Answer: Wilson's theories about how nations should conduct foreign policy, including freedom of the seas and free trade, as well as the idea of national self-determination, with the achievement of this through the dissolution of European empires and the creation of new states. The points were intended to serve as guidelines for the reconstruction of the postwar world. Point 14—which called for a "universal association of nations" to provide "mutual assurances of political independence and territorial integrity to big and small states alike"—was the most significant, though. Wilson was adamant that the Fourteen Points and his League of Nations (as the international organisation was known) be integrated into the peace agreements when he travelled for Paris in December 1918.
Step-by-step explanation:
1. Open diplomacy without secret treaties
2. Economic free trade on the seas during war and peace
3. Equal trade conditions
4. Decrease armaments among all nations
5. Adjust colonial claims
6. Evacuation of all Central Powers from Russia and allow it to define its own independence
7. Belgium to be evacuated and restored
8. Return of Alsace-Lorraine region and all French territories
9. Readjust Italian borders
10. Austria-Hungary to be provided an opportunity for self-determination
11. Redraw the borders of the Balkan region creating Roumania, Serbia and Montenegro
12. Creation of a Turkish state with guaranteed free trade in the Dardanelles
13. Creation of an independent Polish state
14. Creation of the League of Nations
President Wilson’s insistence on the inclusion of the League of Nations in the Treaty of Versailles (the settlement with Germany) forced him to compromise with Allied leaders on the other points. Japan, for example, was granted authority over former German territory in China, and self-determination—an idea seized upon by those living under imperial rule throughout Asia and Africa—was only applied to Europe. Following the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, Wilson returned to the United States and presented it to the Senate.
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Black and white photo of Woodrow Wilson in a top hat and overcoat standing in front of a small group of lined-up soldiers in military uniform.
Woodrow Wilson inspecting troops in London en route to Paris.
Although many Americans supported the treaty, the president met resistance in the Senate, in part over concern that joining the League of Nations would force U.S. involvement in European affairs. A dozen or so Republican “Irreconcilables” refused to support it outright, while other Republican senators, led by Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts, insisted on amendments that would preserve U.S. sovereignty and congressional authority to declare war. Having compromised in Paris, Wilson refused to compromise at home and took his feelings to the American people, hoping that they could influence the senators’ votes. Unfortunately, the president suffered a debilitating stroke while on tour.