14/10/1918 Wilson demands an end to the U-boat war

Notes are flying backwards and forwards between Berlin and Washington as the German leadership tries to arrange an armistice through President Wilson. The Germans replied to Wilson’s last note stating that they accepted his Fourteen Points and were willing to withdraw from occupied territory; they hoped that this would mean a swift arrangement of a ceasefire between the armies on the Western Front. But they reckoned without the revulsion caused by the RMS Leinster‘s sinking by a German U-boat. The Allies are shocked that Germans are still sending their submarines to attack civilian ships; Wilson shares that sense of anger and wonders whether the Germans are negotiating in good faith.

So now Wilson sends a second note to the Germans. He demands an end to the U-boat war before an armistice can be concluded and also draws attention to the trail of destruction being left by the retreating…