America clings to isolationism in
the 1930s as war looms
Japanese Attack Manchuria
(1931)
¾ League of Nations condemned the
action.
¾ Japan leaves the League.
¾ Hoover wanted no part in an American military action in
the Far East.
Hoover-Stimson Doctrine
(1932)
¾ US would not recognize any territorial
acquisitions that were achieved by force.
¾ Japan was infuriated because the US had
conquered new
territories a few
decades earlier.
¾ Japan bombed
Shanghai in
1932 Æ massive
casualties.
FDR’s “Good Neighbor” Policy
¾ Important to have all
nations in the Western
Hemisphere united in lieu
of foreign aggressions.
¾ FDR Æ The good neighbor
respects himself and the
rights of others.
¾ Policy of non-intervention
and cooperation.
¾ Nullifies Platt Amendment;
does not send troops to
Mexico when oil properties
are seized
Economic diplomacy:
¾ FDR recognizes the
Soviet Union- helps
US vs Japan &
might bolster
economy
¾ Granted Philippines
independence by
1946
¾ Reciprocal Trade
Agreements led by
President
American Isolationists:
Nye Committee Hearings
(1934-1936)
¾ The Nye Committee I
investigated the charge
that WW I was needless and
the US entered so munitions
owners could make big profits
[“merchants of death.”]
¾ The Committee did charge
Senator Gerald P. Nye [R-ND]
that bankers wanted war to
protect their loans & arms manufacturers to make
money.
¾ Claimed that Wilson had provoked Germany by sailing
in to warring nations’ waters.
¾ Resulted in Congress passing several Neutrality Acts.
Ludlow Amendment (1938)
9 A proposed amendment
to the Constitution
that called for a
national referendum on
any declaration of war
by Congress.
9 Introduced several
Congressman Louis Ludlow
[D-IN]
times by Congressman
Ludlow.
9 Never actually passed.
Neutrality Acts: 1935, 1936, 1937
9 When the President proclaimed the existence of a
foreign war, certain restrictions would automatically
go into effect:
ƒ Prohibited sales of arms to belligerent nations.
ƒ Prohibited loans and credits to belligerent nations.
ƒ Forbade Americans to travel on vessels of nations at
war [in contrast to WW I].
ƒ Non-military goods must be purchased on a “cash-andcarry” basis Æ pay when goods are picked up.
ƒ Banned involvement in the Spanish Civil War.
9 This limited the options of the President in a crisis.
9 America in the 1930s declined to build up its forces!
US Neutrality
Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)
The American “Lincoln Brigade”
Fascist Aggression
1935: Hitler denounced the Versailles Treaty &
the League of Nations [re-arming!]
Mussolini attacks Ethiopia.
1936: German troops sent into the Rhineland.
Fascist forces sent to fight with Franco in
Spain.
1937: Full-scale war between Japan and China
erupted as Japan’s troops invaded its weaker
neighbor.
FDR’s Quarantine Speech
Panay Incident (1937)
9 December 12, 1937.
9 Japan bombed USS
Panay gunboat & three
Standard Oil tankers on
the Yangtze River.
9 The river was an
international waterway.
9 Japan was testing US resolve!
9 Japan apologized, paid US an indemnity, and promised no
further attacks.
9 Most Americans were satisfied with the apology.
9 Results Æ Japanese interpreted US tone as a license for
further aggression against US interests.
Outbreak of War in Europe
1938: Austrian Anschluss.
Rome-Berlin Tokyo Pact [AXIS]
Munich Agreement Æ APPEASEMENT!
1939: German troops march into the rest of
Czechoslovakia.
Hitler-Stalin Non-Aggression Pact.
September 1, 1939: German troops march into
Poland Æ blitzkrieg Æ WW II
begins!!!
1939 Neutrality Act
9 In response to Germany’s invasion of Poland.
9 FDR persuades Congress in special session to allow
the US to aid European democracies in a limited way:
ƒ The US could sell weapons to the European
democracies on a “cash-and-carry” basis.
ƒ FDR was authorized to proclaim danger zones which
US ships and citizens could not enter.
9 Results of the 1939 Neutrality Act:
ƒ Aggressors could not send ships to buy US munitions.
ƒ The US economy improved as European demands for
war goods helped bring the country out of the
1937-38 recession.
9 America becomes the “Arsenal of Democracy.”
“America First” Committee
Charles Lindbergh
9 Selective Service Act (1940)
Provided for the registration of all American men
between the ages of 21 and 35 and for the training of 1.2
million troops in just one year.
9 Destroyers-for-Bases deal (Sept. 1940)
German attacks in the Atlantic continue
Isolationist sentiment still strong at home
FDR trade solution: Give GB 50 older but still serviceable U.S.
destroyers in exchange for giving the U.S. the right to build
military bases on British islands in the Caribbean
9 Election of 1940:
Republicans: Basically isolationists but not pacifists, supports
preparedness, heavily influenced by “America First”
FDR: “Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars”
but need military strength so that no nation would attack U.S.
Four Freedoms
We look forward to a world founded
upon four essential human freedoms. The
first is freedom of speech and
expression--everywhere in the world.
The second is freedom of every person
to worship God in his own way-everywhere in the world. The third is
freedom from want . . . everywhere in
the world. The fourth is freedom from
fear . . . anywhere in the world.
--President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Message
to Congress, January 6, 1941
“Lend-Lease” Act (1941)
Great Britain.........................$31 billion
Soviet Union...........................$11 billion
France......................................$ 3 billion
China.......................................$1.5 billion
Other European.................$500 million
South America...................$400 million
The amount totaled: $48,601,365,000
Arsenal of Democracy
9 British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President
Franklin D. Roosevelt aboard a warship off the coast of
Newfoundland during the Atlantic Conference. The
conference took place from August 9-12, 1941, and resulted
in the Atlantic Charter, a joint proclamation by the United
States and Britain declaring that they were fighting the
Axis powers to "ensure life, liberty, independence and
religious freedom and to preserve the rights of man and
justice.” The Atlantic Charter served as a foundation stone
for the later establishment of the United Nations, setting
forth several principles for the nations of the world,
including -- the renunciation of all aggression, right to selfgovernment, access to raw materials, freedom from want and
fear, freedom of the seas, and disarmament of aggressor
nations. (Photo credit: U.S. National Archives)
9 Shoot-on-Sight- U.S. Navy escorted British ships from U.S.
to Iceland. American ship was attacked. FDR orders “shooton-sight” orders = undeclared naval war
Some questions:
1.
How effective was the U.S. at dealing with
fascist aggression in the 1930s?
2. Should the U.S. have reacted differently? Could
FDR have realistically done something different?
3. Why do you think the U.S. seemed more
concerned about European dictators than the
Japanese (who were clearly aggressively pursuing
land as well)?
4. In both WWI & WWII, the U.S. repeatedly
claimed neutrality as battles were fought in
Europe. How “neutral” was the U.S. in each case?