America in World War II, Part One

Hello readers! It's been a while since I wrote a real blog post, rather than information about my upcoming book and the recent interview I had regarding its release. 

 We left off with the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the Americans to bring World War II to an end in the Pacific (by that point, Germany and Italy had already surrendered). This post will be the first in a series of the role the United States played in World War II. There's going to be a lot to unpack over the next several posts, so let's just jump right in! 

Neutrality and Isolationism 

When the events that would lead to World War II began in Europe, many Americans took a hard stance against getting involved. With the extreme loss of life and swift economic downturn brought about by the end of the Great War (and other factors, as discussed in previous posts), the US wanted to remain neutral and isolate itself from the events that were unfolding in Europe. The US would pass a series of Neutrality Acts between 1935-1937. 

The series of neutrailty acts created an embargo on all war item shipments, stated that US citizens were not allowed to travel on ships going to or from beligerent countries, and that those who were from beligerent countries were not allowed to take out loans in the US. The 

Changing of American Attitudes 

While the world was plunged in to chaos and war, President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted to help the Allied forces of Britain and France. At the time, with American opinion on the war still being that they should remain neutral and isolated, the only concession the executive and legistlative branches made were in the establishment of the Lend-Lease Act. 

Prior to FDR's signing of the Lend-Lease Act, there were two laws in effect that would have prevented the US from aiding the Allies. The Neutrality Act of 1939 allowed beligerents to purchase war materials from the US but only on a "cash and carry" basis, meaning beligerents could purchase war materials from the US as long as they paid immediately in cash and had arranged for their own ships to transport the materials. The Johnson Act of 1934 was another act meant to keep the US neutral and isolated at a time of war; it prohibited the extension of credit to countries that hadn't repaid US loans made to them during World War I. 

The American military opposed the division of war materials and supplies to the Allied forces. The Army's Chief of Staff at the time, General George C. Marshall, anticipated the possibility that Britain would surrender once France fell and that American supplies would end up in German possession. General Marshall and others believed that US national security would be better served by utilizing American supplies for the defense of the Western hemisphere. 

On September 2, 1940, FDR signed a "destroyers for bases" agreement; the US gave Britain more than 50 obsolete destroyers in exchange for 99-year long leases on territory in Newfoundland and the Caribbean to be used as US air and naval bases. FDR came to this agreement to assuage the concerns of his generals and of the public.

In December 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill told FDR that Britain would no longer be able to pay forrials. As a response, FDR signed the Lend-Lease Act which allowed for the US to "lend" Britian war materials while deferring payment. The US knew that it couldn't expect to receive payment from a virtually bankrupt country; instead, the US would receive payment in the form of a "consideration". This "consideration" would primarily consist of a joint action directed towards the creation of a liberalized economic order in the post-war era.

Over the course of the war, the US would sign lend-lease agreements with more than 30 countries. The Lend-Lease Act served its purpose of allowing the US to indirectly enter the war against the Axis forces until the American public were ready to enter the war themselves. 

Pearl Harbor 

Although the US began involving itself in the war on the side of the Allies in 1940, the US would not physically involve themselves in the war until after December 1941, which was marked by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In July 1939, FDR announced that the US would no longer be supplying Japan with gasoline, iron, and other trade items that had a potential to be used in its war against China. 

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked the Pearl Harbor naval base on Honolulu, Hawaii. America would declare war on Japan; shortly after, Germany would declare war on the US, forcing the US into a two front war, fighting in Europe and in the Pacific. 

Now that we know why the US entered the war, the next post will examine how the US mobilized for the war effort.