Edith and Woodrow Wilson
Let’s return now to the modern era, and look at a woman whose husband led the United States through the period of WWI. Woodrow Wilson, as few people perhaps know, was the principal architect of the United Nations, through the founding of its precursor, the League of Nations. The organization was founded with the objective of placing under international administration numerous territories liberated from the control of the German and Ottoman Empires. As he was engaged in establishing this organization, he was, of course, deeply involved in negotiating peace in Europe (for this he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize). The terms of peace established did not meet with universal approval at home, however, and once back from Europe, he embarked on a nationwide speaking tour to make his case directly to the American people.
Then, in October 1919, at the age of 62, Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke that left him partially paralyzed. It so happens that the United States did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles, nor join the League of Nations.
At his lowest ebb, however, and now vulnerable to his political enemies, Edith, Wilson’s wife of just four years, stepped into the breach, and effectively ran the executive from his bedside, maintaining this role long after he was back on his feet, and until, in fact, he completed his second term in the spring of 1921. According to her memoir:
‘So began my stewardship, I studied every paper sent from the different Secretaries or Senators,” she wrote later of her role, “and tried to digest and present in tabloid form the things that, despite my vigilance, had to go to the President. I, myself, never made a single decision regarding the disposition of public affairs. The only decision that was mine was what was important and what was not, and the very important decision of when to present matters to my husband.’
The matter, of course, in an age of limited press access, was shrouded in secrecy, and very few people, even those in government, were aware of the extent to which Edith Wilson had taken over the duties of her husband. Historians now accept that what she did was a great deal more than simple stewardship, but she performed as the de facto chief executive of the nation. It can certainly be taken for granted that it was she who was the power behind the throne, albeit in a most graceful, subtle and understated manner.