Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2011
THEN
Dec. 13, 1918, United States President Woodrow Wilson becomes the first U.S. president to make an official state visit to Europe. The journey across the Atlantic Ocean aboard the SS George Washington takes nine days. After arriving in Brest, France, Wilson leads his American delegation to Versailles where he works intensely to negotiate a definitive end to World War I and establish the League of Nations, the multinational organization that is the predecessor of the United Nations. As a result of Wilson’s efforts to bring sustainable peace to Europe and around the world, he is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1920.
NOW
In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama became the fourth U.S. president to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, which he was awarded “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.” In May Obama took a four nation European trip to boost U.S. relations with key European allies. He stopped in Ireland, the U.K., France, and Poland. In addition to Wilson, the other two presidents to win were Teddy Roosevelt in 1905 for helping to end the Russo-Japanese War, and Jimmy Carter in 2002, by then out of office, for his humanitarian work.
Friends Read Free