a famous telegram written at the beginning of 1917 by
Arthur Zimmermann,
Germany's
secretary of
state for foreign
affairs during
World War I (1914–1918). The
secret telegram was
sent through the
German ambassador in
Washington,
DC to the
German ambassador in
Mexico. It instructed him to make a proposal to the Mexican
government that if the United
States entered the
war against
Germany,
Mexico should join
Germany as an
ally against the US, with a view to recovering their lost territory of
Texas,
New Mexico and
Arizona. The
director of British Naval
Intelligence at the
time,
Admiral William R. Hall (1870–1943), came into possession of the telegram and turned it over to the US
government without permission from the British
government. On March 1, 1917
American president, Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924), let it be published in US newspapers and although
Mexico remained neutral, the telegram created outrage amongst the
American public and
set off a nationwide
demand for
war on
Germany. Five weeks later the US declared
war and thus entered
World War I.