(src: Priscilla Mary Roberts, World War One p. The German saboteur Lothar Witzke, responsible for the March 1917 munitions explosion at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in the Bay Area, and possibly responsible for the July 1916 Black Tom explosion in New Jersey, was based in Mexico City. in 1915, giving Victoriano Huerta $12 million. The German Naval Intelligence officer Franz von Rintelen had attempted to incite a war between Mexico and the U.S. The Germans had engaged in a pattern of actively arming, funding and advising the Mexicans, as shown by the 1914 SS Ypiranga arms-shipping incident *(Katz, The Secret War in Mexico pp 232-40) and German advisors present during the 1918 Battle of Ambos Nogales. (src: Friedrich Katz, The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the United States, and the Mexican Revolution (1984) pp 328-9 The Telegram was not an isolated case of German-Mexican collaboration, for Germany had long sought to incite a war between Mexico and the U.S., which would have tied down American forces and slowed the export of American arms to the Allies. Pershing to capture Pancho Villa in 1916, in the movement of President Carranza in favor of Germany emboldened the Germans to write the Zimmerman note (Wiki source: Friedrich Katz, The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the United States, and the Mexican Revolution (1984) pp 346-7)īritish ruse against Germany - it wasn't the first attempt to ally with Mexico. The failure of the Americans under General John J. On the other hand, Germany had plausible reasons to believe that Mexico might be successful. On one hand, that was definitely in German interests, since they were worried that USA would declare war on Germany over unrestrained submarine warfare announcement that was forthcoming. 23.1 (1966): 76)Īs far as German ruse against Mexico (in other words, bait them with German help to attack the USA but know all along that you can't provide enough help) - it is certainly plausible, but impossible to ascertain. "The Mexican-German Conspiracy of 1915", The Americas. In addition, on March 29, 1917, Zimmermann gave a speech in which he admitted the telegram was genuine. USA entering the war against Germany on the side of Entente. It would have had (as it did) an obviously opposite effect of what Germany wanted had it been intercepted - e.g. he made up the telegram to present to Congress), this can likely be discounted since there is documentary evidence - in 2005, an original typescript of the deciphered telegram (with Blinker Hall's handwriting) was discovered in UK.Īlso, as noted below, Zimmerman himself admitted to sending it.Īs far as Germany's ruse against the USA, it was most definitely not a ruse. Signed, Zimmermann.It's unclear if you mean whether it was (1) a ruse by Wilson against the American public, or (2) Germany against the USA, or (3) Germany against Mexico, or (4) British against USA?Īs far as being a ruse by Wilson (e.g. Please call the President's attention to the fact that the ruthless employment of our submarines now offers the prospect of compelling England in a few months to make peace. You will inform the President of the above most secretly as soon as the outbreak of war with the United States of America is certain and add the suggestion that he should, on his own initiative, invite Japan to immediate adherence and at the same time mediate between Japan and ourselves. In the event of this not succeeding, we make Mexico a proposal of alliance on the following basis: make war together, make peace together, generous financial support and an understanding on our part that Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.
We shall endeavor in spite of this to keep the United States of America neutral. We intend to begin on the 1st of February unrestricted submarine warfare. The transcription of the British Admiralty's decoding of the text in German is likewise based on a telegram from Ambassador Page to the Secretary of State. 862,20212/69) and mirrors a typescript discovered October 2005 in British archives (assumed to be the actual copy shown to the American ambassador in 1917). Page, American Ambassador in Great Britain, to Robert Lansing, American Secretary of State (File No. This English translation of the cipher telegram - from Arthur Zimmermann, German Foreign Secretary, to Heinrich von Eckardt, the German Ambassador in Mexico - is transcribed from a telegram of Walter H.
Zimmerman telegram ww1 archive#
WWI Document Archive > 1917 Documents > The Zimmerman Note
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