American Neutrality, 1920-1941

Roots of Neutrality: Isolationism• Disillusionment w/ WWI• Disillusionment w/ League of

Nations• Disclosure of War Profiteering

– Nye Committee, 1933– US entry blamed on munitions

industry!– Influenced Neutrality Acts

• Belief in geographic protection

• Primary concern was economics

American Isolation, Post WW I• Belief that US involvement in

WWI was a horrible mistake• Efforts by US to avoid future

involvement– Peace societies (conservative

and radical)– Washington Naval Conference,

1922– Kellogg-Briand Pact, 1928

(outlawed war!)– Recognition of USSR, 1933– Good Neighbor Policy (shift

away from direct intervention in Latin America), 1933

American Isolation, Post WWI• Events of early 1930s

showed America the agreements wouldn’t work– Japanese invade Manchuria,

1931– Hitler announced Germany’s

rearmament, 1935– Italian invasion of Ethiopia,

1935– Spanish Civil War, 1936– Rhineland militarized, 1936– Axis military Pact, 1936– Japan-China clash, 1937 (WWII

began in Asia)

Totalitarianism v. DemocracyTotalitarianism’s

basic ideals• Individual serves the state• State is supreme• State grants rights• Militarism, force rule

Major totalitarian rulers– Adolf Hitler (Germany)– Benito Mussolini (Italy)– Josef Stalin (USSR)– Francisco Franco (Spain)– Hideki Tojo (Japan)

Democracy’sbasic ideals

• State serves the individual• People are supreme• People have rights• Emphasis on debate

Major Democratic leaders– FDR (USA)– Neville Chamberlain (UK)– Eduard Daladier (France)

American Isolation in Action, Post WWI

• American reaction– Johnson Debt Default Act (no

loans to WWI defaulters)– Neutrality Acts of 1935, 1936,

1937: Together, provided that if President said a foreign war was taking place, no sailing, sales, transportation of goods, or loans to any belligerent (would have kept US out of WWI)

– FDR: “Quarantine” speech, 1937 (called for economic quarantine of aggressors v isolationism)

Appeasement• Policy of European countries,

towards threats to peace, despite strength of allied armies – why???– Anschluss (Austria) 1938– Hitler demanded

Sudentenland (Czechoslovakia), 1938

– Munich Pact, Sept. 1938• Neville Chamberlain (UK)• Eduard Daladier (France)• Hitler (Germany)• Mussolini (Italy)• “Peace in our time!”

US Response to Appeasement

• Buenos Aires Conference, 1936 (threat to one country in Western Hemisphere a threat to all)

• Canada was brought under Monroe Doctrine, 1938

• Declaration of Lima, 1938: American nations agreed on common action, in crisis

European War, 1939

• Hitler took rest of Czech, March 1939

• Italy attacked Albania, April 1939

• Germany & USSR sign Non-Aggression Pact, Aug. 1939

• Poland attacked by Germans, Soviets Sept. 1, 1939

American Response• Neutrality Act of 1939– “Cash & carry” on munitions,

for Allies (FDR influenced)– Germany designated as the

aggressor• Declaration of Panama, Oct.

1939– 300 mile “safety zone” declared

around Western Hemisphere nations

• Smith Act, 1940– Illegal to advocate overthrow of

US government• Draft reinstated, Sept. 1940

Lend-Lease• US program to supply allies with

war supplies, from March 1941 to 1945– US shipped a total of $50.1 billion

(almost $700 billion, in 2007 dollars) to Britain, USSR, France, China

– In return, US received about $7.8 billion (about $100 billion in 2007 dollars) worth of military bases in Newfoundland, Caribbean

• US received no other repayment - & did not seek any repayment

America’s Entry into the War• July 1941: Japan seized Indo-

China• July 1941: America froze

Japanese assets, established embargo on oil, gas, etc.

• Nov. 1941: Japanese peace mission

• Dec. 7, 1941: Pearl Harbor attacked (2,896 casualties, over 2100 deaths; 8 BB sunk or heavily damaged)

• War declared on Dec. 8, retroactive to Dec. 7