America and the World War

The one permanent move for obtaining peace, which has not yet been suggested, with any reasonable chance of attaining its object, is by an agreement among the great powers, in which each should pledge itself not only to abide by the decisions of a common tribunal but to back with force the decisions of that common tribunal. The great civilized nations of the world which do possess force, actual or immediately potential, should combine by solemn agreement in a great World League for the Peace of Righteousness. -from "World Peace"

Theodore Roosevelt was still a young man when he left the Oval Office, and he remained a vigorous force on the American scene. The great influence he continued to hold over the public allowed him to contest the policies of President Woodrow Wilson, particularly Wilson's conduct in the leadup to America's belated entry into World War I. In this 1915 work, Roosevelt lays out the moral and political case for coming to the aid of the nation's European allies, from the ethics of self-defense to the practicalities of preparing for war.

Roosevelt's arguments are compelling and humane, but agree with him or not, here is an essential part of the powerful basis for his place in American history as the architect of the American Century, as well as a revealing picture of the character of one of the great American personalities.

Also available from Cosimo Classics: Roosevelt's Letters to His Children, A Book-Lover's Holidays in the Open, Through the Brazilian Wilderness and Papers on Natural History, Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail, The Strenuous Life: Essays and Addresses, and Historic Towns: New York

OF INTEREST TO: Roosevelt fans, students of the American presidency, readers of World War I


Politician and soldier, naturalist and historian, American icon THEODORE ROOSEVELT (1858-1919) was 26th President of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909, and the first American to win a Nobel Prize, in 1906, when he was awarded the Peace Prize for mediating the Russo-Japanese War. He is the author of 35 books.