Download The Atlantic Charter

US Entry Into
W W II
Causes of W W II
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Rise of Totalitarian Dictators: Hitler, Mussolini,
Hirohito, Franco

Nazi rearmament and aggression / expansionism:
Rhineland, Austria, Sudetenland (Mussolini –
Ethiopia: Japan – Manchuria, China)

Weakness of League of Nations, and Allied
Appeasement (typified by Munich Conference /
Agreement)

Failure of Munich Agreement: German invasion of
Czechoslovakia

Nazi-Soviet Pact of Aug. 1939; 10 Year NonAggression Pact; ensured Germany would not have to
fight on two fronts

German invasion of Poland, Sept. 1, 1939

France and Britain declare war on Germany, Sept. 3rd
1939

7 month Phony War; followed by invasion of Denmark,
Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg

Fall of France, June 22nd 1940
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Invasion of Britain Aug. 1940 : Operation Sea Lion,
Battle of Britain, Luftwaffe v RAF;
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June 22nd 1941: Operation Barbarossa; invasion of
Soviet Union, preceded by invasion of Bulgaria,
Romania, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Greece
US Response to events in Europe

In response to the rise of Totalitarianism and tension in
Europe, the US passed the Neutrality Acts of 1935,
1936, 1937

These Acts enforced a mandatory arms embargo (nonmilitary goods would be sold on a Cash and Carry basis)
against both victim and aggressor in any military conflict

and made it illegal for US citizens to travel on ships of
warring nations - Goal was to prevent the US becoming
involved in any conflict in Europe / to prevent an
occurrence of the events which many believed had
pressured the US into WW1 (no Lusitania type incident)
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In response to the actual outbreak of war, the
Neutrality Act of 1939 introduced a revision, allowing
the sale of arms and ammunition on a cash and carry
basis to belligerents (obviously, only to Allies –
benevolent neutrality)

At the very least (if the US wasn’t going to fight), FDR
believed, the US should make armaments available to
the Allied armies to help them counteract the
remarkably productive German munitions industry

Under the Act, US ships were forbidden from entering
the War Zone

The US was slowly moving away from Isolationism,
though still neutral. Like W W I, the US was first
involved in an Economic War with the Allies, against
the Axis powers

In response to the Fall of France and the Invasion of
Britain (Operation Sea Lion / Battle of Britain) FDR
also persuades Congress to make preparations in the
event of a Nazi invasion of the US, by increasing the
military budget to $37b

He also introduced the Selective Training and Services
Act – the first peacetime Draft – to increase US troops
levels to 1.2m and 800,000 reserves

Direct support for the Allies increased when FDR set up
dummy / mock private companies through which he gave
military equipment to the British (supposedly bought by
Britain)

And he also circumvented the cash-and-carry provisions of
the Neutrality Act by trading 50 American destroyers in
return for the right to build 8 US bases on British territory
(Newfoundland, Bermuda, and British Guiana)

FDR reasoned that if the US helped the Allies to win, with
this kind of help, then the US wouldn’t have to fight later –
the Nazis would not become a threat to the US

In the summer of 1940 a heated debate took place in the
US between isolationists and interventionists

Isolationists in the America First Committee (inc.
Lindbergh) argued that the US should concentrate only on
defending its own shores – not provide any help to the Allies.

The Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies, an
internationalist / interventionist group supported increased US
assistance to the Allies but opposed actual declaring war
(economic aid / materials to avoid the need for US to get
involved militarily)
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The Fight for Freedom Committee / interventionists urged an
immediate declaration of war

FDR defeated Willkie in the 1940 Presidential Election:
afterwards began to increase US role / make a bigger
commitment, as Nazis advanced and the situation in
Europe deteriorated

With Britain virtually bankrupt, and no longer able to
meet the cash and carry requirements, he introduced
Lend Lease in Dec. 1940, started in March 1941

He wanted to eliminate the payments, yet satisfying
those who were against blatant US intervention in the
war – so used the term Lend and Lease. The US
basically gave armaments to any nation deemed "vital
to the defenses of the US“ for free.

The US became the “Arsenal of Democracy”

FDR soon faced another series of problems; ensuring
that US arms supplies actually reached Britain and
France – he responded by ordering that the US navy
escort the lend lease ships as far as Iceland, and the
British would take over from there through the war
zone

When Germany invaded the USSR, Lend Lease was
extended to include the USSR, eventually giving the
Soviets $11b in military equipment / weapons

The US was propping up Hitler's foes on both fronts,
and the navy was playing an active role in protecting
the flow of goods to Europe…..Economic War with
Germany had expanded

The US was also involved in an Ideological War with
Totalitarianism / Fascism from 1941
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FDR’s idealism was seen in his Four Freedoms…of
his Jan. 1941 speech to Congress (Read speech /
Handout)
FDR’s Four Freedom’s

The first is freedom of speech and expression- everywhere in the
world.
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The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own
way- everywhere in the world.
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The third is freedom from want- which, translated into world terms,
means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a
healthy peace time life for its inhabitants- everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear- which translated into world terms,
means a worldwide reduction of armaments [military forces and
equipment] to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no
nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression
against any neighbor- anywhere in the world.
The Atlantic Charter

And in the Atlantic Charter, July-Aug, 1941, agreed with Churchill
on a battleship off Newfoundland – signed later by 15 more
countries, inc. the USSR (Read Excerpt / Handout….make notes on
4 Freedoms)

First, their countries seek no aggrandizement, territorial or other

Second, they desire to see no territorial changes that do not accord
with the freely expressed wishes of the peoples concerned…

Third, they respect the right of all peoples to choose the form of
government under which they will live; and they wish to see
sovereign rights and self government restored to those who have
been forcibly deprived of them
The Atlantic Charter

Fourth, they will endeavor, with due respect for their
existing obligations, to further the enjoyment by all
States, great or small, victor or vanquished, of access,
on equal terms, to the trade and to the raw materials
of the world which are needed for their economic
prosperity

Fifth, they desire to bring about the fullest collaboration
between all nations in the economic field with the object
of securing, for all, improved labor standards,
economic advancement and social security
The Atlantic Charter

Sixth, after the final destruction of Nazi tyranny, they
hope to see established a peace which will afford to all
nations the means of dwelling in safety within their
own boundaries, and which will afford assurance that
all the men in all the lands may live out their lives in
freedom from fear and want
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Seventh, such a peace should enable all men to traverse
the high seas and oceans without hindrance
The Atlantic Charter

Eighth, they believe that all of the nations of the
world, for realistic as well as spiritual reasons must
come to the abandonment of the use of force. Since
no future peace can be maintained if land, sea, or air
armaments continue to be employed by nations which
threaten, or may threaten, aggression outside of their
frontiers, they believe, pending the establishment of a
wider and permanent system of general security,
that the disarmament of such nations is essential.
They will likewise aid and encourage all other
practicable measures which will lighten for peaceloving peoples the crushing burden of armaments.
Roosevelt and Churchill at Atlantic Charter Meeting, 1941
President Franklin D. Roosevelt (left) and British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill (1874–1965) confer on board a ship near Newfoundland during their
summit meeting of August, 1941. During the conference, they signed the
Atlantic Charter. Upon his return to Great Britain, Churchill told his advisers
that Roosevelt had promised to "wage war" against Germany and do
"everything" to "force an incident." (Franklin D. Roosevelt Library)

By late 1941….it seemed only a matter of time before
the US became an official belligerent

FDR felt it was inevitable and may have welcomed it
(like Wilson)……but, FDR was convinced that public
opinion would support a declaration of war only in the
event of an actual enemy attack.

In Sept. 1941, Nazi submarines began a concerted
campaign against US naval vessels protecting Lend
Lease ships – US destroyers the Greer and Kearney
were sunk killing 11 Americans

FDR responded by ordering US ships to fire on German
submarines "on sight".

In Oct., Nazi submarines torpedoed the Reuben James,
killing over 100 sailors.

The US had, in effect, become involved in an
undeclared naval war against Germany (as in W W I)
(Economic, Ideological, and now Undeclared Naval).

The public was now moving more and more away from
isolationism in response to the sinking of these US
vessels.

Congress responded by dropping the Neutrality Act of
1939 and merchant ships were armed and were permitted
to sail into the war zones with their cargoes

If US entry into the war had not happened because of
events in the Pacific, then it would have come as a result
of future incidents in the Atlantic. Entry into the WW II
seemed inevitable because of events in the Atlantic – the
surprise was that events in the Pacific brought War

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US Gradually Moves Towards War: Summary
Neutrality Acts, 1935, 1936, 1937; no arms sales to
belligerents; no US passengers on belligerent ships;
Cash and Carry of US non-military goods only; no
loans
Sale of arms permitted to Allies on Cash and Carry
basis, 1939 Neutrality Act
Gradual military budget increase, reaching $37b,
1939
Arms to Britain through dummy companies

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50 destroyers to Britain for naval bases, 1940
Selective Services and Training Act, 1940;
peacetime draft
Four Freedoms Speech
Lend-Lease Act, 1940; no charge for weapons
Lend-Lease extended to USSR, 1941
Atlantic Charter
Robin Moor, Greer, Kearney, Reuben James,
attacked by German U Boats, 1941…merchant ships
now armed and protected by navy
Undeclared Economic War, Ideological War to
Undeclared Naval War....Before Actual Declaration
of War
US Response to Events in the Pacific

Japanese militarism / expansion (raw materials,
Depression, unemployment, nationalism); invasion of
Manchuria 1932

US is concerned about access to China / Open Door;
refuses to recognize the new Manchurian Govt. or any
territorial gains seized by force – issues the Stimson
Doctrine to that effect

US recognizes Communist regime in USSR, 1933

But the US did not cooperate with the League of
Nations in imposing sanctions against the Japanese
(Japan’s response to the sanctions was to withdraw
from the League)

In 1934 Japan also terminated the Washington Naval
Treaty of 1922 and began to build more and bigger
naval vessels

1937 – Japan invaded China; captures Peking, Shanghai,
and then Nanjing; Rape of Nanking / Nanjing (300,000
victims)

FDR condemns the invasion: threatens a US Quarantine
or Embargo against Japan

But there was angry reaction in the US to his speech from
isolationists who feared that this would lead to war

Faced with strong opposition, FDR backed down – the
only action taken was to give loans to the Chinese govt.
to help it buy military supplies


1937, Dec - Japan sank a US ship in Chinese waters Panay - two killed and thirty wounded...but then
apologized and paid an indemnity to silence US anger not yet ready for war with US, although Japanese
soldiers occupying China continued to subject US
citizens to intimidation
US does not respond, accepts apology

Japan, in July 1940, announced a plan for the future of
Asia called the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity
Sphere, which was really a plan for a Japanese empire
to include much of China, Southeast Asia and the
Western Pacific.

In Sept 1940 Japan signs the Rome - Berlin - Tokyo
Axis, promising that each would defend the other if
attacked.

In response the US embargoed sales of scrap metals,
chemicals, machine parts to Japan

1940, September - Japan occupies part of French
Indochina (Vietnam), encouraged by the fall of France
to Germany…moving ominously close to the
Philippines

US reacted to this by placing an embargo on supplies of
iron ore, steel, rubber, oil, aviation fuel, chemicals,
machine parts (part Quarantine) - this pushed Japan
even closer still to the Axis Powers.

1941, July - Japan occupied the
remainder of French Indochina

The US freezes all Japanese assets in
the US and ended all trade with Japan

Diplomatic talks between Japan and
the US broke down in Oct; Japan
refused to pull out of China,
demanding free reign in region –
Admiral Tojo took over as Prime
Minister, and Japan began formulating
plans for expansion into the Dutch
East Indies, Malaysia and the
Philippines to find access to the
supplies, esp. oil, cut off by the US

Japan expected a US reaction if it invaded the
Philippines and that the US response wd come from
Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.

It was felt that if the war came that Japan would have
little chance of success if it fought it in a conventional
way - it was decided to launch a surprise attack on the
US fleet at Pearl Harbor, strike a knock out blow at the
naval base there, at the same time as the other
invasions took place.

1941 - Dec. 7. attack on Pearl Harbor

The US was well aware of Japanese movement in the
Pacific but expected Japanese attacks to take place
against Britain or Dutch possessions in the South British Malaya or the Philippines.

Felt Japan would not dare to strike directly on US forces
at Pearl Harbor

No precautions had been taken against an attack, ships
were bunched up defenselessly in the harbor and planes
were parked in rows on the airstrips. Easy targets.

The results of the raid were catastrophic - within 2 hrs,
the US lost 8 battleships, 3 cruisers, 4 other vessels, 188
airplanes, and several vital shore installations.

Over 2,400 Americans were killed, 1,000 wounded. But
fortunately the 4 aircraft carriers - the heart of the Pacific
Fleet - were out to sea on maneuvers and survived.

Some historians suggest the US / FDR knew about the
impending attack on Pearl Harbor, but let it happen –
excuse to enter war

The attack united Americans in a fervent commitment to
war - US territory had been attacked – what FDR was
unable to achieve in the past several years, almost total
support for the war, compared to WWI - a direct attack on
US territory had to be addressed…killed isolationism.

The US declared war on Japan on Dec 8. Germany and
Italy declared war on the US on Dec 11.
The U.S.S. West Virginia, Pearl Harbor
The stricken U.S.S. West Virginia was one of the eight
battleships caught in the surprise Japanese attack at Pearl
Harbor, Hawai'i, on December 7, 1941. In this photograph,
sailors on a launch attempt to rescue a crew member from the
water as oil burns around the sinking ship. (U.S. Army)
Great Debate
Isolationism v Internationalism?

See separate power point

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US and W W II.
Only nation fighting both in Europe and in the Pacific

Committed to defeat Germany as first priority, and fight
a holding action against Japan until then

Defeat of Germany would mean that Japan was more
likely to crumble

Agreed with Britain that the war against the Axis
powers would continue until they surrendered
unconditionally

US Involvement in North Africa and Europe.
1942; US invasion of North Africa, under Eisenhower;
aid to Montgomery against Rommel….Operation Torch

Stalin furious, wants opening of a Western Front

1943 Casablanca Conference: FDR and Churchill
agree to invade Italy, the soft underbelly of Europe, and
to insist on an "unconditional surrender" by
Germany…later the US applies this to Japan too

Stalin is again outraged
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Italy surrenders after fall of Mussolini – changes sides

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June 6th, 1944 D-Day / Operation Overlord, under
Eisenhower's Command. Finally, after meeting at
Teheran, Stalin gets the Western Front he had been
requesting
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Normandy landing. Air attacks. French underground.
Liberation of Paris.

1945- Battle of the Bulge: Hitler's last desperate attempt
to break through Allied lines is unsuccessful. Allies
invade Germany. Hitler commits suicide. Germany
surrenders unconditionally, May 8th, 1945. VE day

FDR re-elected to 4th term in 1944. But dies, April
1945. Truman becomes President.


US v Japan in the Pacific.
After Pearl Harbor, the Japanese capture the Dutch East
Indies, Burma, Wake Island, Guam, Philippines, Hong
Kong, Malaya, …

By May 1942, the US starts to reverse the tide; Battle of
Coral Sea (near Australia): aircraft from aircraft carriers
do battle, not battleships; US victory

Battle of Midway: major victory for the US: reduced
threat to Pearl Harbor / Hawaii: Huge losses for Japan;
US now seizes initiative: US Admiral Nimitz

US takes Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands: huge
losses on both sides; Japanese fight to the death kamikaze
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1944 - US, under McArthur captures the Marshall
Islands. Safeguards Australia.
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US adopts "island hopping" (leapfrogging) strategy:
jumps over heavily fortified Japanese occupied islands.

US captures the Mariana Islands - near enough from
which to attack Japanese
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1945 - US captures Iwo Jima – huge losses
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After the Battle of Leyte, the US recaptures the
Philippines.
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US captures Okinawa – near enough to Japan itself for air
attacks

Several US air attacks on Japanese cities. March 1945,
Tokyo is fire bombed, destroying 250,000 buildings and
killing 83,000 people

But Japan will not surrender unconditionally

Truman estimates it will cost the lives of up to 1m
marines in a conventional invasion

At Potsdam, Truman warns Japan that it should surrender
or be destroyed; Atomic Bomb had been developed in the
Manhattan project, at Alamogordo, New Mexico: key
scientists are Oppenheimer and Einstein

August 6 - Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima,
instantly killing 80,000 and another 100,000 suffered
from burns and radiation.

Japan will still not surrender unconditionally.

August 8 - USSR declares war on Japan, as promised at
Teheran. Captures Korea and Manchuria

August 9 - Atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki, killing
40,000.

August 13 - Japan surrenders / conditional: US agrees
that the Emperor Hirohito can remain on

September 2nd - McArthur officially accepts Japan’s
surrender on board the SS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. VJ
Day.
Truman and the Atomic Bomb / Read Handout

Learns of the project 12 days (April
25th) after taking over from FDR from Stimson, Sec. of War

Told him it would probably be
available in four months

Stimson supported using the bomb to
end the war, but he also pointed out
some serious problems that the bomb
would pose for the world after the war
– a possible atomic arms race and the
danger of an atomic war

To address these challenges, Stimson proposed that
Truman appoint a committee to advise him on policy
regarding atomic weapons: Truman took the advice and
set up and Interim Committee

The goal of Truman and the Committee appears to have
been to find the most effective way to use the bomb to
shock Japan into surrendering.

Even though the Russians had promised to enter the war
against Japan by August 8th, many American military
leaders assumed than an amphibious landing on the
Japanese mainland would be necessary to end the war.
The cost in American lives would be high, and many
believed that using the bomb could end the war without
and invasion.
The Opinions

The quotes expressed are by Henry L. Stimson,
General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ralph A. Bard, and
James Franck.

Stimson’s statement expresses the majority opinion,
that the bomb had to be used to end the war quickly
and to save American lives. Secretary of States James
Byrnes and the Interim Committee supported this….
other statements question the use of the weapon.
Henry L. Stimson, Secretary of War

“In the light of the alternative,
which, on a fair estimate,
were open to us, I believe that
no man, in our position and
subject to our responsibilities,
holding in his hands a weapon
of such possibilities for
accomplishing this purpose
and saving those lives, could
have failed to use it and
afterwards looked his
countrymen in the face.”
General Dwight D. Eisenhower
(Supreme Allied Commander)

“I told him [Stimson] I was
against it on two counts.
First, the Japanese were
ready to surrender and it
wasn’t necessary to hit them
with that awful thing.
Second, I hated to see our
country be the first to use
such a weapon.”
Ralph A. Bard, Undersecretary of
the Navy

“I have had a feeling that
before the bomb is actually
used against Japan that Japan
should have some
preliminary warning of say
two or three days in
advance… The position of
the United States as a great
humanitarian nation and the
fair play attitude of our
people generally is
responsible in the main for
this feeling.”
James Franck, University of Chicago

“If the United States were
to be the first to release this
new means of
indiscriminate destruction
upon mankind, she would
sacrifice public support
throughout the world,
precipitate the race for
armaments, and prejudice
the possibility of reaching
an international agreement
on the future control of
such weapons.”
Truman’s Options in Ending the War
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1. Drop the bomb on Japanese cities to force an immediate end to
the war
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2. Carry out a demonstration of the weapon to persuade Japan to
surrender
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3. Launch an invasion of Japan
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4. Rely on Japan's deteriorating military situation and the entry of
the Soviet Union into the war to force Japanese surrender.
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5. Negotiate surrender terms acceptable to Japan and the US
The Decision
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The Interim Committee made its decision and gave it
to Truman on June 1st, 1945.
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"The present view of the Committee was that the
bomb should be used against Japan as soon as
possible; that it be used on a war plant surrounded by
workers' homes; and that it be used without prior
warning.” –Recording Secretary R. Gordon Arneson,
from minutes taken on June 1
The Decision continued…
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Secretary of State Byrnes informed the president of the
Interim Committee’s decision. Later he said that “with
reluctance [Truman] had to agree that he could think
of no alternative and found himself in accord with
what I told him the Committee was going to
recommend.”
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Truman seems to have made his decision the day he
received the report, but he did not give the order to
drop the bomb until later.
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Why did he agree with the Committee? Why did he
choose option 1?
The Decision continued…
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Apparently, Truman rejected option 2, a
demonstration, for reasons offered by the Interim
Committee and its Scientific Panel. A demonstration
would not help to end the war. The committee did not
offer evidence to support this judgment.

They knew, however, that a successful test would not
necessarily cause the Japanese to surrender
unconditionally. An unsuccessful test would be worse
than none.
The Decision continued…
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Truman placed the highest value on ending the war
with the loss of as few American lives as possible.
Both options 3and 4 would cost countless American
lives and bring an indefinite extension of the war with
no certain outcome.

Option 4 had an added disadvantage. If the Soviets
entered the fighting, they would gain an advantage in
postwar negotiations about new governments in
Eastern Europe. Truman and other U.S. leaders
preferred not to be indebted to the Soviets for any
help in ending the war with Japan.
The Decision continued…
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Truman probably never viewed option 5 as a real
possibility. The only surrender acceptable to
American leaders would be unconditional. The only
surrender acceptable to the Japanese would include at
least one condition: that they be allowed to keep their
emperor. Truman saw the bomb as just another
weapon- legitimate in wartime, when the goal was to
win. He saw it as more destructive, perhaps, but not
ethically different from the fire bombing of Dresden
or Tokyo.
The Outcome

The bomb was successfully tested on July 16, 1945 at
a remote desert site near Alamogordo, New Mexico.
J. Robert Oppenheimer, the physicist who directed
the production of the bomb, said, “We waited until
the blast had passed, walked out of the shelter and
then it was extremely solemn. We knew the world
would not be the same.”
The Outcome continued…

On August 6, 1945, an atomic bomb, carrying more
power than 20,000 tons of TNT, was dropped on
Hiroshima, Japan, an important military center. The
next day President Truman gave a statement that
included the following: “Let there be no mistake: we
shall completely destroy Japan’s power to make us
war. Only a Japanese surrender will stop us.”
The Interpretations

During the years following the summer in 1945, three
main interpretations have emerged.

One is that Truman and Stimson were correct in their
idea that the bombings were necessary to end the war
and save lives. According to this view, these were the
only significant motives of those who ordered the
bombing of Hiroshima and, three days later.
Nagasaki.
The Interpretations continued…
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Another interpretation is that dropping the bomb was
unnecessary, even immoral. People holding this view
argued that while Truman and the others were honest,
they were also naïve; they failed to take into account
the long-term effects of dropping the bomb, such as
the arms race and the Cold War.
The Interpretations continued…

A third group also saw the bombings as unnecessary and unwise.
In addition, they said that Truman and the other policy makers
had ulterior motives, that they engaged in “atomic
diplomacy.” That is, they used the bombings to try to
intimidate the Soviets. As a result, said this group, they failed to
seriously consider alternatives to dropping the bomb.

The U.S. was far too quick to drop the second bomb on
Nagasaki, not giving Japan enough time to respond

If the real reason for dropping the bomb was to intimidate
Russia, then surely another way of doing so could have been
found, rather than at the expense of thousands of Japanese
civilians.
The Interpretations continued…
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Later, there was and is much interpretation and
controversy over the decision to drop the bomb. As
time passes, new evidence becomes available. The
first viewpoint found support in later evidence from
Japan which seemed to show that without the
bombings, the war might have continued for many
months.

Such findings support the often repeated but much
challenged idea that the bombings saved as many as
1,000,000 American lives.
The Interpretations continued…

Another source of new evidence has been medical
reports about those who survived the bombings at
Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Many sickened and died
soon afterward. Over the years, more evidence ahs
emerged about long-term effects of atomic radiation.
Today, for example, survivors of the bombings have a
higher than average incidence of leukemia and
thyroid cancer. Thus, medical reports about survivors
add to the evidence used by those who raised ethical
questions about the bomb.

There is no doubt that it was one of the opening shots of
the Cold War - a warning to the Soviets who had moved
into Eastern Europe - to keep out of Asia. The U.S.
wanted to end the war there before the Soviets could
make territorial gains in the Far East. ….Atomic
Diplomacy
Atomic bomb DBQ
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With your partner
Brainstorm
 6 paragraph plan
 Read documents and create chart … author, year,
source, audience, voice, details, general thesis
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