Peace: 1912

Root, Elihu (1845-1937), an American statesman, is best remembered for his efforts to assure international peace. From 1905 to 1909, he served as secretary of state under President Theodore Roosevelt. As secretary of state, Root worked to improve United States relations with Latin-American countries and Japan. He also negotiated many treaties in order to end disputes between the United States and other countries. In 1912, he received the Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions to world peace.

Root served as president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace from 1910 to 1925. In 1920 and 1921, he helped organize the Permanent Court of International Justice. For the next 10 years, he battled unsuccessfully to get the United States to join the court.

Root was born in Clinton, N.Y. He graduated from the New York University Law School in 1867. He soon became a highly successful corporate lawyer in New York City. Root served as United States secretary of war from 1899 to 1904, under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. In 1901, he founded the Army War College. Root also drafted the Platt Amendment to the constitution of Cuba. This amendment, adopted in 1901, gave the United States the right to intervene in Cuban affairs. Root represented New York in the United States Senate from 1909 to 1915. In 1916, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican presidential nomination.

Contributor: Robert W. Cherny, Ph.D., Professor of History, San Francisco State University.