewhere that Wilson was the greatest swindler in human history. And Wilson has always been a mistery to me. Reading this book, I expected to learn the reason why Woodrow Wilson decided to lead America into World War I. But it was not a main theme of this book. And the explanation about it was not satisfactory to me. My misunderstanding about Wilson, however, is removed now thanks to this book.
Thomas J. Knox decidedly focused on the League issue. He meticulously studied the process of the formation of League of Nations. And his analysis of American political spectrum of that era - especially progressive internationalism & conservative internationalism - was excellent. It was very helpful in studying American history.