Research On U.S.Occupation Of Rhineland(1918-1923)

After the WWI,United States force occupied Rhineland with other Entente countries. Although Wilson’s Administration showed no intention of dispatching troops to Rhineland during prewar&wartime period, US was forced to play the role as "unwilling occupier" after the war because of the diplomatic pressure from France. American force entered and garrisoned Rhineland with British, French and Belgian army in December1918. The US military government implemented control on the American occupied area centered in Coblenz. The civilian High Commission started to govern occupied zones in Rhineland instead of military authority since1920. American occupation authority succeeded in maintaining the political, economical&social stability inside the occupation area. It attempted to improve the relationship between occupation force and local community by canceling the ban on fraternization and coordinate the conflicting policies of US and other occupation authorities through rejecting the infiltration of Rhenish Separatist Movement. In January1923, US troops withdrew as the Ruhr Crisis, marking the end of American occupation of Rhineland.From microscopic point of view, the American occupiers successfully maintained basic social order inside the occupation area. However, from macroscopic perspective, the Entente powers’marching and garrisoning in Rhineland aggravated the tension in Europe rather than assist to solve the German problem. Since the fundamental failure of Entente’s decision on Rhineland issue, the partial success of American occupier did not achieved significant positive impact on Germany and international security between WWI and WWII.