Zimmermann Telegram
1
Zimmermann Telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram (or Zimmermann Note) was
a 1917 diplomatic proposal from the German Empire to
Mexico to make war against the United States. The proposal
was intercepted and decoded by British intelligence.
Revelation of the contents outraged American public opinion
and helped generate support for the United States declaration
of war on Germany in April.[1]
The message came as a coded telegram dispatched by the
Foreign Secretary of the German Empire, Arthur
Zimmermann, on 16 January 1917 to the German
ambassador in Mexico, Heinrich von Eckardt. Zimmermann
sent the telegram in anticipation of the resumption of
unrestricted submarine warfare by Germany on 1 February,
an act which Germany predicted would draw the neutral U.S.
into war on the side of the Allies.[2] The telegram instructed
Ambassador Eckardt that if the U.S. appeared likely to enter
the war, he was to approach the Mexican Government with a
proposal for military alliance, with funding from Germany.
Mexico was promised Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.
Eckardt was also instructed to urge Mexico to help broker an
alliance between Germany and the Japanese Empire. Mexico,
unable to match the U.S. military, ignored the proposal and
(after the U.S. entered the war), officially rejected it.
The Zimmerman Telegram as it was sent from Washington to
Ambassador von Eckardt (who was in Mexico).
Contents
The Zimmermann Telegram was intercepted and decoded by
the British cryptographers of Room 40.[3] The Telegram
Zimmermann's message was:
FROM 2nd from London # 5747.
"We intend to begin on the first of February
unrestricted submarine warfare. We shall endeavor in
spite of this to keep the United States of America
neutral. 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
Mexican territory in 1917 (dark green), territory promised to
financial support and an understanding on our part that
Mexico in the Zimmerman telegram (light green), the original
Mexico is to reconquer the lost territory in Texas, New
Mexican territory (red line)
Mexico, and Arizona. The settlement in detail is left to
you. 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. Please call the President's
attention to the fact that the ruthless employment of our submarines now offers the prospect of compelling
Zimmermann Telegram
England in a few months to make peace." Signed, ZIMMERMANN
Mexican response
The Telegram was part of a German effort to distract the U.S. and divert American aid going to the Triple Entente.[4]
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.[5]
Mexican President Venustiano Carranza assigned a general to assess the feasibility of a Mexican takeover of their
former territories.[6] The general concluded that it would not be possible or even desirable for the following reasons:
• Attempting to re-take the former territories would mean unavoidable war with the much stronger U.S.
• Germany's promises of "generous financial support" were empty. Mexico could not buy arms, ammunition, or
other war supplies, because the U.S. was the only sizable arms manufacturer in the Americas. The British Royal
Navy controlled the Atlantic sea lanes, so Germany could not be counted on to supply Mexico with war supplies
directly.
• Even if Mexico had the military means to win the conflict with the U.S. and re-take the area in question, Mexico
would have had severe difficulty accommodating and/or pacifying the large, well-armed, English-speaking
population.
• Other foreign relations were at stake. Mexico had cooperated with the so-called ABC nations in South America to
prevent a war with the U.S., generally improving relations all around. If Mexico were to enter war against the
U.S. it would strain relations with those same ABC nations—who would later declare war on Germany.
2
Zimmermann Telegram
3
British interception
The Telegram was sent to the German embassy in the U.S. for
re-transmission to von Eckardt in Mexico. It has traditionally been
claimed that the Telegram was sent by three routes: transmitted by
radio, and also sent over two trans-Atlantic telegraph cables operated by
neutral governments (the U.S. and Sweden) for the use of their
diplomatic services. But this has now been disproved and only one
method was used. The message was delivered to the US Embassy in
Berlin and then transmitted by diplomatic cable to Copenhagen and then
to London for onward transmission over transatlantic cable to
Washington.[7] The disinformation about the 'three routes' was spread
by Reginald 'Blinker' Hall, the then head of Room 40, to try to shield
from the USA the fact that Room 40 was intercepting its cable traffic.
Direct telegraph transmission was not possible because the British had
cut the German cables in the Atlantic. However, the USA allowed a
limited use of its diplomatic cables for Germany to communicate with
its ambassador in Washington. The facility was supposed to be used for
cables connected with Wilson's peace proposals.[8]
The Swedish cable ran from Sweden; the U.S. cable from the U.S.
embassy in Denmark. However, neither cable ran directly to the U.S.
Both cables passed through a relay station at Porthcurno, near Land's
End, the westernmost tip of England. Here the signals were boosted for
the long trans-oceanic jump. All traffic through the Porthcurno relay
A portion of the Telegram as decrypted by
was copied to British intelligence; in particular, to the codebreakers and
British Naval Intelligence codebreakers.
analysts in Room 40 at the Admiralty.[9] This is now known to be
Because Arizona had only been admitted to the
incorrect, though the 'Swedish Roundabout' was used for other German
U.S. in 1912, the word Arizona was not in the
German codebook and had therefore to be split
communications between Berlin and Washington/South & Central
into phonetic syllables.
America,[10] After their telegraph cables had been cut, the German
Foreign Office appealed to the U.S. for use of their cable for diplomatic
messages. President Wilson agreed to this, in the belief that such cooperation would sustain continued good relations
with Germany, and that more efficient German-American diplomacy could assist Wilson's goal of a negotiated end
to the war. The Germans handed in messages to the U.S. embassy in Berlin, which were relayed to the embassy in
Denmark and then to the U.S. by American operators. However, the U.S. placed conditions on German usage: all
messages must be in clear. The Germans assumed that the U.S. cable was secure, and used it extensively.[9]
Obviously Zimmermann's note could not be given to the U.S. in clear. The Germans persuaded Ambassador James
W. Gerard to accept it in coded form, and it was transmitted on 16 January 1917.[9]
At Room 40, Nigel de Grey partially deciphered the telegram by the next day.[11] Room 40 had previously obtained
German cipher documents, including the diplomatic cipher 13040 (captured in Mesopotamia), and naval cipher
0075, retrieved from the wrecked cruiser SMS Magdeburg.[12][13]
Disclosure of the Telegram would obviously sway American public opinion against Germany. But Room 40 chief
"Blinker" Hall was reluctant to let it out, because the disclosure would expose Room 40's breaking of German codes,
and also that Britain was eavesdropping on the U.S. cable. Hall waited three weeks. During this period, De Grey and
William Montgomery completed the decryption. On 1 February Germany announced resumption of "unrestricted"
submarine warfare, which led to the U.S. breaking off relations with Germany on 3 February.[9]
Zimmermann Telegram
4
Hall passed the telegram to the Foreign Office on 5 February, but still
warned against releasing it. Meanwhile, the British discussed possible
cover stories: to explain to the Americans how they got the ciphertext
of the Telegram, without admitting to the cable snooping; and to
explain how they got the cleartext of the Telegram without letting the
Germans know their codes were broken.
For the first story, the British also got the ciphertext of the Telegram
from the Mexican commercial telegraph office. The British knew that
the German Embassy in Washington would relay the message by
commercial telegraph, so the Mexican telegraph office would have the
ciphertext. "Mr. H", a British agent in Mexico, bribed an employee of
the commercial telegraph company for a copy of the message. (Sir
Thomas Hohler, then British ambassador in Mexico, claimed to have
been "Mr. H" in his autobiography.) This ciphertext could be shown to
the Americans without embarrassment. The retransmission was
enciphered using cipher 13040, so by mid-February the British had the
complete text.
The Telegram, completely decrypted and
translated
For the second story, the British claimed that their agents had stolen the Telegram's deciphered text in Mexico. The
German Foreign Office refused to consider a possible code break, and instead sent von Eckardt on a witch-hunt for a
traitor in the embassy in Mexico. (Von Eckardt indignantly rejected these accusations, and the Foreign Office
eventually declared the embassy exonerated.)[9]
British use of the Telegram
On the 19th of February, Hall showed the Telegram to Edward Bell, secretary of the U.S. Embassy in Britain. Bell
was at first incredulous, thinking it was a forgery, then enraged. On the 20th of February Hall informally sent a copy
to U.S. ambassador Walter Page. On the 23rd of February, Page met with Foreign Minister Balfour, and was given
the ciphertext, the message in German, and the English translation. Then Page reported the story to President
Woodrow Wilson, including details to be verified from telegraph company files in the U.S.
Effect in the United States
Popular sentiment in the U.S. at that time was anti-Mexican as well as anti-German, while Mexico was
anti-American and in some cases, anti-European.[14] General John J. Pershing had long been chasing the
revolutionary Pancho Villa, who had carried out several cross-border raids. News of the Telegram further inflamed
tensions between the U.S. and Mexico.
On the other hand, there was also a notable anti-British sentiment in the U.S., particularly among German- and
Irish-Americans. Until the early months of 1917 American press coverage of Britain and France was not much more
sympathetic than press coverage of Germany. Above all, the vast majority of Americans wished to avoid the conflict
in Europe. At first, the Telegram was widely believed to be a forgery perpetrated by British intelligence. This belief,
which was not restricted to pacifist and pro-German lobbies, was promoted by German and Mexican diplomats, and
by some American papers, especially the Hearst press empire. Those doubts were removed by Arthur Zimmermann
himself. First on 3 March 1917, he told an American journalist, "I cannot deny it. It is true." Then on 29 March 1917,
Zimmermann gave a speech in which he admitted the telegram was genuine.[15] Zimmermann hoped Americans
would understand the idea was that Germany would only fund Mexico's war with the United States in the event of
American entry into World War I.
Zimmermann Telegram
On 31 January, Germany resumed "unrestricted" submarine warfare, which caused many civilian deaths, including
American passengers on British ships. This caused widespread anti-German sentiment. The Telegram greatly
increased this feeling. Besides the highly provocative anti-U.S. proposal to Mexico, the Telegram also mentioned
"ruthless employment of our submarines."[16] It was perceived as especially offensive that the coded Telegram had
been transmitted via the U.S. embassy in Berlin and the U.S.-operated cable from Denmark.
Historical post-script
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.[17] 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,[18] and German advisors present during the 1918 Battle
of Ambos Nogales. The German Naval Intelligence officer Franz von Rintelen had attempted to incite a war between
Mexico and the U.S. in 1915, giving Victoriano Huerta $12 million.[19] The German saboteur Lothar Witzke,
responsible for the March 1917 munitions explosion at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in the Bay Area,[20] and
possibly responsible for the July 1916 Black Tom explosion in New Jersey, was based in Mexico City. The failure of
American troops to capture Pancho Villa in 1916, and the movement of President Carranza in favor of Germany
emboldened the Germans to send the Zimmerman Note.[21]
In October 2005, it was revealed that an original typescript of the deciphered Zimmermann Telegram had recently
been discovered by an unnamed historian who was researching and preparing an official history of the United
Kingdom's Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). The document is believed to be the actual telegram
shown to the American ambassador in London in 1917. Marked in Admiral Hall's handwriting at the top of the
document are the words: "This is the one handed to Dr Page and exposed by the President." Since many of the secret
documents in this incident had been destroyed, it had previously been assumed that the original typed "decrypt" was
gone forever. However, after discovery of this document, the GCHQ official historian said: "I believe that this is
indeed the same document that Balfour handed to Page."[22]
References
Bibliography
• Beesly, Patrick (1982). Room 40: British Naval Intelligence, 1914–1918, New York: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich. ISBN 0-15-178634-8.
• Bernstorff, Count Johann Heinrich (1920). My Three Years in America, New York: Scribner's. pp. 310–311.
• Boghardt, Thomas. "The Zimmermann Telegram: Diplomacy, Intelligence and The American Entry into World
War I". (working papers)online edition [23].
• Gannon, Paul. "Inside Room 40: The Codebreakers of World War I", London, Ian Allen Publishing, 2011, ISBN
978-0-7110-3408-2
• Hopkirk, Peter (1994). On Secret Service East of Constantinople, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-280230-5.
• Katz, Friedrich. The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the United States, and the Mexican Revolution. (1981).
• Link, Arthur S. Wilson: Campaigns for Progressivism and Peace: 1916–1917 (1965), the standard biography
online at ACLS e-books [24].
• Pommerin, Reiner (1996). "Reichstagsrede Zimmermanns (Auszug), 30. März 1917", in: Quellen zu den
deutsch-amerikanischen Beziehungen, Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft. Vol. 1, pp. 213–216.
• Singh, Simon The Zimmermann Telegram [25].
• Tuchman, Barbara W. The Zimmermann Telegram (1985) excerpt and text search [26].
• West, Nigel (1986). The SIGINT Secrets, William Morrow & Co/Quill. ISBN 0-688-09515-1.
5
Zimmermann Telegram
• London Daily Telegraph, 17 October 2005. Telegraph.co.uk ound [27], "Telegram that brought US into Great War
is Found". Article by Ben Fenton.
• Massie, Robert K. (2004). Castles of Steel, Vantage Books, London, 2007. ISBN 978-0-09-952378-9.
Further reading
• Dugdale, Blanche (1937). Arthur James Balfour, New York: Putnam's. Vol. II, pp. 127–129.
• Hendrick, Burton J. [1925] (July 2003). The Life and Letters of Walter H. Page, Kessinger Publishing. ISBN
0-7661-7106-X.
• Kahn, David [1967] (1996). The Codebreakers, New York: Macmillan.
• Winkler, Jonathan Reed (2008). Nexus: Strategic Communications and American Security in World War I.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-02839-5.
Notes
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
Andrew, Christopher (1996). For The President's Eyes Only. Harper Collins. pp. 42. ISBN 0-00-638071-9.
Robert K. Massie, Castles of Steel, pp. 516–18, 527, 542, 548, 714.
The Zimmermann Telegram (http:/ / www. simonsingh. net/ media/ articles/ maths-and-science/ the-zimmermann-telegram/ )
Tuchman, Barbara W. The Zimmerman Telegram (New York: NEL Mentor, 1967),, pp.63 & 73-4.
Friedrich Katz, The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the United States, and the Mexican Revolution (1984) pp.328-9.
Katz, The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the U.S., and the Mexican Revolution. (1981)
[7] Gannon
[8] Gannon
[9] West, Nigel (1990). The Sigint Secrets: The Signals Intelligence War, 1990 to Today-Including the Persecution of Gordon Welchman. New
York: Quill. pp. 83, 87–92. ISBN 0-688-09515-1.
[10] Gannon
[11] Gannon
[12] Polmar, Norman; Noot, Jurrien. Submarines of the Russian and Soviet Navies 1718–1990. Annapolis: US Naval Institute Press, 1991
[13] Zimmermann-Depesche, de.wikipedia.org 13 February 2010. Wikipedia (Deutsch). 7 April 2010
[14] Link (1965)
[15] Meyer, Michael C. "The Mexican-German Conspiracy of 1915", The Americas. 23.1 (1966): 76
[16] Georgetown.edu (http:/ / cges. georgetown. edu/ docs/ docs_working_papers_page/ working_paper_boghardt_6-04. pdf) Perception of the
Telegram in the U.S.
[17] Katz, Friedrich. The Secret War in Mexico: Europe, the United States, and the Mexican Revolution (1984) pp 328-9
[18] Katz, The Secret War in Mexico pp 232-40
[19] Katz, The Secret War in Mexico pp 329-32
[20] Roberts, Priscilla Mary. World War One p. 1606
[21] Katz, The Secret War in Mexico pp 346-7
[22] Fenton, Ben (2005-10-17). "Telegram that brought US into Great War is found found" (http:/ / www. telegraph. co. uk/ news/ uknews/
1500812/ Telegram-that-brought-US-into-Great-War-is-found-found. html). The Daily Telegraph (London). .
[23] http:/ / cges. georgetown. edu/ 83112. html
[24] http:/ / quod. lib. umich. edu/ cgi/ t/ text/ text-idx?c=acls;idno=heb01547. 0005. 001;rgn=full%20text;view=toc;cc=acls
[25] http:/ / www. webcitation. org/ query?url=http:/ / www. geocities. com/ Colosseum/ Park/ 8386/ zman. htm& date=2009-10-25+ 07:17:46
[26] http:/ / www. amazon. com/ dp/ 0345324250/
[27] http:/ / www. telegraph. co. uk/ news/ uknews/ 1500812/ Telegram-that-brought-US-into-Great-War-is-found-found. html
6
Zimmermann Telegram
External links
• Failed Diplomacy: the Zimmermann Telegram (http://texashistory.unt.edu/young/educators/wwI/index.
shtml)
• The life and death of Charles Jastrow Mendelsohn and the breaking of the code. (http://www.findarticles.com/
p/articles/mi_qa3926/is_200401/ai_n9362072/pg_1)
• Our Documents - Zimmermann Telegram (1917) (http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=60)
• GermanNavalWarfare.info (http://germannavalwarfare.info/indexMEX.htm), Some Original Documents from
the British Admiralty, Room 40, regarding the Zimmermann-/Mexico Telegram: Photocopies from The National
Archives, Kew, Richmond, UK.
• Moving out of German Embassy after breaking relations, 1917 (http://www.shorpy.com/node/
11156?size=_original)
7
Article Sources and Contributors
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Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors
File:Zimmermann Telegram.jpeg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Zimmermann_Telegram.jpeg License: unknown Contributors: The U.S. National Archives
File:Zimmermann Telegram.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Zimmermann_Telegram.svg License: Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Contributors:
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File:Zimmermann-telegramm-offen.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Zimmermann-telegramm-offen.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: National Archives
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