Woodrow Wilson

Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th president of the United States.

He served from 1913 to 1921. Wilson was a member of the Democratic Party. He was the only Democrat to serve during the Progressive Era. This was a time when Republicans usually held power. Wilson is remembered for his economic reforms and his role in World War I. He also helped design the League of Nations. His approach to foreign policy is often called Wilsonianism.

Wilson was born in Staunton, Virginia, in 1856. His family had roots in Ireland and Scotland. His father, Joseph Ruggles Wilson, was a Presbyterian pastor. The family moved to Augusta, Georgia, before Woodrow was two years old. During the American Civil War, his father supported the Confederacy. This made Wilson one of only two U.S. presidents to be a citizen of the Confederate States of America. He later studied at the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton University. He also attended the University of Virginia School of Law.

After law school, Wilson focused on history and political science. He earned a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1886. This makes him the only U.S. president to hold a doctorate. He taught at Bryn Mawr College and Wesleyan University. In 1887, he wrote a famous article called "The Study of Administration." This paper argued that managing government should be its own professional field. Because of this work, he is considered a founding father of public administration. He later became the president of Princeton University.

Wilson entered politics as the governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913. In the 1912 election, he won the presidency. He defeated the incumbent Republican, William Howard Taft. He also defeated the third-party candidate, Theodore Roosevelt.

As president, he pushed a domestic agenda called "New Freedom." He passed the Revenue Act of 1913 to start the modern income tax. He also helped create the Federal Reserve System.

However, his presidency also included controversial actions. He authorized racial segregation within the federal bureaucracy. He also faced protests for opposing women's suffrage.

World War I changed the focus of his presidency. When the war began in Europe in 1914, Wilson declared that the U.S. would remain neutral. He tried to negotiate peace between the Allied and Central Powers. In April 1917, he asked Congress to declare war on Germany. This was a response to unrestricted submarine warfare. German submarines had been sinking American merchant ships. Wilson used diplomacy to guide the war effort. He issued the Fourteen Points as a plan for lasting peace.

After the war ended in 1918, Wilson attended the Paris Peace Conference.

He wanted to create the League of Nations. This was a multinational organization designed to prevent future conflicts. It was included in the Treaty of Versailles, which Wilson signed. However, he faced trouble when he returned home. He rejected a compromise that would have allowed the Senate to join the League. This caused political tension in the United States. In the 1920 election, Republicans won a large victory.

Wilson's health declined rapidly after the war. In October 1919, he suffered a stroke. This left him incapacitated and unable to make major decisions. His wife and his doctor controlled his affairs during this time. He died in February 1924 at the age of 67.

Historians today study Wilson from many angles. Some praise his work on the economy and modern liberalism. Others criticize his support for racial segregation. He remains a central figure in studying how the American government functions.